I've always wanted to, but never got round to it. I'm seeing it as a means to get fitter and also mental discipline.
I've just signed up to an Adult beginners course for Krav Maga
Anyone else do a Martial Art? And what do you think you get out of it the most?
I did Karate (Shotokan) for about 15 yearsJust got to the point where I no longer had time to get to it in the evenings any more.
Used to spend every spare moment either mentally or physically practising Kata
It's flipping excellent for getting shot of stress
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Nice. The de-stress thing I hadn't thought about.
The instructor has said, not to worry about age as he has people who started older than me..
I did wonder if I was too old to learn / do it etc
I'll give it a go
I did Tae Kwon do for a few years its pretty good but is competition fighting thats great when your young and flexible.
Quite fancy trying Judo or Ju Jitsu if i ever get time.
One of the trainers at described Krav as Sloppy Ju Jitsu. I believed him.
Alot of these arts are set up to make money. Try a few before you dedicate to one.
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It is supposed to be a combination of Aikido, Boxing Judo and Wrestling according to Wiki...Originally Posted by ben8000
The instructor is an Israeli
Yeah iirc it was developed by the Israeli special forces. Then turned in to a more comercial enterprise.
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So bumping thread. I had to stop as I left BlackBerry and the Dojo was in Maidenhead. So thinking about this again. What has also prompted me is my nephew is getting bullied at school and got severely beaten up on Friday, so thought I would take him along too.
So the place I looked at and had a good chat with the instructor tonight said it will do wonders for his self confidence - just need to pick an art. The list is:
Muay Thai
Wing Chun
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Jun Fan Gung Fu
Kali
Kickboxing
Maphilindo Silat
So decision time
Muay Thai is by far the best for stand up striking and quite easy to learn and there is no ballet dancing ( kata's) or grading involved.
It is very effective on the street as they strike with their elbows knees and shins all from jab range with bone breaking power.
The neck wrestling is good in regards for your nephew as it uses the opponent's weight against them which is good for clearing your back (stop people sneaking up on you ) whilst inflicting major damage to the main opponents face ribs and legs with the knees.
The last place you want to be is on the floor in a street fight especially with children now days it is very easy to get wrecked by one of the opponents friends with a stamp or kick.
If he applies himself and it is a good club with an average aptitude for combat he could be ring ready in six months and be very useful against an untrained average fighter in weeks.
Last edited by leonatlarge; 13-03-2017 at 23:14.
I and his parents aren't interested about getting him ring ready... He is only 12. Just thought it would be a good way of getting his self confidence back. Me, I'm looking at it as a way to distress and keep fit.
It seems a good club. Sifu was trained by Dan Inosanto
Always wanted to get into one of these.. Did Karate when I was 12 and made white belt! My wife is Krav Maga trained, being an ex Israeli Solider
Aren't all Israeli women ex soldiers? And fit lolAlways wanted to get into one of these.. Did Karate when I was 12 and made white belt! My wife is Krav Maga trained, being an ex Israeli Solider
The vast majority do (national service and all), but if you can convince the IDF (Israeli Defence Force) that you are insane, you can avoid it.
and yes, the vast majority of Israeli women are well above average.
I would say the most important thing is the instructor and class atmosphere, especially for a child. There are martial arts that are a bit more Mickey Mouse than others, but a bad instructor can make anything not enjoyable and ineffective, my recommendation would be to get a shortlist together and go along to their classes to see what you think, they should be happy to let you come and get familiar before making any commitment. Although you said you spoke to THE instructor? Is this one of those multiple discipline schools?
Art wise from your list the flat earth society has a point if you want to be "fight ready" ASAP then Muay Thai or kickboxing are very effective, however particularly for your nephew I think the structure and culture of respect of one of the more traditional martial arts is a very positive thing, so from your list one of the kung fu styles probably fulfil this role. That said BJJ is excellent for school bullying situations as it nearly always ends up as grappling and being able to control the aggressor and remove yourself from the situation would be useful too.
