[quote]Roundhead wrote:
FightinIrish26 wrote:
Wayland wrote:
Boxing,Judo,BJJ,Muay Thai,Kickboxing,Savate, catch wrestling, Some japanese jujitsu clubs and certain styles of Karate, aslong as the style has a certain amount of aliveness will leave them in good stead.
Martial arts that look flashy and promise alot usually fall short. Arts that fall into this are “generally” Taekwondo, Certain karate styles, Aikido, some japanese jujitsu, kempo, almost all kungfu styles
This post is a sign of the times, and completely false.
Please don’t give any more advice on this forum.
Might have to elaborate there Irish, Wayland’s post seems quite reasonable to me. I don’t necessarily agree with the advice given, but it doesn’t look “completely false”.
[/quote]
I’m going to elaborate on my thoughts on the whole thread, but to start with, this post is not fair to martial arts like aikido, kung fu, and other TMA’s that are dismissed so quickly.
Every art has a purpose, and that purpose generally stems from what the founder of it had to deal with. Wing Chun is an infighting style that is excellent for enclosed areas, but it isn’t going to be great in an empty parking lot. Tae Kwon Do (which many foolishly look at as “useless”) if used by a taller guy in that empty parking lot, is going to have you picking up your teeth at the end of the night. In a crowded bar, however, it’s going to be hard to get that necessary distance. Aikido won’t work so well against a boxer, but if someone is charging at you, odds are is you’ll be able to throw him a couple feet and book it out of there. Most of the arts are intertwined with each other, and steal shit from each other constantly. There are no useless arts, and much depends on the teacher who’s teaching it.
For those recommending BJJ, you are doing the OP a great disservice. I truly enjoy BJJ. It is a brilliant art that is tailor-made for martial arts competitions. However, it should not be a base for streetfighting, and should not be relied upon for “self-defense” for a woman. The reasoning behind it is this:
If you study military shit at all, you’ll see that when there is a smaller, weaker opponent, the tactics they successfully emply are hit and run, guerilla style tactics. Sudden, fierce attacks, followed by an immediate retreat to a place of safety. The last thing you want to do with a smaller, weaker force is get caught up in a pitched battle with a stronger adversary, because every second that they can bring more force to bear, your odds of surviving decrease. IF you stay in there too long, you’ll get destroyed. Vietnam has some great examples of this.
If you’re a woman (or anyone really, but especially a woman), the longer you engage, the more likely things are to go wrong. If you end up on the ground, your sole purpose should be to attack so viciously to vital points that you can deter your attacker. Eyes, ears, nose, throat, eyes- try to rip and gouge. It’s combat, not sport. Don’t go for armbars and kimuras- every second extra second you spend increases the liklihood that you’ll catch an elbow to the face and get knocked out on the pavement, or that you’ll get stabbed or beaten with a weapon. Sitting there and engaging is going to get you killed.
The OP needs to tell how old his daughters are before anyone gives advice. What can they absorb? What will they understand? If they’re 6 years old, you’re going to have a difficult time teaching them true self defense, which starts with AVOIDANCE and AWARENESS.
Can you teach a 6 year old what a pincer movement is? Can you teach them how to spot a setup, or where it’s going to occur? Can you teach them how to look at someone and get a quick idea if they have a weapon, how they’d hold it, and whether they’re righty or lefty? More importantly, does the teacher of your “self defense” art know how?
Will they teach you how to deal with the adrenaline dump? You won’t find that shit in a Muay Thai class. Will they teach you that under that dump, you’re very, very, very likely to turn into a flailing asshole instead of a trained fighter- and that its very difficult to combat?
Much of what’s passed off as self defense really isn’t. They’re fighting arts, sure, but they don’t teach you things that you could learn in a half hour of talking to a cop, things that you really, really could use to save your life.
Martial arts are great things. All of them. They’ll teach discipline and get her in great shape. Striking arts will teach her to throw a punch or palm heel without breaking her wrist, which is why I advise them over any others. They’ll teach you the basics that you could possibly use to deter an attacker. However, most fall sadly short when it comes to how to avoid bad situations, stop trouble coming, etc.
I study boxing myself. To me, it works the best under the worst adrenaline dump- using your fists to hit for big targets, no fine motor movements, and teaches you to automatically duck and slip. Palm heels and elbows are easily integrated into it, and it keeps you standing so you can GET THE FUCK OUT OF THERE… because, you know, in self-defense, that’s the damn goal. Would it be the best for her? Maybe, maybe not. For a female who’s not going to get hammered ass drunk and get into a barfight like some dick like me would, the time could probably be better spent learning avoidance and awareness while practicing physical moves that are absolutely brutal (because if she is that situation, that’s what she’ll need. It’ll be combat, not a fight.)
If his girls are in college or HS age, I would say find a self-defense class taught by someone who knows what they’re doing. At my old college, there were free classes taught by the police chief for anyone who wanted to go. I would take that in a FUCKING SECOND for a female over any martial art taught by some guy who has never been in a confrontation outside of the ring… or worse, as is the case with some TMA’s, someone who’s never been hit in the face.
Sorry for the novel… if you need clarifications let me know… violence against woman hits too close to home for me.
