martial arts help
 

Im interested in getting into martial arts, but am not sure what one to get involved in.

I read in a thread somewhere about a week ago that different martial arts are suited to different people.

Im 120kg (260lbs) 6'3, solidly built and have been doing a fair bit of gym work (only about 20lbs of excess fat on me)

Also, im fairly sure my muscles are predominantly slow twitch (if thats the right terminology) in that i have very limited explosive power.

Can anyone out there suggest a style that would work well for someone of my bulk and slowness ?


edit: im in Auckland, New Zealand, if any of you are locals :)

Judo would suit your body type well - it is basically throws and grappling (wrestling). Your size and strength would be advantageous. There is a big sport aspect to it if you choose to get competetive, but you don't need to do that.

Also, if matters on what your goals are. Different arts stress different things. Some are more applicable to self-defense while other teach you katas and howto use pretty swords.

Judo is good. It's everywhere too. It has amazing applications towards real street fights as well. I recommend judo or Jiu Jitsu.

Yeah Judo is a good art. My advice is to try a few different styles. Most places have a first lesson free policy. See what appeals to you.

I'd agree with the above about judo/jiujitsu (brazilian?), and would add maybe sambo...

You could be formidible at Tae Kwon Do as well. A tall strong fighter with a good round and hook kick is always a nightmare to take down.

I know I'd be scared if I came up against somebody who was exceptionally skilled at Muay Tai too :P

The problem is he said he doesn't have the quickness...Could make Muay Thai or Tae Kwon Do difficult for him (or at least until he developed a more explosive muscle mass).

Maybe so.. but those fighters are extremely scarce. TKD is actually found to overall be pretty weak compared to other arts in actual self defense in a hostile environement, be it a competition or real life. Muay thai on the other hand is devastating..

As for the poster.. why dont you just start western boxing ? You have a huge build and i guarantee western boxers are a force to be reckoned with as well as being extremely fit.

Also, BJJ ( Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ) would seem to fit you. Its almost all groundwork and grappling.

Tae Kwon Do is great for tournament fighting but would get you killed in the street. Muy Thai is good for street fighting but the training methods necessary to make you effective in the street are brutal and most American students lack the stomach for bone conditioning.

If you are looking for effectiveness go with western boxing and jujitsu. If you want more traditional eastern martial arts study shotokan and learn techniques that were proven in battle.

Yes, learn shotokan karate like every other 9 year old kid and housewife.

shotokan is mostly involving attacks and jujitsu is more using defense to make an attack, hand techniques

You've got some severe hate going for traditional Japanese martial arts!! lol

That's only because I did Shudokan Karate (very similar to Shotokan) for three years, and was 3 months away from getting a blackbelt before I realized how utterly worthless it was.

After months of Shotokan and a bit of Tae Kwon Do, I personally suggest....jujitsu with a bit of boxing and judo thrown in. Learn to kick Karate style.... power rules.

I also think belts are just another way for a school to take in extra cash. They are never given equally between schools and that takes the prestige out of it. The only real use is to ensure people of different levels treat each other with the respect needed to prevent an injury.

If you "need" martial arts in your area..... move.

The greatest benefit of martial arts is "GOOD HEALTH"

ive taken some aikido classes and find it very practical. you can practice all the time, size does not matter. the art teaches one to use the opponents energy against themself. i too was looking for awhile and found judo, juijitsu, kickboxing/muay thai, karate all very interesing. a sensei told me that its not the art but the sensei that will make the difference.

Ive found a Aikido Dojo close by that appears to have a decent guy in charge:

Now i just gotta wait for the beginners classes in mid february.

Cheers for the help.

Ueshiba Morihei was the founder of Aikido - the school you found is headed by a man who studied with the founder's son..... I'd say it's legit ;)

Go for it!

Martial arts
 

Try Bokwa spelling may be off, it means rolling ball it was concevied for big guys

I doubt your school was worth the rent paid on the building, especially if you were up for a black belt in 3 years.

How long should it take?

Here is one persons opinion. I personally agree with it.

http://www.24fightingchickens.com/101/19_belts.html

How long does it take to get a black belt?
It will take between three and seven years in a good karate school for you to earn your black belt. Some people have earned their shodan rank in only two years and some months, but these people are extremely athletic and are very talented naturally. Also, the people who tend to do this train 6 days per week two or three times per day. You probably won't have that kind of time, nor would you be willing to sacrifice everything you hold dear to progress that quickly. Some people take a very long time to earn ranks because they move around a lot because of their jobs. These people may hold low ranks because the clubs that they have encountered have minimum membership tenure requirements attached to each rank to ensure that their club's political power structure and rewards system is not fouled by some guy walking in from out-of-town.

