Spec me a Martial Art please

Vidar

Vidar

Vidar

Soldato
Joined
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Hi Guys,

I used to love doing Ju-Jitsu when I was a kid and tried to go back to it when I was around 21 and found it a little too laid back, Okay I was a lot fitter then.

Basically I'm itching to take up a new Martial Art but am not sure where to start, I do fancy something more intensive however I'm significantly out of shape at the moment, I'm 28 and 6ft8 now so looking for something to build my fitness levels up as well as refreshing my self defence skills....

So what do you guys do and what would you recommend?
 
From what I've heard of people doing Brazilian Ju Jitsu classes it's far from laid back and great for fitness... it may vary from place to place?
 
+1 for jiujitsu, did a few seminars with gm billy doak and it's a great art, you do need to get being thrown around a fair bit especially him, really throws you hard lol.

Least i was mind, but all the while i loved it, i studied aikido at the time, but felt jjsu would have probably been more practical in a fighting environment, that's not me knocking aikido of course.

But there's not a one size fits all art, you are better off going to local classes and giving each one a bash, you'll soon figure out which one you like.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbaI9rq0_wo

Edit - Nice to see his wife still about, another good instructor.

I'll be, he passed away over two years ago, such a top bloke :(

http://www.planetjitsu.com/viewtopic.php?t=17594
 
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If you found Ju-Jitsu abit laid back but enjoyed it maybe try a different gym? Ive never done it, but a few mates do it and it sounds far from layed back. I do boxing to stay fit, really enjoy it. Far mor technical than people think. Im sure its no where near the technicality of a martial art though :)
 
Problem is they all vary massivley from gym to gym. You really need to try a few gyns out and see what suits you. I do kickboxing at uni but didnt get on at all with the KB gym at home so box here instead
 
Wing Chun Kungfu kept me very fit - and taught techniques that could genuinely be used on the "street" if you had to use it (I've never been in a fight - I'm not that sort of person - but its useful to know for self defence)
 
Ju-Jitsu guys tend to win grapples, and since most fights end in grapples, Ju-Jitsu guys tend to win lots of fights. This is when their opponent doesn't know Aikido, which is the superior martial art. Depending on the level that the individuals have attained, obviously.
 
What type of self defence are you looking for?

I can recommend Muay Thai/Thai Boxing very highly and this excellent for fitness, makes you very tough. You will learn to punch and kick like a machine.

MMA is very popular too, i've not trained much of it but it does give you a wide range of skills and takes portions or certain disciplines to make you an all round fighter.

If you want proper hardcore self defence then have a look at Krav Maga. Teaches you the how to stay alive in lots of dangerous situations. You train the usual kicks and punches and go onto stuff with knives and guns etc. Also its very good for defence against multiple opponents, protecting someone else and stuff like that.
 
Vespasian777 said:
Ju-Jitsu guys tend to win grapples, and since most fights end in grapples, Ju-Jitsu guys tend to win lots of fights. This is when their opponent doesn't know Aikido, which is the superior martial art. Depending on the level that the individuals have attained, obviously.
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Lol.
 
NW_SKINHEAD said:
Hi Guys,

I used to love doing Ju-Jitsu when I was a kid and tried to go back to it when I was around 21 and found it a little too laid back, Okay I was a lot fitter then.
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Depends on the club but usually on novices (white belts) they do take it easy for those who come "to get fit". Plus it takes a while for you to break fall properly so you need a while before you get to the serious throws.

However once you are past that the sport is anything but laid back, the pace gets faster with every belt you advance and even at orange belt (usually around 6 months) you get 20+ opponents thrown at you one after the other and the attacks vary and include bottles, knives, koshes, etc.

It is fantastic for self defense and much more real life than some of the jumping that people fantasize of on some martial arts.

I recommend you find a university club, they are very friendly, cheap and will very often take non-students as well. The big clubs have people of random grades, joining in october is great as there will be lots of novices around.


LE: as for aikido the only techniques that I found interesting are the ones that are the same in Jiu Jitsu, the fancy fapping around and people jumping doesn't really impress me. A wrist lock is hard to ignore though and you learn those in jiu jitsu as well.

