Unofficial Martial Arts thread

[TURBO2GO]

I wanted to start a martial arts thread on this forum because it seems there are a lot of guys that either do martial arts or are interested in it. I want to keep this a civil thread where we all learn things from each other, discuss martial arts and fighting, and express opinions on things. You can post your favorite videos, and if anyone has any questions perhaps they can be answered on here.

You can talk about what you train in and why, but please don't use this as an arena to start talking about your personal accomplishments, in the spirit of traditional martial arts lets keep it humble and helpful.

I have a slight background in Tae Kwon Do and Karate, I've done a small amount of western boxing. I've trained on and off for over 15 years, but can't say I have been dedicated to it. Most of my training has been in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (currently at Gracie Barra), and now I also have been mixing in Muaythai.

To this day I find the teachings of Bruce Lee to be some of the most basic, clear cut, and to the point of how to train and how to fight.

I love martial arts because it keeps me in shape and I have a lot of fun at it, and as a bonus you learn how to fight. Beats running on a stationary treadmill. Now I find myself to be one of the older guys in class, and although I have no issues rolling with guys in their 20's, my injuries do take longer to heal. So I am going to start some Yoga. If anyone has good advice for me here, I would appreciate it.

Overall after many years I find martial arts to be a mixed bag of stuff. Lots of hype in a lot of places. Figuring out how to be a good hand to hand fighter requires you go through a maze of misinformation, and this is something I have had to navigate through for as long as I have been doing it. This is where I am currently at. I have to constantly think in every academy I am at... "is this a good hand to hand move?" and either concentrate on it or discard it. The "sport" aspect of martial arts dilutes the original intent, and I find many of the top level masters and instructors to even be unaware of many of this stuff.

I constantly look at the Tao of Jeet Kune Do and realize the importance of knowing how to attack and protect areas like the eyes and groin. I find some of the traditional standup arts to have some of these attacks in them, but they suffer greatly from a lack of body control on the opponent and positioning. In about a minute I've taken down high ranked stand-up artists and submitted them. I find a lot of great body control in BJJ (and some in Judo), but a real disregard for vulnerability to eye, groin, and small joint manipulation. BJJ is turning too "sport" for me. Remember Royce Gracie's kidney attacks from the guard? when was the last time anyone saw that.

Feel free to post anything you'd like on the topic. Inexperienced guys with basic questions are welcome. I can talk forever, this is already a long post.

 

[TURBO2GO]

UFC now on fox... I remember when these guys fought in a cage in a glorified high school gym under a 40-watt light bulb. Boy did boxing die... good riddance... what a corrupt and messed up sport with people like Don King at the top. At least this is pretty clean now, athough I really don't like the idea of all sorts of people with no sense of morals and questionable personalities being well versed at extremely effective fighting techniques.

 

[oscar_driver]

Tae Kwon Do, oh man I love that, did when young did very well .. then, never did again, after i moved to Brazil.

I did trained back in 2006 some Muay Thai and some Boxing, that was incredibly fun .. let go again .. I need to go back, now I am old and fat, maybe this thread was good thing for me to get back into my roots ...

Thanks!

BTW, I can not WAIT to see the JDS x Velasquez fight!

 

[TURBO2GO]

Oscar start BJJ. It's a lot of real movement and gets you in good shape. I had gotten up to 24% or so body fat, now I am down to 12.5. I feel awesome. All I did was cut refined sugar to zero, stopped crap food, and got back into BJJ.

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[robr]

I used to train in Judo when I was very young, and then later kickboxing, but haven't done squat in 15 years.

My 6yo has been in TKD for 2 years now training with John Reyes (whom you may know Turbo2Go, he's been part of the Boston martial arts scene for at least 30 years and is pretty well known).

 

[TURBO2GO]

I used to train in Judo when I was very young, and then later kickboxing, but haven't done squat in 15 years.

My 6yo has been in TKD for 2 years now training with John Reyes (whom you may know Turbo2Go, he's been part of the Boston martial arts scene for at least 30 years and is pretty well known).

Judo is fantastic and very underrated, because it focuses on one area so much and disgards the rest. The art of the throw. In real fights it is so common for someone to grab you. Your shirt, your collar, your neck, bear hug you. They are one good Judo throw away from hitting the ground hard. I love Judo and plan on training more of it.

