# Choosing the right martial art for me?



## Yassine262626 (May 30, 2015)

Hello everyone, How are you doing?

Recently, I've become interested in learning a martial art, but I need to know which martial art works best for me..
I'm looking for an art for selfdefense and which I can use in a street fight, also I'm interested in learning and discovering the culture and the history of the chosen art.

So, please, what are your suggestions for an art with such specifics? Thank you very much


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## drop bear (May 30, 2015)

What martial arts interest you so far?


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## Yassine262626 (May 30, 2015)

drop bear said:


> What martial arts interest you so far?



I'm very interested in Karate, I dont know why but something tells me that it's the right choice for me.. the problem is that I dont know if Karate can provide what I mentioned above and if there is another martial art that can provide that for me better than Karate.

I'm sorry if I didn't explain clearly, it's because English is not my native language.


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## drop bear (May 30, 2015)

Yeah a good karate will do that. I like kyokashin. (however that is spelt)


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## Kan Ryu (May 30, 2015)

Hi there!

I am fine, thank you.

As Drop Bear's answer reflects, it is a vast question to ask.

However, when you say "an art" and "learn the culture and history", it seems like a traditional martial art would be something for you.
But again, there are many traditional arts still in practice today.
So, you need to go out there and have a look...

Here are some words to get you going:

Kung Fu/Wushu - Martial arts of China
Kalaripayattu - Traditional art of Kerala/India
Kobudo - Old martial way of Japan
Bukijutsu - Traditional weapon arts of Japan
Koryu - Old martial school of Japan
Ninjutsu - The art of the ninja

Obviously, there are many more, have a look out there, something will stick out to you, I am sure.

Gambatte ne!

Kan Ryu.


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## Kan Ryu (May 30, 2015)

*Drop bear's first answer....


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## drop bear (May 30, 2015)

Give you an idea of what you might be doing.


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## Yassine262626 (May 30, 2015)

Okay, drop bear, from what I saw, Kyokushin style consists on aiming the kicks mainly to the lower part of the body and on taking hits and then hitting back, not avoiding them. Is that true? (apologies to all the Karateka if I got something wrong)
Can I also ask what's the difference between Kyokushin and Shotokan?

Kan Ryu, thanks for your list, Wushu intrigues me tbh.. I guess I'll have to choose between that and Karate. 

Thanks guys.


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## Drose427 (May 30, 2015)

Yassine262626 said:


> Okay, drop bear, from what I saw, Kyokushin style consists on aiming the kicks mainly to the lower part of the body and on taking hits and then hitting back, not avoiding them. Is that true? (apologies to all the Karateka if I got something wrong)
> Can I also ask what's the difference between Kyokushin and Shotokan?
> 
> Kan Ryu, thanks for your list, Wushu intrigues me tbh.. I guess I'll have to choose between that and Karate.
> ...



Technically, no.

Thats just the one video, many kyokushin schools do use more movement.

But no worries, you cant know what you havent experienced

Kyokushin and shotokan were founded by two different people, with many idfferent ideas.

The founders were even different ethnicities, different beliefs and mentalitles between the japanese and Korean are arguably why Kyokushin looks so different from most other Karate styles.

Kyokushin was founded by Mas Oyama, a Korean who grew up with MA training, didnt like how Shotokan was so made it "Harder". He was all about fighting, Hard with little soft, feats of strength (look him up and you'll find pics of him assaulting cows....Im not kidding), He put huge focus on hard sparring.

Shotokan was founded by an Okinawan, who wanted to spread Okinawan Karate, so he adapted Okinawan Styles, put a lot of focus on mental and spiritual development as well as physical, took it to mainland Japan where it would be changed even more to make it more accessible to people of all ages and disabilities.

While the two have extremely similar curriculums (aside from kata, different styles do different forms or at least diffrent version of said forms) when you have experienced both in some way you'll see theyre noticably different. 

More experienced Karateka can give you more info than I!

As for your OP, it depends entirely on what is in your area and whats available to you.

Judo, TKD, Karate, and BJJ all have traditional schools, who put a lot of emphasis on things like SD, culture, respect, etc.

They also all have sport oriented schools, who put performance at respective comps over the above.

So while you may have one of the above, it may be focused on WTF tourneys for TKDS or Naga (or ADCC, dont know the ins and outs of their tourneys) for BJJ, as opposed to a SD or tradition oriented school.

You need to see whats available to you, check out the schools, and find the one that you like the most.

THe majority of places will let you watch/partake in a class or two to decide if its for you.

ONe thing to keep in mind however,  

How you train during class time, should not affect how you spend the rest of your time training.

Just because a kyokushin school doesnt do face punching, doesnt mean you dont have to outside of class.

