I am interested in taking some form of martial art or self-defense regimen, but have no idea how to choose from the multitude of disciplines out there.
I want to learn a form of self-defense that would be most useful for dealing with the dangerous events that the typical city-dweller might find themselves in (Note: I’ve lived in the city my entire adult life and have never been in such a situation knocking on wood). I’m not an aggressive person, so the emphasis is really on defense, rather than having the ability to smack some guy around just because they “dissed” me.
Since I abhor firearms [no disrespect to gun owners, my dad is one] it will be hard to persuade me that owning a gun is the way to go. That said, if you have a solid argument beyond personal preference for the use of firearms, feel free to share.
I’m sure this topic must have been covered before, so if any Dopers want to refer me to an relavent existing thread, that would be appreciated too.
Hey!, you will want to concentrate on finding a martial art where the form and premise concentrate on keeping the attacker away from you. Like Ju Jit Su (sp?) see here:
Basically it keeps your body from ever being hit, and uses the attackers energy against him or her. Very affective!
Stay away from the longer distance forms such as Tae Kwan Do. We used to call that form “the quickest way to get your ass kicked”. Your attacker isn’t going to be kind enough to keep several feet distance and chances are he’s already grabbed you.
Since the situation is most likely to be at close quarters, what you need are the short distance forms such as Jujitsu and Judo. Though I am by no means a black belt, I’ve taken lessons in several different forms. Typical judo class: This is how you get out if someone grabs you like this, and this is how you break his leg. This is how you avoid a frontal attack, and this is how you break his arm, etc. It can be very dangerous and very effective.
You might want to temper it with a few lessons in a medium distance form such as Akido. It should go well with Judo and Jujitsu. I suppose the idea would be to get him off you, elbow him in the face, and then wrench his arm out of its socket.
But whatever you choose, stay away from Tae Kwon Do. It’s all flash and no substance. Those high kicks look cool, but all the martial artist trained in Judo has to do is catch that leg once and take a step forward. From that point forward the fight is all but over.
Throwing punches is more rapidly learned and maintained than something like a judo throw or manipulation. You don’t need to be tremendously loosened up, and can be done wearing various clothes/shoes. Western boxing is just about as good as it gets in terms of footwork, distance control, and throwing combinations of damaging strikes.
If you are not opposed to all weapons, do some knife training. And not fancy knife-tapping and the like. Draw, slash, stab, escape. Tho simple, it needs to be practiced.
BTW, Phil JJ is certainly not aimed at keeping your opponent at a distance. At least no form Brazilian or Japanese style I have seen or trained.
And I would not suggest your average person, when faced with a threat on the street, immediately close on the attacker, wrap him up, and take him to the ground, as happens in wrestling or BJJ. Most grappling classes do not take place on asphalt/concrete/gravel. Also, grappling is less useful given the possibility of multiple opponents. And judo throws can be VERY punishing - especially onto hard surfaces. But they require precise technique.
There are all kinds of folks who offer “blended” styles, supposedly aimed at practical street defense. IMO some are good, some are less so. An unexperienced person might not know how to differentiate. Where you at in the Midwest? If you are interested in any instructors in particular, I might know a little about them. Feel free to e-mail me.
Realize that fighting is nasty brutish stuff - and effective training is only slightly less so.
It sounds like you might want to look into Wing Chun. The instructor I went to combined hard and soft styles and I was taught a system of defensive techniques that deflect your opponent’s energy against them and offensive moves (kicking, punching, and even grappling) that are used to efficiently disable your opponent and remove yourself quickly from the situation.
I didn’t learn any high flying kicks or other cool looking moves, but the drills definitely increased my stamina and improved my coordination and agility. By the way, my Sifu was a tiny man and he said this was one of the most effective martial arts for women and other small people.
Find a style that you’ll personally like to maintain practice and train in. That’s all there is.
