which martial art is right for me?

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Piper

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Hello, iv always loved martial arts and i would really like to learn one.

to give you some background I'm a female,18 years old. 130 pound. I'm very much in shape and working out is part of my routine. Also naturally as well as genetically iv"e always been a lot stronger than i look. same thing with my dad, who l i get the majority of my genes from. iv always been very powerful and can pick up and move heavy objects even as a young child, I remember tackling my brothers and even though they were a lot older i was still able to tackle them. this makes me think of something that involves throws such as judo. my arm strength and upper body strength are very good and i like i said before i can pick up heavy objects but i don't like punching very much because it feels strange and awkward. My lower body and balance as well as flexibility is pretty good to. my kicks are very strong which makes me think of taekwondo. my core muscles are good to.

Know before i go any further i don't want you to think im trying to be a one man army killing machine or some bull-crap like that. Honestly,i would like to learn a martial art for health,enjoyment and self defense. Some people just want to be cool and beat up the first person they see. I think that stupid and im committed to learning. I just wanted to get that out of the way because ive met a lot of people like that and i don't want you to think that.

i only know a little about the different types of martial arts. I found a good dojo that's not a "mcdojo" and has a nice variety. I would like you to explain to me the different types of martial arts as well as which ones use strikes,throws or submissions.

the most important question is which one is right for me?

Thank you, god bless
i can throw a mean german supplex.....just sayin
i forgot to mention i dont mind being on the ground but i dont have any experience at all with submissions could you share some insight cause i really have no idea when it comes to submissions?
 
This is the kind of question that you itself must answer, you are the one who knows your capability especially on handling some physical activities.

Besides, style must not be the basis if what to choose, every art has an edge, advantage and disadvantage if we compare them, things here is about an efficient skills and knowledge that only legit Instructor can give, including some important details, an accurate and efficient ability that can help you in case time dictate it.

Better if you visit some Martial Arts training place and ask some important question on the assigned Instructor, maybe through that effort, you can decide what's better for you and not.


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After reading your discriptions ... According to me u have all the abilities to be a good martial artist ,like u have strength , flexibility , your body is in shape and moreover you are very ambitious about all these things.What i advice you is to go on with "shotokan karate".. It would be best for a girl like u as it include throws , punches, kicks and grappling at a higher stage .And it is the best way of stay in shape and maintain fitness..I am doing it since i was a 5 or 6 year kid, now i am 20+..you go on the Internet, study about it and go ahead..Good luck..God bless
 
i couldnt be bothered reading all that crap just do what ma you want to do know 1 here knows what suits you.
 
I'll describe the 2 most well known and yet effective styles in each of the fighting range first and then give you my opinion on what might work for you.

Striking
Muay Thai - It means Thai boxing, but it's like kick boxing with elbows and knees thrown in. It is very active style that is sure to keep you fit. Also it is considered one of the best striking martial arts. It became popular when it did well in kick boxing tournaments like k-1 and is used by most MMA fighters today.
Kyokushin Karate - Actually boxing should be here, but Muay Thai and boxing is so close to each other. Kyokushin Karate is really hardcore version of karate. The training is quite traditional karate like and yet they teach you real and effective techniques. It was the beginning style of MMA welter weight champion GSP.

Grappling
Judo - You mentioned it before so I imagine you know something about it. It's a grappling style that is also a sport. The main goal is to throw your enemy with control and power. (knock him down really hard on his back is what you want) If you are to fall with the person as you are throwing them you are taught basic ground techniques to be able to break their limb. In practice you only apply enough pressure until they tap. The style wears the traditional Gi (something like men's japanese kimono) and you can only grab the Gi to throw.
Wrestling - If you are in school you might be able to take wrestling. But i'm not really sure on the rules about girls and wrestling since I never was one. (neither wrestler or a girl) Only other place I can think of is an MMA place if they offer wrestling or just NoGi grappling. The difference is that wrestling is more about being on top and control, while NoGi grappling is more about positions and submissions. (as in getting the other guy to tap out)

Ground
GJJ/BJJ - Gracie Juijutsu or Brazilian Juijutsu. They are actually a bit different from each other. But main thing is that you'll learn a bit of throwing techniques and a lot about ground fighting. They will tend to focus on grappling tournament rules or MMA rules, but it's a good thing to learn to fight on the ground in general. They will teach you which position is good on the ground, how to switch to a better position, and learn different locks and chokes to tap the other person out. I think it'll be weird to have a girl and it'll be a bit weird for them to practice with a girl. But I'd imagine you and they will get used to it eventually. If they actually have a girls class that would work too.
NoGi grappling - Ummm... Actually this is pretty much same thing as the one above, but there is Gi or No Gi variations. Gracie was one of really rare group to actually explore ground fighting so most of the materials are from them. But Gracie still used Gi from Judo when practicing which some people thought was impractical since your opponent might be wearing t-shirt or nothing at all. (think guy in that last case) So BJJ ground tends to practice without Gis.

I think from what you said wrestling would be the style for you. Tackle is a forward movement technique and lifting is upward movement. Both of which wrestling style is mostly based on. Judo actually works mainly by pulling some kind of limb and maybe involve loading the weight on to your back or hips and standing to create the throw. Kicks are nice, but striking styles tends to rely on punches to work with the kicks. Otherwise it becomes predictable and they start to catch your kicks easily.

So I think you should find a MMA gym and try to take classes with submission wrestling focus and learn some kicks as well. That way when they are watching out for your grappling techniques you can kick them. And when they prepare to catch your next kick, you can throw them.

As far as mcdojo thing goes. Avoid places that easily hand out belts.
Also the measure stick I use is this. If a place spars often and the sparring has as little rules as possible, the place is likely to be very effective for self defense. With that said you can easily get injured in a place like that. So try to find a place that found a balance between harsh sparring and safety. But if it's too safe you'll end up in a mcdojo with barely any sparring and only light contact point sparring. (Those build bad habits)
 
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