Just because a BJJ school doesnt do certain techs takedowns or drills, doesnt mean you dont have to outside of class.

If you enjoy a school wholeheartedly, but theres some drill or minor preference their missing, go there. 

Its the easiest thing the world to find other Martial Artists willing to do extra stuff, plus you will ALWAYS work harder and more often doing something you truly enjoy than you would doing it out of necessity.


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## Hanzou (May 30, 2015)

Yassine262626 said:


> I'm very interested in Karate, I dont know why but something tells me that it's the right choice for me.. the problem is that I dont know if Karate can provide what I mentioned above and if there is another martial art that can provide that for me better than Karate.
> 
> I'm sorry if I didn't explain clearly, it's because English is not my native language.




Can't really go wrong with Kyokushin if you're going for a karate style.

Don't bother with Wushu if your goal is self defense.


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## K-man (May 30, 2015)

Yassine262626 said:


> Hello everyone, How are you doing?
> 
> Recently, I've become interested in learning a martial art, but I need to know which martial art works best for me..
> I'm looking for an art for selfdefense and which I can use in a street fight, also I'm interested in learning and discovering the culture and the history of the chosen art.
> ...


First of all, welcome to MT.

I think you will find people here have different interests and as such you will get a variety of suggestions. You have mentioned you like the idea of karate and I will restrict my reply to that although I am interested in a number of other martial arts.

With karate there are a number of styles but they can be broken down into two groups, those that are focused on sport and those that aren't. Almost all the Japanese styles are sport oriented and almost all the Okinawan varients are not.

The question you need to ask yourself is, "do I want to test my martial art in competition or do I want a more reality based style that is mainly suited to self defence?"

You asked about Shotokan and Kyokushin. Well Shotokan is probably the most popular karate style world wide due to the great promotion it received in its early stages. That and Goju Kai would be the big two. Kyokushin was Mas Oyama's blending of those two styles. He started with Shotokan, thought it wasn't hard enough so swapped to Goju under Gogen Yamaguchi. From there he went on to form his own style of full contact karate. All three of those styles are very much sport oriented. That is not to say that there isn't a lot of other bits and pieces inherent in those styles but if you want to really learn about karate and you are studying one of those styles you will need to do a lot of outside work. I started with Japanese Goju and swapped to the Okinawan style some years back. It is more like the original karate of the early 1900s.

Now we do have a thread that discusses the differences between Okinawan karate and the Japanese styles. Rather than rehash it here I will give you a link. 
( Difference between Okinawan and Japanese Karate MartialTalk.Com - Friendly Martial Arts Forum Community )

As to recommendation, based on your criteria, I would be looking at an Okinawan style like Goju Ryu or a Japanese style based on traditional karate, Wado Ryu.

Now, of course, most schools will offer you a free class or two to get a feel for what they teach. I would be searching for some of those before making a final choice. The things I would be looking for are how the teacher interacts with the students, how well the more senior students interact with the less experience ones. I would be asking how much grappling the school provides as in close contact work and I would be specifically asking what sort of self defence training they provide. Remember, self defence is more about not fighting than fighting. 

Good luck with your choice.


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## hoshin1600 (May 31, 2015)

in the past people went to whatever was in their area.  but now with the internet people tend to try and do research before starting.  this is a good thing but as someone with no training at all it is very difficult to know one from the other or good from bad.  there really is no way for us to give you specific advise.  the best advise we can give is go to all the schools in your area, try a class in each one and pick the one you like the best. i could tell you something is the best, but if its not in your area what good is my recommendation. 

good luck and have fun testing out the schools.   keep us updated on your findings.


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

K-man said:


> The question you need to ask yourself is, "do I want to test my martial art in competition or do I want a more reality based style that is mainly suited to self defence?"



No it isn't. 

One style isn't sport at the detriment of self defence. That is a massively incorrect assumption.

The elements of self defence will be two factors. Fighting and not fighting.

Fighting will go to the guy who punches and kicks more effectively. Not fighting will go to the mind set and experience of the instructor. So if the instructor has a sensible head on his shoulders he can instill the ability to mostly avoid drama into his students.


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## Yassine262626 (May 31, 2015)

Great answers, really guys thank you.
I know I'm pushing it here, but can someone recommend me some Karate books that deal with the cultural and historical aspect of the art?


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## K-man (May 31, 2015)

drop bear said:


> No it isn't.
> 
> One style isn't sport at the detriment of self defence. That is a massively incorrect assumption.
> 
> The elements of self defence will be two factors. Fighting and not fighting.