So sorry basically said they can all be good haha, but go to some and see how you like it and if it is a single school teaching multiple arts give them a good google, they are usually good for kids but not often jack of all trades master of none kind of thing. I'm biased but I'd take a look to see if there are any Karate or ITF style Taekwondo clubs nearby too
I did shotokan karate for four years and achieved fourth kyu which at my club was purple and black.
The trouble is with karate we spent far to much time doing the ballet dancing (kata's) and marching up and down doing techniques and not enough time sparring. (Which is only semi contact )
Karate only makes for example a good fighter out of an average fighter and an average fighter out of a poor fighter.
I have seen black belts get wrecked by good strong untrained fighters.
At our old muay Thai club even the poor physically weaker fighters could hold there own against a good strong untrained fighter.
In my opinion a good kick boxer wouldn't last long at all against a good Thai boxer I would predict broken bones in minutes lol.
Not all martial arts are useful on the street , feet and hands can be easily damaged in a steet fight (no gloves and obstacles in way) as said above I'm sure each martial art has it's own strength just depends on what you want.
I do wing chun , very effective on street close quarter combat, we spar a lot with and without gloves.
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A common misconception about BJJ is that it's only effective on the ground. Sure sparring & competition take place on the mat, but the techniques are incredibly effective standing up, especially against a bully with no training Even better if they happen to be wearing a big jacket or a hoodie you can strangle them with lol. I've seen potential fights diffused in seconds without a single punch/kick being thrown, but with a well timed choke hold instead.
Good for kids too as you can practice/spar full contact, but as you're not striking there's little chance of injury.
Sorry to hear about your nephew. I hope he wasn't too badly hurt.
I started off in shotokan karate at the age of 7, and it served as a good foundation. Whilst I agree a good deal of time was spent in learning forms (kata), there was a something to be gained from this. It helped to commit techniques to muscle memory. Sparring is important. I can't speak for other schools, but we did plenty. Helped me deal with a few school bullies too. Considered doing Kyokushin karate a few years ago, its a full contact style.
I have trained in Muay Thai on and off for the last 12 years. Its an excellent stand up MA, and amazing for cardiovascular fitness. You will learn to fight/defend yourself quite quickly, if this is important. A good teacher is important to ensure that you are learning a good array of traditional muay thai techniques and not just what would be effective in a ring situation.
As Clint said, BJJ is good while standing too, and can be employed to take control of an opponent quickly and effectively.
I agree FunkyMonk on his point about the most important thing being the instructor and class atmosphere. It would be worth trying out and few of the classes with your nephew, and see which one he enjoys the most, and is therefor likely to stick too. A crap instructor can really sap your enthusiasm, but a good one will make something mundane feel great. I think all of the MAs on your list will help you get fitter and more confident, so no worries there.
I would love to have done kung fu when I was younger, in particular hung gar kung fu
Another Shotokan Karate bod here.
The katas and the routine provide discipline and to have good technique you need to do things over and over slowly, get it very good then its simply a matter or adding speed and power.
Its probably best to treat it as a get-fit sport with side-benefits if you find yourself in a spot.
I found that when I was regularly attending, my confidence increased but I was also more inclined to put myself in harms way for little good reason.
I also found that once I reached about the age of 40, I started to develop joint problems because of the high impact nature of the snappier moves.
I keep meaning to sign up for tai chi which is much lower impact due to the speed of the moves but would keep me in practice as many of the moves are similar just much more controlled.
After many years of doing Karate, my brother switched to Kung Fu when he started taking his kids. He felt it was better for the kids but I think that was mostly because he was happier with the instructor.
Last edited by Jonny Wilkinson; 14-03-2017 at 22:10.
I know quite a few 40/50 year olds who take BJJ. Lack of any striking makes it low impact, and tapping early & often in holds will prevent any injury by overextension. Could be another alternative to look into.
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