Best real world functioning martial art for self defense

[LCSOSgt11]

Please don't take this out of context but...

I think the "zen" of practicing the index finger meeting the thumb area in a straight line and smoothly needs to be "mastered" before most else.

(A four pound "crisp" trigger pull helps a heap too...)

 

[Double T]

I took tang soo do from a guy with a black belt in shorin ryu and a master in tang soo do.

We had seminars from aikido jui jitsu and a few other styles.

What was great is that he didn't charge, and I actually learned how to fight and perform. The key to a good martial arts school is to find a great teacher. Most "schools" sell blackbelts so to speak.

One of our 5th gups beat a 3rd Dan in open sparring. I never got to my blackbelt sadly. I think I was a red belt or 4th gup.

Krav maga looks good but imo a lot of it is impractical from what I've seen on youtube.

 

[dyerwatcher]

Krav Maga is a very effective way to end a threat. It is the method I would fear mOstergren.

 

[Barua]

Defendo or Combato. Look it up on Wikipedia. Use anything as a weapon.

 

[Al B]

T'ai chi

 

[Relatively Ninja]

I would recommend studying several styles of martial arts and keeping an open mind while training all of them. Learn as much as you can from all styles; absorb what is useful, and discard what is not. Below are my points of view on some of (what I consider to be) the best martial arts with a "practical" application in a street fight.

Jeet Kune Do- Excellent for striking and grappling while standing up. It also teaches you a lot of trapping and the idea of fast, continuous strikes to overwhelm your opponent. My personal recommendation if you must take just one martial art.

BJJ- It's very easy to end up on the ground in a fight. It's important to know what to do while you're down there so you don't get your face pounded in. However, it is also important to understand that you don't want to fight from the ground. You'll want to get up as quickly as possible.

Krav Maga- I have never trained Krav Maga, but from what I heard it is an excellent way to win a fight in a hurry. I would only caution you to remember reasonable force laws. If you have to resort to eye-gouging in a fight you're probably better off drawing your gun.

Tai Chi- Although it may not seem like a useful martial art, Tai Chi can teach you a lot about moving other people and manipulating their bodies. It's an excellent addition to another, "more combative" martial art.

Judo- Because Judo is a sport martial art, it may be harder to find the real world applications of the techniques you learn. However, the practical throws that you will learn are very good for ending fights. Just remember that to throw someone you have to be very close to them... Close enough for them to easily grab your sidearm.

Kali/Eskrima/Silat- Any of these terms can be used to refer to martial arts that have come from Southeast Asia and the Philippines. Knife and stick fighting, open hand fighting, and joint manipulation are usually strong points of these arts. These martial arts are fast and and vicious. It's also an excellent way to train with weapons other than your sidearm. (No officer, this cane isn't a weapon. I bruised my foot last week and it helps me walk ).

I would recommend that you take some sort of boxing/MMA/sparring class where you will learn to take hits and hit other people competitively. I have not trained Muay Thai, but I know that it involves competitive sparring, as well as the use of knees and elbows as well as some more useful kicks.

If you're concerned about a street fight while you're carrying a gun I highly recommend some weapons retention training.

That's my . Pick a quality instructor. Don't get caught up in the "superiority" of one style over another; everything has it's purpose. Good luck.

 

[Shift Zombie]

After watching the episode of Human Weapon that features Krav Maga, I believe it's exactly what I'm looking for. I'm getting pumped.

 

[Double T]

I would highly recommend aikido jui jitsu. I couldn't lay a hand on the grandmaster that was doing the seminar, and most of the time I was crawling back to my feet because he used the momentum of my punch/kick and turned it against me expending very little of his energy.

I would learn that first, then a "traditional" style, then muay thai.

Again, the best way to win a fight is to not let your opponent witthin arms reach, or have no opponent at all.

 

[jeremy]

I would recommend studying several styles of martial arts and keeping an open mind while training all of them. Learn as much as you can from all styles; absorb what is useful, and discard what is not. Below are my points of view on some of (what I consider to be) the best martial arts with a "practical" application in a street fight.

