What Martial Art Is Right For You? Which Ones Are Effective? What Style TO Learn?

Originally posted by cuchullainuk777
reply to post by blupblup

 

Thats what i see without being offensive a lot of knuckleheads go for brute violent force without any spiritual application it can be argued ok, all martial arts have a spiritual or philisophical dimension, but not in the same perspective that akido does.It application has one underlying credo that of balance/love/ not living to hurt rather learning to live using the discipline of akido .i think of all the jap/okinawan arts it is the one truest to the spirit of bushido.A lot of martial arts are tailor made for thugs bullies humility is the true master of what it is to be a warrior

Tell that to the ancient practitioners of Hsing I and Bagua........im sure theyd love to hear how much nuckleheads they were for their brute force and lack of spirtitual application......

Keep in mind these are a few of the martial arts that founded the teachings for what would come to be known Kung Fu......

These two arts were obscenely brutal and direct very external martial arts......and very spiritual, most of the time also practicing qi gong to enhance its effectiveness

Originally posted by LoonyConservative
I've been interested in learning one of these. but I never see large people taking lessons

Could anyone give some insight to a 6'4 270 lb former football player as to which one would be best for me?

I also heard about something called Krav Maga, would that be something that might fit my build?

Shotokan.

second line.

reply to post by PaxVeritas

looool there is definately a doves and hawks side to this post.I find it funny how people assume that the spiritual side of anything conjures up what you said stuff like ballet classes or thai chi,im not gonna bang on about what i believe and why each to his own .Look at any fighters any any martial art if his head isnt right his focus is blurred his motivation is diminished soon as he asks himself a question the worst thin any fighter can face DOUBT creeps in,thats why the spiritual side is important it most definately focuses the menatl side .pax nobiscum

Originally posted by LoonyConservative
I've been interested in learning one of these. but I never see large people taking lessons

Could anyone give some insight to a 6'4 270 lb former football player as to which one would be best for me?

I also heard about something called Krav Maga, would that be something that might fit my build?

Im a krav maga practitioner,

Anyone can use it, and its very physical if taught right.........will keep you in pretty good shape..

practical, straightforward, and no nonsense..........id say give it a shot, its not for everyone however

reply to post by ManBehindTheMask
id like to do a quick research on the actual dates of those martial arts ive absolutely no doubt they were brutal as ive no doubt all or most martial arts with their true application were equally brutal in consequence.But im certain ill have to check those martial arts you mentioned had a displine from some spiritual path ill check anyway

I'm sure it's been said before ...
Muay thai all the way

reply to post by tehdouglas

mmmmmm OK my answer to that first of all a fast pair of feet if pos, unless your either 120% confident of your knife hold locks (thats like a free climber gettin the wrong hand grip ooops).Then if it really is a life death situation God forbid real hard shin/knee busting kick from uechi ryu/krav maga/ or an old old english shin kicking form called 'purring' or irish Speachóireacht .deflection or evasion for other situations wing chun(yip man)or musti yuddah indian martial art.the best weapon of any martial art ever that would slice your knife attaker in shreds is the indian 'Urumi' a flexible piece of hell

I would say any style, but I learned Kung Fu that has Wing Chun, Chin Na (grappling), Combined with forms involving heal/toe movements and stances and balancing techniques, stretching and leg stretches. Weapons... escrima sticks, nunchaku, Staff, Sword and anything else. First 3 can be made easy. Maybe throw in some Fencing. One thing to remember while learning Wing Chun it helps with use of weapons. Weapons are only a extension of your arm and hands. If you know Wing Chun and you put a knife or sword or stick or whatever in that hand phsssh believe me that is a lethal combo. Question would be how many different ways would you like to be stabbed or sliced with that knife? lol Forms will also teach you how to control the area you're in and fight multiple people at once if necessary.

Originally posted by ManBehindTheMask

Originally posted by cuchullainuk777
reply to post by blupblup

 

Thats what i see without being offensive a lot of knuckleheads go for brute violent force without any spiritual application it can be argued ok, all martial arts have a spiritual or philisophical dimension, but not in the same perspective that akido does.It application has one underlying credo that of balance/love/ not living to hurt rather learning to live using the discipline of akido .i think of all the jap/okinawan arts it is the one truest to the spirit of bushido.A lot of martial arts are tailor made for thugs bullies humility is the true master of what it is to be a warrior

Tell that to the ancient practitioners of Hsing I and Bagua........im sure theyd love to hear how much nuckleheads they were for their brute force and lack of spirtitual application......

