marital arts

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I was looking into taking up martial arts to help with my clumsiness, hand eye coordination, focusing, and to help defend myself....has anyone else found this to work for them? does anyone have any opinions on trying this?

I studied martials from ages 19-25. I found it did increase my self confidence and assertiveness. I can't honestly say it helped coordination or clumsiness because during that time I got kicked in the head unconscious, broke my ribs and every toe several times over, plus injured my back and broke my hand. Despite all that it was one of the happiest times of my life and I met a lot of people that way. I might add that at age 40 I have a BI via post concussion syndrome and arthritis from hell.

If you decide to go for it please invest in some good headgear and pads. And not the stupid white nylon covered foot pads but the fully enclosed boots like Macho and Century makes. Yeah protect those little toe bones because they break easily.

I definitely plan on putting my son through martial arts class's when he is old enough to start them.

Better check your heading ... this thread has nothing to do with marriage.

Sorry, I used to be a schoolteacher.

lol

Yes, but only with respect to what is useful in martial arts. In terms of my clumsiness, I can become proficient in any physical activity, given the proper training, but ultimately 90% of that improvement is for that physical activity.

If you want more general improvements, then do more general training, and/or lots of specific training.

well - is there so much difference martial v marital

it was the best thing I did to help every part of my life.

Well I practice Kumdo (Kendo) since my freshman spring semester and I have competed in two tournaments to date (Purple Belt at the moment)

Zui Quan- drunken fist, also known as drunken
boxing or drunkard's boxing are very good for
the things you mention, it has helped me alot
with speed, balance, focusing, coordination
et cetera. And its a flexibel way of fighting,
rigid fighters gets pushed off balance easily,
with this you are able to regroup and strike
from pretty much any position. When getting
into the flow it feels like dancing in many ways.
In a way i started doing this long before i heard
of drunken boxing, i have always had a "thing"
for movement and especially movements a little
out of the ordinary, i move alot in strange ways
often, i like to play with balance and explore
the human body moving. In a way the movements
make me relax.

Find your center and you`re on your way.
I should mention it has nothing to do with getting
drunk, its about mimicing the bodys state when
drunk, the relaxed off center motions.

This vid explains it nicely, absolutely worth a look

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9wq7QC1Qi0&feature=related[/youtube]

There aren't really any drawbacks, aside from the cost. Or maybe some of the injury stuff Ticker mentioned, (Holy crap! ) although that kind of thing (should) only happen in competitive sport settings and not in a classroom.

M.A. are something where you can go at your own pace and set the bar yourself, so as opposed to many organized physical activities it's good for people with AS. It's kinda tricky to know exactly what you're getting until you've already got it, but depending on which M.A. you choose and what it does, you'll probably get at least a bit more coordination etc., among other long-term benefits. And if you don't like one class, don't decide M.A. classes all suck. Try/watch a few to get an idea.

Funny thing is I never once went to a competition for fear of being killed. All the bone breaks happened in class and the head injury happen on my black belt test because they took my glasses away so they wouldn't get broke but then I couldn't see. I always practiced/sparred in class with my glasses so I feel stupid now that I let them take them away or else I might not have the memory issues I now have. Even more ironic some brilliant person told me switch to "Tai Chi its good for people with arthritis" so I did and I ended up tearing my ACL practicing the gentle art of Taoist Tai Chi.

That said I really miss getting to kick the holy crap out of other people and get away with it. So if you have some pent up feelings I think its theraputic to take up martial arts.

I'd advise you go with one that teaches flow and form over force (such as Tae Kwon Do). Judo, Jujitsu, Aikido, Kendo, and pretty much most Japanese martial arts, those are all good ones. Unless you have no other choice, try to avoid "mixed martial arts" schools too, with a few rare exceptions, they tend to be taught by people with minimal experience that barely know even the basics and give out fake belts (there's no such thing as a green belt in Aikido).

Incidentally, I got my Black Belt in Hwa Rang Do & Sulsa yesterday! Huzzah!

That's really not true; it depends what style of TKD. There are many different styles. You are probably referring to WTF/Olympic style. I would highly recommend ITF Taekwon-Do, which is much more traditional and closer to the art's Karate roots, though it is still a modern martial art, and it is a different art than Karate.

Also, all schools and organizations can have different regulations with regards to sparring; some styles use full contact, others light, others no contact, etc.




Ditto. It has helped me so much with social development it's not even funny. I am more confident and better coordinated because of training. It is the greatest thing that I've ever done.


I really believe that if you want to train there is a martial art for everybody. Just because I do ITF Taekwon-Do doesn't mean that's going to be the one for you. Experiment and find what you like. There are so many different things out there! Just make sure you do some research and don't end up in a McDojo/McDojang.

Well Kumdo falls into the top three items that you mentioned, Josh. It requires a lot of focusing and training to perform the techniques right at times. The final item won't be covered because Kumdo is an offensive martial art. Aikido would be the counter balance for you in self defense, the Way of Harmonious Spirit. The Way of the Sword would help you in your three other items of course trust me on that.