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Martial Arts - Which Style is Best?
Martial Arts - Which Style is Best?
This is the single, most asked question I get asked via email
and in person. My answer is always: "what are you trying to
achieve and what style interests you"? The answers to that
question is what I begin to formulate my response to address.
"It's all good", is an expression I hear around martial arts
training halls, seminars, tournaments and elsewhere. It doesn't
work for me. I have seen too many bastardized styles based on
other systems, combinations of systems, and just plain B.S.
"home made", "smoke and mirrors" styles where the Chief
Instructor was a Green Belt (in reality) and put his salesman's
skills, together with his limited understanding of a credible
style, and then promptly awards himself a 10th Dan and makes up
a laughable name for it. These are always a major hoot but our
"good manners" prevent us from laughing, since the unwitting
students love and believe in their Grandmaster "O Sensei
B.S.er". They are not to blame.
Quite honestly, the choice of a martial arts system is a
daunting task. If you want to hook up with practitioners who
will be able to instruct you in techniques, train your body, and
speak into your life - you want to be sure. I believe that the
student lends himself more readily to certain styles more than
others. Stocky, stiff jointed types would probably hate Tae Kwon
Do, but a flexible, lanky, body type might excel at it. The
stocky, less flexible type might do better with Shotokan or an
Okinawan martial art, which don't focus on aerial spinning kicks
but rather, deliberate and punishing punches and kicks, on a
lower line. I had an old Shorin Ryu (Okinawan karate) teacher
who was tough as nails, but couldn't kick any higher than your
waist. He used to mention that he didn't need to kick higher, to
kick you in the face. He'd always laughingly say "I'll kick you
in the
stomach and when you bend over, then I'll kick you in the
head". Strange, but oh how true!
My recommendations are to DO YOUR HOMEWORK, you will want to
stay for a few years or maybe longer, so go to several schools.
Make these schools a good cross section of martial arts. Check
out a few styles of Karate, a few Kung Fu, some grappling
schools, and whatever else that may be available in your area.
All will let you observe the class and give you access to the
Sensei (head instructor) of the school. Most will offer some
kind of "sign up" special, like a month free or a few free
classes. This gives you a great opportunity to see what you will
be doing, meet the teacher, assess the skills of the students
attending, and help you decide if you want to invest a lot of
time and energy (never mind the monthly fees) at this training
hall. If you can line up about 6 or more schools of different
martial arts styles, with different focuses and faithfully check
them all out - WITHOUT JOINING - you will have a pretty solid
idea of which one best suits your physical structure, your
attitude, and your goals. Choose thoughtfully and carefully,
because if you aren't having fun in your martial arts classes,
as in anything, you will soon fall by the wayside - frustrated!
Better to just go out and buy one of the high power stun
batons on the market and crack open a brew, than spend a
year in a martial arts style that you are not suited for.
Good luck in your pursuit of the unattainable Grasshoppers -
choose well!
About the author:
Tom Fredrick is an accomplished martial arts practitioner with
over 30 yrs. of active training and teaching Okinawan Karate,
Yang Tai Chi Chuan, and Escrima. He served in the USMC, and has
also worked in law enforcement, undercover airport security, and
as a personal bodyguard.
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