Keep in mind these are a few of the martial arts that founded the teachings for what would come to be known Kung Fu......

These two arts were obscenely brutal and direct very external martial arts......and very spiritual, most of the time also practicing qi gong to enhance its effectiveness

edit on 31-1-2012 by ManBehindTheMask because: (no reason given)

ok i thought so ........obscenley brutal as these arts are they are very much spiritual as nearly evry martial art in exsistence has fundamental origin in spiritual discipline well hsing i is based on the taoist internal form and bagua
"A healthy spirit can be seen reflecting brightly through the eyes of the person who possesses it. Dull, glazed eyes denote a spirit weakened through abuse of the body and an undisciplined mind. Only through training both the body and mind can a person achieve a state of balance that is conducive to creating a brightly glowing spirit, strengthened through the harmony of the mind and body." when i talk about knuckleheads and bullies those people cannot become true martial artist as the betray the true intention therfore lose the essence

reply to post by cuchullainuk777


Thats exactly what i said, you made mention of these brutal arts with no spiritual aspect....

As i said in my post, these arts were extremely brutal , and very spiritual as well....

So classifying a martial art as not being spiritual just because its brutal and in your face is folly

I practice gun fu, 45 style.
It is very effective.

I've seen very well trained people end up in "real" fight situations and 9 out of 10 times all of that training goes right out the window and you end up seeing a couple of guys pinwheeling it in a parking lot until their friends end breaking them apart. Kinda funny actually.

Fighting in a ring is equivalent to firing a gun on the range. None of it means much once you're in a real gun fight and no one is there to make sure you really don't get killed.
Calm and Calculating win over speed and strength. Bury every bit of that pain and be patient. Wait for that moment for your opponent to grow tired or make a mistake. Once they do, take full advantage of their mistake and aim for something brittle or crippling.
When training, don't just train in the execution of moves. Train in the handling of pain. Grow use to it, befriend it, love it and you'll become a whole new animal.

reply to post by FugitiveSoul


Train for the handling of pain and Self control. It is awful hard and takes lots of patience and experience to control that adrenaline rush during physical confrontation.

reply to post by ManBehindTheMask

i was refering to the dog(person/personality) in the fight(style) not the fight in the dog,good post though

reply to post by kimish

the ancient Irish used to prepare for mortal combat by getting into a state of readiness called 'battle frenzy' the Vikings who went into this state were called beserkers,fully preparedm and willing for any eventuality so much so that they increased their chances of survival because fear was eliminated,the greatest proponent of this state in Irish history was a dude called Cuchullain

If I was going to learn anything, at least in terms of what I've heard about, it would be Aikido. I've specifically avoided learning martial arts in any form, however, due to the fact that I've known that if I did learn one, I would use it in illegitimate (as in, non-self-defense) situations. My father in particular would probably not still be alive if I'd learned one as a teenager. I am a berserker who at times has been angry to the point of amnesia.

I've also been in a situation before where I was certain (at the time, at least) that I was going to die. I became very calm. That is the paradoxical flip side of the gangr; I can scream like a 12 year old girl from having a huntsman spider land on me, but in situations where fear would be genuinely justified, I'm usually not afraid at all.

My advice would be to primarily try to avoid situations where you are going to be exposed to violence at all. Violence is a no-win situation; even if you come out of it relatively ok, it will still mean that somebody else gets hurt, and I am not as vengeful as the average American in particular, so I see that as being a bad thing. You are much safer avoiding violence, than you are becoming an expert martial artist and then bragging to people (or demonstrating silently and non-verbally, which they usually do) how badass you supposedly are.

I live in a town at the moment, which is a place of great contrasts, in relation to violence. On the one hand, there is an unusually high concentration of hippies here, who are pacifists and who think that preventing violence is more important than anything else. On the other hand, we have a number of drug addicts and mentally ill people, who are trained and who have made violence one of the central elements of their lives.

