Muay Thai and Medicine: A Nebraska Medicine doctor’s double life
By Quanecia Fraser
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OMAHA, Nebraska (KETV) — You can find her in the ring or at the hospital. An Omaha doctor is getting ready for her 28th competition as a Muay Thai fighter.
Inside Apex Muay Thai in Millard, you’ll find Dr. Morgan Walgren getting ready for her next fight in Puerto Rico.
“It’s actually an all-women’s main card, and it is sanctioned by the Thai Boxing Association, which is one of the biggest Muay Thai sanctioning bodies in the country,” Walgren said.
Muay Thai was just sanctioned in the state of Nebraska last year.
“Muay Thai is kickboxing; it’s the art of eight limbs. So, you have your fist and your feet and then also it’s knees and elbows. So those are the other four weapons,” Walgren told KETV Newswatch 7.
Behind the power of each kick and punch are years of hard work for Walgren.
“It’s made me a better person, a stronger person, and I’ve met some amazing people,” Walgren said.
Walgren is an internal medicine physician at Nebraska Medicine.
“I am a hospitalist, so I work solely inpatient, seeing patients in the hospital,” Walgren said.
Her journey with Muay Thai started when she was in med school.
“From a patient-to-doctor standpoint, we both have different skills, different histories, different backgrounds that we bring to the table. Same thing for Muay Thai — me and my opponent, two different people in the same platform working together kind of in this mutual agreement,” Walgren said.
Not only is Walgren fighting for accolades, but she’s also fighting to honor Kurt Podany, her first Muay Thai coach.
“He passed away in 2022 from lung cancer. And he made such a huge impact on my life and supported me in a time where I was, I think, needing something else to bring me up,” Walgren said.
As Walgren gets further into her Muay Thai and medicine careers, she hopes other women are not afraid to be multi-dimensional.
“Because you don’t need to be defined by just one thing,” Walgren said.
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