You should wrap your hands to prevent injury before practicing Muay Thai or competing in matches. To prevent injuries to their muscles and bones, the majority of practitioners use a pair of elastic straps with Velcro. By folding the straps into a pad and wrapping the remaining material around your wrists and fingers, you can make a basic wrap in Muay Thai.
So why do you need to wrap your hands for Muay Thai training? What variations of wraps are offered for this? How are your hands coiled, also? The solution is provided in this article!
Table of Contents
What is Muay Thai?
Muay Thai sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the “art of eight limbs”, as it is characterised by the combined use of fists, elbows, knees and shins. Muay Thai became widespread internationally in the late 20th to 21st century, when Westernised practitioners from Thailand began competing in kickboxing and mixed-rules matches as well as matches under muay Thai rules around the world. The professional league is governed by The Professional Boxing Association of Thailand (P.A.T), sanctioned by The Sports Authority of Thailand (S.A.T.).
Other martial arts such as musti-yuddha, Adimurai, muay Chaiya, muay boran, muay Lao, lethwei, and tomoi are related to muay thai. A practitioner of muay Thai is known as a nak muay. Western practitioners in Thailand are sometimes called nak muay farang, meaning “foreign boxer”.
Why Are People Wrapping Hands for Muay Thai?
Each of our hands has a total of 27 bones, and they are all accountable for enabling full range of motion. Even though they are strong, these bones are still prone to damage when fighting or exercising. Have you ever tried punching a heavy bag without any protection? It’s a bit painful. The padding from proper hand wraps would allow you to punch it harder, and for a longer period of time too. For Muay Thai, boxing, or MMA, wrapping your hands will safeguard your wrists, prevent bone fractures, and protect your knuckles from bruising.
The first is through striking, where the hand is used to harm the opponent. In most cases, but not always, this is accomplished by punching. Hammer fists and back fists may or may not be permitted moves, depending on the sport and the rules. The second way the hands receive impact is through blocking. Punches, knees, elbows, or kicks are possible, some of which might be quite strong. Not always the hand’s back is struck when blocking. Through deflections or parries, it may occasionally be the hand’s side or even the palm. Consider the Muay Thai long guard, where the palms are oriented toward the adversary. It is simple to understand how a strike could miss the hand.
The potential nerve damage that can result from repetitively using the hands in a forceful way is one aspect that isn’t discussed enough. Although genetics play a major role in developing carpal tunnel syndrome, hitting a bag, pad, or person the wrong way can pinch nerves and increase your risk.
What Kind of Hand Wraps Are Out There
In combat sports, there are three primary types of wraps, but for now, let’s just concentrate on Muay Thai. The easiest to put on and currently the norm throughout Thailand are cloth wraps. Other types of wraps include gauze and tape wraps, and elastic bandage wraps. The diagram below shows each option’s advantages and disadvantages.
The proper way when wrapping hands for Muay Thai is to focus on knuckle padding. When you make that padding, it gives you an additional layer of defense when you strike the heavy bag or pads. The protection at the knuckles isn’t very good when using small gloves to strike a heavy, hard bag. The extra padding at the beginning of this technique keeps the knuckles securely fastened and guards against injury. For what it’s worth, I advise wearing 14–16 oz gloves when working with bags. This technique feels natural if you can master the art of hand wrapping. The likelihood that you will sustain an injury while working out significantly decreases with your knuckles and wrist securely fastened.
How to Wrap Hands for Muay Thai?
Step1 Wrap Your Fingers
Wrap your fingers six times around the thumb loop while keeping it pressed against your palm. Align the end of the thumb loop with the edge of your index finger just above the knuckle. As you start to wrap, spread your fingers a little. The wrap will become too constricted and tight if they are forced together.
Many Muay Thai fighters roll their wraps inside-out. Unroll your wrap, then tightly roll it back up with the adhesive patch facing inward. Your hands will be a little bit easier to wrap as a result.
Step2 Fixation of the Knuckles
Remove the wrap from your hand, then fasten it to your knuckles. Holding the layers together to prevent the wrap from falling apart, carefully remove the wrap. Place the pad there and secure it with a pinch of your thumb’s side. By either your pinky or thumb, use the other hand to pick up the roll of remaining fabric. To hold it in place, wrap it around the pad, under your hand, and then around your thumb and index finger.
Step3 Wrist Wrap
Your wrist will be wrapped three times, starting at the bottom. Get your thumb out of the way by swiping it to the side. To the edge of your wrist on the opposite side of your hand, bring the wrap diagonally down between your thumb and index finger. Wrap your wrist tightly to complete the protection.
Step4 Wrap Up Between Your Ring and Pinky Finger
Between your ring and pinky fingers, bring the wrap up. When the roll of tape is next to your thumb, stop. From this position, take the wrap diagonally upward, across the back of your hand, to your pinky. Hold the roll close to your palm for a moment after rolling it between your fingers.
Step5 Downward Wrapping
The wrap should be wound around your wrist after you make a fist with your hand. Wrap it around your palm and bring it to your thumb. Once more, pass the wrap between your thumb and index finger. Wrap diagonally downward toward the edge of your wrist, then make a full loop around it. The wrap roll will be back at your thumb when you’re done.
Step6 Middle through Fixed Finger
Pass the wrap between your remaining fingers to secure them. Three times total, you must perform the previous actions. Start by bringing the fabric between your middle and ring fingers. Wrap diagonally in the direction of your wrist, going all the way around it so that the wrap is at or just below your thumb. After that, repeat the process with the other sets of fingers.
Conclusion
Now that you know why and how hand bands can help prevent injuries, hopefully you have a better understanding of why you should wear them while practicing Muay Thai. Accidents will still happen and hand bands won’t protect you from them, but it’s important to know that you’ve taken the necessary precautions to reduce the risk as much as you can.