Oliver

wait wait wait.... what the actual fuck?!?

Am not 'tall' tall, shorter but similar weight, but literally everywhere tried so far there was no problem getting clinching partners, it was really good and surprising, not like western countries. Whatever gym it was, trainer just partners you up with one of the Thai dudes and honestly? Doesn't even matter in the end with the height difference, will still be a good partner and you'll take more of an ass kicking, so more beneficial than a training partner with less experience but your own height. Realise that Yod is the one known for it, but Kem's clinch is ridiculously good even though his exact style of it is different, maybe more understated, and he's also super strong. But like...scary strong, and fierce. His clinch is more detailed than it looks at first glance, it's like he's pre-built a defensive fortress that frustrates the guy immediately when tangled up. He used to be quite a techy / skill boxer when he was a kid, then got much stronger when he grew up and we all got to know him for the hands & powerful viscious shit he did.

Not exactly the same but there's been a similar thing lately with the 'exploitation' issue in the MMA world, if anyone follows it. Like, it's tough, cause obviously you wanna be on the side of the fighters, and yeah some of them do get screwed over. And with a company like the UFC being worth eye-watering amounts of money, yet only paying 15% of their revenue towards salaries.... yeah it's kinda crazy. But you hear the weirdest fighter complaints, like they want more money per fight, or are angry they're not allowed to fight for other promotions. It's like....dude....you *signed* a contract... it said exactly how many fights you'll be offered, and exactly how much you'll be paid, and you agreed and you signed it. How is that not the end of the conversation? Well apparently for them it's not. Even talking shit about your boss and your company to the media about financial issues seems like stepping over the line to me. But eh. Kinda see the Thai issue the same way. Western guys doing it for fun/exercise who pay a monthly membership - fine if they wanna go somewhere else. But if someone is sponsored, free training, has a contract etc? Well that's it, they've made an agreement. Am not nearly on that level personally so never had one, not sure how it works or how formal it is, but even if it's more of a handshake deal it just seems obvious that you need to keep your word. It's business, and if you break your word, why should anyone deal with you ever again. edit: To caveat this - the example above of the fighter trying to leave during Covid because the gym had no longer had real training or trainers - for sure we can see his side. There's definitely cases with exceptional circumstances

Think we've all seen variations of this issue play out, it's not an uncommon concern at all. On western Thai gyms, it's not usually my instinct to defend or sympathise with them, given some batshit crazy practices that unfolded before my eyes. Like one time in the early days, a trainer got pissed during training and screamed at a dude, then made him go down the street and buy him a hamburger. And he did. After meeting an American gym owner who was travelling, he explained something after being asked about his job. He said, 'Everybody's got a question'. That all day long, every day, every single person who talks to him does so because they want something. They dissect everything he says, wanna know why this, why that, well what about this situation, what about that, how about this other technique, etc. Nobody asks him how his kids are doing, or if he saw his basketball team play the other night etc. We can easily forget that for us, the gym is a place we go after work, but for him it is his work. When we're at work, we don't talk like that to our boss (most of us). If you've ever done a day job that you ended up getting real good at, especially something involving craft of some kind, it tends to happen because you follow orders. Might be a silly, extreme example to use, and you could justifiably think, 'Yeah but it's not my place of work, he's not paying my salary, in fact I'm paying a lot just to be there'. Well yeah, but on the ground, it never plays out as a customer service type relationship, it's just way too personal a business for that. Plus, that monthly membership fee isn't what actually pays his bills, nor is it the people who fight for his gym. So we can misconstrue our relationship with the trainer, usually as either too close or too distant. A more accurate way of reading that vibe is somewhere between being an employee and a guest in his house, even if the facts don't support that. Then again, any toxic shit happens, or if he turns out to be a plan charlatan teaching nonsense, of course do the right thing and leave - don't listen to me.

Kicks, - you mean kicks to the body?

That. That, right there. Then again, if there actually is something wrong with your shoulder like you legit tore it or broke something, and you push through and make it worse, then it's not my fault. It's hers, she's the one femsplaining.

Best to look at the positives. Like, pretty soon other stuff will start hurting even more, so you'll completely forget about your shoulders. Eventually, from all the running and skipping, the legs can feel like old rusted iron when you're not at the gym. Then, to fix it you'll be at a foot massage while drinking a pumpkin spice latte, and it will be the most heavenly feeling ever. Kinda makes the training worth it, just for that. So, ya know. Every cloud.

If IMDB gives it an 8 or above, Netflix doesn't have it. All they got is 5s and 6s, movies written by a committee of 12 people with a checklist. Could tell you how Netflix works too, if you want. I can explain it in a slow and patronising manner, because I know that's what girls like.

Never looked into it from the boxing side of things, the subject matter's way too disturbing to even try and read about when it's a sport we do every day. If you ever get sad it's better to just eat your feelings. Coffee flavoured Hagen Daz has to be at number 1, followed closely by the cookie dough flavour. The whole 440ml tub emptied in a soup bowl...some hot salted caramel sauce, garnished with roasted cashews. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3322364/ The NFL had this problem from head damage back in the early 00s, think they got sued by a bunch of players too. If IMDB gives it a 6.8 or above, that usually means it's good. If they say 7.1, that's like us giving a movie 8.5 or something, they're never wrong.

that's actually quite funny but no, genuinely - is it only him that says that to you about keeping your hands up, or do other trainers and fighters tell you that as well?

