Personality and Martial Arts

[Supra Vijai]

Is he still a friend lol? I used to do Wado Ryu which I still love, but the club closed and I now do Tang Soo Do which I have to say doesn't suit me however I also do MMA which does so I'm not sure what that says about me

Not particularly Mind you it wasn't bad BS per se, it was just aspects of training that don't really happen like extensive shuriken work and camoflauge and water skills etc. I think I liked the art better because we focus on how to kill people 7 times before they hit the ground like the Yakuza from the Simpsons

Well having never met you I'd hate to come across as judgemental but I'd say that makes you very diverse, fit and brave lol. I know a lot of guys (myself included if I'm being honest) who'd be a bit iffy about going toe to toe with some/most MMA guys

 

[Tez3]

Not particularly Mind you it wasn't bad BS per se, it was just aspects of training that don't really happen like extensive shuriken work and camoflauge and water skills etc. I think I liked the art better because we focus on how to kill people 7 times before they hit the ground like the Yakuza from the Simpsons

Well having never met you I'd hate to come across as judgemental but I'd say that makes you very diverse, fit and brave lol. I know a lot of guys (myself included if I'm being honest) who'd be a bit iffy about going toe to toe with some/most MMA guys

That probably makes me a scary middle aged woman then rofl!

Afew years ago we went down south for a martial arts seminar, there were some good grapplers there so it was good for our MMA guys. There were some martial artists from Belgium who did Bo staffs and I will never forget the Ninja group. Now these were very nice people, very genuine, very into bowing and being polite bless them but oh dear their art!

They wore homemade clothes and homemade rope sandals and kept saying things like 'if you attacked me I'd uncoil this piece of wire and stab you in the femoral artery before you'd have a chance to hit me' and 'we hide in hedges to leap out at people.' They kept insisting they went full contact but one of our ladies, a very girly girl if you know what I mean resisted one who was trying to put her down, her 'attacker' said she must be very flexiable, she isn't but is somewhat over weight. I'm afraid this has coloured my ideas of Ninjutso ever since, sorry guys. It seemed to me it attracted people who wanted to act out being ninjas, they didn't wear the black suit stuff but were very much into being 'authentic'.
Now I always thought if Ninjas were around today in the same way they were way back they'd actually be dressed in state of the art body armour and with sniper rifles etc. I think they had the state of the art weapons etc in their day so if they were doing the same job today they'd be still keeping up with the state of the art stuff now not wandering around in homemade rope sandals.

As I said though they were nice guys, they believed in what they were doing so nobody pulled them on it or tried to beat them up or anything, we just smiled to ourselves and hoped they never had to defend themselves.

 

[Supra Vijai]

Wow I'm sorry that's what your experience with Ninjutsu has been. That sort of thing is probably what my old friend was talking about too but nah we take it fairly seriously and look at techs in the context of ancient battlefields and then modern self defence seperately. I hope you realise my comment about the Yakuza was a joke :lol: But I do definitely agree we attract all the fun people

As for the scary middle aged woman comment, I never said such a thing :angel:

 

[Tez3]

Wow I'm sorry that's what your experience with Ninjutsu has been. That sort of thing is probably what my old friend was talking about too but nah we take it fairly seriously and look at techs in the context of ancient battlefields and then modern self defence seperately. I hope you realise my comment about the Yakuza was a joke :lol: But I do definitely agree we attract all the fun people

As for the scary middle aged woman comment, I never said such a thing :angel:

I know lol, I'm just hoping I am!

 

[Supra Vijai]

Well I'm sure you're a sweetheart outside the ring - you just won't find me walking into any gyms with you lol

 

[ap Oweyn]

If that's the case though and you have no personal bias towards either - say TKD and Iaido were the only ones offered (extreme I know) and you had no preference either way - would the personality side of it come into play a bit more? As in, would you look to dominant traits and the like to help choose one?

If there were a taekwondo dojang and an iaido dojo--all other factors being equal--it seems to me that the decision would be based on things like interest level in weapons versus empty hand, interest level in one culture or the other, interest in competing, etc. Now, you could argue that all of those things are shaped by personality type. But, really, do you need to understand the personality type that shapes the preference in order to act on the preference? I don't think you do really.

I think personality comes into play more in your approach to learning and performing that style. So take fencing for instance. How you fence (versus whether you fence) might be shaped by personality. Though, again, I don't think it's vital to understand personality type in order to analyze performance.

Interestingly, as well, I've seen personality type vary pretty wildly depending on the activity. I've seen people who are generally shy and inwardly focused suddenly start barking orders and charging the hill in paintball. I've seen similar transformations in the training hall. The way our personality manifests itself in one context can change pretty radically in another.


