Martial Arts.

[maninahat]

Plenty. I like mucking about with swords. Kendo, iaido, fencing. All fun.

Started at a 'Kung Fu' school, which was a blend of Tae-kwon-do and Southern style Shaolin boxing. Did 5 years before being encouraged to leave for putting another student in hospital. I too may possibly be naturally violent.
I cannot thank my Sifu enough for the care he took in training me.

A 'Self defense Academy' for 4 years, training a combination of Muay Thai, professional kickboxing, street defense and good old karate. And Escrima, which is the noise you make when your fingers break. It moved, and I didn't.

Oh, a small stint with the Ninjitsu schools in Australia. Embarrassing, and nearly resulted in a criminal record. I left when a friend had a femur shattered during an 'exercise'. Stayed to be beaten for not being thinner though. Go figure.

I cannot recommend Caepoeira or Aikido enough, for their conditioning and attitude respectively. I like that Caepoeira puts you in a Ronda as soon as you can Jinga, and I like the calmness and elegance required to defeat a much more heavily armed opponent that Aikido engenders.

I'm worried that a number of people here don't consider Judo to be particularly martial. Any art that requires techniques to be performed well so that you don't kill your practice partner out of hand definitely falls under the martial category. It's designed to kill heavily armored opponents, and it is highly effective at it.

One teacher recommended ballroom dancing as a training technique. You'd be surprised at the improvements it generates. You also meet girls/guys who don't hit you on a regular basis. It's fun.

Jeet Kun Do, as the creation of the premier martial artist of our time, deserves careful contemplation. Tai Chi Chuan is commonly underestimated, and I would like to study Pa Kua Chuan and Hsing I. Good teachers aren't all that easy to come by.

That's what SageSays

Not that it is a good idea of me to argue with a man with far more knowledge of martial arts than me, but surely Capoeira is unsuitable to the purposes of self defence? Its emphasis is more about putting opponents off balance than actually inflicting damage, and all those flips and twists would be impractical against an opponent who refuses to follow the beating of the drums and the rhythm.

 

[AlkalineGamer]

Plenty. I like mucking about with swords. Kendo, iaido, fencing. All fun.

Started at a 'Kung Fu' school, which was a blend of Tae-kwon-do and Southern style Shaolin boxing. Did 5 years before being encouraged to leave for putting another student in hospital. I too may possibly be naturally violent.
I cannot thank my Sifu enough for the care he took in training me.

A 'Self defense Academy' for 4 years, training a combination of Muay Thai, professional kickboxing, street defense and good old karate. And Escrima, which is the noise you make when your fingers break. It moved, and I didn't.

Oh, a small stint with the Ninjitsu schools in Australia. Embarrassing, and nearly resulted in a criminal record. I left when a friend had a femur shattered during an 'exercise'. Stayed to be beaten for not being thinner though. Go figure.

I cannot recommend Caepoeira or Aikido enough, for their conditioning and attitude respectively. I like that Caepoeira puts you in a Ronda as soon as you can Jinga, and I like the calmness and elegance required to defeat a much more heavily armed opponent that Aikido engenders.

I'm worried that a number of people here don't consider Judo to be particularly martial. Any art that requires techniques to be performed well so that you don't kill your practice partner out of hand definitely falls under the martial category. It's designed to kill heavily armored opponents, and it is highly effective at it.

One teacher recommended ballroom dancing as a training technique. You'd be surprised at the improvements it generates. You also meet girls/guys who don't hit you on a regular basis. It's fun.

Jeet Kun Do, as the creation of the premier martial artist of our time, deserves careful contemplation. Tai Chi Chuan is commonly underestimated, and I would like to study Pa Kua Chuan and Hsing I. Good teachers aren't all that easy to come by.

That's what SageSays

Not that it is a good idea of me to argue with a man with far more knowledge of martial arts than me, but surely Capoeira is unsuitable to the purposes of self defence? Its emphasis is more about putting opponents off balance than actually inflicting damage, and all those flips and twists would be impractical against an opponent who refuses to follow the beating of the drums and the rhythm.