I've found it much more useful to become proficient at multiple arts than to concentrate solely on one to the highest level. While attaining that super high level is great for fighting against another trained fighter, it is holy unnecessary against most people. The only bad thing about Judo is that it is hard on your body and you are prone to injury. Great for kids while they have the flexibility and elasticity though.

I like Tae Kwon Do's kicks, especially the high kicks but that art has some serious holes in it. Their medium clinch range is weak, and the ground portion is non-existant. Just be aware of this. If your first few kicks miss and you are grabbed, your black belt in TKD is now white. That is exactly where Judo excells.

 

[TURBO2GO]

BTW, I can not WAIT to see the JDS x Velasquez fight!

I am hoping JDS takes that one.

 

[Arshad]

I was doing some intense TKD and Muay Thai last year, but ended up stopping after I took a really hard kick in a tournament match which snapped my forearm (ulna) in half. Unfortunately my arm took several months to heal instead of a few weeks, and I haven't dragged myself back since...

Need to get back into it though... phenomenal workout, and a LOT of fun! I'm not a gym guy, so this was a fantastic way to get into shape.

 

[robr]

I like Tae Kwon Do's kicks, especially the high kicks but that art has some serious holes in it. Their medium clinch range is weak, and the ground portion is non-existant. Just be aware of this. If your first few kicks miss and you are grabbed, your black belt in TKD is now white. That is exactly where Judo excells.

It's true what you say, when my son is a bit older, I will try to encourage him to add another martial art that is more practical. He's very good at forms, decent at competition sparring but it's not going to get him far in the real world. He's a small guy with a big brain and a mouth that is very good at making others feel dumb. He's going to need some skills because if he can't rein things in, he's going to be a bully magnet. I wish they had MMA schools that concentrated more on self defense instead of focusing on the sport. I've looked at the very few MMA schools between here and Boston and they aren't appropriate for children.

 

[TURBO2GO]

It's true what you say, when my son is a bit older, I will try to encourage him to add another martial art that is more practical. He's very good at forms, decent at competition sparring but it's not going to get him far in the real world. He's a small guy with a big brain and a mouth that is very good at making others feel dumb. He's going to need some skills because if he can't rein things in, he's going to be a bully magnet. I wish they had MMA schools that concentrated more on self defense instead of focusing on the sport. I've looked at the very few MMA schools between here and Boston and they aren't appropriate for children.

Gracie Barra Boston has two programs, kids 5-9, and kids 10-15. That's real stuff that will be a great addition to his TKD.

You need to be REALLY good at TKD to be effective. Otherwise it is something that will give you just enough confidence to get your ass beat.

 

[GT-N]

starting at 4 trained karate
at 12 trained kung fu
after college started BJJ
train 4-5 days a week depending on schedule

funny thing was I practiced triangles when I first read a tutorial (Black Belt Magazine) in the late 90's on my kung fu class mate, he was like "this is a bit awkward" LOL

 

[robr]

Gracie Barra Boston has two programs, kids 5-9, and kids 10-15. That's real stuff that will be a great addition to his TKD.

You need to be REALLY good at TKD to be effective. Otherwise it is something that will give you just enough confidence to get your ass beat.

I hear you. It sucks, it wasn't what I picked. He started kiddie-classes at the local Y when he was really young (3 I think) and really liked the instructor and didn't want to change, so now we drive him to Haverhill twice a week. He has a lot of time and energy invested and at his age, doesn't want to start over. I can't say I can blame him. Thankfully he's at a small Montessori school (280 students from grades K-8), and while kids will be kids and there are bullies everywhere, there are far fewer in Montessori-land .

Let me ask you this, what do you think a good supplement to TKD would be without having to drive into Boston? IE, something generally available in many areas? I wonder if his TKD instructor is at all familiar with hapkido. He teaches traditional WTF TKD, but is involved in several other martial arts as well.

 

[TURBO2GO]

starting at 4 trained karate
at 12 trained kung fu
after college started BJJ
train 4-5 days a week depending on schedule

funny thing was I practiced triangles when I first read a tutorial (Black Belt Magazine) in the late 90's on my kung fu class mate, he was like "this is a bit awkward" LOL

From what I remember, one of the gracies was actually triangled before they incorporated it into their arsenal. It's my favorite submission, and I was caught in it myself by a slinky Lithuanian girl at one of my schools. Wasn't sure if I wanted to tap or not.

