# so its been asked before...but which style?



## crysis (Apr 19, 2005)

19 years of age
5'6 - 5'7 at 150 lbs (i dont mind losing weight)

I live in riverside, ca and the schools around me let me chose from either:
tae kwon do
kung fu san soo
shotokan karate
brazillian jujitsu
kick boxing
(these are all i could find in the yellow pages)

I play paintball competitively as a frontman and get pretty ballsy as far as diving and jumping head first over bunkers goes. I can get my legs in to the air and spin kick, but its all for show (i do these on stage with a guitar in hand). I dont have a hard time doing these types of movements but sometimes i think i have more power mentally than my body can handle. 

which art seems fit for me?
i went to the san soo school, not really for me. it seemed very effective (eye gouging, groin punching) but thats not really what im looking for. 
I also went to a TKD place but he had 5 white belts in a class of 10 and it wasnt too intense (but they say it gets better with less noobs)

im looking for something thats more of a hobby that i can do with my girlfriend (she will be signing up too).


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## Feisty Mouse (Apr 19, 2005)

It's been said before, it will be said again - shop for the instructor and school if you are deciding between arts.  More experienced folks here can give you details about particular arts if you are interested, but I would strongly suggest looking into the particular school and people you'd be working with.  Are they welcoming?  Can you take a free class and see what it's all about?  

And if your girlfriend is planning to take classes, she should go and take a look with you too.

Best of luck, and welcome!


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## crysis (Apr 19, 2005)

we have shopped around. all classes seem promising but i dont know what to expect. we both want to try something new and what we havent done before so all suggestions would help

a list of aspects to each would be nice.


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## dubljay (Apr 19, 2005)

You are right this has been asked before... but this is why we are here.

 First off welcom to the forum.

 Now which style is not really the proper question to ask.  What you and your girlfriend should be asking yourselves is which _instructor(s)_ are better.  You already have some idea about what you are looking for in the style itself, now it comes down to the instructors at that school.  

 You are right in assuming that in a class that is half full of white belts the pace will be slow.  Which now would be a good time to jump in with a group of newbies.

 Have a look around the various Style Forums to get more information about the various arts you have near by, perhaps asking more specific questions about the arts in those forums.

 Tae Kwon Do has its own section under Korean Systems
 Shotakan is a traditional (VERY traditional) Japanese Karate so look in the Japanese section for Shotakan
 Brazillian Jujitsu would be under the Grappling section.

 Don't be shy about asking questions, and some of the MartialTalk staff is always around if you should need them.

 Again welcome to the forums and happy posting.

 -Josh


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## arnisador (Apr 19, 2005)

crysis said:
			
		

> tae kwon do
> kung fu san soo
> shotokan karate
> brazillian jujitsu
> ...



There may well be more...you could check the YMCA/community center/community college continuing ed. classes/ etc., and go to a local martial arts products store and see if they have posters for people teaching out of their garage, etc.



> im looking for something thats more of a hobby that i can do with my girlfriend (she will be signing up too).



As others have said, the instructor will make the biggest difference. Check out as many as you can!

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and kickboxing are real workouts, but have a competitive aspect. Tae Kwon Do also has a sport aspect. Shotokan is a traditional system--the most popular form of karate in the world.

You sound athletic, and not overly worried about the self-defense benefits (though all of these have their strengths and weaknesses in that regard). Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and kickboxing come to mind; maybe Tae Kwon Do, though it may not be as much of a workout. Can you say more about what you hope to get out of this?


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## rainbows (Apr 19, 2005)

If you can find a good ITF TKD school near you, that might suit. IMHO (though I'm kinda biased) it's a bit more practical than WTF. You say you're very powerful, that'd be suited to lots of kicking techniques, though it could also be applicable to BJJ.


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## dubljay (Apr 19, 2005)

arnisador said:
			
		

> There may well be more...you could check the YMCA/community center/community college continuing ed. classes/ etc., and go to a local martial arts products store and see if they have posters for people teaching out of their garage, etc.


 You would think that I could remember to mention colleges and YMCAs because I first took up kenpo at college, and now my instructor teaches at a YMCA.  You can find very high quality instruction at places like this, its not limited to "commercial" schools.

