Martial Arts: Which one to do Next?

Well, I've officially retired from the MA I've been doing for the past 6 years or so. It was a mixed MA based around TKD and after the 2nd Dan I wanted to learn something else rather than going deeper into the minutiae, as it were.

So, I've whittled it down to 3 or perhaps 4, based primarily around accessibility and interest on my behalf, and I was hoping some guys here might be able to give me their thoughts on any or all of these. Of course I will go and try each to see which I like, but forewarned is forearmed, as they say.

1. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. I've done some grappling as part of the previous MA, but I'm thinking what I know is probably ludicrously simple. Plus I'm probably physically most suited to this, I think.

2. Aikado. There's a 6th Dan quite close to us, and having read some of his material this one seems to be most in line with my philosophy, at least. I know it is a very formal MA. He also teaches other things weapons-wise: sword, staff, walking stick??? Could be interesting.

3. Wing Chung. Bruce Lee, need I say more?

There's also krav maga, but I'm not really that interested in it to be honest. I might go to a free lesson to see, but at this stage it is down to those three above.

If I had to rank them in terms of initial, completely uninformed, interest level it would be 2, 1, 3.

So, anyone with any thoughts on these? Thanks in advance.

James.

Whatever you do James please pick something with limited head shots. I boxed in the police athletic league as a kid and had ambitions of going pro when I got old enough. Discovered girls and booze and decided to forego the boxing.

Years later, when all these older pro contact sport athletes are suffering from brain damage sustained in their younger days, I hate to see anyone engaging in these sports. I know some guys really do enjoy fighting as a sport, but taking those hits can leave you in the lurch down the road and that ain't no fun.

Of the 3 you mentioned

Aikido has the most interest to me, always liked that art, if I was ever going to start a new one that would be my choice

Of course I am Biased toward Japanese Arts :p



Now to be honest if your first style was more Ring Oriented rather then Street Oriented then absolutely go Krav Maga


JHMO

Had a few years in a 2 different freestyle MA clubs until untimely deaths of each Sensei closing them for ever.
The first was my favourite Callioppe Matial Arts were our basis was Go ju Ryu, Aikido & Ninjutsu and was a old Shcool system of 1 year for each Element (belt) followed by 1 year for its Weapon = 10 years for a Black belt
I really liked the deflective nature of Aikido using once force against them and the Ninjitsu preassure points and distraction techniques.
Our Sensei Anthony McTye was a BB in Go ju Ryu (1 of the original henchmen with Bob Jones & Malcolm Anderson Zen Do founders), BB in Aikido & a 2nd Degree in Ninjitsu ( both were in Brissy clubs)

The second main 1 was Zen Chi Ryu with Sensei Peter Rilee
This was a Zen do based style with extensive BJJ teachings
My preference is the Standup and avoiding the ground all together but I really like the Bars & holds etc from BJJ but that ground works is really hard work and not near as simple as it may appear.

I also dabbled ( about 6 months odd ) in Wing Chung (Yip man based form) & Mui Thai in Mackay with Stephan Fox (World Mui Thai council) while working there.
Really liked the Sticky hands & dim muk of the WC but found it to be not as practical after doing a free style system ( my brother continued with the MT under Stephan for a WMC world ranked 3rd place in Cruiser weight ) before blowing his knee & shoulder in a fall at work

My preferential order would be 2, 1 then 3 also
But if you really like the physical work out (& smell of other people's sweat etc all over you) BJJ would be 1st
Cheers D

I studied aikido after I got out of military and it was AMAZING. The concept, philosophy, and difficulty was something that kept my interest for a long time. Then life happened. When I was stationed in Korea we were required to take martial arts of some sort and the instructor that amazed me the most taught wing Chung. It wasn't the fact that he could put a finger through a canvas bag although that had its wow factor. It was that the principles seemed so straight forward and effective for a working self defense. Similar to western boxing but at the same time much different.