Jeet Kune Do- Excellent for striking and grappling while standing up. It also teaches you a lot of trapping and the idea of fast, continuous strikes to overwhelm your opponent. My personal recommendation if you must take just one martial art.

BJJ- It's very easy to end up on the ground in a fight. It's important to know what to do while you're down there so you don't get your face pounded in. However, it is also important to understand that you don't want to fight from the ground. You'll want to get up as quickly as possible.

Krav Maga- I have never trained Krav Maga, but from what I heard it is an excellent way to win a fight in a hurry. I would only caution you to remember reasonable force laws. If you have to resort to eye-gouging in a fight you're probably better off drawing your gun.

Tai Chi- Although it may not seem like a useful martial art, Tai Chi can teach you a lot about moving other people and manipulating their bodies. It's an excellent addition to another, "more combative" martial art.

Judo- Because Judo is a sport martial art, it may be harder to find the real world applications of the techniques you learn. However, the practical throws that you will learn are very good for ending fights. Just remember that to throw someone you have to be very close to them... Close enough for them to easily grab your sidearm.

Kali/Eskrima/Silat- Any of these terms can be used to refer to martial arts that have come from Southeast Asia and the Philippines. Knife and stick fighting, open hand fighting, and joint manipulation are usually strong points of these arts. These martial arts are fast and and vicious. It's also an excellent way to train with weapons other than your sidearm. (No officer, this cane isn't a weapon. I bruised my foot last week and it helps me walk ).

I would recommend that you take some sort of boxing/MMA/sparring class where you will learn to take hits and hit other people competitively. I have not trained Muay Thai, but I know that it involves competitive sparring, as well as the use of knees and elbows as well as some more useful kicks.

If you're concerned about a street fight while you're carrying a gun I highly recommend some weapons retention training.

That's my . Pick a quality instructor. Don't get caught up in the "superiority" of one style over another; everything has it's purpose. Good luck.

Can you please point me in the right direction to research Reasonable Force Laws in Indiana Law, or Indiana Case Law...

 

[Double T]

Pretty sure reasonable force in Indiana is whatever it takes to stop an assailant when GTFO or LMTFA don't work. LOL

Sorry for the potty mouth :-)

From what I've experienced the best place for hand to hand combat is on the ground or with your back against a wall/corner. Its been a while, but you can actually use it to your advantage.

Simply stating that you don't want it to go to the ground means that its your weakness. Standing, I have to worry about putting you down. When I'm on the ground, I can kick a lot more effectively, sweep, grab, break arms/3lbows/ankles/necks.

If someone follows you to the ground finish them any way you can because they mean to do you harm.


I spent a couple hours watching krav maga videos online. It looks like an elaborite ju jitsu. I havr honestly done everything I saw.

Forms teach you technique, one steps teach you self defense "reactions", sparring helps you develope your style.

Krav looked very much like an advanced one step exercise.

Look up tang soo do one steps online. Overlook 90% of the people sucking and look at what they are trying to instill in their subconscious. When I was active, I put a friend on the ground who who play choking me.

I really wish I could explain this more, but I'm ready for bed...

 

[Shift Zombie]

Well, sadly, the closest place is over 50 miles away. . .*sigh* and, with my work schedule, I require something with morning classes to make it worth my while. This area is such a dead zone. There are a couple of warehouse looking facilities up the road Ill take a look at this weekend.

 

[Relatively Ninja]

Can you please point me in the right direction to research Reasonable Force Laws in Indiana Law, or Indiana Case Law...

Certainly!

