I've done Tae Kwon Do and got my black belt 5 years ago.  Wat should i do next?
596356
why not try brizian ju jitsu ? its more of a grapling defence.
1156332
If the school is good and accredited by the style you are learning and not just a black-belt who has opened his own school it will take years of serious training. Ju-Jitsu is very technical and like most martial arts they don't just hand out these belts for attendance there may be a minimal amount of training before you can even be assessed. if you are graded only by your instructor and not a trained assessor i wouldn't take it seriously.\n\nJust remember the instructors are there to make money so they may grade you faster to keep your business if you are blue belt before 3 years of training test your skills at another school good luck.
934165
There are several different approaches to martial arts. One way to look at the martial arts is whether the art is "hard" or "soft." "Hard" means that the art is more focused on the offensive. You would learn strikes that disable or kill right away. Examples of "hard" martial arts include karate and taekwondo. "Soft" means that the art uses the attacker's momentum against them. You would learn techniques that tie up the opponent; if they resist, they are inflicting pain on themselves. Which do you think you'd be most comfortable learning?\n\nAnother way to look at the martial arts is to decide whether you are interested in grappling, ground fighting, throws and joint locks (try jujitsu or aikido); in strikes that mainly use the hands and feet (karate, TKD, kung fu); or in something that allows you to focus on staying fit and active (cardio kickboxing, tai chi). Pretty much any martial art will help you stay in shape, though. And some martial arts are comprehensive--they'll teach you all of those areas. Hapkido is a good example.\n\nI'd suggest that you check out some books from the library on the various martial arts. Do some research online as well. Look up local listings for martial arts schools in your area, call a few, and ask if you can come in for a tour. I think most schools don't mind if you just show up and watch a class, but if you call ahead you know that an instructor will be expecting you and may be able to give you some of his/her time to explain what the art is about. You may even get to join a class.\n\nI advise you to be careful about karate and taekwondo schools in particular. Ask them, "Do you teach sport taekwondo?" Sport schools focus on trophies, tournaments, and sparring--as someone else said, they are "McDojos," just focused on getting as many students as possible and not really teaching them how to defend themselves. If you can find a traditional TKD school or a Shotokan karate studio, those are good solid arts. \n\nDon't let yourself be suckered into signing up right away, and especially don't sign a contract that guarantees you'll get your red belt or something. Most schools will have a beginner's deal--one month for $50 with a free uniform. After observing several schools, pick one and try it out. Just remember, the school you start with and the art you start with don't define your martial arts career. You can always switch to studying another art to give yourself a more well-rounded experience.
1095195
hey hun..i have love the taebo (kick boxing) videos. they have starter videos so you can learn the moves while you advance...plus Billy Blanks (the instructor and creator of taebo) encourages you through out the whole video like tellin' you to walk it out or grab you some water and pace yourself..He even encourages you to modify the moves to help you if you have back pain or any thang like that.(he is really in tune with what helps people) Unlike a lot of the other videos that tell you to just keep going...if those aren't good reasons to try then here is the best one...taebo burns 800 calories per hour work out....i wish you luck...love daisy
698603
Probably 1 school for every 100,000 Americans. And they charge anywhere from free to $500 a month plus some states have governing bodies that require you to be a member as well usually $50-$100 a year. \nRemember right now there is a big hype around martials arts with UFC becoming so popular the last couple years. so prices are gonna go up especially in the so called MMA training centers. Where you will get the worst training. It should take at least 5-10 years to get a black belt and that is if you are proficient at the art. Some places will give an 8 year old a black belt in a year. Mean while they didn't learn anything. Martial arts are different for everyone some people do it for life others do it for 2 years and quit. \nUnless you are going to do it for a long time don't get into it because why waste the money if in a couple years UFC/MMA fighting gets boring and all of a sudden you realize you don't want to do it because it's not popular anymore. Martial Arts are not a fad.
1024961
It is because you need to train your body to instinctivly move in new ways. There is alot to learn and this takes time.\nMartial arts is a life long ambition. A black belt doesn't mean you're a master and are done. It maens that you understand enough of the basics that you can start to develope your own inner style from what is taught. A black belt is really just the beginning.\nNot all Dojo's are money sucking businesses. Our Dojo won't test someone unless they are ready. We do not want to fail someone and take their money. We promote according to skill level and understanding, not on how many classes they have taken, and we only charge by the month, not by contracts.\nI teach in my Dojo for free. I help anyone who asks for no charge. If you're Dojo is set up like a gym membership than get out, Don't give up.
