All my life, I’ve thought of myself as an athlete. There were times since I could walk
that I was a three sport athlete. Other times I played one sport year round. Regardless, I loved
sports, particularly softball. I got to the point where I was good enough to play college ball, but
naturally, that comes with a lot of sacrifices. I moved from Minnesota to California in the Fall of
2014 to begin pursuing my degree in Chemical Engineering. I thought I had the dream, Midwest
kid going to school in Cali with a great major and going to walk on a D1 softball team. Oh but a
dream it was. Engineering classes conflicted with sports, this whole new lifestyle conflicted with
everything, and everything was kind of a disaster. Spring semester, my mom supported me in
transferring to Estrella Mountain CC here in Arizona to keep burning through my generals while
I stayed with her. I got a gym membership to LA Fitness long enough to convince myself that I
was staying healthy. It wasn’t until 9 months later that I realized how out of shape I really was.
I tried different workouts, new routines, and I was still miserable. I realized that working
out independently didn’t hold a candle to teams. So in April 2016 I started looking for
something to occupy myself with. I needed something to GO to. I had always toyed with
kickboxing since I was younger, but never really liked the style of Title 9 or places like that.
Thanks to Google, I stumbled upon Xayaveth Muay Thai Gym. I gave the owner a call on a
Tuesday and met him that day to discuss my schedule and if he could make any accommodations
for me. He was friendly and had no problem working with what I needed.
I went in for my free session that Thursday. I wasted no time with failures when he
asked me to jump rope for 5 minutes to warm up, and I thought back to the last time I jumped
rope in 7 th grade PE. I stumbled through what were probably the longest 5 minutes of my life,
and we moved on to kicks. 100 kicks each leg he told me. If the jump rope didn’t have me close
to tears these words did. Fail number 2, in the remaining 50 minutes of my session, I believe I
only completed 75 kicks for each leg. But Vinn was patient, and asked me how it was when we
were finished, and told me to give it 6 weeks. 6 weeks and I would see a huge difference in my
technique, stamina, everything. I smiled and nodded and said I would be back next week, lying
through my teeth that I loved it and was excited to come back (while also choking back tears). I
wasn’t sure if it was Vinn’s kindness that encouraged me to come back, or my inability to accept
failure. Either way, I kept going back, and I was cruising through the beginner drills by week 3.
Not only has Muay Thai gotten me in shape, it has changed the way I deal with myself.
When I work out independently, I am able to motivate and push myself just like I was at Muay
Thai having the pad guy pushing me round after round. It has made me more disciplined, and
it’s given me a safe zone. Whether I’m working with someone new or someone I work with
every time I’m in the gym, we are able to push each other and everyone wants to see you
succeed. Since I started at Vinn’s, I’ve lost 50 lbs. and am building more and more lean muscle
while shedding weight every week. The best part is, I’m only getting started. Muay Thai has
allowed me to set so many different goals for myself outside of the classroom, which is
extremely refreshing. I have more energy, I feel great, and am so happy to have found such a
positive teaching environment.
Vinn has pushed me in ways that I have never been pushed before. It has been some of
the hardest work I’ve done in my life, but I have never left the gym not learning something new,
and I’ve never left the gym not wanting to come back to do it all over again, but do it faster and
do it better. Muay Thai has finally given me that workout I can look forward to on a daily basis
because I know I will walk away better in some way, and I honestly believe it’s because of Vinn
and what he has going at Xayaveth Muay Thai Gym. I see improvements in myself every day
and am happy to have found something I have become extremely passionate about.
Xayaveth Muay Thai Gym
1050 Eliseo C Felix Jr Wy. Unit 109
Avondale, AZ
480-818-0147
