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What is the best martial art?
20-Apr-16 00:35
When I was in high school I took Tang Soo Do lessons for a few years. I never had the occasion to use my skills, and I always wondered how effective they would be.
When a friend of mine who took lessons at the same studio was attacked by two bullies at school after six months of training, he defeated both decisively in several minutes.
In retrospect I can see that some of the techniques we were taught would look good in a staged demonstration, but they would be less effective in an actual fighting situation. One step sparing amounted to learning many defenses against an attack no one would ever make.
I like to watch mixed martial arts contests. A MMA contest is as close as you can get to a real fight and still have an athletic contest. I think a MMA contest is a laboratory for testing techniques from various martial arts styles.
Several years ago I read an article in a martial arts magazine I wish I had kept. It was about how well practitioners of various styles do in MMA contests. It placed karate and kung fu stylists at the bottom.
What seemed to work best was a combination of jiu jitsu and Muay Thai, or Thai boxing.
I think the problem with karate is not so much the techniques as the way they are taught. Karate students practice fighting using something called "free style sparing." In free style sparing one stops punches and kicks short of the target. There are two problems with this. First, it does not build the power to make techniques effective. Second, pulling punches and kicks can become a habit that one may retain during the stress of an actual fight. I have heard of karate students who got into street fights and continued to pull their punches and kicks. Because their opponents did not, the results were unfortunate.
Protective equipment for full contact sparing has been invented. Unfortunately, it does not seem to be used in many studios.
Jiu jitsu is good for if a fight goes to the ground. One can then get one's opponent in a wrist lock or an ankle lock. Aikido is valuable for when one is grabbed when standing.
Boxing builds power, but it does not teach one how to block a kick.
Belts mean very little in karate. Each instructor can give the belts he wants to. There is no nationally certified agency with objective standards.
When a friend of mine who took lessons at the same studio was attacked by two bullies at school after six months of training, he defeated both decisively in several minutes.
In retrospect I can see that some of the techniques we were taught would look good in a staged demonstration, but they would be less effective in an actual fighting situation. One step sparing amounted to learning many defenses against an attack no one would ever make.
I like to watch mixed martial arts contests. A MMA contest is as close as you can get to a real fight and still have an athletic contest. I think a MMA contest is a laboratory for testing techniques from various martial arts styles.
Several years ago I read an article in a martial arts magazine I wish I had kept. It was about how well practitioners of various styles do in MMA contests. It placed karate and kung fu stylists at the bottom.
What seemed to work best was a combination of jiu jitsu and Muay Thai, or Thai boxing.
I think the problem with karate is not so much the techniques as the way they are taught. Karate students practice fighting using something called "free style sparing." In free style sparing one stops punches and kicks short of the target. There are two problems with this. First, it does not build the power to make techniques effective. Second, pulling punches and kicks can become a habit that one may retain during the stress of an actual fight. I have heard of karate students who got into street fights and continued to pull their punches and kicks. Because their opponents did not, the results were unfortunate.
Protective equipment for full contact sparing has been invented. Unfortunately, it does not seem to be used in many studios.
Jiu jitsu is good for if a fight goes to the ground. One can then get one's opponent in a wrist lock or an ankle lock. Aikido is valuable for when one is grabbed when standing.
Boxing builds power, but it does not teach one how to block a kick.
Belts mean very little in karate. Each instructor can give the belts he wants to. There is no nationally certified agency with objective standards.
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