I try to avoid the latter group as completely as possible, and truthfully, I feel great pity for them. I have direct experience of the concept that it actually requires a much larger degree of strength (psychologically and spiritually, if not physically) to refrain from violence, than to engage in it.

Read Sun Tzu; he says that the greatest measure of military skill is not to fight 100 battles, but to win 100 without fighting. The saying is true, that if you are required to draw your sword, you've already lost.

reply to post by PaxVeritas

I once asked a retired Army Col.who was a 5th dan BB in Hapkido and a prolific author on that style as well as combat arts for the military what was the best martial art to learn if you could only study one style for self defense. Expecting him to tout hapkido, which is a balanced korean style (ie, offense and defense) similar to the japanese art of aikido, albeit with more offense, he surprised me and said wrestling or judo as most street fights end up on the ground in 10 seconds or less and therefore grappling and holding techniques are of the greatest importance.

Some throws from it can be good. But most "forms' fighting methods are ineffective unless completely mastered through life. It's not effective to the common fight or even in a ring. Name one MMA fighter who's main discipline is AIKIDO in the last 10 years. It lacks a lot of real world application.

reply to post by PaxVeritas


While, though I agree that if someone is going to study akido they will need to add more punches and kicks which the style lacks, since it was primarily a grappling art to be used by samurai along with their swords and daggers,I don't think you should fool yourself into thinking MMA styles and what styles MMA fighters use is some kind of guide for real world or street fighting. The modern MMA style is effective and good in MMA modern competitions that is it. Real world/ street fighting has no rounds, no timelimits, no rules and definately no point systems.

It's the reason why I actually like the fighting philosphy, that Bruce Lee laid out in his books on Jeet Kun Do, and that is the philosphy that there is no such thing as a fair fight in street fighting and if he has to rake their eyes, pull their hair, bite them,punch, kick or twist their groin, hit them with bottles, pipes, rocks or other avalible objects to win, he will and he won't feel bad about it. lol

Though I too like MMA, I do not see it as being superior to other forms of martial arts, or even some superior model for street fighting.In fact if you look at the history of the UFC, it was only with the addition of rounds and time limits that the modern MMA style was even able to evolve and prevail in modern competition.

In the older UFC fights before time limits a match could last twenty minutes, allowing some grappling styles to lock up brawlers and slowly wear them down. It's why Royce gracie was so big in the earlier ones. But the fans got bored of twenty minute fights with mostly grappling which is why the UFC went to three or five rounds, and then the modern MMA style began to evolve.

As far as akido having little real world application that is patenly false as well, especially if you use akido as it was intended, which is with a weapon. The grappling and flips of akido were actually intended to take your opponent from their feet to the ground, where they would be finished with a sword or knife. Now of course you can't carry a sword on the street today, but if you can always use the throw and then pummel them with a stick, cane or pipe if available.

reply to post by petrus4
Good post especially your last paragraph .you may like these quotes..................

We make war that we may live in peace." - Aristotle

To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace." - General George Washington

"Only a warrior chooses pacifism; others are condemned to it."

"Mental bearing (calmness), not skill, is the sign of a matured samurai. A Samurai therefore should neither be pompous nor arrogant." - Tsukahara Bokuden.

"Master the divine techniques of the Art of Peace and no enemy will dare to challenge you." - Ueshiba

The Ultimate Warrior leaves no openings - Except in his mind." - Seishinkan ITP

artofmanliness.com... "Gorkha Soldier Saves Girl from Rape and Takes on 40 Train Robbers with Only a Khukuri"................a true warrior

Originally posted by kimish
reply to post by FugitiveSoul

 

Train for the handling of pain and Self control. It is awful hard and takes lots of patience and experience to control that adrenaline rush during physical confrontation.

Indeed, but once you get there, it becomes ingrained into your instinctual reactions, making them natural responses to physical self-preservation. Took me a little while to learn to place pain on the back burner. I used to use pain as a motivator for aggression, but eventually learned that that "pain" could still be used as an Achilles' heel. Now I've learned to place it out of mind, masking its effects with calculated thought during a fight; basically keeping my mind occupied so that I don't/can't think about it.