Not entirely sure, but i think capoeira came around when all form of fighting where made illegal in brazil, so people invented capoeira, because it looks like dancing they could secretely train how to fight.
So i don't really see it as a super effective style compared to the rest of them.
Still good though.

 

[Jaeriko]

I'm sure there are much better things that 'naturally violent' people can get into. Like counselling.

I don't mean that i like constantly hitting people.
Though generally most encounters with my brother and closest friends contains a fair bit of punching.

When i say i'm violent i mean i just like being able to fight, it's mostly violence without aggression.
I tend to think i'm to kind to hurt a stranger, i don't particularly like huting people, just fighting them.
And i figure if i'm going to be fighting, i may aswell do it propperly.

A shame that your philosophy doesn't extend to your spelling. Just joking ^.^

I myself tend to shy away from any fighting for fear that I'll hurt the other person permanently. That's why I prefer styles like Bagua Zhang, which has a lot of evasion techniques, or Aikido, where I can learn to take someone larger/stronger than me down without having to use brute force that could potentially seriously injure them.

My greatest fear when I'm fighting is that I'll hurt the other person, which is extremely counterproductive to the styles I've been able to learn as of yet.

 

[FolkLikePanda]

I did Taekwondo and got to my Red Tag but I had to stop due to lack of students. Now I do Jujitsu which I've been doing for about 2 months. I might also take up Systema which there is a class at the dojo where I study Jujitsu.

 

[AlkalineGamer]

A while ago i used to do Kickboxing, we sparred semi light continous or points, basically we didn't hit eachother hard.
I ended up in an actual fight and found that i just couldn't hit the other person, not that he blocked or moved out the way, i just couldn't physically bring myself to hit them hard. when i fought with aggression i tended to sieze up and was pretty useless.

Ofcourse since then i've learned to be more calm during a fight, and to actually follow through with attacks.
Ofcourse that's bad news for any sparring partners i get, but if you don't learn how to hit someone, then your not gonna do much good in a fight.

And sorry for my spelling, i am sort of rushing these.

 

[KefkaCultist]

I've never taken any fighting classes, but I'd really like to learn Tae Kwon Do and/or Muay Thai.

I know a guy who's a yellow belt in some fighting style. I don't remember what style he said though.

 

[Cakes]

i did judo for a couple of years. would have proffered to do Kung Fu or some sort of proper martial art instead of throwing people around but some of my friends did judo so i joined in.

Uh, what do you think a "proper martial art" is?

Lol, striking martial arts.

Professional fights these days may as well start on the floor.

Tonnes of grapplers still train Boxing, Karate or Muay Thai. Need to be well rounded, though a pure grappler can completely wreck a pure striker (I believe this happened quite a bit in the early UFC).

OT: I do Shotokan, and a bit of Judo which unfortunately I don't have the means to train right now. It really annoys me, but I'm hoping I can get into it this September.

 

[SageSays]

*snip* - I said it before, no need to say it again.

Not that it is a good idea of me to argue with a man with far more knowledge of martial arts than me, but surely Capoeira is unsuitable to the purposes of self defence? Its emphasis is more about putting opponents off balance than actually inflicting damage, and all those flips and twists would be impractical against an opponent who refuses to follow the beating of the drums and the rhythm.

Not entirely sure, but i think capoeira came around when all form of fighting where made illegal in brazil, so people invented capoeira, because it looks like dancing they could secretely train how to fight.
So i don't really see it as a super effective style compared to the rest of them.
Still good though.

I believe that Caepoeira developed around dockside knife fighting with sailors. In these circumstances an ability to control distance and attack (or distract) from a range of directions is a distinct advantage. We do not train Caepoeira with weaponry in the west, but if you consider the techniques from the position of a knife fight, it is rather "super effective".
I don't really expect my mates to show up and play a ronda every time I get in a fight, any more than I expect a street opponent to conform to my two-step-kata.
It doesn't stop it from being a valid and effective training technique.
Combat just isn't like training. Read 'The Book of Five Rings' by Musashi for an in-depth analysis of combat rhythms.