Those would be my picks -#2 and 3.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Jimbo

2. Aikido. There's a 6th Dan quite close to us, and having read some of his material this one seems to be most in line with my philosophy, at least.

---

Answered your own question :p


I'd say come & learn ju jutsu with me but the petrol costs would kill you . ;)

Out of your chosen 3 it would for me have to be BJJ. Its a great sport and by nature is sparring orientated.

If you have never tried it I would thoroughly recommend boxing or Muay Thai. For me nothing beats getting in the ring and going toe to toe. The euphoric feeling I get from them is hard to describe. Even when I come home battered and bruised from sparring and the wife just shakes her head I love it more.

You're limited by what's in the neighborhood.

I like all the other advice so far. Aikido was my first skill set. Ueshiba style, and what I learned was how to fall down and not get hurt. The technique was gentle, effective and didn't leave any marks. It's not advertised, nor for the most part, practiced, as a combat style. For that, I prefer the style of Gozo Shioda if you can find it. Aikido in all its forms is good art that sets the foundation for a lot of other interesting stuff.

In my observation and experience, most fights, evenly matched, wind up on the ground. That's where BJJ, any ju jitsu, comes into its strength.

I also observe that the martial-art-du-jour is subject to marketing forces like so many other things. The old dojo has barely enough whitewash to cover up the judo sign, where it's been replaced with karate and then covered over to read mixed martial whatever. The instructor and their teachers will make all the difference regardless of what you choose.

BJJ ALL THE WAY!
That being said, it all depends on the teacher.

This is for ALL your choices. Choose the one that interests you the most AND has the best teacher!

BJJ in my opinion is the BEST, most realistic martial art there is.
You can go 100% with your partner and not worry about getting hurt. (That is as long as you tap)

I will say that if you are over 40 that you will be the oldest person in the class. :rofl2:

Wrestling in University and JKA Shotokan has been what I've studied, learned an awful lot of life skills from Shotokan and would love to break out my Gi again....:D

BJJ and Krav Maga. If you know those two you can get out of any situation.
Kav Maga is totally awesome seeing how you can manipulate large individuals with ease.

Jimbo,, my 2 cents :shrug:

You need revisit your beginnings,,, to ask yourself, "Why did I start martial arts to begin with?" The answer you find should determine your choice now. Very important,,,,

Since I'm not you & cannot answer that question,,,, I will give my advice based on this; You started martial arts to learn how to defend yourself from assault and learn how to identify & control the emotions that come with physical encounters.

If this is the case, then choose the instructor,,,, not the art. as Mike pointed out, the instructor makes all the difference in the world,,, not the title on the sign out front. If you want pointers on how to evaluate an instructor,, then ask.

You have been in the arts for 6 years & obviously have confidence. Choose an instructor in an art that has some familiarity with the knowledge you already have. This helps for times when you will feel totally lost or overwhelmed with this new art.

Most important, find a way to continue training with the knowledge you already have,,, even if it is only 2 days a month & in a private setting.

Altercations/fights are won/avoided by mastering the basics, channeling your emotion & environmental awareness.

If there is only your 3 choices,,, Jujitsu would be the place I would start looking.

Thanks for all the advice guys.

Well, to be frank I started MA to support my nephew (who was doing it at the time), and to keep in training after I tore my pec at the gym that time. But what eventually kept me going was that I really responded to the mental and physical discipline.

I'll never be a Bruce Lee - I'm a bit of a lumberer to be honest and fairly workman-like. But I really enjoy the challenge of mastering a new technique within my own physical parameters. Self defence was/is not really a priority for me, though it is a nice practical outcome of what I have learned so far.

So that's where I am at. There are in fact more choices available to me than the 4 I mentioned, it's just those were the 4 I thought looked of most interest. If there are others people would recommend I look at then I am more than happy to consider them. Let's face it, I'm 45 and whatever I choose now will probably be the one I go with for the rest of my days, so I'm happy to spend some time making the choice.