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is the 121 on the ground, Jiu Jitsu is defending against multiple opponents with various weapons.
 
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Vespasian777 said:
Ju-Jitsu guys tend to win grapples, and since most fights end in grapples, Ju-Jitsu guys tend to win lots of fights. This is when their opponent doesn't know Aikido, which is the superior martial art. Depending on the level that the individuals have attained, obviously.
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Hello Mr. Seagal, we've been expecting you.
 
NokkonWud said:
Hello Mr. Seagal, we've been expecting you.
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I wish I was Mr Seagal, in martial arts abillity terms anyway. I know his films are a bit rubbish, and he may not be a very nice man, but he IS genuinely as hard as nails. Like I said it depends on the level obtained by the individual, and he is 7 dan. The counter argument to Aikido is fostered by the fact that you mainly see exercises which are scripted by the teacher and student. This is indeed the case, for good reason. The fact is that the student is always assisted to land without injury. In a desperate situation, many of these throws could easily be modified to break peoples necks. So that's a broken neck to go with your broken wrist, as well as anything the guy subsequently decides he'd like to break. It really is potentially rather nasty. Although the top guys may have very strong hands and forearms, it does not require massive strength, making it extremely graceful, as well as very effective.
 
Vespasian777 said:
I wish I was Mr Seagal, in martial arts abillity terms anyway. I know his films are a bit rubbish, and he may not be a very nice man, but he IS genuinely as hard as nails. Like I said it depends on the level obtained by the individual, and he is 7 dan. The counter argument to Aikido is fostered by the fact that you mainly see exercises which are scripted by the teacher and student. This is indeed the case, for good reason. The fact is that the student is always assisted to land without injury. In a desperate situation, many of these throws could easily be modified to break peoples necks. So that's a broken neck to go with your broken wrist, as well as anything the guy subsequently decides he'd like to break. It really is potentially rather nasty. Although the top guys may have very strong hands and forearms, it does not require massive strength, making it extremely graceful, as well as very effective.
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Aikido is very good for entry and exit, hand positions and leverage, but it's not the master martial art, it's merely reference able to others. It also offers nothing against Jiu Jitsu once they have you grappled, its main counter quality is against Wrestlers who come at you in an MMA sense.
 
NokkonWud said:
Aikido is very good for entry and exit, hand positions and leverage, but it's not the master martial art, it's merely reference able to others. It also offers nothing against Jiu Jitsu once they have you grappled, its main counter quality is against Wrestlers who come at you in an MMA sense.
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Ok. If you're a nasty ****** then go with ju- jitsu. I'll take my chances.
 
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Muay Thai.

Develop the most devastating kick you could ever hope to deliver. Just as I am pushing my kicks harder and harder and tweaking the fine technicalities to get better the trainers with 500+ fights go and do some 'light' training on the bag. Makes me feel like a weak ass :D

It's like a gun going off when they make contact!

Other than the badassery it is a very demanding martial arts that will get you fit pretty quick. Knees, Elbows, Punches, Kicks, Clinching. It has it all except ground work. You will use every part of your body in MT.

It's a key of most, if not all, MMA fighters technique as it is an excellent stand up style that holds nothing back. An elbow or knee to the face is a perfectly legal MT move. The other nice thing about MT is it is very easy to get to grasp with it and the basics. There is loads of room to improve and master of course but you can get stuck right in there and feel comfortable doing so pretty quick.

I tried some Judo and while I picked stuff up pretty quick I had no idea what I was doing and it felt like that also. At least in Muay Thai you can go wail on a bag even if your technique sucks and still get a workout from it.
 
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Judo is the best if you want to build up core strength. To be honest, all martial arts will get you fit in one way or another, though something like Karate may be slower than others to get into.
 
You can easily split the mostly technical from the mostly impact/striking (although technical also) Martial Arts though.

I got bored of Judo after doing Muay Thai as I missed the high impact/striking nature.
 
So to summarise the thread: try out lots of different martial arts and see what you like. No single martial art is the best.
 
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