Why Muay Thai Could Be the Most Powerful Spiritual Practice You Haven't Tried Yet
Most people hear Muay Thai and think brutal, aggressive and violent. Or they think, what the bloody hell is that?
If you have never trained a martial art, I understand why you would think it's brutal.
But here is what I know after starting Muay Thai at 40, having 17 fights in Thailand, and winning four stadium championship belts: Muay Thai is one of the greatest spiritual teachers I have ever had. Not one of the most brutal experiences. One of the greatest teachers.
What Warrior Energy Actually Is
I use the phrase warrior energy a lot and I want to clear something up. I am not talking about aggression or force.
To be a warrior you need emotional and spiritual strength, not just physical. You need the courage to act and the courage to stay still when stillness is actually the most powerful move. You need dedication to something bigger than yourself, discipline to show up when everything inside you is screaming no, and resilience to keep going when you get knocked down.
And then there is the quality Muay Thai taught me that showed me a lot about myself.
Jai-Yen-Yen: The Warrior Quality Nobody Talks About
In Thailand, there is a phrase: jai-yen-yen.
Jai means heart. Yen means cool. Jai-yen-yen means stay calm. Keep a cool heart.
In Muay Thai, if you walk into a fight hot-headed and angry, you gas out fast, your timing goes, and your technique falls apart. You cannot see what is happening around you when your emotions are running the show.
To fight well you need to be poised. Present. Calm enough to read the situation, make calculated moves, and strike when it is actually the right moment.
This is a warrior quality. And it is a life quality.
Ask yourself this question: how many times are you forcing something, pushing hard and burning yourself out, when stepping back and approaching it differently would actually get you there faster?
Jai-yen-yen applies everywhere.
Stand Like Mountain, Move Like Water
When I first started training Muay Thai, a Chinese proverb kept going around in my head.
Stand like mountain, move like water.
I have it translated into Thai and tattooed on my body because it is that important to me. And it underpins not just how you fight, but how you are best served to deal with everything life throws at you.
The mountain is your foundation, your strength, your grit, your certainty, your unwavering sense of who you are. You cannot be moved. That foundation is non-negotiable and without it, you have nothing to fight from.
But being rigid, fixed, and immovable will not win you the fight. The mountain alone is not enough.
You also need to move like water. Agile, fluid, able to pivot, shift, flow, and outmanoeuvre. Able to read where the energy needs to go and align yourself to it rather than bulldozing through it. This is where true power comes from, not from brute force, but from the combination of an unshakeable foundation and the willingness to move with grace and intelligence.
This is also what we do in magick. We work with resonance and energy rather than force. The principle is the same. Root down, stay clear on who you are and what you want, and then be fluid enough to find the path that actually gets you there.
This proverb is not just about fighting. It is a blueprint for life.
Muay Thai Is Meditation in Motion
When you are in that ring your mind has to be completely present. You are tracking your opponent, reading their body, monitoring your own balance, checking how much stamina you have left. You are inside your body and outside it at the same time.
This is the focus required in a spiritual life. The living, breathing, active kind.
And the self-trust that comes from showing up consistently, doing the work, and knowing you have given everything to your preparation, that is not arrogance. It is earned. In spiritual practice we call it inner knowing. In Muay Thai they call it susu. Keep going. You know who you are and what you are capable of.
The Fight That Taught Me the Most Important Question
Championship belt fight, our third fight together against a woman roughly 12kg heavier than me, all five rounds to the last possible minutes of the last possible round.
I was utterly exhausted. I had no idea if I was winning on points. I genuinely did not have much left.
The referee broke us and in that pause I asked myself one question.
How much do I want this?
The answer was immediate. I want this. This is mine. I have worked so hard for this.
I went back in and won the fight by knockout with seconds to go.
Not because I found physical energy I didn't think I had, but because I found the answer to that question.
I go back to that moment regularly. When something in my business or my life is hard, and I am wondering if I have got what it takes, I remember standing in that ring with nothing left, choosing to go anyway. And it shows me every time that I can do hard things when I really want to.
That is warrior energy. And it does not live in the gym. It lives in you. And it is needed for so many aspects of life if you are to succeed and create what you want.
There Is Nowhere to Hide in the Ring
Every limiting belief, every block, every place where you do not trust yourself shows up immediately in your body. I have been mid-fight and caught myself not throwing a kick. In that split second, I knew exactly why. I did not trust myself.
If I am not trusting myself in the ring, where else am I not trusting myself?
Every block in your training mirrors a block somewhere else in your life. Every time you push past a limit in the ring, you prove to yourself that limits are mostly in your mind.
I started at 40 and was still fighting at 45. That proved something to me I could not have learned any other way.
If I can do this, I can do anything.
The Qualities It Builds (And Why You Need Them)
Whether you ever step in a ring or not, these are the qualities Muay Thai develops and that every spiritual path requires.
Discipline to show up when you do not want to. Focus and presence so you can't be derailed, and so you can read yourself and your situation clearly. Self-trust so external outcomes do not define you. Resilience to get back up without letting it break your spirit. Jai-yen-yen to stay calm under pressure. Stand like mountain, move like water so you have both the foundation and the fluidity to succeed. And deep self-awareness, the kind you cannot fake and cannot avoid.
These are not just fighting qualities. They are what you need to stay on your spiritual path, hold your boundaries, chase your goals with focus, and keep going when everything is hard.
Martial arts is not a spiritual metaphor. It is spirituality in action.
Should You Try It?
I started at 40. Don't let anything be your excuse.
If you are in Chiang Mai, I teach ladies-only Muay Thai. Come and train. Contact me for more info on where and when at @brightwellbeing on Instagram. You can also follow me at @the_spirit_of_muay_thai.
The Warrior's Choice Retreat in August 2026 is a 13 day experience combining plant medicine, sacred mountain trekking, and mindset workshops for women ready to go all in on themselves.
And on Saturday 13th June, I am running a free live workshop, Choose Differently, Choose Yourself, for women ready to stop getting in their own way.
May you always dare to dream bigger.
Carrie x
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Muay Thai safe for beginners?
Absolutely. Everyone has to start somewhere. Most gyms welcome beginners, and some gyms cater more for them. You can contact any gym ahead of time and ask if you’re unsure. The main thing that most gyms will ask for is not your level of skill or experience but your willingness to be taught, to learn and try.
How do I know what gym to train at?
I get asked this a lot. My response? It depends on what experience you want and what you like. Some gyms focus on skill and fighting. Some gyms have more of a social element. You need to go there and try for yourself and see which feels best. Yes, reviews are helpful, but gyms can change quite quickly due to staff turnover. So, identify what you want, find one close to you, go check it out. If you don’t like it, don’t go back!
I've heard that women have to go under the ropes, will I be welcome as a woman?
Yes, they have to go under the ropes for fights. And yes, you are welcome. There are different theories and reasons for the ‘under the ropes’ rule (that’s a whole different blog!), but ultimately, females are welcome to train and fight, especially in tourist-oriented gyms.
Is sparring quite brutal? I don't want to get hurt.
Brutality is not part of the sparring etiquette! The idea of sparring to practice timing and technique. It is not to hurt your opponent. Sparring hard is generally frowned upon and not encouraged here in Thailand. You can also say to your partner in advance that you prefer light sparring. However, what i would say is, if you’re not willing for your opponent to make contact with you then is Muay Thai the right sport?
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