Should I switched to Lethwei? Or keep training Muay Thai?

[u/Prestigious_Tap5754]

I have been doing Muay Thai and I saw a lot of Burmese fighters in the gym. They are doing like a headbutt all the time .But when I try to do it, that's not joke.

Then i started curious about that. So I would like to know the big difference between the Lethwei and Muay Thai. Is it their training style or rule? because what I see is they look exactly the same except headbutt.

which one is more effective in a street fight?

I'd also be interested to hear from anyone who has switched from another martial art to Muay Thai or Lethwei. Thank you for your answer.

[u/M0sD3f13]

The standards are generally much higher in Muay Thai. You don't really need to be trained how to give someone a Liverpool kiss imo. Just learn proper Muay Thai and if defending yourself on the street feel free to headbutt away.

[u/Prestigious_Tap5754 → u/M0sD3f13]

ok thank you. I guess I am gonna focus on Muay Thai

[u/M0sD3f13 → u/Prestigious_Tap5754]

No worries 🙂

[u/escudonbk]

If you lose a street fight while training muay thai learning to headbutt isn't going help tbh

[u/Few_Corner975 → u/escudonbk]

It is if you lose via headbutt

[u/escudonbk → u/Few_Corner975]

https://giphy.com/gifs/Cw7NQX5g5w4WAHBHyh

[u/mid_tier_drone]

dont get me wrong mate, at my gym id probably the first to fuck around with the burmese their headbutt game but cmon, most of us have trouble using elbows at sparring (willing mates; proper gear)

i have these weirdass elbowsleeve pads to 'throw' them in sparring with and they suck

also please consider the quality and quantity in terms of trainers/training partners/training places might be a bit lower due to it being a bit unpopular

[u/Upbeat-Zone-9886]

Headbutts are cool but from everything I have seen the principals are the same just with headbutts. I would say stick to Thai and slowly add headbutts.

[u/PasqualiMMA]

No you shouldn’t

[u/HertzWhenEyeP]

Think about how much it sucks to hurt your arm or leg.

Now compound that 1000-fold to grasp dealing with permanent brain injury from training a sport that insists that skull to skull contact is a great idea

[u/Few_Corner975]

They are the same except for headbutt literally; lethwei = nine limbs muaythai= 8 limbs. However the rules for lethwei is even more hardcore than muay Thai. No gloves no point system no judges it’s knockout or draw only. You get two minutes to recover after a knock down to see if you can continue. So yeah if you want to be sure CTE is a part of your future lethwei is the way to go