Except that’s not the argument a lot of them make. When it comes to sparring people who they feel have something over them, be it weight or just experience, some will flatly admit that they should be allowed to go harder than the other person, or they’ll eventually semi-confess to it out of frustration. As retarded as this sounds, some of them actually believe it - both practically and morally. So what you end up with are games where nobody cooperates and everybody defects. Your articles there, I mean...yeah, OK, shouldn’t have generalised before. For sure, that accidental side of things does happen. But we’re probably talking about 20% of the explanation, if that. The, “Oh man, it’s not his fault, he doesn’t realise his power, didn’t mean it, accidental, etc etc” - that’s cool and it does apply to certain people. If someone’s new to the sport, been training 2 months or something - and then cracks you like you stole something? Yeah fine, he gets a pass for that. He didn’t know any better. But then there’s people who have been training for years and have enough of an understanding not to make that mistake. Which is why it’s not a mistake… even if they claim otherwise after the fact. Thing is, when you’re in the moment you can always tell which one you’re dealing with, you just feel it. You can feel if he’s happy, if he’s tired & stressed, if he’s focused & calm, or anxious & nervy, or distracted, or had 7 red bulls that day, or whatever it is. Yeah, there’s studies and research reports and smart people doing experiments with electrodes or whatever, and there’s a place for all that. But beyond study, beyond instrumentation, there is instinct. Certain things you just know before you think them.

Didn't want to say it before...but, basically yeah - there you go. Not something that can be said out loud, so glad someone else did. Am nowhere near super heavyweight, but in most European countries if you're 80kg or above you're basically considered a giant monster, and 2/3 of the room simply don't want to partner up with you. So you get friendly with that final 1/3. When the others do spar with you it's because the trainer tells them to, and then they have this energy of annoyance and bitchy suppressed anger - you can feel it, just seeping out of their pores. And yes, most of them do exactly what you just described, start unloading on you at 100%. As if they just watched you run over their dog in your driveway. The reason? Again, one of those things that you're simply not allowed to talk about, but some people really really believe this. That they're allowed to hit someone harder than they're being hit. Genuinely. This guy's got 5 more fights than me? I'm allowed to hit harder. He's an inch taller? I'm allowed to hit harder. He's heavier? I'm allowed to hit harder. He had 3 karate lessons when he was 12 years old? I'm allowed to hit harder. They don't accept that productive sparring has an unspoken, unconscious equilibrium, where you both intuit your power & speed levels, in yourselves and each other, and then you sync up. Then, the clock beeps, the round is over and you can't believe it went that fast, and you and the other guy have smiles on your faces and you don't know why. Regardless of the weight difference between you two, regardless of what power level you decided to spar at. Could have been hard or light, doesn't matter, because you both went at the same rate. My 2 favourite partners when first starting out? A HW buddy 25kg heavier than me, and an 18 year old kid 15kg lighter than me. The difference was never an issue. Now some people simply don't believe in that and never will, ever. And they get extremely upset when it's ever brought up to them. So best not to. Just stick with the minority of guys who actually do want to work with you.

What are we really talking about here though, is this hygiene in general or a worry about catching Corona thing?

Hey dude, Not sure how to answer to be honest. On clean/hygiene issues, kinda depends what you’re comparing it to? Or what your standard for clean is. If memory serves, there are 2 or 3 toilet & shower rooms, and yeah they flush, and yeah there are doors. But actually, nobody uses them. Basically, past those 3 doors you walk on a little and there’s this outdoor porch type area. In the middle you got a giant concrete, square tank type thing, height of your belt, about 6 feet wide & 6 long. Filled to the brim with cold water and loads of those small plastic buckets floating on top. After training you all go out back and stand around that square tank, pick up a bucket, fill it, lift it, and throw it all over yourself a bunch of times. I’m not kidding about any of this, and after training when you feel dead - especially in that heat - the bucket shower feels tremendous. Like, genuinely, a million times better than the traditional shower. Loved it. As for infections etc… dude you’re gonna catch some shit eventually, it's basically inevitable. Almost consider it the cost of doing business. Not to get too much into this, but real quick – never got corona, but got sick with something else and needed surgery. Was fucked up for ages afterwards, and still not yet back to where I was before. But that wasn’t the gym’s fault at all, and not from a hygiene problem.

Usually hate giving advice, but this issue tends to get ignored a lot. All the advice out there is for small fighters, and hardly any for bigger dudes. Basically the heavier you get, the more the mentality of your partners becomes a thing. So when you partner up with someone new for the first time, and they're good to work with and the two of you got a good energy going, talk afterwards and get their number. Meet up an hour before training starts, or outside of the gym on a Sunday, do some extra practice or whatever. Eventually get a few guys like that, even from different gyms.