 

[oscar_driver]

I am hoping JDS takes that one.

+ 1 ... I have been following that dude for years, FORçA CIGANO!!!

 

[oscar_driver]

Oscar start BJJ.

I have cousins in Rio that competed and still practice Jiu-Jitsu ,, the only reason I never did, and I swear I am sorry to say, is that the contact part ,,, I can not start even imagining rolling with a guy ... I can't explain! LOL

I know is awesome and extremely competitive ... but I can't explain LOL

Oscar

PS: I know sounds stupid ...

 

[GT-N]

I have cousins in Rio that competed and still practice Jiu-Jitsu ,, the only reason I never did, and I swear I am sorry to say, is that the contact part ,,, I can not start even imagining rolling with a guy ... I can't explain! LOL

I know is awesome and extremely competitive ... but I can't explain LOL

Oscar

PS: I know sounds stupid ...

yea, well to each his own. I grew up watching WWF so me and my brother and cousins would always wrestle, so the contact part was not a problem

From what I remember, one of the gracies was actually triangled before they incorporated it into their arsenal. It's my favorite submission, and I was caught in it myself by a slinky Lithuanian girl at one of my schools. Wasn't sure if I wanted to tap or not.

not sure how long the triangle has been in the gracie system, but I assumed it was always there since it was originally a Judo technique.

i train under Pedro Sauer in VA, we focus on all aspects of bjj, self defense, technical aspect and competition (not as much as others).

Do you feel Gracie Barra is more competition BJJ oriented? And I hear you can now only wear Gracie Barra gis in class, is that true?

 

[TURBO2GO]

Do you feel Gracie Barra is more competition BJJ oriented? And I hear you can now only wear Gracie Barra gis in class, is that true?

It's true and I think I am the one that breaks that rule all the time... LOL... No one has said anything to me but I am one the academy's original students from back in the 90's.

Yeah there is a heavy emphasis on competition but I think it's the best pure BJJ school there is.

I think unless you are wearing a Blauer suit and going at it 100% practicing headbutts, groin shots and eye-gouging mixed with joint locks, chokes, knees and elbows, you aren't really training for true self-defense. You just aren't going to find that at many schools. Insurance, liabilities, injuries, etc. So I will just learn the competitive BJJ and eventually on my own train the way I see fit. Like Bruce Lee said, "train like you fight". You can only do so much of that because you are at risk everytime, and you certainly need the right training partners.

There are way too many clowns who think they "know" some devestating move and that they will just disable someone in a real fight. There are tons of Kung Fu, Karate, TKD, schools with this attitude. There is very little body control of the oponent and the goal is to disable (via a stike) ASAP. Well you might and you might not, and if you don't, you are generally screwed.

Blauer High Gear:

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[TURBO2GO]

I have cousins in Rio that competed and still practice Jiu-Jitsu ,, the only reason I never did, and I swear I am sorry to say, is that the contact part ,,, I can not start even imagining rolling with a guy ... I can't explain! LOL

I know is awesome and extremely competitive ... but I can't explain LOL

Oscar

PS: I know sounds stupid ...

Oscar you'll get used to it really quick. It's all in your head. You think in a fight some guy is going to say "oh lets not grapple, that is kinda gay?" LOL...

Do you know how many times I have had drops of sweat from a guys head fall onto mine? Frankly at that moment I am more worried about his knee on my stomach than I am about the sweat. You man up, do it, and take a shower after. Stop being a sissy. :biggrin:

 

[Vega$ NSX]

I'm pretty proficient in the ancient art of Flung Mai Doo. Especially the monkey style.

 

[BATMANs]

Here in California if you have been trained in any martial arts and use it in life where someone is hurt and you were found to have to option to walk away, but didn't take that option could put in line to get prosecuted as a felony.

 

[TURBO2GO]

Here in California if you have been trained in any martial arts and use it in life where someone is hurt and you were found to have to option to walk away, but didn't take that option could put in line to get prosecuted as a felony.

I don't have a problem with that. Sometimes you don't have the option to walk away. Google "man beaten to death" and see how many stories come up. I do martial arts because it is fun, I love it, it keeps me in shape, and I learn a skill. I have no interest in bashing anyone's head in for no reason ...unless they touch my NSX. LOL... Mind you, I have already had to use it at one point from a guy that attacked me and wanted to crack my head open on concrete. Over a stupid basketball game. I was walking away when he charged me. I choked him out, he went to sleep for a few seconds, I walked away. He came to me later and apologized. I could have seriously wound up in the hospital.

