Documenting my journey as a female Muay Thai fighter in Thailand, sharing techniques, culture and personal perspective - over 250 fights fought
- December 1, 2020*The phrase “Female Fighters” is used in the title for brevity and discovery, read as: “People Who Menstruate”. Read more of my Gendered Experience articles here. There are a lot of reasons why talking about the menstrual cycle – the whole thing – is important for athletes. Firstly, the “this is super private and should be kept private” approach keeps us from acknowledging that our...
- October 16, 2020We shot more than an hour of my training at Sangtiennoi’s gym about 40 minutes north of Bangkok, just to give everyone a sense of what it is like to train there. It is one of the more authentic Thai gyms, run by a legend of the sport. Kevin’s beautiful photography captured the feeling of the space in the morning, and I put my commentary...
- October 4, 2020Lots to get caught up on! The Muay Thai Bones podcast is back, with an episode covering some of the more psychological aspects of Muay Thai and being a fighter, as well as the preciousness of the Muay Khao fighting style which recently has been under some threat of being phased out, albeit briefly. Watch episode 18 here on YouTube (below), or get the audio...
- September 23, 2020I’m writing this to create a resource chain for anyone else who wants to take a deep dive into exploring this technique. I’ve been working on a side project, along with Sylvie 3.0, a process of leveling up in all my skills and habits as a fighter. This side project is what Kevin and I are calling the “Diamond Guard.” It’s a guard inspired by...
- August 29, 2020It is no exaggeration to say that there is nowhere else in the world like Thailand to teach you how to clinch. Yes, it’s the high level of technique and deep pockets of knowledge, the sheer breadth of skill. But more than any of that it’s the possibilities for experience. Some who come to Thailand gyms with an aim to learn clinch might be disappointed...
- The first time I met Dieselnoi for real, meaning I got to talk to him rather than just a...
- I’m not a Kru. I’m not a teacher. I’m still a full time fighter, I’m still a student, I’m...
- The work we are doing with the Preserve The Legacy project not only includes the building of the immense...
- The newest Muay Thai Bones podcast is up, another epic podcast clocking at 3 and a half hours, full...
5 Minute Documentary on Sylvie
My Latest Posts
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu December 1, 2020*The phrase “Female Fighters” is used in the title for brevity and discovery, read as: “People Who Menstruate”. Read more of my Gendered Experience articles here. There are a lot of reasons why talking about the menstrual cycle – the whole thing – is important for athletes. Firstly, the “this is super private and should be kept private” approach keeps us from acknowledging that our bodies are going through some serious swings throughout each month, and not just our bodies but our brains are actually generating and responding differently...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu October 16, 2020We shot more than an hour of my training at Sangtiennoi’s gym about 40 minutes north of Bangkok, just to give everyone a sense of what it is like to train there. It is one of the more authentic Thai gyms, run by a legend of the sport. Kevin’s beautiful photography captured the feeling of the space in the morning, and I put my commentary over it all, talking not only about the training itself, the great padwork, Sangtiennoi’s instruction, but also broadly about training in Thailand itself, the...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu October 4, 2020Lots to get caught up on! The Muay Thai Bones podcast is back, with an episode covering some of the more psychological aspects of Muay Thai and being a fighter, as well as the preciousness of the Muay Khao fighting style which recently has been under some threat of being phased out, albeit briefly. Watch episode 18 here on YouTube (below), or get the audio version for your listening ease here as a patron. So much more has been going on I shared a story that Yodkhunpon told me...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu September 23, 2020I’m writing this to create a resource chain for anyone else who wants to take a deep dive into exploring this technique. I’ve been working on a side project, along with Sylvie 3.0, a process of leveling up in all my skills and habits as a fighter. This side project is what Kevin and I are calling the “Diamond Guard.” It’s a guard inspired by the Old School cross-armed boxing guard from western fighters such as Archie Moore, Gene Fullmer, Joe Frazier, Ken Norton and George Foreman (I link...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu August 29, 2020It is no exaggeration to say that there is nowhere else in the world like Thailand to teach you how to clinch. Yes, it’s the high level of technique and deep pockets of knowledge, the sheer breadth of skill. But more than any of that it’s the possibilities for experience. Some who come to Thailand gyms with an aim to learn clinch might be disappointed by how little “instruction” there is, because the pedagogy of Thailand and the methods of everywhere else can be so different. But I like...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu June 15, 2020It’s been a while since I’ve vlogged my process, so this is a big one. Join me as a ramble about how I’m handling coming back to training with a new mission. I’ve talked about Sylvie 3.0 and “growing eyes” in past Muay Thai Bones podcasts. This is devoting the next full year to a transformation in my capabilities. Most of all I want to start to see much more in the pocket, and in the name of that I’m just going to take on much more sparring, a...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu June 12, 2020This video is “Part I” of a Sylvie’s Technique Vlog that I’m filming, examining the simple but very detailed way in which we can all learn to “feel” our techniques. Feeling is so important. It’s more important than any of us ever really know, but it’s something that I’ve been taught more times than I could ever count. The teachers who really stand out for explicitly focusing on feeling are Chatchai Sasakul (Trainer of the Year across all sports in Thailand in 2011) and Sagat Petchyindee. They’re so brilliant...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu June 6, 2020Below is a story told by the incredible yodmuay Hippy Singmanee. He posted this on his Facebook Page (and the story is apparently in his biography, but I don’t know where you can buy this). You can find the post here, and follow him, but I include the Thai below as well. With the support from my patrons, one of the projects we’ve been able to do is Thai to English translations. Mostly we’ve been putting these projects toward translating interviews with Thai legends, or more recently in translating...
- Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu June 6, 2020Guest Post – I’ve been exploring serious photographic captures of what Muay Thai is in Thailand, and of Sylvie’s particular experiences as the most prolific western fighter in history, in the country, and as a nakmuay ying, negotiating the traditions, customs and habits of a masculine space. You can find some of the better photos I’ve produced on muaynoir.com where higher definition versions can be seen with a click. A lot of what I was originally doing was around the concept of Muay Noir. I discuss the beginnings of...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu May 27, 2020Kevin and I are starting a new effort in our Preserver The Legacy project. With the support of our patrons we are hiring translators to create subtitles for classic Muay Thai fights. We’ve all enjoyed watching great fights and hearing the enthusiasm, but we are missing a ton of information when we can’t understand the commentator. The fight above with Chamuakpet going for his 8th national stadium belt vs Paidaeng, younger brother of Nokweed Davy, is our first translation fight. There are so many great things in the commentary,...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu May 22, 2020look at a hi-res version of the photo: Before the Mirror by Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu In this series both Kevin and I write independently about a photograph, first my thoughts, then his… Sylvie writes: This photo is of me at Thapae Stadium in Chiang Mai, where I’ve fought over a hundred times. It’s any moment, just putting Vaseline on my face before my fight. This is something that in and of itself is a story. Fighters often depend on their cornermen to wrap their hands, give the oil massage,...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu May 19, 2020Dieselnoi is my hero, it’s no secret. Over the years of knowing him, I’ve been influenced by him as a fighter, a teacher, a mentor, a friend, in ways that I couldn’t even articulate fully. He’s had massive impact on me, in how I think about Muay Thai, how I think about training and fighting and the honor of self-responsibility. We text to each other into the night, until his thumbs get tired and he just changes over to voice messages, or just calls me. And yet, he cuts...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu April 28, 2020I’m working on improving Dieselnoi’s wikipedia page which for a long time was quite bare, and held some mis-information. There just isn’t much authoritative on Dieselnoi in English. I text with him pretty regularly, maybe 3 days a week, on other things, and have started asking for clarifications and acquiring new information to at least keep the record straight. For a long time, for instance, the English speaking Internet was under the impression that he had lost two of his late career fights vs Sagat Petchyindee, when in fact...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu April 24, 2020Have you ever watched a “battle,” between singers or dancers, or even intellectuals on a panel? In dance battles, often the “retort” begins with an imitation of the initial performer’s moves and then expands out to an elaboration and then one-upping. Like, “I see your splits and raise you a flip.” In singing, the words can be the same but the improvisation gets more intense. With intellectuals, you try to make a really brilliant point sound elementary. These exchanges are very exciting, so long as you know what you’re...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu April 22, 2020There’s something about the actual “event” of going to a movie, the excitement of not knowing much about it other than that you like the main actor, or that it’s in a genre you like. You get your ticket, you find your seat, you sit in a strange state of anticipation before it begins. And then you can get lost in it – assuming the movie is good. That’s a bit what sitting down to watch a Golden Age fight with Kevin is like. We know at least one...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu April 15, 2020Kevin and I are calling this the “Diamond Guard,” but because it’s influenced by some familiar boxing guards from legends like Archie Moore, Joe Fazier, a little by George Foreman. I personally first ever saw it when Kaensak Sor. Ploenjit, 2x Fighter of the Year and Muay Thai champion (who did spend some time in western boxing) flashed into it during one of our training sessions, 9 years ago in New Jersey. I was like, “what was that?!” So this is exciting because it isn’t what it will be…...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu April 8, 2020It started as the thought to draw attention to the huge Sylvie Intensive collection that documents the Muay Thai of Karuhat Sor. Supawan. No great fighter ever has been so documented, I believe. But, in this time of shutdown, profits of the purchases of the videos, downloads or subscriptions go directly to him, and also Yodkhunpon The Elbow Hunter. It really is amazing material, and now that many of us have much more time to study it seemed like the good time to do a giveaway. Discover great content,...