Earning a black belt is great goal, but it doesnt stop there.

I've trained with some tall guys who took Tae Kwon Do and they've done very well.

It doesnt matter what style you do, speed is all important. In defence you have to be faster than their attack in order to parry/block/move/slip. If you slower then no matter what technique you have you are going to be hit/grappled. In attack you have to be faster than your opponents defence otherwise they are going to parry/block/move/slip your attacks and thus render them ineffective. If your a big strong guy then basically your at an advantage no matter what art you choose. Not to say size and stregnth is everything, just a huge advantage. Just because he says he doesnt "have the quickness" doesnt mean he cant train it. It is like saying I dont have the stregnth to do rock climbing but by excercising I will get strong enough to do it. The same is with speed. Personally I beleive speed is more important than stregnth but both is awsome.

Striking arts such as Muay Thai and Tae kwon doe relys on transfering most of a persons body weight into an attack thus a large heavy guy will have an advantage. In grappling arts such as juijitsu etc where the technichue is based on leverage and body weight movements then a heavy guy will be able to produce more leverage.

Personally Im a big fan of Muay thai combined with an effective grappling art such as jujitsu. I did ninjitsu for a while and I was greatly impressed with the scientific anatamical knowledge behind the attacks. I do think some arts are more effective than others but there is something beneficial to learn in every art. Im just of the opinion that people should try everything and make up there own mind as to what is best for them. Personally I have very little confidence in karate but I know very proficient fighters who stand by it. Take in everything and throw away what you dont like. Thats my advice anyway.

I studied Tae Kwon Dor for a few years and never developed the speed necessary to do really well. I think its a great art but it just wasn't right for me. I switched to Aiki-jujitsu and it was like a light went on in my head. In Tae Kwon do I was average at best but in the new class I just "go it". The movements seemed natural and all the close in work really worked for me. Aiki-Jujits is the art from whick Aikido sprung so in my opinion, Aikido is a great choice. Good luck!

This reminded me of a story my ninjitsu sensei once told me. This guy came up to him some martial arts meet/thingy. The guy asked "How long will it take for me to get a black belt in your art?"

My sensei replied "10 years"

The other guy then asked "What if I train twice as hard?"

My sensei answered "20 years"

This other guy was confused so asked "Why will it take twice as long if Im training twice as hard"

My sensei explained "Because you have one eye on the trophy and one eye on what your doing".

Anyway I thought it was a pretty cool parable

Lunchbox7 - Nice.

Its not about the belts. Its about sparring.... I love sparring!

And the friends.... some great people are into martial arts.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is the best art if you're looking primarily to defend yourself. If you find a good bjj teacher, not only will you learn the groundwork but some good standup as well. (throws, self-defense and strikes).

Heyhey is correct.

it all depends on what your goals and interests are......do you want it for self defence? do you want to compete, usually this is a very good motivation... just something to do on the side to stay in shape?
also, are you looking for a fighting style or an art?

tell us more, ive done almost all martial arts and call help you.

juijitsu
sambo
wrestling (freestyle)
karate shotokan, kiokoushikai
kung fu
quankido
boxing
mu thai

So what was your favourite? What did you get most out of?

Hapkido, the Korean equivalent of Jujitsu, is pretty sweet.
I took it for three months before I went to college, and while I didn't really get a chance to learn anything (inasmuch as muscle-memory goes), what I observed from the master (quanjongnim, phonetically) and the higher students was fantastic.

I've posted in another thread that I really desire to learn ninjitsu, as the anatomical attacks and holds really appeal to me, but there's nowhere in my vicinity to learn. In lieu, I'd like to study jujitsu, but the same circumstance applies: no teachers.

Damn Salem, Virginia!

I know I'm late, but i've got to chime in.

I personally have taken 9 years of shotokan, with some tae kwon do (the fancy kicks look good) and a little bit of Muy Thai.

I love Shotokan, but it's so commercial that it isn't an art anymore, any monkey can get a black belt.

I say, if you want results right away take Muy Thai, you're a huge fucker! use the advantage.

I say go with Muy Thai because if you watch any high level external martial artist (and I don't mean McDojo sensei's with man boobs bigger than their pot bellies) you'll see that it all looks pretty much the same.

One thing I have noticed is that you have all these different martial arts who practice different techniques, but as soon as you put them in a mixed martial arts tournament they all turn into kickboxers. Gone are all the crescent blocks, monkey kung fu moves etc. They all just use the basic punchs and kicks. Shit even the stance work which these martial arts practice go out the window in an actual fight.

Kickboxers AND grapplers.

Bottom line is fancy stuff doesn't work.