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Martial arts...

2K views 53 replies 24 participants last post by  11sec4eyes 
#1 ·
I'm going to take a class here in Chicago, but I need some input. I guess what I want to know is besides a straight up self defense class what would be the most useful martial arts skill (or branch, or whatever) to learn to have fun and be able to defend myself? I'm a small guy, 5'7" and 125 pounds soaking wet, and I go out alot real late at night, so I want to be able to defend myself. I do have a small knife and I know how to use it, but just in case I find myself in a situation where I don't have it or can't get to it, I would like to be able to defend myself.

TIA for any input, and if this is in the wrong forum, please move it.
 
#2 ·
Personally I'm not one who would want to stand and duke it out with someone possibly having to worry about pissing another guy off and fighting multiple people. So with that being said Judo has always appealed to me, it's more of holds and throws and reversals. I'd say it appeals to me because it's not what your normal guy fighting is going to expect, most will be looking for the punch or kick rather then the take down.

The guy in the white is my old next door neighbor Ryan Reser who competed in the olympics this year. He's a very good friend of mine and is very good at the sport, one of the top 3 in America.

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#3 ·
Judo is cool, and actually one of the ones I was really leaning towards off the bat, having always heard that it mainly consisted of holds and throws. I don't want to kick someone's head off or punch out their internal organs, just know enough to be able to get out of sticky situations.
 
#4 ·
Judo is cool, and actually one of the ones I was really leaning towards off the bat, having always heard that it mainly consisted of holds and throws. I don't want to kick someone's head off or punch out their internal organs, just know enough to be able to get out of sticky situations.
i know nothing of judo but my experience sparing with guys that know judo is if they are smaller then they generally aren't able to use their full arsenal. at your size you might want to lean towards krav maga. IDF uses it and its a good dirty fighting style that works for people of all sizes.
 
G
#9 ·
What he means is it's not fixed-position fighting and there are really no "moves." It's basically just training to survive, not to win a competition. And when it comes to survival, you do whatever you need to. Google it or youtube and you'll understand.
 
#11 ·
Take more than one type and take it from someone with real lineage not an online certification. I have taken Karate, TKD, Hapkido and BJJ. Use the pieces that work for you and forget the rest. I am 6ft 225 and not likely to ever use a head level jump spinning back kick but I understand the concept. A combination of Hapkido and BJJ is my go to defense for real life and sparring/ jacking around. I would take Krav is there was a reputable place near me.

I don't know much about Krav except some video/ tv. It looks like a great option for real life vs traditional martial arts. Do they teach any ground fighting?
 
#12 ·
I have my son training in BJJ, the thing I like about BJJ is they touch on most of the arts, Judo, Karate, Muy Tai Boxing, it really is Mixed Martial Arts. He has lost weight, improved his cardio and it has helped in being aware of his surroundings and as well as given him confidence. It has also helped him in Football, using his technical form on his opponents at the line of scrimage.
 
#13 ·
Personally, I don't think there are any arts to stay away from being that its you 1st art to take. Get in and get your feet wet and get some agility and balance developed. Get as well rounded in the arts as you can and try to take as many specialty classes that the studio offers.

I started in Tae Kwon Do and then American Karate to American Kenpo. A total of about 16 years. The only thing I wished I might have learned would be any style of ground fighting.

Try to forget about learning how to kick someones ass, and learn the art. You will have a great time and self defence will come in stages.
 
#25 ·
im not a badass by no means but im 5'9 and i weight 160 pounds...not that big, at all. BUT i take muay thai here in fort worth tx @ new world combat. it has to do with elbows, knees, kicks, and punches....exactly what u said u didnt want to learn...right? BUT not that many people know how to fight correctly, much less have the discipline on how to defend themselves when the time comes. ive taken krav maga( the isreali hand to hand combat) and BJJ. ive never felt more comfortable and confident with myself since ive began muay thai.
 
#28 ·
im not a teacher but my intsuctor stresses how unrealistic some fighting styles are. make sure that u learn something thats gona test u exactly how it would be in a real life situation. find something thats exciting and realistic as well.
I didn't mean to come across as not wanting to learn how to kick and punch, those in my opinion are essential to self defense, however, I don't need to know how or where to kick someone in the head while standing or anything like that, because it seems like that would not be practical in a real life situation. I've always admired Muay Thai because it just seems so pracical and brutal. I did take American Karate when I was 12 for a couple years, so I feel kinda comfortable doing the moves I learned then, I basically just want to expand that knowledge and learn some new stuff that will be useful in real-life self defense situations.
 