636468
I took a look at www.mugendojo.com. They've taken a bunch of martial arts and attempted to combine them. These martial arts are not the same and some are built upon different philosophies. You might end up getting a sample of each and a mastery of none. \n\nHere's some info from one of my old answers:\n\nHere's what I would do:\n\n\n1. Get a sheet of paper and write down exactly what kinds of benefits you wish to obtain from studying karate/martial arts. It's a good idea to know exactly what you want to achieve.\n\n2. Go to www.smartpages.com and look up MARTIAL ARTS INSTRUCTION in you city and state. It will tell you what martial arts are taught in your area and where the schools are located.\n\n3. Once you know what martial arts are offered in your area look their definitions on the net. Note the similarities and differences between each. A good place to do that is www.wikipedia.com.\n\n4. Visit the schools in your area. Ask for a free class. Make sure you find a Master Instructor who is overseen by a larger governing body.For example: Many Tae Kwon Do schools belong to the World Tae Kwon Do Federation. Verify your instructor's credentials.\n\n5. Choose a martial art that lines up with your goals.\n\n\nSome Martial Arts:\n\nTae Kwon Do and Karate will provide you with a great cardiovascular workout. They will also tone you. For the best results go to class around 4-5 days per week and at least 20-30 minutes a day at home to practice your moves.\nKoei Kan and Isshin Ryu are two good styles of karate. You can also look up Kenpo.\n\nThe best thing about the Kung Fu styles is that they are usually "complete" systems meaning they cover stand up, ground, and weapons combat. Yu Chia is an interesting form of Shaolin Kung Fu.\n\nKrav Maga, an Israeli style of self defense, is a superb physical workout. Around 4-5 days of Krav with transform your body. I've watched it happen. Fair warning! The workouts are intense! Take a look at Jennifer Lopez in the movie Enough. She's doing Karv Maga.\n\nHope this helps!
591364
it depends on what you are training for (health, competition, self defense). judo and jujitsu involve a lot of mat work and grappling. boxing is very good for cardio. karate is a good combo of most aspects. krav maga is great for self defense. aikido involves some mat work and joint manipulation. it also depends on how far you are willing to travel to learn. some people would travel 100 miles for class. most would only travel 10-15 miles. see what is offered in your area and watch a few classes. usually schools want you to sign a one year contract, so be sure you like what you see before you commit. some places offer seminars. some high schools and colleges offer community programs after hours for several weeks. expose yourself to as much as you can. good luck.
540842
I definitely don't think it's too late. I think Brad Imes who was in season 2 of the ultimate fighter....he had only done MMA for like a year before he ended up on that show and ended up fighting in UFC. I'm not sure how old he is but I would be surprised if he is younger than 25. It is possible for you to train in MMA and compete but I think it mostly depends on you. Are you a quick learner? It takes some people many years before they become proficient in their martial art and then you have some freaks of nature who pick up things in a year or less. I have a friend like that. He trained in BJJ somewhere between 6-12 months and he got his blue belt, which I think is not bad for someone who never trained in martial arts. Anyways, if this is something you wanna do, I would recommend a few things. First of all, find a really good instructor. This is important. If you can't communicate and ask questions and if the instructor isn't able to clearly explain what he's teaching you in a simple way, you will waste your time and money. So do your research on the instructors that are available to you. My next piece of advice is you should train as much as possible. Do you work full time? Married? Got kids? You may want to think about whether or not time will allow you to commit to training as much as you need to. Most people will say that you should train atleast 3 times a week. If you can train more than that, that's even better but make sure you don't get burned out. Don't train too hard to the point that you don't feel like going the next day. Also in training, you should build up your cardio too and do exercises that use your body weight. This is what Bruce Lee did as well as many other great martial artists. Dieting is also important, maybe equally important as training. Once you got the perfect instructor and the perfect training schedule and diet, you should eventually look into competing in some small scale MMA tournaments so that you can get the experience. You may want to consult with your instructor and decide on when it is the right time for you to start competing. I think if you pay a lot of attention to all of these factors that I have suggested, you will definitely be in a good position to break into the fight scene. Of course, I don't claim to be an expert, but what I know is what I have observed other MMA fighters doing. Good luck to you! Although I personally train for street fighting and may never fight in something like the UFC or Pride, I love to watch those things and I get excited when I meet people who have an interest competing.
61815
1. Learn as much as you can from a good coach before you leave him/her. Put the lessons down to paper or on video for review.\n2. Practice every day, even if you don't have a lot of time. Stretch, stretch, and stretch.\n3. Join a gym with boxing studios or buy and install a heavy bag. Use it.\n4. Find a sparring partner. Better yet, find several sparring partnets. Kick and punch as much as you can every chance you get. Do wear protective gear.\n5. Books are all about theory. If you don't know how you can improve your taekwondo without a coach, then you don't need a book just yet. Work on the basics instead. A good foundation will get you very far.
