Martial Arts: Your interest?

Krav Maga is probably one of the more effective self-defence systems to be found; and because of the market you can more readily find Krav Maga which has been adapted to civilian self-defence, in comparison to other military combative systems that have found their way into the civilian market. I would say it is definitely worth a look into, but to ask the questions about how it has been adapted, and explore the instructors general knowledge of the needs of women's self-defence.

To address the opening post; my primary interests are in Okinawan Karate and Kobujutsu, which I have been involved in for the last 8 years. Before that I practiced various forms of occidental Kempo for approximately 12 years, and also submission grappling for three years. I say submission grappling as it was basically just me and some friends who cross trained together, shared our various grappling knowledge, and sparred a lot; we took from Greco-Roman and Freestyle wrestling, and Judo, and several forms of Gendai Budo Jujutsu. It was not really a comprehensive or systemised manner of training; but I still regularly attend a jui-jitsu sparring session and a wrestling drills session at a local MMA gym to keep those skills in shape. I have also been involved with HEMA, through family connections, on some level since I was 12 but I generally only practice Quarterstaff, Knife and Grappling at the moment as these have overlaps with my Karate and Kobujutsu training.

Between 2005 and 2008; I also competed in kick-boxing (Muay Thai, International, and American) and Shoot-fighting. I was attempting to become a professional kick-boxer before I was derailed by a back injury, and a fascination for psychology. I did the shoot-fighting on behalf of a friend involved in professional wrestling who wanted to experiment with promoting real fights, but MMA still had not really become a thing in part of the UK at the time so he went with the closest thing to a professional wrestling bout he could find.

I do not think one ever quite gets used to fighting, especially as the contexts are very different depending on the circumstances; when I worked as a Bouncer, the confrontations that involved were often over in seconds due to a number of factors. I am a trained martial artist and in the top 2% for height, and weigh in at the mid point of the heavy weight scale, and often faced drunks, so how those fights went was very different to anything I faced in the dojo or in the ring. I often faced people who did not know how to fight, and who were not in the same category as me in terms of sanctioned fighting, thus how I had to fight never lined up with any of my other experiences.

Also, even in pre-arranged bouts I have experienced a number of differences between how people fight and thus how one has to approach fighting. Traditionally trained fighters generally protect the centre-line much more effectively, and often do not fall victim to tactics such as striking the joints, however, they often try to pull you into their favoured range, rather than risking eating a punch or getting caught in a clinch to get the advantage. In contrast, those coming from a combat sport back ground are often far more willing to take risks to get the advantage, however, they often adopt stances designed to deal with grappling attempts or which allow more free use of all four limbs which can open up the centre-line, and thus invite certain unorthodox or rarely used techniques. Thus, in the first instance one has to be far more aware of potential traps, while in the second one must always beware attempts to force a change in the fighting range, which changes the tempo of fighting completely. However, this is not to say either approach is better than the other, and more often than not in a straight sparring situation the combat sport player has given me more issues than a traditionally trained individual, and I have to put that down to training culture.

Anyway; there is an advantage to just having a group with varying experiences coming together and training. You just have to maintain the ethos of safety before machismo, self-responsibility, sincerity, and that all be willing to offer something and have open minds. If one is the organiser, then one must have no hesitation in getting rid of any one who does not adhere to these principles. It will be a group for fighting, which always carries danger, so you have to be responsible for yourself and expect the possibilities of injury, but at the same time never gamble with another persons safety.

My chosen martial art is Tai Chi for a few reasons:

• I have found it to have amazing health benefits. I am have chronic pain. It could be called Fibromyalgia. Or perhaps Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Basically, I have chronic pain and no doctor has been able to pinpoint why. Tai Chi (coupled with stretching and Qi Gong) is amazingly effective in mitigating a substantial amount of pain, IF I practice regularly. I know if I don't, because I feel it all over.
• I find the slow, controlled movements, which are done with attention to the breathe to be very meditative as one must be Present for proper practice. This lends quite well to Spiritual practices. Learning how to feel one's Chi (energy) and direct it willfully through the body has really helped me to recognize my connection to the Force.
• Many look at Tai Chi and scoff when considering the martial aspects of the art. However, Tai Chi is wonderfully martial in real world application. I find that by using the method used in learning the art, namely the slow movements, actually translates well when it must be applied in a real world scenario. This may be counter-intuitive; however, using controlled movement allows one to really feel and listen to the body, and the body will definitely let you know if you are not moving appropriately. This allows more fluidity when the movements are applied at speed. I am not really sure that explanation makes a lot of sense, but it will have to do.

I love making staffs. Great exercise in mindfulness. What types of Martial Arts use staffs extensively?

KageKeeper wrote: My chosen martial art is Tai Chi for a few reasons:

Excellent choice...

Liwa Nim wrote: I love making staffs. Great exercise in mindfulness. What types of Martial Arts use staffs extensively?

if youre still around, sorry it took so long to respond to you


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RB0oyeMbQKg



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qn3rw0J8UMo



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GD93F03suMc

A while back I studied some Shinkendo, a sword art based on Samurai drawing and cutting practices.

I used to spin fire staff back in the day, always wanted to learn a staff martial art as well as I constantly had one with me. Sadly we're not well served for that kind of thing here in the middle of nowhere.

I've practiced Martial Arts from a young age under my father. He was in the US Navy during the Vietnam War. The techniques he started me out with were most likely what his father started him with, and his father before him. My great-grandfather was a member of the early FBI. My grandfather, his son, was a Sergeant in the Military Police Air Force in Postwar Japan. After that, he was a member of the Secret Service (a photo of him shaking hands with President Ford is attached.) Before I could process full techniques such as sidesteps, throws, or even punches, my father taught me how to survive a situation. Small things such as poking a bully in the eye and running. Later on, he introduced me to actual styles. Before he had to move out because of complications with my mother, he referred me to some of his friends to train me in other styles he knew, such as Krav Maga, his own adaption of Navy CQB (mixed with other Military CQC tactics), Judo, Karate, Silat Knife Fighting, and an adaption of Muay Thai. I usually refuse to utilize Silat and Muay Thai, due to their unnecessary brutality. I am working on my own non-lethal adaption of Silat, which I still will not utilize until I am certain it is not lethal, but I still prefer to refrain from the style of Muay Thai that I know. I use Martial Arts to defend myself and others during the night patrols I do on my college campus. I've stopped sexual assaults, broken up off-campus apartments' brawls, and stopped hazings. My older brother-in-law (and inspiration), who does something similar in our hometown while wearing a mask and an alias, suggested I wear a mask and take up an alias. However, fighting is a miniscule part of what I do. Most of it is escorting someone to their car or dorm. Consoling a depressed person outside at 1am. Getting a drunk person professional medical attention. Acts like that require a face, a name, a person. Not a figure to look up to, but a fellow human being to trust in. I am grateful that my knowledge of Martial Arts has kept me alive enough to continue defending people, but at the same time, I wish I did not *have* to fight to continue saving people.

I would like to expand my knowledge to styles such as Budo Taijutsu, and I would definitely love to learn some sword styles.

My girlfriend is skilled in Aikido, Kendo, and Tai Kwon Do. Family gatherings are a blast. :laugh:

After watching The Walking Dead and seeing that badass (and very Jedi-ish) Eastman kicking ass I kinda wanna learn Aikido.

Dessel761 wrote: After watching The Walking Dead and seeing that badass (and very Jedi-ish) Eastman kicking ass I kinda wanna learn Aikido.

It's amazing what Theater Magic can do with a crappy style, huh? I wouldn't suggest Aikido for anything but Internal work. Just me though. *shrugs*