IC 35-41-3-2
Use of force to protect person or property
Sec. 2. (a) A person is justified in using reasonable force against another person to protect the person or a third person from what the person reasonably believes to be the imminent use of unlawful force. However, a person:
(1) is justified in using deadly force; and
(2) does not have a duty to retreat;
if the person reasonably believes that that force is necessary to prevent serious bodily injury to the person or a third person or the commission of a forcible felony. No person in this state shall be placed in legal jeopardy of any kind whatsoever for protecting the person or a third person by reasonable means necessary.
(b) A person:
(1) is justified in using reasonable force, including deadly force, against another person; and
(2) does not have a duty to retreat;
if the person reasonably believes that the force is necessary to prevent or terminate the other person's unlawful entry of or attack on the person's dwelling, curtilage, or occupied motor vehicle.
(c) With respect to property other than a dwelling, curtilage, or an occupied motor vehicle, a person is justified in using reasonable force against another person if the person reasonably believes that the force is necessary to immediately prevent or terminate the other person's trespass on or criminal interference with property lawfully in the person's possession, lawfully in possession of a member of the person's immediate family, or belonging to a person whose property the person has authority to protect. However, a person:
(1) is justified in using deadly force; and
(2) does not have a duty to retreat;
only if that force is justified under subsection (a).

I mentioned reasonable force because (as I said) I have not trained Krav Maga. The descriptions I've heard from people here seem to imply that it teaches you how to gouge out your opponents eyes with one hand while you remove their testicles with the other hand. And nothing else. Any martial art can be guilty of teaching it's students to do too much harm. I'm simply warning the OP that if all you have is a hammer everything looks like a nail.

 

[Boz]

Filipino Martial Arts (Kali/Eskrima/Arnis) will provide an excellent self-defense foundation. Many people believe it to be a blade and stick fighting art, but it is a complete system. It teaches stick, sword, knife, empty hand, joint locks, throws, ground fighting, etc. Some of the more modern schools teach arts that incorporate gun disarming techniques and weapon retention techniques. There are countless "systems" of Filipino Martial arts, but some of the more "tactical" styles include, Pekiti-Tirsia Kali, Dekiti Tirsia Siradas, and Sayoc Kali. I say "tactical" because these systems are presently taught to various military and law enforcement groups.

 

[ckcollins2003]

Wow... that was a lot of reading. The people suggesting BJJ have never tried using it in a real fight eh? Let me let you in on a little tip... it's useless.

Brute force is the way to go. That's why the Marines and Rangers teach it and practice it. Knees to the face, punches to the throat and/or xiphoid process, head stomps, arm and wrist breaks, hammer punches, etc. When you can quickly and easily enrage yourself enough to grab the back of their head and make their face run into your knee, you not only end the fight, you also destroy their confidence and take away their manhood. That's one reason Krav-Maga is so effective. It's no rules, no bs, do whatever it takes fighting.

Screw all of the ninja wannabe crap. Don't worry about twirling around like a ballerina. Kick them in the junk and punch them in the throat. Game over.

 

[mike8170]

Wow... that was a lot of reading. The people suggesting BJJ have never tried using it in a real fight eh? Let me let you in on a little tip... it's useless.

Brute force is the way to go. That's why the Marines and Rangers teach it and practice it. Knees to the face, punches to the throat and/or xiphoid process, head stomps, arm and wrist breaks, hammer punches, etc. When you can quickly and easily enrage yourself enough to grab the back of their head and make their face run into your knee, you not only end the fight, you also destroy their confidence and take away their manhood. That's one reason Krav-Maga is so effective. It's no rules, no bs, do whatever it takes fighting.

Screw all of the ninja wannabe crap. Don't worry about twirling around like a ballerina. Kick them in the junk and punch them in the throat. Game over.

HapKido is the same thing. Best MA training I ever took. The key is that it is taught totally as defensive, though I have used some in the offensive manner

 

[Shift Zombie]

I looked into hapkido as a close second to krav maga but, par for course, it offers no classes for my schedule. :S it blows some major @ss working 1-930pm.

 

[tatertot]

Wow... that was a lot of reading. The people suggesting BJJ have never tried using it in a real fight eh? Let me let you in on a little tip... it's useless.

