Learning a martial art

Del Lardo

Del Lardo

Del Lardo

Soldato
Joined
8 Aug 2003
Posts
2,542
Location
Cambridge(ish)
[RANT]

I was wondering home from the pub tonight via some of Cambridges best back roads. The vast majority of these roads have pavements just wide enough for two people to walk side by side but because the houses were bulit at the turn of the 20th century there are big black bins outside every house blocking off half the pavement. Stumbliing home tonight I was happy enough to stop and let groups of people past as that is the polite thing to do. That was until I met upon a pair of rather objectionable chaps.

As I had done numerous times I moved to one side to allow two people to walk past me when scrote #1 comes out with "wise decision MATE" Now at this point my main aim in life was to bounce his head off a wall until the Police arrived and took me away. There was a slight problem in that they outnumbered me 2 to 1 and I'm a wimp. Would I be justified in learning a martial art just so I can get myself sent down for beating an arrogent scrote to death or would I be better off remaining a IT based keyboard warrior with a grudge?

[/RANT]
 
Combine the two, Keyboard-Fu, Keyrate... plus a keyboard is a perfect murder weapon if stolen from a public place. Covered in lots of OTHER peoples finger prints :D
 
even if you know martial arts you are still unlickly to come out on top in a 2 on one situation.

if you do decide to do martial arts choose wisley. As most are for defensive and will not help a great deal in street fighting.

But you sound just as bad as them really. just ignore carry on.
 
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sven256 said:
even if you know martial arts you are still unlickly to come out on top in a 2 on one situation.

if you do decide to do martial arts choose wisley. As most are for defensive and will not help a great heal in street fighting.

But you sound just as bad as them really. just ignore carry on.
Click to expand...


You are correct that martial arts do teach defence and the vast majority teach you to walk away as a first step. However, I am not "as bad as them really", I've had a rather unpleasant experience and IMO am justifiably angry. I would NEVER throw the first punch but equally I would never treat someone with such disrepect.

To be perfectly honest I have no interest in learning to fight just to teach people like that a lesson but I am starting to wonder if I should learn how to defend myself as ejits such as this could easily put me in hospital with very little chance of them ever being caught.
 
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Just ignore them. The majority are morons with no respect for other people. I have trained in Karate for the last 5 years and I really enjoy it. Self discipline and fitness sides mostly.

I have never had to use self defence and I dont plan to go looking for fights.

Rise above it. :)

Fenny
 
Yes, please go away and dedicate ten years of your life so you can go pick fights.

What most people don't understand, is that usually those who study martial arts are the least violent people... they know what can happen.
 
One of my friends has recommended that I look into the Aikido classes that are taught in Cambridge as it teaches good defensive techniques as well as teaching that it is best to walk away where ever possible. I do like the sound of this as I am not a naturally agressive person and do not really want to hurt people.

Are there any Aikido people out there who can give me more information?
 
I'd say go for it mate, it could come in handy if you're in a really messy situation where running away isn't an option etc. Ofcourse, learning a martial art won't give you the ability to kick ass, but atleast you'd have some sort of idea on how to deal with the situation. If you're interested, find an Akido forum and gather some more information. At the end of the day, there's nothing to lose in trying out martial arts is there? :)
 
I've had a nice cup of tea and calmed down a lot (my liver must be doing a good job ;) ) so I would rather this thread did not decend into a debate on the pros and cons of beating people up on the street.

I would be most grateful if people could give their experiences on studying martial arts purely as a form of defence when all else fails.
 
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I did Aikido for 4 years, not great at it, but I'd highly recommend it.

First off all, philosophically, it is ideal for me, it is non-aggressive, and focuses on locks and throws that ultimately utilise an opponents force and aggression towards themselves.

Secondly, you don't have to be strong, though being flexible and fit helps.

Its a martial art that requires a great deal of trust between its learners, and that is the bit I'd highly recommend. Theres no punching a bag, or flying kick to a dummy, its all practice with a partner, and learning to fall correctly.

I'd probably suggest supplementing it with a ground work martial art, though Aikido does have some ground locks etc.

