IFF

Hi. Sorry about your situation. Rest assured that everyone (me too) unearths a revelation about a bad habit or poor technique once in a while. Main thing is you've found out and want to fix it. IMO and experience (25 years including teaching), it's an issue because it's every single kick as you said and this detracts from good technique and power and balance etc and longer-term development. It also stifles ability such as kicking and then following immediately with a Thai leg block or follow up weapon e.g. another kick (but I gather you are aware of this though from your post). My advice would be to spend a lot of time on the bag and drill the kick lots in a conscious state of mind so you're aware of how your standing foot behaves on each kick and force the ball of the foot to stay in contact with the floor. Set targets of getting 5, then 10 in a row without jumping. The mind and body will adapt over time. With pad work you'll loose the discipline and repetitions need to correct this - plus a lot of pad holder partners just won't see or bother to correct you. So try and cut that down for a while. Good luck.

Hi. You can't go wrong with Twins or any good, reputable Thai brand like Fairtex. They will last you years if you air and dry that out after every session. I bought a Fairtex pair in 2017 in Thailand and they are still in great shape (I train 2/3 times a week). Before that I had a pair of Windy Sport I bought from the shop near Raja Stadium in BKK, that again lasted me years. For your size and stature, 16oz are perfect, and good all round - so you can spar/play and hit pads and bag comfortably. Don't cut corners with price or quality. If you've got good gear the experience will be more enjoyable. For the record I've been involved in Muay Thai since 2000, lived in Thailand and taught in London. Enjoy the MT journey