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu March 28, 2020Muay Thai Bones grew out of the discussions that Kevin and I have, all the time, about all things Muay Thai. It’s endless. Usually we’re driving across Thailand, returning from a fight (as that’s generally when we travel) and we have hours upon hours in the car. This episode is in the midst of the Covid-19 shutdowns all over the world, so we’re sitting on the balcony of our rented room in Chiang Mai. Different setting, but still almost 3 hours of discussion. I rather enjoyed this way of...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu March 26, 2020This Sylvie’s Technique Vlog is shot at a time when most of us are experiencing “social distancing,” “self isolating,” or “shelter in place,” depending on how it’s called. But we’re at home, quarantined to varying degrees, and largely locked out of our gyms. This technique vlog is perfect for these circumstances because it requires no equipment, no instruction, no sweat, no partners, and practically speaking no space at all. You can do this from bed. You can do this while brushing your teeth. You can even do this while...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu March 25, 2020This is part of a series that Kevin and I really enjoy doing, that we call “Watch With Me.” We watch Golden Age fights and just react and talk in a very informal way. These aren’t “break downs,” at all, although we do try to give context to the match ups or the fighters for those who are not familiar with why Kevin and I might be so excited about the fight. It’s more of what I’d describe as a “geek out,” because we do tend to get quite...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu March 21, 2020The first time I met Dieselnoi for real, meaning I got to talk to him rather than just a photo snapped between me gushing and him crossing a parking lot with the charisma of an Old Hollywood movie-star, was in Bangkok for our first session together for the Muay Thai Library. After showing me how to turn on the thresher and blend the life out of your opponent with endless knees, Dieselnoi sat down with his legs folded, holding his phone in his left hand and wiping sweat off...
Sylvie’s Technique Vlogs
Using Your Legs in Muay Thai Clinch & Clinch Basics
Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu August 29, 2020It is no exaggeration to say that there is nowhere else in the world like Thailand to teach you how to clinch. Yes, it’s the high level of technique and deep pockets of knowledge, the sheer...Sylvie Clinch Seminar – Teaching My Basics of Muay Thai Clinch
Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu February 23, 2020I’m not a Kru. I’m not a teacher. I’m still a full time fighter, I’m still a student, I’m still nowhere near the Legends and Krus and fighters who have taught and guided me. But, that...The Incredible Kru Diesel – Muay Khao Master
Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu February 6, 2020One of the great instructors of the Muay Khao and clinch style of Muay Thai is Kru Diesel of FA Group, having trained some of the very best of modern Muay Thai clinch monsters, from Yodwicha...What High Level BJJ Can Teach Today’s Muay Thai
Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu August 13, 2019Guest Post – Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu A Husband’s Point of View Above are kind of my reading notes on a really good Joe Rogan podcast with his long time Brazilian jiu-jitsu instructor Jean Jacques Machado who...
A Husband’s Point of View
Ode To Sylve – Strongest Fighter On Earth
Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu November 24, 2019A Husband’s Point of View is a series of my thoughts on watching Sylvie, as her husband, throughout the years. You can click on that link and see the collection of philosophical thoughts, technical thoughts, but...What High Level BJJ Can Teach Today’s Muay Thai
Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu August 13, 2019Guest Post – Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu A Husband’s Point of View Above are kind of my reading notes on a really good Joe Rogan podcast with his long time Brazilian jiu-jitsu instructor Jean Jacques Machado who...Kru Syndrome: The Pitfalls of Being Taken On By a Thai Trainer as a Woman
Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu February 18, 2019guest post, Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu – I’ve been wanting to write something on this for several years now. In fact, I’ve urged Sylvie to write about it herself, because I feel like she has special insight...The Ethics of Muay Thai Propagation: Changing What We Love
Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu January 27, 2019above, a nearly 2 hour discussion on the spread of Muay Thai This video is an unscripted, free-form discussion between myself and Timothy Micias who is writing his thesis on the problems involved in the western...A Breaking Point – The Fine Line of Performance and Re-Making
8Limbs.Us January 23, 2019Guest Post – A Husband’s Point of View This morning Sylvie left for her 3 day meditation retreat here in Pattaya. She had assembled her things the night before, bare minimums in her little bag, and...Man vs Woman Fight – What Does it Mean?