151386
Your legs are currently over trained. You are only hitting your slow twitch fibers (Type-1) but they are not recovering fully so your performance is suffering from it. . I suspect it is your diet at this juncture. You are getting plenty of aerobic type exercise. You need to gain more strength and endurance which means training your type-2a (fast twitch) muscle fibers meaning some kind of resistance training at 15 to 20 repetitions per set at lease once a week but avoid very heavy weight (type-2b fibers) as this will cause you to never recover due to your current training regiment.\n\nAdding weight training to your leg workout will actually improve your martial arts training. I have been studying an effective form of Kung Fu for 15 years and weight training has improved my physical performance. Also, maybe when you train in Tae Kwon Do you could remove some of the kicking skills every few workouts for recovery purposes and focus on some of your other skills.\n\nBecause your legs seem to be in an over trained state, I would take one full week off of “all forms of training” to fully recover, then when you resume, reduce your running from 5x a week to 3x per week, however you can increase the intensity of the runs and be sure to take a day or two off every week, your legs are getting a lot of training. Finally, you should review your current diet plan and adjust it accordingly. Be sure you are getting enough calories (Good fats and carbohydrates are essential to your type of training). You know, once your use up your carbohydrate reserve you will fall flat on your face. I suggest that once you establish a solid diet that you include some of the below items to it. Also check out the website below for some great prices.\n\n1/4th table spoon of “Extra Virgin Olive oil”\n1/4th tbs “Natural” Peanut butter (Try Teddies).\nWhey Protein\nL-Glutamine (Aids in recovery)\nMEGA Man, multivitamin (GNC)
735142
Korea is very traditional when it comes to martial arts. Thankfully though they are not too traditional. In order to answer this question you need to know where Black Belts originated. 100's of years ago a black belt was a person who had trained so much that their belt turned black from all the practice and workouts as well as fights they had. This is how the black belt came to be!\nHope this helped!
560660
Tee,\n\nI've studied multiple disciplines over the last 22 years..\nThe main two arts were Hung Ga Chuan Fa (17 years) and Bujinkan Taijutsu for the last 5.\n\nIn the midst of those...I've played around and cross-trained w/ Muay Thai, Yoshinkan Aikido, MMA players, Kodokan Judo, Kokkar military knife and firearm tactics, Wing Chun, Xingyiquan, and Bagua...\n\nBut Hung Ga and the Bujinkan were the major two, the only two that have really spoken to me. The others were for fun mainly.\n\nHave I ever had to defend myself? Yes...\n\nOnce at an attempted ATM mugging : the assailant left w/ a broken elbow and a nasty concussion.\n\nOnce at a bar : I hit him w/ an ashtray, and my bouncer friend threw him out. 30 seconds and done.\n\nThat's good enough for now...
782785
Drink alcohol .\n\nSober 5 years !
736625
Go for it!!!  No you are not too old to start.  Yes it's true that most of the class will be younger than you, but sometimes people start after retirement.  It will be tough at first, but keep practicing and you will improve in you techniques, strength and flexibility.\n\nIn a good martial arts school, you will be allowed to "ease in" to training.  You will be expected to try and keep trying, sucess will come with time.  It is normal to feel akward at first.  In a good school, thier philosophy on fighting will be similar to this:  Walk away from a fight if you can, run if you have to.  Fighting is a last resort.\n\nIf you are concerned about any part of training, you should be able to talk to the Sensai (instructor) about your concerns and the sensai should give you satisfying answers.  If you do not feel like you can discuss your concerns, then go to a different school.\n\nIf you want to talk to me about choosing a school, feel free to IM or email me.
1067397
Judo is definitely not a bad place to start. that is where I started and I am about the same size.  Judo will teach you how to take opponents down and what to do once you get them down (Choke holds, armbars etc.).  Something to keep in mind is that in fighting, there are 3 distances from which to attack or defend. they are what I call "away" (Aprrox. 3 feet from opponent), "close range" (self explanatory) and on the ground.  Judo will teach you close range and ground techniques.\nAs you progree though, you may want to consider other arts to cover the different areas of fighting.  I started with Judo until I received a brown belt (about 3 yrs). from there I went to Tae Kwon Do so I could learn how to kick and cover the outer perimeter (Black Belt). and then I moved on to Kung Fu to cover the short range.  Though I liked all of these arts, my preference would be Kung Fu. from what I've seen, a shorter stature person like ourselves could really benefit from it should the need arise.\nwhichever art you choose though, do your homework. many schools proclaim to be great one's and advance you quickly to get the testing fees out of you (belt factory)!. don't fall for these, they will give you a false sense of confidence that you don't need!\ncheck around, ask alot of questions, if you are interested in competing go one a tournament where the school u are interested in is participating.  If you a see a green belt from another school beat a black belt from your school of interest, then chances are you need to be looking elsewhere.\nGood luck to you!  I hope you enjoy as much I have throughout my life.
976571
You can train as much or as little as you want. Go to some different schools and take some free classes and find a martial art that ou are interested in and that you would like to practice. Find a knowlegeable instructor, a place that does sparring as well as kata, and where you aren't asked to sign a contract and pay lots of up-front money.