Sure, sure, I accept that the average-skilled large-build boxer is likely to wipe the floor of the average-skilled average-build chop-socky artist, just like I accept the inevitable anecdotes of someone’s cousin the little 5’ tall lady who karate-chopped the drunken lummox’s Fall Down and Cry Chi Zone. But all in all, I’m pretty sure that all arguments about practicalities of various forms are…far from practical. It’s my gut-level hunch that when a person finds themself in a violent-force situation, style is always going to go out the window.
More practical than any of that is that self-defense training and martial arts and such can give people more confidence in general, and that seeps into unconscious body language, which helps make those rare violent situations even rarer.
Your best bet has already been mentioned, Jujitsu, Akido, Hapkido. They are all variations on the same basic principles. There is a large focus on “self-defense” that is countering attacks, breaking holds etc and you don’t need to be massively strong for it to work either.
Boxing is just a very very bad idea. You need a lot of strength to deal with an opponent effectively and you have no recourse when they guy throws you to the ground and starts to rain blows upon your head.
Jujitsu/Hapkido are full of different techniques that require next to no strength – Joint locks, pressure points etc and in all areas of combat – standing, on the ground, grappling etc.
As its been mentioned, avoid “stand up styles” which include: Tae Kwon Do, Karate, Kick-Boxing etc. They are useless in practical situations.
There is a true-story about Jean Claude Van-Damme getting into a fight with Chuck Zito (bad boy Hell’s Angel, Oz Actor, Stunt Man) at the infamous strip club in New York “Scores”. Van Damme was about to get up and “clear some space” for his fancy Kick-Boxing moves when Zito just walks up and gives him a crushing blow to the chin, which ended the “fight”.
I agree, Hapkido is an awsome form of self defense. Re-direct your oponents attack and use thier momentum against them.
Steven Seagal uses similar methods in close quarter combat.
Joint leverage and “uncle” moves are very effective and very dangerous. Only very good and careful teachers will teach Hapkido. It is dangerous. Lots of sprained joints and broken fingers at full speed. Part of the training includes disarming the attacker (knife, or gun). This could be very beneficial in an urban setting.
I practice Shorin-ryu, it is an ancient art, a “true” karate if you will. It focuses on defense w/ counters. The basic moves are relatively easy and functional.
I would stay away from the “tournament” arts. They are mostly show and usually require superior athletic ability and tons of practice.
Your local police station may be able to recommend a basic self defense class. Some even offer them, as most police officers are trained in some form of self defense. These classes are usually is a combination of different schools.
Peace
Depends on a lot of factors; it’s a very individual thing. For instance, Dinsdale might be right in a lot of what he said about boxing, but I’d still bet boxing isn’t the best choice for a small woman, for instance. If you can tell us anything about your sex, age, build and general athletic ability that might be a help. But in general -
Having done both karate and judo some, I’d definitely recommend something with a mix a mix of “hard” and “soft” techniques, as they both have advantages. On the one hand, the basic hard techniques tend to be simpler; if I was attacked by surprise there’s a much better chance that I’d remember how to break the attacker’s knee with a side kick than how to correctly perform a hip throw. On the other hand, soft styles are often much more effective when your attacker is larger and stroger than you. I’m a cute li’l girl, and I doubt I’ll ever be able to throw a punch that’s very impressive, but I can be a surprisingly nasty grappling opponent. My karate dojo emphasized different aspects on different days - some classes were for forms, some for sparring, technique, self-defense, etc. - and on the self-defense days we’d focus on stuff that wouldn’t be allowed in karate competitions: low kicks, eye gouges, and lots of judo and aikido techniques. Something like that might be a good approach to go with.
Definitely go with something that teaches at least some grappling. One thing that’s been impressed on me in almost every self-defense class is that in real life something like 80% of fights end up on the ground.
I have no experience with jujitsu, but I understand that it’s more oriented toward practical self-defense than judo is.
And finally, by far the most important factor is what style you enjoy enough to stick with it and really practice.
