Muay Thai Oils & Balms

There is a smell that hits you the moment you walk into a Muay Thai gym. Sharp, medicinal, slightly sweet — and once you know it, you never mistake it for anything else. That is Thai liniment, and every camp in Thailand uses it.

It is not a gimmick or a souvenir. It is part of how the sport trains.

Use it before, not after

This is the part most people get backwards.

Thai oil is a warming liniment. Massaged into the shins, calves, shoulders and forearms before you train, it increases blood flow to the muscle before you load it — which is the entire point. Put it on during the wrap-up, before you skip.

It works after a session too, for aches and stiffness. But rubbing it on a muscle you have already pulled is closing the stable door.

Which one?

Namman Muay — the original, and the one you will smell in every gym in Thailand. Traditional, pungent, and effective. If you want the real thing, this is it.
Fairtex Orange (BL5) — noticeably milder. A sensible first bottle if the traditional stuff is too strong for you, or if you train somewhere that would rather you did not announce yourself.
Fairtex Peppermint (BL6) — sharper and cooler, and closer to the traditional Thai liniment.

How to use it

A small amount goes a long way. Work it into the muscle properly rather than dabbing it on — the massage matters as much as the oil.

Thai fighters use it on the shins as part of conditioning, on the shoulders before pad work, and across the lower back and hips, which take a beating in a sport built on rotation.

A word of caution

For external use only. Keep it well away from your eyes, and wash your hands properly afterwards — a liniment-covered hand inside a glove, then rubbed across your face mid-round, is a mistake you only make once.

Avoid broken skin and open cuts. And do not use it under a wrap or a shin guard immediately before training, where it will be trapped against the skin for an hour.