Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Reasonable people differ on what MA is best for self-defense, but I can definitely say that once per week is not enough time to learn any MA. Think about at least 3 hrs/wk in the beginning if you want to get anywhere. More would be better.
We train each day at home. At the studio five times a week. Sparring every Wednesday and every other Saturday.
We-ll, it's not just several hours a week but how many years are you willing to dedicate to it?
I started at 10 in judo and by 16, I was a pretty impressive little cookie.
The good thing about judo is that for everything else I have learned, karate, wrestling, boxing, whatever the Marines taught us, nightstick combat, whatever......the judo provided a foundation that easily learned other techniques.
The bad thing? We are talking here an adult of 30 and not a child of 10.
Off hand, I would say one that has competition because competition not only teaches to be up close and personal but it also teaches to be aggressive and do lightning strikes such as taking out your opponent, finishing the match in 3-4 seconds from its start.
HOWEVER, I don't know what competition is like these days, I haven't done it since the mid 80's. Some of the stuff I learned in competition I took into military hand to hand, like sleeper chokes, and quite frankly, I don't know if they are legal these days.
BASICALLY, whatever you decide, it's going to take a lot of time, a lot of dedication.
Very true words. Martial Arts is a lifestyle. In Taekwondo it takes about three years to get your first black belt or Dan 1. You can earn up to Dan 9. Realize that to reach Dan 9 you will have spent about 40 years of your life studying the discipline.
Originally my family was studying traditional Taekwondo. Some of the families wanted to have kids compete in competitions. We started also studying competition Teakwondo. It is a big difference in styles. Traditional teaches you restraint and to turn away from a fight. Use your head. When needed though it is very effective.
I applaud anyone that can learn multiple disciplines. That is so awesome. The time restraint is real. It seems that we live at the dojang.
Boxing, jujitsu, or Krav are fine for what you are looking for an with the minimal time and effort you wish to dedicate.
Based on your little ambition and desire for quick results in short span with few hours of training boxing is your better bet. Even with boxing you will see little results in the once a week lessons your are looking for. But over a 6 month span you should possibly improve your jab, develop some timing and distance understanding and ability in throwing and landing your jab (excepted on skilled boxers who you will likely be unable to to land a jab on).
With that you can keep one, possibly two unskilled dudes off of you, and then flee. Possibly.
But if you want to become proficient at fighting or anything for that matter (drawing, ice skating competitively, shooting comepratively, etc.) you will have to sacrifice time and effort on your part and build discipline.
Violence and self defense comes in too many forms that one can study and train for it literally over an entire life period. Even then no person can ever become invincible and can still fall to an untrained 7 year-old girl given the right coincidences of variables.
Boxing is not going to prepare you for fighting 5 guys on stairs leading to a basement with a pit bull dog they intended on feeding you torturously too if the get you in the basement. Most martial arts are not in and of themselves going to prepare you for a fight on a Milwaukee street in the black of night with street lights out, multiple attackers carrying weapons, and bricks being thrown at you. What is MMA going to do for that? Something's but not everything.
Then you have personal, permanent or temporary injuries. Some of this I speak from experience as well as having knives pulled on me, being shot at and being shot multiple times. So you learn boxing or karate or Thai boxing. But what if one arm is seriously permanently injured one day or one knee? Your fighting style and fighting strategy and tactics must adapt.
What if you have the flu very bad? What if you are drunk off your butt? What if you have not earned for 2 days? You have to adapt. Self defense might mean doing all you can to avoid battle with someone intent on picking a fight with you. It might mean walking a way or flee to live to fight another day.
Some comments posted in this thread come from experienced fighters or those that have spent many hours, years, and sweat training to fight. Other comments come from people that know little personally of battle and rely on fantasy marketing tales. You can tell both.
OP, I trained karate and kung fu in the 80's, JKD and kali in the 90's, and BJJ and boxing in the 2000's. The one thing that I've learned from all of this? Use your awareness to keep you out of trouble, and if trouble arises, run like hell!
If you want to challenge yourself, stay in shape, and develop some basic self-defense skills, then train martial arts (I'll make recommendations later in my post), but if you are interested in a system of self defense, then prioritize by cultivating your awareness of your surroundings, get to know criminal psychology, and do a lot of reading on nonviolent means of self-defense. Remember that a criminal who is going to attack you has probably measured his opportunity to get to you, and has put other pieces in play that you may not be aware of (another person, a hidden blackjack, etc.). Remember that one of the best weapons for self-defense is a good pair of running shoes. I'm capable of defending myself, but I'm not going to get into ridiculous, ego-driven fistfights over 'disrespect' and the stupid incivilities that we all see on an everyday basis, so then why would I risk my life engaging in a violent confrontation when I can run? Seriously, your primary focus in a self-defense situation is to escape the situation and not let someone isolate or dominate you. If someone invades your home, you jump out of a window, you don't get into a wild-west shootout in your living room. If someone tries to put their hands on you on the street, you don't fight to dominate or to teach a lesson, you fight to escape.
