POLL: Do you do a martial art?

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Not me. But I'm considering sending Jack to a self-defence class / martial arts class

 

I think it's great for kids to do a martial art (so long as it is a well run place that promotes positive values - not one where people just beat each other up).

 

Still though, even if she was lying, the amount of time you have to spend here in the west is insubstantial compared to the amount of time spent in the east. Over there you can spend month or even years in the dojo without moving up the ranks much, over here, you can probably invest one hour a week for a few months and you will get a belt.

 

Oh yes. I know many styles: civil litigation, criminal procedure, administrative procedures...

 

I did judo for several years, though not anymore... The guy who ran the school and did the lessons quit, and the new guy was an a'hole, so I lost interest.
But I can still throw people around a bit ^^

 

I agree with Bahir as well. I have a mate who is around the middle of the karate ranking system (not sure what colour that is) and I can still drop him with a well placed strike with him trying to defend. If the system had spent more time perfecting the blocks and teaching them more, I would cop a floggen each time we have a bit of a scuffle.

This video shows all of the techiniques you will ever need

(F-bomb dropped a few times so warning to sensative viewers)

[ July 29, 2006, 01:33: Message edited by: TrueBlueAussie ]

 

Hoi Jeon Moo Sool here. Bit from the unknown end, but I'm told it shares many characteristics with Taek Kwon Do.
Would be a green belt, but I had to skip the belt exam due two weeks of sickness just at the same time most of the training for exam was done. I perhaps could have pulled trough it since I still had two sessions to train before it and the second one went smoothly enough, but I decided not to.
You see, in this system there's only two different types of training sessions: white belts and the rest. So if even thought I'm still a yellow belt, I have all the talen of green. Only thing lost was some time, half a year or so.

I've, myself, had much interest in staff techniques, sword being too one-dimensional compared to it. Sure, I'm intrested in unarmed as well, seeing that it's the main thing. Nunchaku can be very hard, but it's still fun.

Of, forgot to mention something. As seen in the video, martial artist will not win always. My father is a professional martial artist to some degree, and he openly admits that experienced free-style fighter has high odds of winning equally experienced martial artist. Of course it's not sure thing, but most of techniques in many martial arts aren't really wieldy in real combat.
The simpler the technique is, the more succesful it will be in fast, brutal combat, which real situation probably would be. You don't have time to correct any mistakes in difficult throws, much less to think what to do. If the situation is for real, anything goes.

Althought you will need much more concentration if, say, robber, is armed. Should he pull out a knife, you should never try to combat him, but run like hell if you any way can. But if you for some reason can't, then it's really one mistake and all can be over. You want to remove the weapon, as fast as possible.
As what I would do at such situation, if stones are present, not think about fairness but throw the larges one at attackers face, or otherwise cause as much problems for him to get to striking distance.

[ July 28, 2006, 15:11: Message edited by: Goli Ironhead ]

 

Most important lesson I ever learned in karate is that getting beaten up really hurts, so running away is usually a reasonably sensible option in many confrontational situations (whack him in the nose then take off as fast as you can!)

 

I used to study Karate, stopped a year and a bit ago before achieving second Dan.

I currently study iaido twice a week.

Full agreement with you there Bahir about the time taken for grades to be awarded.

 

Nope.
Years back, when I saw this kid, I decided the world would be a better place without all that violence.

 

Dude, let me tell you everything about my martial skills.

I probably shouldn't be telling you this. It could get us in a lot of trouble. It just gets to me, you know? I need to tell someone.

This may seem ridiculous, but I'm kind of a modern day ninja. Elite special ops. I work for the government, but it's not an organization you would have heard of. Double top secret. Code deep black ultra.

I know I'm pretty young, but I was recruited about two years ago, right out of high school, because of my specialized training. You probably don't know this, but most modern special ops work involves katanas, like this one right here. It's as deadly as a gun, and a lot more silent. Easier to get across borders, too. I started taking karate when I was ten - actually, no, when I was eight - and from there I got recruited into an ancient school of ninjutsu.

No, I mean real ninjutsu. It was a secret school, six hundred years old. In China. At a monastery. Army Boot Camp is a picnic by comparison. We were the best of the best. That's where I learned to use this katana.

You can read more about it in my online diary.

Have I actually ever killed anyone? Well, I'd rather not say. Plausible deniability, you know.

Yeah, I guess my life is pretty intense, and mysterious. It's the kind of life that most people my age could only dream of. Deadly, but glamorous. Most people settle down, get a girlfriend, and work a normal job, but not me. I can't get too attached, you know? That's the price I pay for the silent battles I wage.

 

sounds like a copy-paste from a speech in a b-movie

 

I didnt want to say anything before, but that was my initial thought as well Enagonios . Either that or the script from a Steven Segal movie.

 

I honestly doubt that.

Martial arts are about using your body, about discipline and focus, not about beating the crap out of someone. You learn stuff so that you don't get into fights (see Harbourboy's post). Many techniques are a lot like gymnastics, very athletic and very nice to watch, others may look rather crude but are highly effective.

Combat (for real) is about the unexpected, I read a story in a book on martial arts, the story was about a samurai and a peasant, the samurai was trying to grapple the peasant using some sort of ju-jitsu technique when the peasant simply got a hold of the samurai's testicles... It may be just a story but it's quite self-explanatory.

EDIT: forgot to say, I learned some basic moves (nothing fancy) and minor self defence tricks but I never trained that much so I voted no.

 

You know how Lemmy from Motörhead handles a bar fight?

Incidentally, no, I've never done martial arts.

 

Indeed, the true purpose of the martial arts is to perfect your character, not just learning how to kick someone hard.

Lemmy is the wisest of us all.

 

Words to live by.

 

A long time ago I trained with a 7th degree black belt (at that time he wore a red belt). It was quite intensive -- four hours after work every day and 12 hours a day on weekends. I was his only student. After three months of having the holy ba'jesus kick out of me every, damned day I decided it wasn't fun anymore and quit.

I used to spar with friends (up to brown belt) in college and they could never beat me, so I guess I learned something other than a high pain tolerance.

 

I have to admit Oaz, you story is a lot better than Jessica's. (The little girl from the playground that I refered to earlier.)

 

Nope, although I did a bit of Tae-Kwon Do before…and I learn bits and pieces of Jujitsu from my brother and some Wingchun from my sister…Don’t really know what belts they are…I think my brother is a green belt still… he wasn’t able to go to his grading to get light blue…