# Hi and looking for some direction



## adam876 (Mar 11, 2005)

Hello, I'm happy to have found this forum and after looking around a bit you all seem like a great bunch of people.  Anyway, on to my question.  After a few months of searching and thinking, I have decided on starting out at martial arts.  I am really having a hard time deciding which art is for me.  So I'm going to try to give you all an idea as to what I'm like, what I'm looking for, and what I hope to accomplish.  I'm a 24 year old male, but lead a VERY sedintary lifestyle at the moment.  I was once quite athletic in high school, but this time in my life is long gone.  I can not work up the motivation to work out or anything.  I am not overweight though, and have recently (it's been about 48 hours so far) given up smoking.  In addition, I am looking for something to give me some self-discipline and guidance.  Martial arts seems like the perfect solution to this.  Being able to defend myself should a violent situation come up is also a fantastic bonus.  As a paramedic, I routinely come across potentially violent psychiatric patients as well.  It rarely comes to blows, but when it does, some training would be nice.  I am looking for something that is spiritual, but not overly dogmatic.  I want it to mostly rely on softer techniques.  I'm only really looking for self defense and the ability to take someone down WITHOUT really harming them.  I want something which I can pick up without an extreme amount of difficulty, but something that would take me a long time to be able to truely master.  I am not interested in compitition at all.  I want to be able to get a good amount of exercise doing it, but not have to be in amazing physical shape to be able to do it.  After some research I'm leaning towards Hapkido and Jujutsu.  Do those seem good for what I'm looking for?  Any and all advice is appreciated.  I'd be happy to clarify anything and answer any questions for anyone willing to give some advice or just wants to chat.  I live about 25 miles west of Chicago, Illinois; if anyone knows anywhere real good to go out this way.  Okay, thanks for any and all help and thanks for taking the time to read my rambling post.  Take care.


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## Lisa (Mar 11, 2005)

Adam, 

 Welcome to MTalk. If you need any guidance or have any questions regarding postings, problems, doing searches, MTalk etiquette etc. feel free to contact any one of the MartialTalk Mentors or Moderators. We can be identified by our title in the top right hand corner of our posts. Feel free to PM us anytime.

 My best advice to you is to go out and try a few different arts. Most schools will give you a free trial period. That way you have the ability to "try before you buy" and really will get a better feel of what is good for you. Ultimately only you can decide that.

 Good luck with your future training and please feel free to ask as many questions as you need to. There are many great people in a variety of arts here on MTalk, all of which would be happy to help you on your journey.


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## TigerWoman (Mar 11, 2005)

Hi Adam,  welcome to the forum.  it sounds like you are on the right track.  Hopefully practitioners from both those arts would give you advice. You might look around in your vincinity of travel and check out a Hapkido and Jiujitsu-dojang if Korean, probably dojo if Japanese. If you don't get any answers here, post again in the respective forums. And also, if you have any questions about the board please ask!  TW


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## adam876 (Mar 11, 2005)

Thank you both for welcoming me here and for your advice, I actually just finished the FAQ for newbies and got a lot of great advice as well.  I looked up local places online and plan on following up with some of them in the next few days.  Hopefully this will be the second of a long number of posts for me as I begin what I hope to be a very interesting and fulfilling new part of my life.  Thanks again.


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## MJS (Mar 12, 2005)

Welcome to the forum Adam!  Enjoy your stay.  

As for your question...it looks like you've already had some great advice.  I too, would suggest an art that offered some controlling/joint manipulations.  Obviously you can't swing it out with the patients, so having some sort of locking methods would most likely benefit you greatly.

As for searching for a school...take out the phone book, research online, or asking questions on this forum are good places to start.  Check out all of the schools that interest you.  Make sure that you have a list of questions to ask the instructor.  Talk to people there and find out as much as you can.  Once you have your list of schools, narrow it down further by looking to see which school meets your needs.  I suggest this to people when they are searching because IMO, they are important things to know, especially if you're going to be paying good money for instruction, you want to make sure you're getting what you're paying for!

Good luck and please let us know how you make out.  And as always, if you have any other questions, please feel free to ask! :ultracool 

Mike


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## still learning (Mar 13, 2005)

Hello, You may want to find martial art schools as close to home as possible. Visit a few schools to get an idea of cost and what their teachers and classes are all about. Check out there school hours and availablity. Trust your instincts about the teachers and schools. Go with the one the feels right! ....Aloha


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## masherdong (Mar 13, 2005)

Hi and welcome to the boards.  If I were you, I would check all of the schools in your area first and ask the instructor lots of questions.  Don't rush and take your time.


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## masherdong (Mar 13, 2005)

Hi and welcome to the boards. If I were you, I would check all of the schools in your area first and ask the instructor lots of questions. Don't rush and take your time.


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## masherdong (Mar 13, 2005)

Sorry for the double post!


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## shesulsa (Mar 13, 2005)

Greetings, Adam and welcome to MartialTalk.  Thanks for picking us!

 I think you're right - a martial arts endeavor could benefit you in several ways obviously, others perhaps not so obviously.

 To aid you the most in your job, you will want to _talk to instructors in your area who specialize in contain and control tactics_ with the ideal being you are able to refrain from injuring them as much as possible.  Hapkido is one good art for this, and there are others.

 Have a look around and enjoy your stay.  Please keep us posted as to your progress.


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