Do some reading by Sanford Strong, Marc MacYoung, etc. Marc MacYoung has a great website (no nonsense self defense). You should read a lot of what he is saying, especially about criminals 'interviewing' their potential victims, how to recognize it, and how to deal with it.
Also, talk to local police about how people are being 'set up' in your area. It'll help you to stay a step ahead if you are in a similar situation.
Now to cap it off with some martial arts if you are still interested: I would say that your best options are boxing/muay Thai and judo. Boxing (or muay Thai) because it teaches balance, footwork, striking, and allows you to maintain balance and mobility while defending yourself. It also teaches you to hit hard, fast and often. Judo is great if someone tries to grab you. Toss them and run. You don't want to get into a ground-fighting match with a criminal, but judo is a great art to have experience in if you want a good, inexpensive self-defense art. Krav maga is good too, but the quality varies from school to school. Go to a school that "pressure tests" its art with some sparring and scenario drills, etc.
Also, pepper spray is a great option, just know how to use it, know its limitations, and know what the best kinds of spray are.
Most importantly, be aware, but don't become hypervigilant. I know a few guys who are way too high strung and militaristic about this sort of thing. Relax and enjoy your life, but get to know the patterns of criminal activity and how best to protect yourself and use your brain and awareness to keep yourself safe.
..........Remember that a criminal who is going to attack you has probably measured his opportunity to get to you, and has put other pieces in play that you may not be aware of (another person, a hidden blackjack, etc.)......
This reminds of "Rules".
What's the first rule of a gun fight? Bring a gun.
What's the first rule of a knife fight? Bring a gun.
What's the second rule of a knife fight? Bring a friend with a gun.
Long story short, expect no one to fight fair.
A and B.
A: In college, I was criticized in ROTC because I would fight "unhonorably". I would incorporate my dance skills, out turn people, and come in behind them to take them out on their backside. When this started to worry me, my mentor, a retired infantry general, set me straight: "There is no honor in a street fight.". One does what is necessary......which can include picking up anything to use as a weapon.
B: Beware of target fixation. Just it only maybe him, so he might have a friend getting ready to help.
I'm a male in my mid 30s and I'm interested in taking some lessons/training for self defense.
Which is best in terms of all around value and effectiveness?
I have a gym members that I go to 4 times a week. So I'm willing to cut it down to 3 times per week and go for lessons once per week.
Hate to bring this up but depending on your athletic range and size you might want to consider firearms training. Most people that would actually beat you up and assault you are going to be younger and have their own training so it's possible that martial training unless undertaken SERIOUSLY at your age instead of a class once or twice a week might not be effective.
Just a thought. Also consider carrying mace or a taser depending where you live and local laws.
Hey, I'm moderate sized with some martial training and if I were nervous about potential assault now that I'm getting older and knowing others may have even more training and be bigger, younger etc....well you have to be both realistic and smart.
Basically, at your age if someone is trying to kick your a$$ they're probably pretty good at it.
There are a lot of Krav Maga jock riders in this thread. My guess is that very few of them have any real experience with that art. Their only exposure to it is from Hollywood/Movies or how its become the Tae Kwon Do of this decade with schools popping up in so many mini-malls.
The reason why I refrained from suggesting specific arts in my earlier post is because we dont know anything about the OP. Dont know if he/she is fat, athletic, not athletic, has any recurring injuries, is coordinated, if he's ever been in a real fight before, dont know how many hours/days/classes per week he can train, etc.
OP, really, you'll get out of it what you put into it. Doesnt really matter the style you choose (but the instructor matters a great deal), because the more you put into it, the greater your skill will be.
I have 25 years teaching experience, rank and titles in three different martial arts styles, have "dabbled" and "exchanged ideas" with teachers/practitioners of other arts and am currently heavily involved with learning a new style (that I ABSOLUTELY LOVE) and say with utmost knowledge and confidence that you need to find what works for YOU!! People are going to say "Oh this is the best...." or "that is the best...." or "I heard that .......is the best" or "I do ...... so its the best" but really, that does nothing for you.
Its like Ron, Hermione, Hagrid or Malfoy telling Harry Potter which wand he should use. Or BB King, Randy Rhodes, and Jimmy Page telling young Stevie Ray Vaughn that he should play Gibson Les Paul guitars because thats what they play. Ultimately, the person needs to pick what works for them and not others. This is true with martial arts.
What I can recommend to you is to be in absolutely the best shape you can be in health/fitness wise. This would give you a good foundation for any art. You can have 20 years in Krav Maga training, but if you are fat and out of shape, get winded walking up a flight of stairs, you wont have much of a chance defending yourself against a 20 year old street fighter.
I took a fitness challenge class that incorporated Krav Maga. I really enjoyed the boxing and kicking. I'll keep doing that on my own at the gym. You should just do it. Whatever is most convenient for you. Try it for about 6 weeks and see what you think. At that point you'll be in shape and can move to something else if you prefer. (I'm retired military/56yrs)
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
