# New guy from South East England



## Pete236 (May 7, 2019)

Good evening everyone.

For a long time I've 'thought' about trying to learn a martial art.
The time has come for me to stop thinking about it and to get off my backside and do something about it.

I've been doing a bit of research, online and by chatting to a few people I know who practise a martial art. I want to learn about different disciplines and the ethos behind the art before I commit to something.

I did Judo for a little while at school. When I was 12 years old I was very small, weak and skinny compared those around me. The older boys at the school used me as a toy to practise on, so I learned very little and didn't enjoy it!

That was nearly 20 years ago and a lot has changed, but I still don't have the self-confidence, mental strength and concentration that I want. In fact I've had some pretty awful mental health problems over the years (mostly connected with that school!)

I would like to learn a martial art to (hopefully) improve my mental health, my concentration, boost my self-esteem and improve my fitness. And yes, I would like to know how to protect myself and how to disable anyone who attacks me. I'm not likely to ever be in a situation where I would 'need' to protect myself but it would be nice to be able to.


If you've read through this far, thank you - it's nearly over!

I will be browsing the forum and seeing if any particular discipline grabs my attention. I'm sure I will have many stupid questions to ask, please be patient!

Many thanks,
Pete.


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## Tony Dismukes (May 7, 2019)

Welcome to MartialTalk.


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (May 7, 2019)

Welcome and good luck! Some general advice, the school matters more than the style. I would see if you can do a trial class at a bunch of different places, and observe classes, to see what you like the best. Also make sure to ask about both schedule and fee. If you find the perfect place, but they don't mesh with your schedule/income (and that can't be fixed) they're no longer the perfect place.


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## Headhunter (May 7, 2019)

Any style can do that stuff. Pick one and go check it out


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## Buka (May 7, 2019)

Welcome aboard, bro.


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## Pete236 (May 8, 2019)

Thanks for the welcome folks!

There is a guy down the road from me who's website comes across very well. I'll email him today and open a dialogue, see if I can pop down and have a trial or two.
 He seems to instruct a calm form of martial arts focused more on the mind and the body working properly together than on physical forms and aggression. It instantly appeals to me!

Cheers folks, I'll let you know how I get on


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## Tez3 (May 8, 2019)

Pete236 said:


> Thanks for the welcome folks!
> 
> There is a guy down the road from me who's website comes across very well. I'll email him today and open a dialogue, see if I can pop down and have a trial or two.
> He seems to instruct a calm form of martial arts focused more on the mind and the body working properly together than on physical forms and aggression. It instantly appeals to me!
> ...




Whereabouts are you, there's some very good clubs all over the UK.


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## jobo (May 8, 2019)

Pete236 said:


> Good evening everyone.
> 
> For a long time I've 'thought' about trying to learn a martial art.
> The time has come for me to stop thinking about it and to get off my backside and do something about it.
> ...


yes ma CAN help with all of those,  but so can an awful lot of other things  and only as a catalyst, not as an inevitable outcom and not. with out some considerable effort on your part to change your perceptions and behaviour and you need to be careful not to become one dimensional that all your efforts are focused on ma and not indulging in other things that can help your journey.

but it's a good first step


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## DaveB (May 9, 2019)

Hello Pete,

For your list of requirements i would have to recommend a karate school, preferably one that has an active competition presence. 

1. Kata is a great meditative exercise, helpful for developing self discipline and a structured practice tool for outside class.

2. Exercise generally is good for mental health. A competitive club will usually have a reasonable amount of fitness training included in the syllabus. 

3. Self defense begins with the basics of facing and responding to another person. Competition is a great way to do this and the training focus will push you towards useful skills that can be built upon.

Id recommend karate over Taekwondo as the kata are better and the art is more balanced. 

I'd recommend karate over kungfu as generally the techniques are simpler and take less effort to be useful. 

I'd recommend karate over combat sports like boxing or muay thai again for the kata. 

This is all grossly oversimplified and many arts will offer similar benefits, but that's how it looks to me.


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## dvcochran (May 9, 2019)

@DaveB is obviously quite biased toward Karate. As others have said, make a list of the schools that fit based on your proximity and schedule. Visit those and find the one that seems to suit you. Try it with an open mind. As time goes by, if it still fits that is fantastic. Don't go in to this thinking the first place you try is going to fit your needs, although that can happen. That said, mild conformity is just a part of nearly all MA schools. Embrace the repetition. 
Keep in touch and let us know how it goes.


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## DaveB (May 9, 2019)

dvcochran said:


> @DaveB is obviously quite biased toward Karate. As others have said, make a list of the schools that fit based on your proximity and schedule. Visit those and find the one that seems to suit you. Try it with an open mind. As time goes by, if it still fits that is fantastic. Don't go in to this thinking the first place you try is going to fit your needs, although that can happen. That said, mild conformity is just a part of nearly all MA schools. Embrace the repetition.
> Keep in touch and let us know how it goes.


It's not bias so much as an evaluation based on his requirements and my experience of different arts and the cultures that seem to come with them.   

For example Ive never trained karate with a competitive focus. That side of things was mostly TKD for me. 

Weighing up the benefits of competitive vs non across different arts was just one element of the process. 

I get that i will obviously have biases, unconscious or otherwise, but I thought I should clarify that my suggestion was a considered one, not just "do what I do coz its the best".


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## KenpoMaster805 (May 12, 2019)

Welcome to MT


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