Oh, Maninahat, it is never a good idea to argue with me, I'm far too reactionary and full of hyperbole, but I try to have fun with it.

That's what SageSays. With far too many commas, just too many...

 

[Truth Cake]

I'm a first dan black belt in Tae Kwon Do, been doing it for 6 years and been teaching it for 2 out of those 6 years, but can't do it anymore since I gotta work and go to school, though I'd love to go back...

 

[Cakes]

Im currently learning Krav Maga through, embarrassingly, self teaching videos since it seems no "mixed martial arts" centers near me have ever heard of it.

You really shouldn't bother with this, the only way you're going to learn a martial art is with an actual instructor. Going to one of the MMA centres near you would be a much better use of your time.

 

[PureChaos]

i did judo for a couple of years. would have proffered to do Kung Fu or some sort of proper martial art instead of throwing people around but some of my friends did judo so i joined in.

Uh, what do you think a "proper martial art" is?

one with punches and kicks, like they do in films and in actual fighting tournaments rather than just throwing someone and holding them down, like they do in judo. sure throws can be part of martial arts but, to me, it shouldn't ALL thrownig and holding

 

[Cakes]

i did judo for a couple of years. would have proffered to do Kung Fu or some sort of proper martial art instead of throwing people around but some of my friends did judo so i joined in.

Uh, what do you think a "proper martial art" is?

one with punches and kicks, like they do in films and in actual fighting tournaments rather than just throwing someone and holding them down, like they do in judo. sure throws can be part of martial arts but, to me, it shouldn't ALL thrownig and holding

Films are not at all an accurate representation of martial arts. I don't know what fighting tournaments you've been watching, but grappling always plays a huge role. If you're worried about being well rounded, cross train Boxing or Karate.

 

[BGH122]

Krav Maga (the best, in my opinion (as long as you don't mind the prospect of jail should you ever defend yourself))
Wing Chun (nice for fast punching and quick blocks against unarmed opponents, not very realistic these days)
Shotokan (awful, avoid)

train [...] Karate.

Don't. If street fighting is your aim go for Krav Maga, if tournament then Muay Thai.

Krav maga:


We basically just steal all the best moves from other martial arts and then throw in disarms.

 

[CrystalShadow]

Uh, I've been doing Tai Chi Chuan for about 5 years now.

The fact that it is actually a martial art is often glossed over by people obsessed with it's 'health' benefits.

Also, philosophically, it doesn't encourage violence, and practically, it's not very useful for anyone that is trying to be the aggressor in a fight.

But, if anyone thinks it isn't a martial art, they're in for a pretty nasty shock if you pick a fight with a tai-chi practitioner that has actually learned the martial side of it properly.
(For the aforementioned reasons of obsessing over it's 'health' benefits, many neglect it's martial side, failing to realise that ignoring part of what it's for makes it less effective even if you don't care about fighting at all. It also goes against it's philosophical roots to ignore half of it's purpose.)

I've been interested in the martial side of Tai Chi Chuan, but it's really hard to distinguish between that and the Yoga. Any advice on sifting through the 'health' benefits and getting to teachers/schools that appreciate Tai Chi for what it is?

Well, my teacher isn't a great example, but he is at least aware of the issue. (It helps that he also teaches kung Fu).

The biggest thing to watch out for, because tai-chi has no formal grading system, is people that don't understand anything about the principles of tai-chi.

I, for one, have been doing it for 5 years and do not feel in any way qualified to teach it, yet I knew a woman who thought she knew enough about it to teach Tai-chi after a 3 week course.

And I could demonstrate in 5 minutes that she doesn't in fact, know what she's on about.

Understand that learning Tai-chi is time consuming. It's philosophy isn't amenable to learning it as a set of physical movements.
If you do that, you won't get what it's about at all.

A common notion is that it takes about 10 years of practice to understand Tai-chi well enough to use it in a fight without missing the point of it entirely.

Still, there are a few things you can look into. The first, is looking into where your teacher learned Tai-chi.