Of course that assumption is yours, incorrect or otherwise. I deliberately did not say that at all. I have no doubt that what you learn in Japanese Karate can be used on the street, hence the thread on Shotokan Karate for self defence that I started. What I said was that one style, Okinawan, was primarily designed and suited for self defence.


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## K-man (May 31, 2015)

Yassine262626 said:


> Great answers, really guys thank you.
> I know I'm pushing it here, but can someone recommend me some Karate books that deal with the cultural and historical aspect of the art?


Gichin Funakoshi ... "Karate-do, My way of Life" and "Karate-do Kyohan".
Patrick McCarthy ... "The Bible of Karate - Bubishi".
Kane & Wilder ... "The Way of Kata".
Tetsuhiro Hokama ... "History and Traditions of Okinawan Karate".

Just a few to get you started.


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

K-man said:


> Of course that assumption is yours, incorrect or otherwise. I deliberately did not say that at all. I have no doubt that what you learn in Japanese Karate can be used on the street, hence the thread on Shotokan Karate for self defence that I started. What I said was that one style, Okinawan, was primarily designed and suited for self defence.



Remember how you say you don't ever style bash? Above is style bashing. At less to the same degree as anybody else. Which admittedly is stuff all.

And it is wrong. If they teach self defence then that is what they are designed to do. And I could jump on a website and guarantee you they teach self defence.

The difference is the method they use to teach self defence.


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

Here you go. Self defence right at the top.
Moorabbin Kyokushin Karate Karate Self Defence


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## K-man (May 31, 2015)

drop bear said:


> Remember how you say you don't ever style bash? Above is style bashing. At less to the same degree as anybody else. Which admittedly is stuff all.
> 
> And it is wrong. If they teach self defence then that is what they are designed to do. And I could jump on a website and guarantee you they teach self defence.
> 
> The difference is the method they use to teach self defence.


So what are you argueing? If they teach self defence they teach self defence. What did I say?


K-man said:


> I would be asking how much grappling the school provides as in close contact work and *I would be specifically asking what sort of self defence training they provide*. Remember, self defence is more about not fighting than fighting.


Funny, I might have thought that addressed those concerns.

BTW, what style was I bashing?


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## K-man (May 31, 2015)

drop bear said:


> Here you go. Self defence right at the top.
> Moorabbin Kyokushin Karate Karate Self Defence


And did you bother to open the tab on 'self defence'? It says nothing at all about self defence other than they teach it.


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

K-man said:


> So what are you argueing? If they teach self defence they teach self defence. What did I say?
> Funny, I might have thought that addressed those concerns.
> 
> BTW, what style was I bashing?



You wrote this.

"The question you need to ask yourself is, "do I want to test my martial art in competition or do I want a more reality based style that is mainly suited to self defence?"

That is not a question you need to ask yourself the martial arts both do self defence. They claim it on the website.

So you are creating an issue here where none exists. Style bashing occurs where are saying that their claims are lacking. 

Now I don't have an issue with a bit of style bash within reason. I think you have to do it to compare one style to another or to honestly critique the merits of anything.

But you say you don't do it. The look weird at people who do.


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

K-man said:


> And did you bother to open the tab on 'self defence'? It says nothing at all about self defence other than they teach it.



Good. That is that sorted then.


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## K-man (May 31, 2015)

drop bear said:


> You wrote this.
> 
> "The question you need to ask yourself is, "do I want to test my martial art in competition or do I want a more reality based style that is mainly suited to self defence?"
> 
> ...


Oh boy. You should read some of *Hanzou*'s posts. 

Claiming something on a website and delivering the goods are not always the same.


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

K-man said:


> Oh boy. You should read some of *Hanzou*'s posts.
> 
> Claiming something on a website and delivering the goods are not always the same.



I agree.


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

K-man said:


> Oh boy. You should read some of *Hanzou*'s posts.
> 
> Claiming something on a website and delivering the goods are not always the same.



I wonder if that has been hanzou,s point all along?


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## K-man (May 31, 2015)

drop bear said:


> I wonder if that has been hanzou,s point all along?


No. *Hanzou* has never posted a website to illustrate why he considered his karate training a waste of time. All he has ever posted, when bagging, are videos of third rate performers as representing the whole art. Now you posted the link to the Kyokushin website. I went in there and opened the link to self defence and there is nothing about self defence in there. What was your point?


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

K-man said:


> No. *Hanzou* has never posted a website to illustrate why he considered his karate training a waste of time. All he has ever posted, when bagging, are videos of third rate performers as representing the whole art. Now you posted the link to the Kyokushin website. I went in there and opened the link to self defence and there is nothing about self defence in there. What was your point?



That they claim self defence. As it is right under their karate banner. I am going to suggest that it is a primary focus.

So self defence is a primary focus of that karate. 

