Koh Yao Noi Muay Thai Gym, Phang Nga Province, Thailand

5Irene Gem 5:00 PM Mar 2, 2020

Home
KYN Muay Thai Gym Definitely my favourite gym, due people, location, training and food. The staff is supportive, in any way you need support. Trainings are tuff, but always to make you better and you are always watched after by the trainers. I haven’t found a gym where there is that much of sparring, and that’s where I believe comes the real growth. During the trainings there is more than enough time to improve your technics too. The intensity of the daily trainings will strength your condition and muscles, but, unless you ask for it, all the time the trainers spend it on your fighting skills. If you wish you can go running yourself at this beautiful island or make use of the fitness equipment in the gym. Many beautiful beaches, amazing restaurants and about two bars is what the island can give to you. And don’t forget the local people, no need to lock your door, this community is built on love, trust and 100% inclusivity. Those two bars are enough for some joy and entertainment and also to keep the island a peaceful place to be. The meals served at the gym are tasteful and made with love, perfect to feed you. After trying quiet some places I wouldn’t not only say that this is my favourite place to train Muay Thai, it is also my favourite place to train for life.

5J L 5:00 PM Aug 23, 2011

Suffer & Enjoy
Intro Having gained quite some weight over the last years I decided to take some drastic measures. I am a lazy guy by nature and I knew that losing weight would be impossible if I stayed at home. So I searched the internet, looking for something secluded (I am also easily distracted), nice and interesting. The Koh Yao Noi Muay Thai Gym promised all that: Located on a small island I would have small friendly Thai people around me kicking my sorry butt into shape. Between the training sessions I could stay at the beach, in a fetal position, whining about aching muscles. Perfect. Within a month I was there. The island Even though relatively close to the party destination Phuket, Koh Yao Noi is a very calm and relaxed place. Here, you won't find big crazy parties or crowded bars full with sunburned tourists getting wasted in the middle of the day. Instead you will find laid back and friendly locals and an island which still has not been taken over by tourism. Some might say that it is boring. For me it was perfectly relaxing. The school Big boys can train twice a day, for two hours per session. Really big boys can also do the morning run (9.5 km) and the evening run (2.5 km). The training itself consists of shadowboxing, sparring and pad work. The classes are held by two main trainers: Hlukhin and Noom, both seasoned fighters as well as incredibly dedicated yet funny people (you can read more about their background on the schools website). Additional trainers are there if necessary. The school has a boxing ring, several sandbags as well as basic weights. Everybody is free to use the equipment during the day but honestly: You will be happy for a break after official training. If you are interested in it, the school will organize a fight for you, but you better be prepared to train for it. Don't expect a show where you fight a guy who is getting paid to play around with curious tourists. It will be a real fight. You might win. You might lose. Training starts with a collective warm up followed by shadow boxing and light sparring (boxing, kicking, grappling, no ground fight). During that, the trainers pick you out to do individual pad work. Training stamina and basic patterns makes a big part of the training but often they will also teach more subtle things, techniques a beginner like me would have never noticed in a real fight. Hlukhin and Noom are very good at adjusting their demands to your level of experience. Being a total beginner in Muay Thai (I used to do Wing Chun for many years) they made sure that I understand the basics. They don't try to pamper you, just because you came for a few weeks. They will point out your weaknesses, they will yell at your mistakes - not because they like picking at you but because they want you to improve and because they love what they do. Getting an approving nod after an incredibly exhausting session usually made my day, making me feel like I earned something. Conclusion I stayed there for a month. Not having done any sport in the last years I usually ended up crawling out of the gym, often directly to the nearby pool. And when I stopped panting and whining and watched how the red sun set while floating in the warm water I realized that this was the best damn thing I had done in a long time. (And btw: I lost 7 kg during my time there, yeah!)