8Limbs.Us January 8, 2019Guest Post – Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu This is my interview of Sylvie on what was an extraordinary event that happened this week as Tara, a student at the gym and an attendee of the Women’s Muay...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu October 28, 2019My arms are burning and I’m thirsty. The soft, pudgy flesh of my clinching partner pillows under my forearms as I snake and move and turn him, the insides of my legs slapping the sides of his body and occasionally his elbows, where he drops his arms down to try to protect his body. I feel his resistance, which is manifold: he’s resisting my movements, but he’s also pouting. He’s expressing his dislike of this experience with every cell in his body, but he cycles through going limp to...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu July 7, 2019My last fight – you can watch it here – left me with a souvenir of 8 stitches, right between the eyes. That’s a lucky number for me, I’m into it, but returning to training with a cut on my face is always a slightly tricky process. Surely, everyone who has been with me in the gym for these past 5 years is used to me by now – I’ve been called “Cyborg” and “Iron Lady,” “The Machine,” and “crazy,” because I’m always right back at it. Most of...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu January 22, 2019There’s a phrase, “it’s 90 percent mental.” I’m coming to realize that the more experience you gain. the more time you spend on a single, focused endeavor, the closer that 90 percent goes toward 99.9 percent. Or maybe it’s even all mental and we can escape the body in some kind of Nirvana-state of Muay… I don’t know yet. The other day an Instagram post from Mental Coach, Kara Loewentheil came up on my feed. I needed it. I have needed it: yesterday, today, probably a bunch of tomorrows. It’s an important...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu October 16, 2018We are doing a Muay Thai Mental Training Reading Group, together. On Facebook for everyone – you can join here – and on Patreon in live video conference call with my supporters – you can see our first session here. We’ve covered the first two chapters of the book The Inner Game of Tennis, and on Friday morning (Thai Time), we’ll meet and talk about chapters 3 & 4. This is a small, short book that changes people’s lives, as it teaches us to quiet down our Inner Coach,...
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu August 12, 2018The Keto Diet, ketogenesis: The keto diet features very low carb (- 20 g), moderate protein, and high fats, designed to switch the body from sugar-burning to ketone-burning, with suggested benefits of mental clarity, recovery and anti-inflammation, and weight loss (for those that need it), making use of hormone and metabolic responses evolved in humans through long periods of fasting or lean eating. What follows is not an expert telling, you can Google about and find more on all the things I bring up, but it is my telling....
- Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu November 14, 2017So starts my path to enlightenment. Kevin and I turn down the street indicated on our Google Map directions and it’s pretty clear, immediately, that this isn’t what we’re looking for. Kevin immediately suggests we ask someone, which is super easy for him to suggest because he doesn’t speak Thai, so he never has to do the asking. I’m shy, so I decide to creep down the street on the motorbike first, seeing if maybe, somehow, this street lined with bars might suddenly turn into the kind of street...
The Muay Thai Bones Podcast – Us on the Road
My Muay Thai Vlogs – Experiences and Thoughts
The Comeback – Time Off and Getting Back On
Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu June 19, 2016In afternoon training I’m dripping wet from both sweating and repeatedly rinsing myself off under the hose at the corner of the gym – it’s what I call a “courtesy rinse,” where Thais will rinse their...Why “Train Smarter” Has Always Bothered Me and the Rule of Longer
Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu September 17, 2015I’ve always had an internal objection to this phrase, “train smarter, not harder.” On the front of it, I think people should train however makes them feel the best and that can be from minimal to...The Art of Sucking – What Matters is Showing Up
Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu September 3, 2015Some days you don’t feel like training. Like, even just getting out of bed is so exhausting and emotionally difficult that you’re on the verge of tears just getting ready to go. Then, when you get...Vlog #126 – Battling a Mental Dimension of Fatigue Lately – Realization
Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu April 7, 2015Today’s vlog after morning training at Petchrungruang. I talk about my struggles with fatigue, which in part may come from real sources like being out of training for a stretch, monthly cycle, recovering from an illness,...
- April 15, 2020
- March 17, 2020
- January 21, 2018
- June 25, 2017
- September 8, 2016
- August 5, 2016
- August 1, 2016
- June 14, 2016
- December 1, 2020
- November 8, 2019
- January 8, 2019
- October 29, 2017
- September 22, 2017
- September 11, 2017
- June 15, 2017
- May 24, 2017
- November 12, 2016
- November 24, 2019
- August 13, 2019
- February 18, 2019
- January 27, 2019
- January 23, 2019
- January 8, 2019
- September 20, 2018
- October 5, 2017
- August 26, 2017
Preserve The Legacy Project