Have a friend who's moving back to the bay, and she wants to get her husband a membership to a good Muy Thai/martial arts gym in SF near his office so that he can start getting a routine- he's never lived on the west coast and doesn't know anybody. She doesn't really know what to look for, neither do I, but I know we have a lot of guys into it, so I thought I'd ask.

What are the good gyms in the area? Not looking for serious fight training/prep, just fitness and some training, and he's a little Jewish kid from Maryland, if it matters (I know some gyms can be a little rough or oriented to a specific culture or mindset - I used to train in a dojo that wasn't too friendly). Not looking to make an MMA master, lol.

She was looking at Fairtex and Fight and Fitness - good ideas, bad ideas?

Thanks, guys!

 

He should do Krav Maga instead.
http://www.kravmaga-sf.com

 

fairtex is nice but expensive.

 

There's a Muay Thai/MMA gym on Ocean Ave between 19th and Junipero Serra. World Team USA
http://www.worldteamusa.com/

I've never taken Muay Thai classes so I can't vouch for them or anything. I used to work in that area and pass by all the time. Just throwing up a name. I'm sure Ryan (Choku Dori) can chime in.

 

Fairtex is really expensive and the quality of instruction has dropped over the years (they still have Thai champions like Jongsanan and pro fighters there like Rambo at one point, but the champions don't really pay too much attention to students and the pro fighters have limited English skills), but it's still a premier gym with great facilities and current ties to Lumpini and Rajadmnern Stadiums via the Bangplee camp. If your friend is rich and just wants a workout, I say give Fairtex a try.

Fight & Fitness has great instructors in Bunkerd and Neungsiam, but I hear since moving to their new digs they're more money oriented than before. Nevertheless, Bunkerd is the man that established my base fighting ability all those years ago and he is a really great instructor. A few i-Club members have been or are current members here. The only reason why I left is that there are some guys that train there that are meatheads, and I HATE dealing with meatheads, especially in situations where your safety is in their hands (as training partners). Still, I'd encourage your friend to give F&F a try.

World Team USA is a SCAM. The instructor there, Sam, has no pro experience in Thailand and only likes to accept n00bs because they won't question him. He also doesn't have a first lesson free policy but charges at least $50 for a private lesson the first time before he'll even talk to you about fees (a HUGE no-no).

I've heard that Krav Maga SF is a bit of a shark tank, some meatheads that just swing for the fences with no technique during practice.

If I come up with anything else, I'll update.

 

oops

 

Choku Dori, I've also heard ppl say similar things for many years. But I can only speak for myself, and here's my 2 cents. I've been training at Team USA for 6 years now. Kru Sam may not have had pro experience in Thailand, but he knows how to train and has made countless champions (guys and girls). They focus a lot on technique and tradition. They also offer cardio classes, power conditioning classes, muay thai classes, and fight classes.

 

not sure where he's moving to but here you go:

http://www.yelp.com/biz/kenya-muay-t...ademy-pacifica

and the main site is: http://kenyacademy.com/

BJ Penn comes by every once in a while to train there. Two of my good friends are instructors there for the kids and this school is also associated with this one - http://koreanmartialarts.com/ - a ton of history here including ties to Bruce Lee (Ji Han Jae was the first level of Game of Death).

 

I respect your expressions of your experience with World Team USA and how you courteously described your point of view regarding the gym instead of just telling me to stuff it or whatever . While I stand by my analysis and can provide adequate reasons why I do, and can prepare an argument against your post, I will not do so out of respect for the spirit of goodwill that you showed me in your post. Thanks for being cool, the least I can do is try be cool in return.

That being said, I forgot to mention a couple other things in regards to the OP:
Gym 445 is not quite a scam but of questionable quality. None of the instructors has pro experience in Thailand, and the head instructor Edgerton Brown has a competition background in American Kickboxing, NOT Muay Thai. However, they're cheap and the facilities are fairly nice. Caveat emptor.

On a final note, Sybir, is your friend set solely on Muay Thai, or does he just want a full-contact striking style that provides a good workout? If he were considering other styles, I have a number of recommendations as well. Let me know!

 

Ryan, guys, you've been a ton of help -totally appreciate it. To answer your last question, I don't think he's set exclusively on Muy Thai, but it's the most common workout/sparring thing where he's from. Other suggestions are welcome!

This is why I love you guys, btw - there's not another community like this one when it comes to helping people (or finding experts in just about anything, lol)

-Aaron

 

Glad to be of service.

I'd also encourage your friend to look into World Oyama Karate as well. Those guys are badass, seriously. Nice facilities, quality people, and quality instruction. Only downside is that your friend might not like the knuckle conditioning inherent in this (bareknuckle) style.

 

This.

 

There's always two sides to every story, and you obviously know yours Honestly, my first instinct was to go at you, but then I realized this wasn't NASIOC ahaha. As you know, you become part of a family when you train at a gym for a long time, but I've also heard the stories out there. I just choose to stay away from the drama. You don't need to thank me sir, it's always cool to meet other people that have respect and true appreciation for real muay thai. And I agree with you on 445...the other instructor, Bebe, came from Team USA. He earned five professional muay thai titles before drama happened, and he left to start 445 with Kru Edge. But yeah bro, drive safe and I'll probably see you at a smoker or a local fight!

 

Bump ! I know that this is a old thread, but I notice that a couple of you guys do Martial Arts in the City. I am looking for a good Muay Thai gym and I am willing to drive. I am currently training in San Shou but I feel like I outgrown my gym. My gym is more of a traditional Wushu type school, which I don't really have an interest in at this moment of my life. Unfortunately money is a factor since I am currently heading back to college.

Thanks

 

Ive been training Krav for years... I actually know the owner quite well at his SF location very cool guy and he knows how to teach very well... Doesnt help that his history is a bit..... violent lol.