Recommend me a Martial Art

FishFluff

FishFluff

FishFluff

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I've recently gone from stupidly thin to less thin and have actually put some muscles on myself for the first time. Woo. Yay. Etc.

However as a result I don't feel like i'm as flexible and supples as i used to be and so would like to start doing some form of Martial Art. I remember doing karate when i was about 8 and quite easily being able to kick above my head, that's the level of flexibility I'd like back again. :D

Anyone got any recommendations? One which can later on involve weapons would be a bonus.
 
Originally posted by FishFluff
I've recently gone from stupidly thin to less thin and have actually put some muscles on myself for the first time. Woo. Yay. Etc.

However as a result I don't feel like i'm as flexible and supples as i used to be and so would like to start doing some form of Martial Art. I remember doing karate when i was about 8 and quite easily being able to kick above my head, that's the level of flexibility I'd like back again. :D

Anyone got any recommendations? One which can later on involve weapons would be a bonus.
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I recommend Aikido, I loved it when I did it.
 
Krav Maga.

It's a form of self defence that is designed to be learned very quicky and uses every day objects as weapons.

Has recently been used in lots of films inc Bourne Supremacy & Identity.

Originally developed by Israeli Special Forces and now used all over the world. Can be a little difficult to find a shcool though.
 
Cheers for the recommendations guys, I'm thinking it's going to be a choice between Ju Jitsu or Karate. I'm currently leaning towards Ju Jitsu as I've never tried it, whereas Karate I've done before so I have it as a back up option if all else fails :)
 
Originally posted by FishFluff
Cheers for the recommendations guys, I'm thinking it's going to be a choice between Ju Jitsu or Karate. I'm currently leaning towards Ju Jitsu as I've never tried it, whereas Karate I've done before so I have it as a back up option if all else fails :)
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I may be wrong as I've not done Karate for years, but I don't remember any weapons in it at all (in fact, if I remember, Karate translates as "empty hand").
 
Originally posted by Davey_Pitch
I may be wrong as I've not done Karate for years, but I don't remember any weapons in it at all (in fact, if I remember, Karate translates as "empty hand").
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It does indeed, but I remember when I used to do it they had a weapons class 1 night per week. Not sure if it fell under Karate or not but I do remember my friend (at 8 years old) being a bit handy with a pair of nunchucks :eek:
 
Ick, karate, it's such a stiff martial art, so tense. If your into punch/kick stuff you might try Tae-kwon do. It's very hard work, you don't have to be fit to start it, but it really really help. Still, it's lots of fun, and leaves you feeling like you'd come of well in any fight someone started :)
 
Some karate styles let you learn weapons early to prepare you for black belt + weapon kata's. Shotokhan does and so does ju jitsu for katana and si's (sp - sword breaker thingies).

Fish - do a search on ju jitsu in the forum, i used to instruct it and have typed tonnes on it!
 
I would go for Karate. It will work your flexibility much more than JJ.

For weapons, er, maybe Wing Chun.
 
Bleh I can't find any of your post Mr Jedi, I think they must have been archived. :(

To save your typing fingers I'll have a scoot round the internet and then come back with any very specific easy and quick to answer questions. :D
 
I did Wado Ryu karate for a while then moved on to Tae-kwon-do.

I couldn't get used to the rigidity of it all and the semi-contact competitions so went for full contact kick-boxing.

Flexibility - strength - ability to fight.....had it all with that.

12 years of martial arts in total and i preferred it.

Although i'm leaning towards doing some wing-chun or Jeet kune do when my son gets old enough to do it.
 
Kung - Fu if you can find a place that does it, I go to a place whos website is www.kungfu-academy.com , if you really want to go into weapons, you could try Kendo, but my total experience of it is 0% so I dont know what it would be like... (JapSlap also uses weapons, but finding a place that teaches it is like finding a needle in a haystack...)
 
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As the WushuMaster I suppose I better add my 2p's worth.

Kung fu is a term encompassing all chinese martial arts. What this means is that if you manage to find a good club, the range of skills you will learn in kung fu is quite often wider then other non chinese arts. Many clubs teach weapons for demonstration and thats pretty cool it must be said.

Of course if you go to a Wing Chun or a Lau Gar class for example, then it will be just a small facet of kung fu and you will not perhaps learn things from other forms of kung fu.

Above all though whatever you decide to do, make sure you have a good teacher. My own is a chinese guy who has come here to teach full time. He speaks with an accent, is only about 5'4, but you see him in action and he commands your respect and inspires you to improve and stretch your limits. Big class sizes often put people off, but i think it can be useful as there will often be a good range of different abilities there so you can fit in easily and buddy up with training partners. It would also indicate to me that something about the class has to be good to encourage this kind of popularity.

Just remember though, Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and Jet Li all do kung fu;)

WM
 
I must admit,

I prefer the fluidity of Kung Fu to the harshness and rigidity of japanese/Korean arts.

They look more graceful and can be utilised more effectively in a "street" situation.

Lets face it Wing Chun was developed by women :eek: but look at how effective and powerful that art is.
 
I'm a 2nd Dan in Tae-Kwon-Do and would recommend it!

If you find yourself a good instructor you will be taught other aspects of other martial arts as well. Such as hapkido and krav maga. All martial arts have weaknesses and a good instructor will fill those weak aspects of your current martial art with the appropriate area from other martial arts.

It might seem a good idea to train in weapons but be warned that if you use a weapon on the street (UK) as self-defense the law will take a very dim view of it, but it won't hurt to get involved with weapons.

IMHO this time could training with weapons could be spent on non-weapons training.

Anyhow, whatever you choose good luck!
 
Depends whether you want to do some thing effective that actually works (Muay thai, Kickboxing, Boxing, Wrestling, BJJ, Karate, Judo).
Or whether you just want something flashy to show off to your mates (kung fu, etc).

:p
 
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