Muay Thai Gloves

Muay Thai Gloves: Essential Gear for Every Fighter

Muay Thai gloves are a key component of any athlete's gym bag. Their unique design features, such as their cuff length, shape, and outer hand protective bar, set them apart from traditional boxing gloves. These characteristics are specifically tailored for the dynamic and versatile nature of Muay Thai, making them essential for both beginners and seasoned practitioners.

Understanding the Design of Muay Thai Gloves

The engineering behind Muay Thai gloves focuses on providing optimal protection and flexibility during training and competition. The cuff length is typically shorter than other gloves, allowing for greater wrist mobility during clinching. The outer hand protective bar adds extra support, helping to shield your hands when blocking kicks and elbows, which are common moves in Muay Thai.

Unlike boxing gloves, the padding distribution in Muay Thai gloves is spread across the glove. This ensures not only the safety of your knuckles but also protects the back of your hand when defending strikes. The result is a glove that balances power and resilience, making training more effective and safer for all participants.

Choosing the Right Pair for Your Training

It is ideal to have several pairs of gloves for different training purposes. Lighter gloves, such as 10oz or 12oz, are perfect for hitting heavy bags and Thai pads. They allow you to maximize speed and movement without sacrificing hand protection.

For sparring sessions, it is recommended to use 14oz or 16oz training gloves. These come with additional padding to minimize the risk of injury, both for you and your training partners. Having dedicated sparring gloves is critical to ensure that your gloves do not degrade prematurely and maintain their protective qualities over time.

Comparing Brands: Fairtex and Primo Fightwear

The shape and padding distribution can differ greatly between brands, even when comparing gloves of the same weight. For example, Fairtex gloves tend to offer a shorter cuff and have more compact padding, which is favored by many fighters for its snug fit and controlled feel.

On the other hand, Primo Fightwear gloves feature a longer cuff and wider dispersion of padding. This design acts like a hybrid between Muay Thai and boxing gloves, offering added wrist support and a broader protective area around the hand.

Selecting your preferred Muay Thai gloves often comes down to personal feel and the specific demands of your training routine. Some athletes prefer one brand for bag and pad work while reserving another for sparring sessions, based on comfort and protection needs.

How to Maintain Your Muay Thai Gloves

Regardless of the brand or style, regular maintenance is key to extending the life of your Muay Thai gloves. After every use, ensure you dry your gloves thoroughly to avoid odor and bacteria buildup. Leaving them open in a well-ventilated space helps, as does using moisture-absorbing inserts.

Periodically cleaning your gloves according to recommended guidelines can keep them fresh and durable for longer. For a step-by-step guide on cleaning, visit our in-depth cleaning guide. Taking good care of your gloves ensures they continue providing the necessary support and protection throughout your training journey.

The Importance of the Right Fit in Muay Thai Gloves

Fit plays a huge role in both performance and injury prevention. Gloves that are too loose can slip during intense movements, while overly tight gloves may restrict blood flow. Consider wrapping your hands before fitting your gloves to ensure a more accurate fit.

Choose lightweight gloves for speed and precision during drills.
Select heavier gloves for sparring to enhance safety.
Try different brands and models to find your perfect fit.
Always follow the care instructions for maximum glove lifespan.

FAQS

How do I choose the right size?

Unlike other guides, we don’t recommend basing glove size simply on bodyweight as this disregards hand size and the need to balance conditioning with safety. Instead, for bag & pad work, we recommend 10/12oz by default (6-8oz for children). As this enables you to condition your hands and wrists through fast & powerful strikes, while maintaining a decent amount of protection. Yet these may be too large for smaller hands. In which case you can size down. The opposite goes for larger hands.

For sparring, we always recommend at least 16oz. This weight helps you minimise risk of injury to yourself and training partners. Yet this is where bodyweight does play a factor. While you shouldn’t really go below 16oz for sparring, if your classed as heavyweight or above, you may want to go 18oz or above.

How do you choose gloves for Muay Thai?

Besides size, it comes down to what type of training you will use them for and personal preference. Bag mitts and lace-ups are useful for focused pad & bag workouts. Lace-ups can also be good for sparring as they more closely simulate a competition. However, getting a partner/coach to lace-up your gloves all the time can be difficult. Therefore, hook-and-loop enclosures are always a good way to go.

After considering this, you can choose your Muay Thai gloves based on personal preferences. Colours, designs and shapes are different across gloves and brands, so it’s worth comparing a variety to be sure.

What size boxing gloves for women?

Muay Thai gloves are unisex, so there is no specific size for women. It comes down to your hand size and what you will be using them for. We recommend getting a pair of 10/12oz for bag and pad work. When coupled with 4.5m hand wraps, they should make a good fit for most women (and men). For sparring, 16oz is best. However, if you find they are too loose around the wrist, consider 16oz lace-ups. These can be drawn tighter making a better fit for smaller hands.

What do the weights mean on Muay Thai gloves?

Muay Thai gloves are measured in ounces. 1 ounce is 28.3495 grams. All gloves will come with a weight specification, and it's usually marked on the palm side of the cuff. The weight corresponds to the whole weight of the glove - cuff, padding, leather etc..

Expect variance when buying handmade gloves, as no two pairs are the same. For example, you may buy a 16oz pair of gloves and one of which may weigh 16oz exactly, while the other weighs 16.5 oz. This isn't an issue when overweight, but it can be if they are underweight (i.e. state they are 16oz but actually weigh 12oz). This is only really an issue with poor quality gloves. All the brands we stock work diligently to ensure accurate weights and measures. You can easily measure them on a scale.

What makes Muay Thai gloves different from boxing gloves?

Muay Thai gloves differ in several ways from boxing gloves. Firstly, their padding is spread throughout the glove, rather than concentrated around the knuckles. This provides protection to the back of the hand when defending strikes, especially kicks and elbows.

Secondly, most brands have short wrist cuffs on their Muay Thai gloves. This is to help the gloves flex when clinching.

Finally, Muay Thai gloves have a padded bar on the inside of the palm at the outer edge. This helps protect your hands when defending and catching kicks.

Which gloves are best for weak wrists?

If you are susceptible to wrist pain when boxing, firstly, you need to take extra care when wrapping your hands. Use 4.5 or 5m wraps that are tightly secured. Secondly, you should get gloves that have a longer cuff. The Emblem range from Primo Fightwear caters especially for this.

Finally, you should work to build strength in your wrists and ensure proper recovery between training sessions. Although not medical advice, our guide on looking after your hands and wrists can help.

What size gloves for sparring?

Whether it's technical light sparring or hard, competition prep sparring, protection is key for both you and your partners. You need to have the right size gloves and a full set of protective gear.

16oz is the minimum for sparring. If you're preparing for competition, you may spar some rounds with the weight that you'll fight in. Ideally, you will have a dedicated set of gloves for sparring. This is important for their longevity as well as to the benefit of your partner. After all, no-one wants to be hit in the face with gloves that have just hit old pads or been on the floor.