Muay Thai kickboxers have always been known for the extreme hardness of their shins, which they use either to kick the opponent or to injure the opponent while blocking his kicking attacks. Traditionally, kickboxers in Thailand hardened their shins by kicking banana trees, but these days heavy bags are more commonly used.
Heavy Bag Training
Most modern kickboxers work with heavy bags rather than the traditional banana tree to improve their shins. After several years of kicking heavy bags, some kickboxers do still move on to less forgiving targets, such as the hard stand on a Body Opponent Bag fighting dummy. It is very important not to be in a rush when you are working on improving your shins for kickboxing. If you go too fast or try to find a shortcut to having the hard shins of an experienced kickboxer, you can easily hurt yourself.
Oral Traditions
Many kickboxers advocate methods of shin conditioning passed down through oral tradition, including the use of ointments on the shin or special diets. In most cases, the effectiveness or even the safety of these ointments has not been scientifically validated, so any shin conditioning advice of this type should be approached with great caution. Some people will even advocate kicking trees to improve the shins, without realizing that the banana trees used traditionally by Thai kickboxers were chosen for their softness, or that most Thai kickboxers no longer use them.
Shin Conditioning Methods
The most basic approach to improving the shins in kickboxing is simply to use the shins to kick something relatively hard but not so hard as to cause real injury. A kicking pad or a heavy bag is a good choice for this purpose, and most kickboxing gyms will have both items. In regular Muay Thai kickboxing practice, the shins are used for both attack and defense, and simply practicing kicks and blocks with a training partner will have a shin conditioning effect on its own.
Other Factors
When you're kicking a heavy bag or kicking pad to improve the shins, the number of repetitions depends on your level of experience. Don't try to keep pushing it after it starts to become painful. Ice the shin to bring down any swelling. Although many people believe that the purpose of shin conditioning is actually to kill the nerves so that they can no longer feel pain, this is not the case. As you get used to the impact, you will naturally feel less pain, but the nerves in your shin don't die as a result. The bones of your shin will get denser because of the repeated impacts, so you should make sure that your diet includes sufficient calcium.
Posted in: Kickboxing