My teacher is European, but learned from a chinese master, who in turn, learnt from one of the current members of the chen family.

(My teacher teaches Chen style Tai-chi, which is the oldest form. It is also the form that most obviously resembles a martial art, though the newer forms definitely still have the capacity to be used in a physical conflict. - He is also accredited by my country's Chinese martial arts council)

So, to try and narrow it down:
at the very least, Look for someone who has some kind of credentials related to traditional chinese martial arts, or who can tell you something about where they learnt it, and who in turn taught their teacher, and so on. - This is very much a traditional aspect of chinese martial arts.
Someone who respects and acknowledges it's martial side. (Definitely avoid anyone clueless about it being a fighting style, or claiming it doesn't matter.)
And, if fighting in particular is your goal, someone who emphasises push-hands practice, or can openly demonstrate some knowledge of the relationship between the forms, the theory, and what it means in a fight.

Consider the following advice and information too:
http://www.dotaichi.com/Articles/ProgressinginTaiChi.htm
http://www.dotaichi.com/faq.htm
http://www.dotaichi.com/Articles/SanShou.htm

This shows both other answers to the questions you have raised, and some of the explanations given by those with decent knowledge.

And just for fun:

A demonstration of specific moves.



Just a general demonstration. Note that the students attacking here claim that running at him like that is the only way to even get anywhere against him at all. (And that he's holding back to avoid injuring them, which sometimes unbalances his moves.)


Or this one, which is perhaps the clearest explanation about what it's all about in a fight. (And holds an amusing demonstration of how even the silly looking opening move in a tai-chi form can be used for something.)


And finally, just for sheer comedic brilliance:

This is very obviously not proper Tai-Chi. But it does very clearly demonstrate something about the philosophy of tai-chi masters.
Notice how he goes out of his way NOT to fight his opponent?
It's a joke fight, but it does illustrate a point about the philosophy involved. You can win a fight long before it becomes a fight, if you have the mentality to do so.

 

[CATB320]

I did Judo when I was a kid (stopped around puberty -- a little awkward if you're one of the two girls in class), then Tae Kwon Do for a few years, and now I'm doing Arnis (Filipino stick fighting). Out of all of them, I prefer the latter. We learn a lot of disarms and take downs, and the techniques down with the sticks can be applicable to knives or hands.

 

[Sacman]

Took Brazilian Jiujitsu for a while... I quit because I broke my shoulder and honestly it's really not for me...

 

[Psycho Cat Industries]

Well I did a couple months of Tae Kwon Do back in the day and really couldn't care much for it.I hold full respect for anyone who does it,but I think we should just blend all these styles into something new without televising it as a new wrestling league.

 

[AlkalineGamer]

Krav Maga (the best, in my opinion (as long as you don't mind the prospect of jail should you ever defend yourself))
Wing Chun (nice for fast punching and quick blocks against unarmed opponents, not very realistic these days)
Shotokan (awful, avoid)

train [...] Karate.

Don't. If street fighting is your aim go for Krav Maga, if tournament then Muay Thai.

Krav maga:


We basically just steal all the best moves from other martial arts and then throw in disarms.

Oh my!!

I Sooo want to learn this now.

 

[BGH122]

Oh my!!

I Sooo want to learn this now.

I've only had call to use it once. A guy lunged for my mp3 player in a rough area of London and I snapped his wrist. It's very effective.

 

[radioactive lemur]

Don't. If street fighting is your aim go for Krav Maga, if tournament then Muay Thai.

Unless you're talking about dealing with knives or guns, that's bull. If something works in the ring, it will work just as well on the street, if something DOES NOT work in the ring, it WILL NOT WORK on the street. It really is as simple as that. Muay Thai, Western Wrestling and Brazillian Jiu Jitsu have been incontestably proven in the UFC, even in the early days when there were very few rules, therefore, they are the best styles for self defense. Case closed. That's not to say a Karate or Krav Maga dude can't be really awesome at self-defense, but if there was anything in those styles that is more street effective it would be incorporated into the repretoire of UFC fighters.