Good luck and have fun! I loved Aikido, dunno why I stopped...
 
Thanks for the info.

Aikido does sound very promising. I play 5-a-side so am not totally un-fit but I do have the typical IT physique (slightly over weight with not much upper body muscle mass).
 
go for it m8 :)
have been doing Aikido for just over 6mths.
I think its a beautiful art. simple but difficult.
again as the previous poster mentioned u practise with a partner doing techniques.
It doesnt involve strength and most of the time using strength is what hinders you from doing the technique correctly.

When i was a lot younger i got bullied a lot. I did Karate for 3 years to learn to defend myself. It gave me a lot of self-confidence but more importantly it taught me to "rise above" those idiots that occassionally have nothing else better to do than pick on other people.

It teaches u about self control, after awhile u`ll just see that its better to ignore these troublemakers.

to lose is to win
to win is to lose

:)

forgot to mention.
Go to an actual Aikido training(or any martial arts) just to see for yourself if its the correct style for you.
first time its usually free and u can always ask the instructor questions etc.

hope this helps
 
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Have a read through this: OcUK Martial Arts Thread

You'll be sorely disappointed if you want to learn a martial art to 'teach people a lesson'. Martial arts aren't about a fun way to kick someone's arse - they are a serious and possible deadly art that should be turned to as a last resort when everything else fails.

I can't speak from personal experience as I'm taking TKD up this September, but from everything I've read, from websites and forums on MA and SD, and aikido/TKD/ju jitsu resources, the first focus of any martial art is recognising dangerous situations and defusing them before they escalate out of proportion. These two guys verbally accosted you, which to me signals they're looking for a fight, I would therefore ignore them and walk away. Only very stupid or very crazy people look to start fights with total strangers, and I wouldn't want to risk them being either as a totally untrained layperson. Did you think that either or both of them could have had knives? Worst case scenario they kill you, and steal your wallet.

This might seem like an OTT reply, but it's the kind of thing you have to think about once you go down the route of direct physical confrontation.

Learning a MA is a great thing to do, but take a hard look at your reasons for wanting to learn it. If you want to learn self defence, take a self defence class as it'll be far more geared towards realistic methods to stop attackers (eye gouging, kick in the nuts, stamping on foot) and grappling than a straight martial art.
 
You do not learn martial arts in a cople of years, try going to the gym/building up/boxing. To properly lear a martial art you need a good 10 years time.
 
Even if you are pretty skilled, if they had a knife or if they BOTH had a knife or were armed in some other way, you would still probably be in deep trouble or dead. Knowing the chavs these days, they all probably carry knives or other nasty objects. They'll also probably end up suing YOU for assault when the police arrive.

Most MA teaches you to avoid and run from conflict first and to only resort to violence as a last defense.
 
A Martial Atrs intructor will tell you first off that its not about fighting its al about self defence, and the ability to do it well.

Personaly i have been learning Five Animals for the last 5 years and its not just a case of going to lessons 2/3 times a week but its a way of life.
 
I learned Karate for about 9/10 years and if anything it calmed me down - learns you to keep your head. Also its only supposed to be used in self-defense as people have said. Always handy though if things start getting out of hand!!!

+44
 
I trained in traditional karate and then kickboxing for 12 years and have just taken up karate again after a 13 year lay off :eek: and I agree with what others have said about such training actually calming a person down. What it will teach you is self confidence and awareness which is all that is needed to avoid such situations inthe first place. An old instructor I used to train under used to have two stock answers for the question regarding martial arts and street fights:

"If you want to be a good street fighter, walk into the nearest rough pub and pick a fight, do that for about 3 to 4 years and then, if you are still alive and not in prison, you may be able to handle yourself in a street fight."

and my favourite (when talking about peoples' obsession with the black belt):

"A black belt will only cover two inches of your backside, the rest is up to you"

Do not learn a martial art to be hard because I guarantee the first time you try and use your best secret moves passed on to you by the 150 year old shaolin monk who trained you, you will get your arse kicked badly. To be any good at martial arts in a fight you have to train hard for a very long time and even then it depends on the situation.
 
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