#26 ·
im not a teacher but my intsuctor stresses how unrealistic some fighting styles are. make sure that u learn something thats gona test u exactly how it would be in a real life situation. find something thats exciting and realistic as well.
 
#27 ·
Tai Chi takes very little brute strength, but it can can break someones back if required.
Of course it takes years to be an expert in any of the arts.
The masters of the internal arts can simply touch you and send a ball of chi fire into you- taking you down to your knees. The very best can stand across the room from you and send a ball of chi fire into you- taking you down to your knees. I have experienced this pain.
 
#36 ·
Another vote here for KM. (Based on the OP's goals)

I've been training BJJ (with mma/MT) for about 4 years. I had always dismissed KM as another McDojo, "martial art of the week", but about a year ago, I started training at a CrossFit gym that teaches KM also, so I started taking a few classes here and there (initially just for the workout) and was really surprised! What they really ingrain is instant trained intensity. Meaning going from zero to 100% at the flick of a switch and just drilling turning on the rage and turning the tables on your attacker.

There aren't any new moves or anything, they just drill executing the basics from real-world fight situations. So instead of drilling a rolling omoplata counter to a single leg takedown, you'll drill headlock/choke/grab escapes and every way conceivable to hit someone hard in the nuts. They also don't stick to a "one-size-fits-all" approach. They'll say, like here's 2-3 ways to get out and you do each one a few times, and then for the rest of the drills, you pick the one that works the best for you and worst for your attacker. They'll be like, "escape and deliver ten blows." They don't care what they are as long as they're hard and to a vital soft target. The other thing they teach is situational awareness. Your goal, period, is to GTFO, so if someone is attacking you, do just what is needed to neutralize their attack and immediately check around for his buddies. If it looks clear, make sure he neutralized, then get away. They also make you think about being boxed in, aware of your exits, etc.

I really like the nature of the drills. Many of them you start with your eyes closed, or boxed in from 4 sides and you don't know how they will attack you or from what side and you have to fight it out. If you are too focused on the one attacker, they will happily come up and blind-side you with a pad to make sure you are watching out.

So I think for pure self defense, it's hard to beat! The only think I fault them for is maybe not spending quite enough time on the fundamentals. A lot of the folks in there come from martial arts backgrounds, so they do just fine, but knowing the basics would be a nice pre-req. (Like 6 mos of TKD/boxing/MT, etc.)

Again, this is based on the original posters goals of learning some basic self-defense. If you plan on being a cage fighter, it may not be for you. MMA guys aren't going to put you in a headlock, or try to "rape choke" you, so spending time there (and drilling hitting places you can't hit in sport MMA) is counter-productive.
 
#41 ·
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#43 ·
Hahaha. You can do some crazy stuff with focused energy (call it what you will) but I would not train it as a self-defense mechanism. I was also a non-believer when it comes to energy, but then I trained under this guy for a while:

http://www.masteryi.com



Yes, that's him breaking a leaf-spring! He incorporates Ip Sun (like Tai Chi) quite a bit in the teaching of his martial art (Tukong Moosul.) I would have loved to have continued training under him, but he moved locations and I changed jobs so I was across town so it would have been an hour each way to train. :(

The Ip Sun is just a supplement to his general martial arts training/way of life, it's not a self-defense system in-and-of-itself. Once you get to the advanced levels with that guy, he also teaches modern weapons (guns/knives) as well as climbing, rappelling, etc. all sorts of cool stuff! :D Tukong Moosul is a nice modern adaptation of a traditional art. (A LOT of the training there is very "traditional" though, so it would take a pretty good time commitment to get to a decent proficiency level, so I wouldn't necessarily recommend it for the purposes of this thread.)

There are numerous videos on the web where traditional martial artists using "Chi" get their asses thoroughly kicked. I'm not saying it doesn't work, but it's much harder to focus/concentrate when someone's hitting you in the face and not coming at you in a choreographed manner.
 
#47 ·
http://www.powkickboxing.com/
This has all the classes you need, I have taken bjj, krav, and kick boxing. Try it all and apply what you adapt best to.

"Like a finger pointing to the moon. If you keep your eye on the finger, you will miss all the heavenly glory."
 
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