Stuart

 

[Blade96]

I'd have to agree that ma has all types of personalities in it. In just my one year of study I've met some of the people I am proud to get along with and know as well as my bastard ex boyfriend. And the judoka who hurt my back as he had us practicing rolling breakfalls on what was only my second time trying out a judo class.

 

[Supra Vijai]

If there were a taekwondo dojang and an iaido dojo--all other factors being equal--it seems to me that the decision would be based on things like interest level in weapons versus empty hand, interest level in one culture or the other, interest in competing, etc. Now, you could argue that all of those things are shaped by personality type. But, really, do you need to understand the personality type that shapes the preference in order to act on the preference? I don't think you do really.

I think personality comes into play more in your approach to learning and performing that style. So take fencing for instance. How you fence (versus whether you fence) might be shaped by personality. Though, again, I don't think it's vital to understand personality type in order to analyze performance.

Interestingly, as well, I've seen personality type vary pretty wildly depending on the activity. I've seen people who are generally shy and inwardly focused suddenly start barking orders and charging the hill in paintball. I've seen similar transformations in the training hall. The way our personality manifests itself in one context can change pretty radically in another.


Stuart

Thanks for an interesting and open point of view Stuart! I wasn't trying to imply that you need a solid knowledge of psychology to choose a style, more asking if personality types would lead you to choose certain arts etc However the contextual expression of personality as you put it is of course a very valid point and one that didn't factor into my ideal world scenario.

I'd have to agree that ma has all types of personalities in it. In just my one year of study I've met some of the people I am proud to get along with and know as well as my bastard ex boyfriend. And the judoka who hurt my back as he had us practicing rolling breakfalls on what was only my second time trying out a judo class.

If it makes you feel better, all our new guys get taught rolls and breakfalls as soon as practical, sometimes in the first couple of classes. As an art which can feature a lot of throws/takedowns etc, it makes it a lot safer for Tori and helps Uke do the actual technique without holding back too much. Sorry to hear you hurt your back though. Was it a bad throw/landing?

Oh and in regards to your ex, without knowing any details, sorry you had a bad experience. My personal belief is that I perform a lot better in class when I'm single. As my friends put it, I actually turn up to class and focus rather than spend the time looking after whoever I'm with

 

[Blade96]

If it makes you feel better, all our new guys get taught rolls and breakfalls as soon as practical, sometimes in the first couple of classes. As an art which can feature a lot of throws/takedowns etc, it makes it a lot safer for Tori and helps Uke do the actual technique without holding back too much. Sorry to hear you hurt your back though. Was it a bad throw/landing?

Oh and in regards to your ex, without knowing any details, sorry you had a bad experience. My personal belief is that I perform a lot better in class when I'm single. As my friends put it, I actually turn up to class and focus rather than spend the time looking after whoever I'm with

I don't know what it was. He said I didnt land properly but didnt really instruct me on how to fix it either.

as for being single - I'm single now and I'd rather stay single.

 

[Supra Vijai]

Ouch! (For the bad fall). Nothing too serious I hope. As for the staying single part, I'm with ya 100% there, training is my new girlfriend All the best with your MA journey!

 

[Mark Jordan]

Some would say that Judo is suited for people who want to learn a defensive style and it draws people who like throwing and grappling. Others would say that
Jujitsu is suited for people who are aggressive in nature. Aikido, on the other hand, appeals to women because it doesn’t require much physical strength. However, in my dojo ( and in all dojos I presume) there are all types of personalities and I don't believe that you need any particular type of personality to be in martial arts. If there's one trait that is common to all my students it is their desire to learn the art.

 

[sgtmac_46]

This I'll agree with (and I think I said as much). I don't think that you can take a personality type and match it to a martial art. Which was my initial point. The way you relate to a martial art is like the way you relate to a job or any other complex system. Personality shapes the interaction, but it doesn't prevent or enable it wholesale.

Personality type would less have to do with what particular art one would decide to pursue, as how one went about pursuing it.

Some types would, by nature, be more interesting in developing physical skill, and would have little interest in abstract concepts. Others would have a great interest in maintaining formality and tradition.

 

[Blade96]

Ouch! (For the bad fall). Nothing too serious I hope. As for the staying single part, I'm with ya 100% there, training is my new girlfriend All the best with your MA journey!

and the best thing about this new gf is that she will always be good to you, and never evil or controlling eh.

 

[Supra Vijai]

and the best thing about this new gf is that she will always be good to you, and never evil or controlling eh.

Oh I dunno about that... maybe a good kinda evil

 

[Blade96]

Oh I dunno about that... maybe a good kinda evil

Heheheh