First question is probably WHY you are picking a martial art.
Once you work that out, you can probably figure out WHICH.
Then WHO comes next.
WHERE probably figures at some point because if it's not convenient, you're just less likely to keep at it.
If you have any interest in armed martial arts, consider Kendo. Only thing to know is that there is a considerable investment in gear, but most dojos should be able to lend you the equipment for a period of time until you decide if you want to invest in it.
I practised Krav Maga and Karate but nothing is more fun then whacking someone with a long bambo stick. Of course you also get whacked back.
The thing that pisses me off about Kendo is that they want me to sign up for four months of whatthefuckever before I get to actually whack someone with a stick. I mean, I'm a whacker. I'm a damned fine whacker. I can whack hard and I can whack soft, and I can whack so the other person never feels a thing. I can even keep track of my whacks, I'm an whack-tallying tallywacker with a knack for the slack whack attack from the back in the sack.Originally Posted by marxeil
I think precisely for the reasons you've laid out, you need a four-month "Whacking Off" cooling period.
If I were to learn a weapon based martial art, and didn't want to put in the time to progress to weapons in Shaolin (which I don't), I'd probably choose escrima.
Strange. At the place where I learned people spent maybe 2 sessions practising basic air whacking, and then they's get equipment and joined the whacking.
I know nothing about judo, but watching it on the Olympics was pretty boring, in my opinion. I started taekwondo last year and it's a fun sport to *do* and to *watch*. But anyway, advice about a gym: what matters is who's training you. One of the reasons I love TKD is because my sun-saeng-nim is awesome, both with me and with my kids. He's got a great balance between encouragement and driving all of us to constantly get better. TKD practices are intense, and afterwards I always feel both exhausted and completely thrilled to have been there.
Most gyms offer a trial class or two. Take the trial class, ask questions, and see if the instructor is a right fit for you.
Personality matters. For Brazilian jiu-jitsu you want to ensure that the instructor has good lineage (unfortunately BJJ has gotten to the Mcdojo stage and there are some instructors claiming black belt level who don't have the ability to prove it, either through lineage or competition), and you want to make sure the instructor runs a class you like.Anyone have tips for picking a gym and discipline? Also, about how much of an investment will I be making in both gear and classes? Thanks for your help!
Most places will let you sit in and watch a class or two, or even take a couple, and you can see if you like the vibe. Check prices, see if there are uniform requirements (some gyms require that you buy their gis -- Gracie Barra is notorious for this, but it's not such a big deal if you're just starting out). Some places have an emphasis on self defense, others are more sport oriented, some are very casual, some are very formal.
If you give me a list of gyms that you're consider I can offer some feedback, I've been doing BJJ for 6 years pretty consistently (mid-level purple belt right now, I was either a baby blue or late stage white belt in my earlier posts from 2007).
Took in a BJJ class at Zugec Ultimate Martial Arts on Wednesday night. It was a heck of a lot of fun, but I was friggin' exhausted after just 15-20 minutes of rolling; beet red and dripping sweat. I thought I was going to puke afterwards. Can't wait to go back on Monday.
I rolled with a blue belt and it became clear within seconds that I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. He was able to get a superior position on me with little to no effort, while I couldn't even come close to getting past his full guard. It was awesome.
Glad to hear it! It's a lot of fun, and honestly I'm amazed you survived 15-20 minutes of rolling, most people who come in fresh are pretty much done after their first 5 minutes. I had a coworker come in and try and lasted exactly three minutes and then vomited. Nerves can get you =)
The difference between a blue belt and a fresh white belt is fairly huge, and one of the awesome things about BJJ is that by feeling that first hand, you go "Whoa, this shit works". It's not a faith based martial art, you have immediate feedback about what works or doesn't. Getting your ass handed to you by a girl you outweigh by 50 pounds can be an eye opening experience.
Zugec is very legit, so you should have great instruction there.
We slowed it down significantly after 10 minutes or so because I was already pretty winded by then. After that we took it slowly and my partner explained things to me as we went along, which was very nice of him.
Adam Zugec is one of the only black belts teaching in Victoria. The other prominent instructor here is Ari "Bolden" Knazan, whom some quick Googling revealed to be quite infamous in the online BJJ community. I actually wanted to do Judo, but the only real club here is way out of the way and their classes are way too inconvenient for me.
Yeahhhh....you don't want to train with him. I sorta feel bad for the guy because he really got torn apart for his false credentials and seems to be doing what he can to regain some legitimacy. But a lot of "Bullshido" artists think it's still the 80s where you can make a lot of outrageous claims and not have someone fact check them. BJJ guys are pretty serious about lineage and other such claims and the Internet is littered with guys in small towns who didn't think they'd get caught in a lie but did.
Three classes into BJJ and I am freakin' loving it; I wish I had started long ago. Easily the most fun I've ever had with any sport.
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