Now they also do sport. So you don't have to choose between sport and a martial art that focuses on self defence.

Unless the martial art itself fails to deliver in execution what it is claiming on the box. Now there are martial arts that do this. And hanzou is pretty vocal on his opinion as to what they are and why.

But if the argument is that a martial art may fail to deliver on its claims. Then a claim that it focuses on self defence is not really worth the paper it is written on.

And that focuses on self defence becomes a bit of a false distinction.

From here we need to look at a martial art less on what it claims to focus on and more on what it delivers.

And that you and hanzou can be like peas in a pod sometimes.


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## Hanzou (May 31, 2015)

Now see, here I am saying something good about Karate, and people still think I'm style bashing.

I just can't win. 

However, since this was brought up, let me just say that Kyokushin is probably the best karate to take for self defense, with Ashihara and Enshin also being good choices. I say this because those styles put more emphasis on fighting than other crap that can hog up your dojo time. Kyokushin gives you a good mix of fighting and kata, while the other styles put a stronger emphasis on fighting than kata. Either way, I'd pick those three over any other style of karate being practiced today.

Now if you're not set on karate, there's some other great choices that I would recommend.


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## MaxRob (May 31, 2015)

Hi Welcome,
Self defense is also about awareness and avoidance, these are very important aspects.
Street fights can be very situational, requiring different tequniques each and every time.
Kajukembo and Krav Maga I found very useful.
I would also recommend you look up these and the teachings of Adriano D. Emperado on self defense.
All the best


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## Yassine262626 (May 31, 2015)

Hanzou said:


> Now if you're not set on karate, there's some other great choices that I would recommend.



Yes please!


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

Yassine262626 said:


> Yes please!



Do you want to punch and kick. Or grapple and ground fight?


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## Yassine262626 (May 31, 2015)

drop bear said:


> Do you want to punch and kick. Or grapple and ground fight?



Punch and kick would be great!


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## Kan Ryu (May 31, 2015)

*Yassine262626*:
You are very welcome and good luck Sir!


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

Yassine262626 said:


> Punch and kick would be great!



What do you have in your area by the way?

There may be something interesting that sits well but is outside the norm a bit.


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

For example kuyokashin is good but there are other karate schools that bang.

There is even the odd tkd school that produces fighters.


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## Yassine262626 (May 31, 2015)

drop bear said:


> What do you have in your area by the way?
> 
> There may be something interesting that sits well but is outside the norm a bit.



I live Tunisia and when it comes to martial arts there aren't alot of choices.. here's whats in my area: Karate,TKD,Judo,Boxing,Kickboxing and Aikido


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

Yassine262626 said:


> I live Tunisia and when it comes to martial arts there aren't alot of choices.. here's whats in my area: Karate,TKD,Judo,Boxing,Kickboxing and Aikido



Ok. Of that you have the striking which is karate,tkd,boxing and kickboxing.

Now boxing and kickboxing are worth a look but are not the cultural immersion you are looking for.

So it is karate or tkd. Both can be either good or iffy. Karate a little less so because their sport rule set is a bit more applicable.

Now I generally look at the sport ones because without having an idea of what is functional and what isn't i already have a gauge to judge them.

See if the club wins competitions it can at least use its stuff against somebody somewhere. Now you can further test this by either how hard these competitions are or how many people compete.

So if the karate or even the tkd is competing in some national full contact limited rules thing. Then it can objectively be considered effective if just in that environment. If they compete in cross style stuff then you know it is effective in a range of environments.

You will know that at the very least they can punch and kick and avoid being punched and kicked.

Focused on self defence is trickier and you have to know what you are looking for. There are some good schools out there. But there is no consequence if the school is garbage either.


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## drop bear (May 31, 2015)

Otherwise the other thing to look out for is the environment. The school can be technically effective and just be a crappy place to train. Either being people you don't get along with or a teaching style that you hate. All the way up to running like a scam or a cult.


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## Yassine262626 (Jun 1, 2015)

Oh yeah and another thing, is Karate good for losing some weight and keeping it off?


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## Spinedoc (Jun 1, 2015)

Any martial art if done well will help you lose weight, tone, and keep weight off if you do it properly. That being said, if you don't practice hard, probably not as much, but that goes for ANY physical activity.

I was just at an Aikido seminar for 2 days. 6 hours, both days. I burned close to 10,000 calories by my crude calculations and lost 3 pounds over the weekend. I was drenched in sweat, and my heart rate was often at 140-150. BUT...and here's the but...I was practicing hard. Several other students and I were going full bore, non stop...get thrown immediately back up and attacking again, get thrown and right back up......others went slower.

The point is...part of that will be up to you.


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