# HELP. fighting style



## lufc (Mar 16, 2007)

hey,
im 16 years old and 5'6" and have always wanted to learn a fighting style as a form of self defense and confidence. i have been doing a bit of research and have since come to 4 possible styles. Western boxing, Muay thai, Krav Maga and BJJ. I want to find the best style to suit my size and wants. i have read many articles that say BJJ is the best form of fighting all up and especially for shorter people. do you have any advice?
thanks 
dan


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## lufc (Mar 16, 2007)

hey,
im 16 years old and 5'6" and have always wanted to learn a fighting style as a form of self defense and confidence. i have been doing a bit of research and have since come to 4 possible styles. Western boxing, Muay thai, Krav Maga and BJJ. I want to find the best style to suit my size and wants. i have read many articles that say BJJ is the best form of fighting all up and especially for shorter people. do you have any advice?


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## tshadowchaser (Mar 16, 2007)

I will not offer the advice you want. I will say pick the one you think you are most suited for, after watching a few classes of each. No one style is the answere for all people. I am 5'7 and have studied many styles over my life time but I still like to be able to do stand up vs. ground fighting. yes I do both but I prefer to practice on my feet more (maybe its my age). 
All that yo have mentioned are as good as the instructor and your ability and willingness to learn.  All have good and bad( or maybe I should say weaknesses), it will be up to you to decide which you think is better for you


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## Xue Sheng (Mar 16, 2007)

Sorry but I am not going to give you the answer you are looking for either

Research is a good thing but doing is better and it all comes down to what feels best to you and you must also take into account how you feel about the teacher.

You may think Sanshou (for example) is the greatest thing in the world but if you dont like the teacher you will likely not learn much or stay long.

Go try them and see what you think


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## green meanie (Mar 16, 2007)

I think any one of the arts you have listed would be a fine place to start and as long as you enjoy the training and have a good teacher you will be well on your way. At some point there is no reason why you shouldn't try to learn the other arts if time and money allows as they are all good at different situations that may come up in a fight and none of them stand alone as 'the best'. Good luck! :asian:


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## Jade Tigress (Mar 16, 2007)

Welcome to Martial Talk! Good luck getting started with your training. There is a lot to consider.


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## MetalStorm (Mar 16, 2007)

Welcome to martial talk, I wont say choose this or that but personally I am really loving Muay Thai, I looked into all of the ones you listed above actually as well and I am quite interested in them all.

Why not try a bit of all of them? my main focus is going to be Muay Thai but I plan on starting BJJ soon as well and then maybe a bit of something after that too. Atleast then I will know what I like from actually doing it, I find if i watch something and think I will love but then a month down the road I actually dont. This way I know.

best of luck finding one you like.


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## Old Fat Kenpoka (Mar 16, 2007)

Each of those styles has its advantages and disadvantages in different situations.   

You should make your decision after visiting the schools in your area, chatting with the instructor and some other students, and watching at least 2 classes and maybe taking a few classes.


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## mrhnau (Mar 16, 2007)

Old Fat Kenpoka said:


> Each of those styles has its advantages and disadvantages in different situations.
> 
> You should make your decision after visiting the schools in your area, chatting with the instructor and some other students, and watching at least 2 classes and maybe taking a few classes.


I'll second this  Lots of factors come into making your decision. Price, availability, skill of instructors, fitting schedule, commute time, class size. Go check out a few schools in your area. Most will let you watch or try out a class or two.

BJJ is pretty good, but its not "the best" per say...each style has its unique purpose and advantages.

Keep us up to date on your decisions and the schools that are available and the ones you check out  Good luck!


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## lenatoi (Mar 16, 2007)

I think you have noticed that you will be getting a lot of political answers here. Talk to individuals. They will give you more open answers about their opinions when they know they will not offend any one.


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## Flying Crane (Mar 16, 2007)

Yeah, I wouldn't limit your choices to things that you "researched", as that is all theoretical and everything you read is really based on someone else's opinion.  Instead, I would limit your choices to everything that is available in your area, that you can reasonably attend on a regular basis.  Now do your own research of each of these schools, meet the instructors, find out what their program is like, try a couple of classes without making a long term committment if they will allow it, and figure out for yourself what you like best.  Don't discount a system just because it falls outside the Big Four that you have already named.


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## lenatoi (Mar 16, 2007)

I think you have two threads up - good advice in both


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## Shaderon (Mar 16, 2007)

I agree with them up there *points upwards* but I'll add one thing.

Go to the classes and try them out, feel which oine is right for you, you might get more enjoyment and feel better with one style than another, try and clear your mind of all expectations and things you've heard before you go, every teacher has thier own take on something and you might pick a style you've not previously expected to like.

Good luck!


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## Flying Crane (Mar 16, 2007)

lenatoi said:


> I think you have noticed that you will be getting a lot of political answers here. Talk to individuals. They will give you more open answers about their opinions when they know they will not offend any one.


 
Well, I don't think the answers are political or politically correct at all.  Everyone has their own personal likes and dislikes, but there is tremendous truth in the fact that a good instructor makes a world of difference, regardless of style.  Nobody here who has responded so far is in a position to comment on that further, because we don't know the instructors.  It's up to Dan to figure this out for himself, we are just offering some perspective.