 Thanks for reminding my about that Arnisador


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## crysis (Apr 19, 2005)

whats the diff between itf and say....ata?


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## Mc Qoorbs (Apr 19, 2005)

im in la dog...riverside aint that far is it?


you should peep the jinenkan dojo 

www.Jinenkan-LA.com


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## crysis (Apr 19, 2005)

its like 70 miles away. looks rad though. id look more in to bujinkin.


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## rainbows (Apr 19, 2005)

crysis said:
			
		

> whats the diff between itf and say....ata?


ATA site
ITF-C site
The systems use different systems of patterns (ITF uses the Chang Hon series, ATA uses the Songahm series). The ATA also has a terrible reputation for money-grabbing schools. I've heard some stories in the LJ MA communities. It's also the home of the infamous camo belt... 
There's not much ITF in the US as far as I know, but if you try the forums on the ITF site you may be able to find an instructor near you.


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## crysis (Apr 19, 2005)

whats the camo belt story? 

also.. theres an ATA school.... the first 6 weeks is 95 bucks which includes the Gi.


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## crysis (Apr 27, 2005)

ok so ive had no prior martial arts training...hardly any knowledge of martial arts either... but i was walking around in my garage today and saw the red dangling thing from the garage door. in my head i thought i could so kick that. i did... heres a vid. keep in mind this thing is about as high as my head



(no martial arts training....only lots of jet li movies.)

http://www.shift-lock.net/jon/jonkick.AVI **right click and save as**

so what art would i work my way fastest through? .. im not really fit but would like to get there as well as get rid of fat. i seriously have very little muscle and cant run half a mile without stopping to walk... but i think i could work my way up.


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## evenflow1121 (Apr 27, 2005)

crysis said:
			
		

> 19 years of age
> 5'6 - 5'7 at 150 lbs (i dont mind losing weight)
> 
> I live in riverside, ca and the schools around me let me chose from either:
> ...


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## Han-Mi (Apr 29, 2005)

rainbows said:
			
		

> If you can find a good ITF TKD school near you, that might suit. IMHO (though I'm kinda biased) it's a bit more practical than WTF. You say you're very powerful, that'd be suited to lots of kicking techniques, though it could also be applicable to BJJ.


Dont judge a school by it's style or organaization. I train "WTF" TKD, though I suppose we are a little different than most of them because we hold more to our roots as Chung Do Kwan, anyway, I've heard horrible things about ITF as well, but I never get down on them, because I know there are plenty of good ITf schools out there as well.  :soapbox: That is a pet peev of mine 

As for the forum's question.  At a good studio, you shouldn't be able to keep up with the work out on your first day. Most people that come into our studio arent really keeping in with the full workout for the first few months. We work out to the point of the highest student in the class, and encourage lower ranks to train at there own pace, with a bit of push. 

also, if you expect to speed through, dont expect it to be a hobby, and vice versa.


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## Shu2jack (Apr 29, 2005)

> whats the camo belt story?
> 
> also.. theres an ATA school.... the first 6 weeks is 95 bucks which includes the Gi.


 
There were orginally 5 different color belts and the ATA used The Tae guk forms as part of the training. For various reasons, our late Grand Master didn't like the system and created the Songham style of Taekwondo. With it, he created additionaly color belts, bringing the total up to 9 (an important number in Korean culture, and it matched the number of black belt ranks). The camo belt is part of the philosophy of Songham TKD. Many outside the ATA, and a few inside the organization, hate the camo belt because it seems stupid. Our Grand Master focused on function instead of how it looked.

My advise to you if you decide to consider the ATA school is to watch a high color belt/black belt rank testing. It is true that the ATA has some money-grabbing schools so I suggest you watch the quality of the students and see if it looks like if you are getting your money's worth.

A lot of white belt classes will seem less intense because of the focus of proper basics, and that goes for a lot of schools in general. It is easy to hurt someone else or yourself by practicing a technique wrong at full speed. Once you get the basics down, sparring usually sets in and that will give you a workout. Kind of like how you should practice the proper way to handle, clean, shoot, and carry a paintball gun before you go running out and shooting people.


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## 47MartialMan (May 19, 2005)

Do you have time and finances to alternately try each?


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