Brute force is the way to go. That's why the Marines and Rangers teach it and practice it. Knees to the face, punches to the throat and/or xiphoid process, head stomps, arm and wrist breaks, hammer punches, etc. When you can quickly and easily enrage yourself enough to grab the back of their head and make their face run into your knee, you not only end the fight, you also destroy their confidence and take away their manhood. That's one reason Krav-Maga is so effective. It's no rules, no bs, do whatever it takes fighting.

Screw all of the ninja wannabe crap. Don't worry about twirling around like a ballerina. Kick them in the junk and punch them in the throat. Game over.

I disagree with bjj being useless in a real fight. There are several chokes that transfer very well to "real fights". Bjj also teaches takedowns and takedown defense, which dictates where the fight goes. The principles of balance bjj teaches are also invaluable to any real fight you might get into.

 

[Mackey]

Wow... that was a lot of reading. The people suggesting BJJ have never tried using it in a real fight eh? Let me let you in on a little tip... it's useless.

Brute force is the way to go. That's why the Marines and Rangers teach it and practice it. Knees to the face, punches to the throat and/or xiphoid process, head stomps, arm and wrist breaks, hammer punches, etc. When you can quickly and easily enrage yourself enough to grab the back of their head and make their face run into your knee, you not only end the fight, you also destroy their confidence and take away their manhood. That's one reason Krav-Maga is so effective. It's no rules, no bs, do whatever it takes fighting.

Screw all of the ninja wannabe crap. Don't worry about twirling around like a ballerina. Kick them in the junk and punch them in the throat. Game over.

This makes much sense to me. If I'm going to look into this "Krav-Mang" stuff. I'm all about Israeli stuff anyway.

 

[Ahgo]

I currently teach TKD at a school in my hometown. TKD has its place, but just like someone else said, "every art has its strenths and weaknesses". I have a 4th Dan in TKD and 1st Dan in Jukido. These two arts compliment each other with one being striking and the other being trapping and takedowns. I also study Tai Chi for the body movement. I started taking Jujitsu, but had to stop because I was getting hurt (torn ACL and meniscus in my knee and torn labrum ligament in my shoulder). Currently, I am study Kun Tao Silat and love it. I get the combination of striking, trapping, and takedowns as well as knife work.

Martial arts as a whole is great for anyone. You will get out of it what you put into it. Learn body mechanics, physics, and movement and you will be unstoppable. Find a good instructor and start training. Good luck.

 

[ckcollins2003]

I disagree with bjj being useless in a real fight. There are several chokes that transfer very well to "real fights". Bjj also teaches takedowns and takedown defense, which dictates where the fight goes. The principles of balance bjj teaches are also invaluable to any real fight you might get into.

You can disagree all you want. The last time a guy tried to put me in an armbar I rolled backwards and was back up on my feet before he was. He tried a rear naked choke after that. That didn't work either. Of course the Marines trained me how to easily get myself out of one of those. This was of course a friend of mine who is twice my size and has been doing BJJ for about 8 years now. Lucky for him we were just grappling and not actually fighting.

If you want to try your chokes and ground skills in a fight be my guest. Even if you manage to take your opponent down, the last place you want to be is on the ground. The ground makes you vulnerable to incoming attacks by your opponents friends. Which is another reason I don't go to the ground if at all possible. I was once on top of a guy beating the snot out of him and his buddy came and hit me in the face with some pvc pipe. Not sure where he got it but I sure didn't see it coming.

I'm not saying BJJ is completely useless. It has it's advantages if you are into MMA and only against a single opponent. However you'll never see a soldier or cop try to apply an arm-bar on their foe.

I'm no rookie to fights and it's not something I'm particularly proud of, but I can tell you from experience that that crap won't work. I'm 5'10" 190 pounds. My friend Andrew who was the one I was showing how to get out of everything BJJ taught him is 6'4" 260+. He even admitted afterwards that my military fighting style well surpassed his BJJ.

As I said, try it and be my guest. I know what BJJ teaches. Chokes are taught in almost every martial art. Blood chokes, air chokes, it doesn't matter if you can't hold them. This is where brute force comes into play. Let them try their choke, throw them down, break their arm, and stomp on their face. See if they try it again.