If I were to give a biased opinion that might offend some, I would say don't do any of the four listed.  But that is based purely on my own personal interests, and that would be an inappropriate answer for Dan, who needs to make his own decisions based on his own interests, and the quality of the instructors in his area.  I'm not going to try to push my own agenda on him.  I hope he checks out all the schools in his area and makes the right choice for himself and has a lifetime of good training in whatever he chooses to pursue.


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## bluemtn (Mar 16, 2007)

Well, I can't do any better than what has been posted for you.  So, welcome and happy posting, and good luck in finding an art that best fits you!


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## Kacey (Mar 16, 2007)

First, welcome, and happy posting!  :wavey:

Second, you might try searching the site (use the search button on the right, in the blue toolbar) for "choosing a school" and "choosing a style" - lots of people have the same questions you have, and there have been some very good discussions about how to choose the style and school that is right for you.  You're not getting specific answers because there are too many variables - especially in the instructor, and how you will work with him/her; the style could be ideal for you, and the instructor might not teach in a way that you respond well to - at which point, the style becomes irrelevant, because if you don't like how the instructor teaches, you aren't likely to stay in the class, no matter how much you like the style.


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## KempoGuy06 (Mar 16, 2007)

Welcome to MT

B


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## kidswarrior (Mar 16, 2007)

This is from an article elsewhere on this site, which I'm sure Bob won't mind me replicating here:

 How do you feel when you walk out the door of the studio for the first timenot what do you think, but how do you feel? Is it the right one or not? (Shaderon mentioned this also, above)

 Is the would-be instructor a good fit? Or is he/she too demanding? Too sloppy? Too macho? Too competitive? Too young/old? 

 Are the promises they make realistic, or are they trying too hard to sell you? And how long have they been there? You dont want a place that closes its doors as you're halfway to black belt.

 Is there a good balance between teaching self-defense (will it work?) and having fun?

 Will it promote health if you continue for years, even decades, or will it wear down jointsis it too youth-oriented, too dependent on external strength/size, or is it an art that can be practiced by anyone for a lifetime?

Best wishes in finding the art, school, and instructor that's a good 'fit' for you.  

And remember, you don't have to do everything at once. You can like more than one art. But I would still just _begin_ with one. Then add a second one in a year or two, etc. 

It's a great journey. Have a blast! Oh, and share with us how it's going.


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## ArmorOfGod (Mar 16, 2007)

Welcome to the group.
I am going to take a different approach to answering your question.
Look around your area and find out if these styles are available to you.  Then look at price and see what you can afford.  After that, try the free sample classes at all of those and then pick.
Note: most boxing clubs are free if you are under 16 (at least in my area), so hurry up and do your research.

AoG


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## 14 Kempo (Mar 16, 2007)

Hey Dan, welcome to the MT group ... have fun, post away!


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## jks9199 (Mar 16, 2007)

lenatoi said:


> I think you have noticed that you will be getting a lot of political answers here. Talk to individuals. They will give you more open answers about their opinions when they know they will not offend any one.


They're not political answers; they're honest and accurate answers.

There's no one best style for anything and everyone.  Any solid program with a decent emphasis on actual use as well as tradition or tournament, or whatever, will assist the original poster in developing some self-defense skills and self-confidence.  There's a reason that police and the military don't just send people out to get black belts in XYZ art; they pull a handful of effective techniques and principles out of multiple systems, and teach them in their most basic and most direct application.  That's the only way to quickly learn combatives.  But... that's not really martial arts training -- it's a self-defense class.

The poster listed 4 martial arts; half of them were primarily sport-oriented (boxing and Muay Thai).  One is a compromise of sport and combat (BJJ, where much depends on the teacher's emphasis -- but much of the so-called proof of it's effectiveness comes from the MMA ring), and the last (Krav Maga) is claimed to be 100% street effective/combative techniques -- but I can't help but suspect that there's going to be wide disparity in teachers, and I'm always suspicious of hype like that.  Beyond that -- I just wonder how many really experienced instructors are around, since it's only been publicly promoted in the last several years.  

There's no magic answer to the original poster's question of "what should I study" unless the person seeking to advise them knows that person well, and also knows the majority of the instructors that are in the area.  Boxing and Muay Thai will give quick ring experience of being hit and hitting.  Both can be learned to a ring-effective level in mere weeks, for a talented athlete.  BJJ is more complex -- but all three of these also focus on a lot of actual application of techniques on a partner or opponent.  I don't know enough about how Krav Maga is taught to speak with any authority on it.

And nothing I've mentioned so far addresses issues like class chemistry, schedule or cost.  The original poster is 16; even if we assume that class cost prices (within reason) are no object -- we don't know how they plan to get to classes, what they're school schedule is like (it'd be hard to be in the 10 AM 'super-ultimate-fighter class' if you're supposed to be in school at 10 AM, wouldn't it?), or even what's actually available in their area.


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## foggymorning162 (Mar 17, 2007)

Schedule, location and price are a major factor. But the instructor is more important, if you don't click with them you won't learn anything. Try a few styles and if your lucky you'll find someone you like who doesn't think that one style is the be all and end all and will help you to cross train.


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