And Hirlau, in terms of continuing to train my previous skills as well, I've set up a little spot in my new shed with a bag etc and mats. And my old teacher/Master has invited me to continue to come to the fornightly advanced training they do for as long as I like, which is very generous of him and I will definitely take him up on that offer.

James.

James,

I'm an ex Tae Kwon Do student.... At this point, I'm getting too old and frail for the intense workouts in that sport. If it were me, I'd look long and hard at Aikado, but you are not me and so you will have to find your own way. Why not stop by the various studios and watch a session or two, just to see what appeals to you.

Personally, I've made one too many "snow angels" on black ice covered pavement as a letter carrier in Canada... my spine and left foot/ankle are done for. Doc told me in no uncertain terms that I was done with my job.... Move on or live in pain was my choice, so I moved on. I can still remember the days when I trained in Tae Kwon Do, and they are some of my best memories.

Aikado seems to be less extreme than the other ones you mention, very effective, but more technique than physical prowess, but what do I know! The floor keeps getting further and further away as I age.... no more spin kicks for me....<sigh>.

Regards

Kaptain "Ouch, that HURTS!" Zero

Well since you are 2nd dan TKD....Brazilian Jiu Jitsu or Aikado would be a great advantage to you. You know how to strike with kicks and punches..... The grapples part is also a part of martial arts. I've seen too many people who are into one aspect of martial arts....And very good at it....but are lacking in the areas that other martial arts train you on. I am wanting to learn Hapkido..... Korean form of Aikado. I've taken a few seminars on it. The lock holds are viscous! All martials arts are great to learn, keeps you healthy and also you know how to protect yourself if needed. My wife is a 1st dan in TKD and Kumdo (Korean Sword fighting) and enjoys them both.

As a traditional TKD student, I also picked up Hapkido for the grappling/throwing/joint-locking. The two arts complement each other nicely. I know Aikido is quite different from Hapkido (philosophically and technically), but I would think that Aikido would complement the TKD similarly.

I used to study Korean Kuk Sool Won.

I am a bit hesitant to say aikido, for the simple reason that in these parts, I've met too many high level practitioners who talk about all the principles of aikido and the spiritual angle etc. And most of them couldn't deal with 2 consecutive fist strikes if they were delivered with power and the intent to do harm. That is why you should base your decision on the teacher, not the style.

As for weapons training, unless the instructor has actual training in an actual weapon school, whatever they do is highly likely to contain a lot of flaws.

I'd agree with bruno, my preference would be Aikido, but that was because I had a great instructor. He challenged any of us in the first class, because he had some poor reviews at his school. I took him up on it and being fairly confident of my TKD, training throughout childhood. I was genuinely impressed by his capabilities. His advice on picking schools was precisely the spiritual angle, he was picky-choosey with it and recommended against highly spiritual schools. Unless that was "your thing"

I have not practiced in years. I studied under a Korean Rock Marine in Vietnam in the late 60s. He taught an unorthodox form of Rock, Scissors, Paper or a well rounded fighter.

Aikido would add balance to your hard forms.

In the real world we all know you end up on the ground in short time. Being a Gracie fan Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is tough to beat in this venue.

I would try a little of each of your choices. Walk in the shoes kinda thing. With your background I think you will easily know what's needed to fill that void.

As others have said the teacher you choose is most important of all.

I would guess that you could learn something valuable from any of the martial disciplines, but they all look kind of pretend to me next to BJJ. I mean, you can learn 50 strikes but if you never use one or are on the receiving end of one for real...Multiple disciplines would make a better martial artist IMO...I would start from the ground up.

I go for AiKiDo.

BJJ for sure is fun and very valuable to learn as many have already said, however my bias leads towards Muay Thai. Lots of inventive striking outside of traditional forms, tones of grappling, and has real intent. what more could you want? haha
Out of those you have mentioned, my choice would be BJJ, many of my friends already practice it and absolutely love the rolls!!
Id say dont just limit yourself just yet, maybe dabble in each till you decide which fits better?