Once you’ve decided to train in Muay Thai and become what people refer to as a Nak Muay (Muay Thai boxer), the next logical step is to buy the necessary Muay Thai equipment. Although much of the equipment below isn’t mandatory, they can help you enjoy the sport more and make participating a whole lot safer for you.

Below is a list of all the necessary Muay Thai Equipment for training.

1. Handwraps – Always wrap your hands prior to wearing gloves and hitting the pads and bags. Learn to wrap your hands properly and if possible, carry a couple of sets of handwraps with you at all times. The length ultimately depends on your personal preference, but being a beginner, you may want to ask for help from someone who has experience, like your trainer for example.

2. Gloves – Although a single pair of gloves is usually enough for beginners, you’ll want to add another pair down the line. The first pair should be around 16oz to 18oz and used only for sparring and drilling purposes. Meanwhile, your other pair should be for bag or for pad-work, and should be lighter than your sparring gloves. Top brands to choose from when buying gloves are Twins, Lumpinee, and Top King.

3. Shin guard – If you’re planning on sparring, shin guards are a must have to protect yourself and your training partners. Wearing one helps minimize cuts and bone bruises. Although be sure to check in with your trainer or coach first as some gyms don’t allow using shin guards for light sparring and light contact drills to help build shin strength, especially for beginners. Before buying a pair, make sure that you try them on yourself first to see how well they fit.

4. Mouth guard – Buy yourself a quality pair regardless of whether you spar or not. Remember, accidents happen while training and you may find yourself getting punched or kicked in the head by mistake. In such cases, it pays to have protection, especially for your teeth.

5. Skipping rope – This is an essential piece of Muay Thai equipment for fighters of any skill level, as skipping role plays an important role in helping to develop coordination, footwork, cardiovascular endurance and arm strength.

6. T–shirt – Don’t let the sights of fighters in right going topless fool you, going topless while training is shunned, if not prohibited in many gyms. Of course, unless the fighters are sparring, in which case, they usually don’t wear shirts as feet can get tangled up in the fabric. Still, since you’re a beginner, you may want to wear a shirt. It doesn’t even have to be a special shirt, any rash guard will do.

Of course, there are other important pieces of Muay Thai equipment too. This includes ankle braces, knee and elbow pads, liniments, head guard and Thai shorts. But, compared to the six mentioned above, they’re not as important and will only come in handy once you advance in your training.

There you have it. 6 of the most important Muay Thai Equipment beginners will usually need to start training in Muay Thai.

Remember to drink plenty of water while training and always shower before and after training. Wash with antibacterial soap if you can. Also, don’t forget to keep your equipment clean at all times.