For those who have expressed their “opinions” as to arts such as JJ, aikido, and hapkido, perhaps this would be the time to discuss comparative learning curves, as well as “live” training.
The “little woman” who kicked my butt when I visited Jesse Glover’s school punched harder than 95% of the experienced male strikers I ever worked out with. JG is a good example of someone who advocates a style which is simple and direct, effective, and easy to learn.
I reiterate my recommendation for knife training.
I also recommend being wary of “self defense” courses. Tho a minority may teach some good things, nearly every one (of the many) I have encountered relies overmuch on “tricks” and preset situations. Which I think will get someone in trouble - once their “incapacitating” instep stomp and key rake only pisses their opponent off.
If you’re going to be studying for the long term, then some of the above-listed formal martial arts should do fine, particularly the close-in ones. If you just want to take a few classes, go to your local YMCA or contact your local police department and find a 2-3 week self defense class. You’ll learn everything you need to know to not be a victim and how to stop/drop somebody who’s bothering you. You’ll learn things you won’t have to stretch out for before you use them, and things you won’t have to practice every day to remember how to do them, or train for two years before they work.
Oh, and start running a couple nights a week. smorgan had that right.
I use my own special brand of mSmith-jitzu. I’ve dabbled in some of the martial arts from time to time, so I feel like I can protect myself reasonably well against a stiff-armed opponent with a banana or pointy-stick.
I’ve noticed that the following works reasonably well (and I rarely get into street altercations):
-Simple punches to the face, eyes, groin and other soft parts
-A headlock followed by more puches to the face
-Being larger, stronger and faster than your opponent
-Bottles, Maglites™, bats, golf clubs, 2"x4"s, rubber hoses, etc
-Having 5 guys to their 3
-Simple moves that put a guy off balance or force him to loosten his grip
-Stomping on someones head
-Going “berzerker”
I’ve notice that the following moves turn out badly:
-Judo chops to the back of the head
-Complex Jackie Chan shit
-Stomping someones foot (unless you are in golf-spikes and they are in Berkenstocks)
-Attemping to use one’s Chi to explode a persons organs
-“Spin” anything - usually the guy gets punched or tackled when his back is turned
In spite of the kung-fu hype, I generally believe the best defense is the ability to physically overpower your opponent with size, strength, speed and/or aggression, or run away like a wussie.
Typical examples of a msmith-Jitzu scenario would be as follows:
Situation one:
A guy throws a bottle at you in a parking lot
Response:
Grab a couple of buddies, some 2x4s and unleash the fury
Situation two:
A guy corners you on the way home from work
Response:
Bounce pass your laptop bag in his face, when he puts up his hands to block it, either run away (fuck it, its the firms laptop) or drop kick him in the nutz. Follow up nutz-pummelling with random punches and stomping kicks.
Situation three:
Approached on the street by some really big guy with a knife.
Response:
Run the other way, screaming like a girl and hoping he would rather pick up the contents of the wallet you just thru in the air instead of beat your ass.
**-Judo chops to the back of the head **
I recently had the pleasure of watching Thunderball with my son. Sean Connery sure makes that chop look easy. Drops them quickly and silently.
**-Stomping someones foot **
My daughter brought this wisdom home from school just last week. Heck, a middle school gym teacher wouldn’t lie, would she?
**-“Spin” anything - usually the guy gets punched or tackled when his back is turned **
Again, it seems to work just fine for Buffy. Oh, I forgot, might not work as well against non-demons.
You see, if you just hold your key like this, and then simply insert it into your attacker’s eye …
Dinsdale, you’re discounting the youth factor. Kids can get away with moves that don’t work for grownups. Anybody who’s been bitch-slapped in the nuts by a toddler, or had a kid crawl across his stomach whilst planting that elbow firmly in the solar plexus/groin/throat/wherever it will hurt the ultimate most, knows this.
Fortunately, they lose this skill as they grow older, otherwise teen angst arguments would be much more dangerous.