 

[H-carWizKid]

I'm coming up on 2yrs training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu with Easton here in Denver (Renzo Gracie Affiliated). I've been a blue belt since June, and train about 3 times per week on average. Sometimes more often if I can get there.

Martial arts have been great for my life in general. I've made dozens of new friends through training. Its a different sort of friendship you develop when you are sparring in jiu jitsu- mostly because we go "full speed" rather than light contact as with other martial arts.

With grappling you can train at 100% as long as you take care of your partners, and you or your partner are smart enough to tap out before an injury occurs. This fosters a whole different level of respect among peers, and has made the friendships really great.

It's funny, I doubt anyone would have pegged me for the martial artist "type". I've always been long of temper, and rational even in anger- which is to say I've never been a fighter really. Now, at age 36 as a suburban Dad I'd say the chances of me getting into physical combat other than in class are extremely narrow, but it is nice to feel comfortable that I can handle myself if a situation goes sideways.

I plan to start Muay Thai during the new year.

p

 

[TURBO2GO]

Yeah being freinds with your sparring or rolling partners is really a good thing. You have to put a lot of trust in the other person, and often newbs that don't know you want to prove something which leads to injury. I've definitely yelled at more than one person when they try to put on a sub too fast. Ego is a bad thing during training. And you do build good friendships with partners. I actually laugh a lot WHILE rolling, one of us does something stupid and knows it, and I'll say something like "Smooth move there... Rickson" and we both burst out laughing.

 

[H-carWizKid]

Yeah being freinds with your sparring or rolling partners is really a good thing. You have to put a lot of trust in the other person, and often newbs that don't know you want to prove something which leads to injury. I've definitely yelled at more than one person when they try to put on a sub too fast. Ego is a bad thing during training. And you do build good friendships with partners. I actually laugh a lot WHILE rolling, one of us does something stupid and knows it, and I'll say something like "Smooth move there... Rickson" and we both burst out laughing.

I started training when a friend of mine moved to Denver and lured me into the gym for a free lesson / free Gi when you sign up promotion. I figured; Free lesson will get Andrew off my back about doing this stuff. I showed up and actually my first lesson was taught by a fellow NSXPrime member yoojeankim's cousin (total coincidence) the level of instruction was great, and the atmosphere in the school was really positive. I signed up immediately following the lesson, and took home my free Gi. After that, I was at the school as often as possible moving up amongst the white belts- making friends amongst training partners, coaches and Professors.

It's a perfect escape for someone with real world responsibilities. It's good for your mental well being, good for your physical health, it's constructive, it's fun. I have been rewarded in every way possible by my time in class. I'm 30lbs leaner, and I can run stairs without running out of breath (not possible before I started training) Hell, I have run in 4 5k+ events in the past 6 months- one of them was a 15k.

The cross section of students is incredibly vast. The friends I have made from the gym? Doctors, lawyers, construction workers, college students, teachers, cops, firemen, social workers, military personnel, other project managers... You name it.

I'd recommend trying out martial arts to anyone- Especially for women. My wife is training now, and so will my daughter when she is old enough. ALL WOMEN SHOULD KNOW AND LOVE THE GUARD! I can't imagine a greater rape prevention than having a strong guard game- A rapist is TRYING to get into a perfect position to be submitted, all she needs to know is how.

For kids who are bullied- Imagine the power of knowing you could submit someone twice your size without leaving a mark on them? This is the power of Jiu Jitsu. It's been mentioned above- if you kick someones ass you can get sued, but with BJJ, there is no need to pummel a bully and knock out teeth, or blacken eyes- You just take their back, wrap up the neck, sink in your hooks and turn their blue skies grey. They will wake up scared shitless the first time it happens.

P

 

[BATMANs]

.......I'd recommend trying out martial arts to anyone- Especially for women. My wife is training now, and so will my daughter when she is old enough. ALL WOMEN SHOULD KNOW AND LOVE THE GUARD! I can't imagine a greater rape prevention than having a strong guard game- A rapist is TRYING to get into a perfect position to be submitted, all she needs to know is how.....

I'm an ebony-belt in bedjitsu and bedo and am well versed in submitting my GF.