Good MA to dedicate a lot of time to?

[krimsonidol]

For the past two years I have been working full time and spending 5 hours a night taking classes for my degree. But now i've graduated, have a new job, and have moved to a new area (Sterling, Virginia). So suddenly, i'm in a new place and have waaaaay more free time than i'm used to.

Since i'm also out of shape (see aforementioned 2 years of craziness) and have always wanted to take a martial art, I figured this would be a good time.

And I figure if I can train a few days a week, that'll help me not be bored with too much time on my hands, and maybe I can meet some people.

Because I have a sorta obsessive personality (I like to work hard, basically), I want a martial art that is conductive to time and dedication. I also want one that is physically demanding.

Right now i'm looking mainly at Muay Thai or maybe Kyokushin (I think I have that right?) Karate. There is a Muay Thai place within 30 mins of my apt, but I don't know about karate.. seems to be mostly Tae Kwon Do around.

Am I right in thinking these would be good choices for someone who:

a) wants to train at least 3 days a week, preferably more

b) wants to focus mostly on punching and kicking

Also, i'm short, female, and pretty out of shape. I don't mind going through hell for a month or so until I start getting back into shape, but would something like Muay Thai even be possible for someone who is like 5'2, female, and like 130 pounds?

Any suggestions of other martial arts, or any dojos in the northern virginia area to look at (or to avoid)?

Thanks in advance for any help!

[isshinryu5toforever]

Any martial art requires hard work and dedication. You should go to each place and discuss your goals with the instructors. If you are interested solely in getting in shape and not necessarily learning a ton of self-defense a TKD school that focuses on the sport/competition aspect of the martial art could be good. They do a lot of kicking drills, running, conditioning, and such. The other martial arts you mentioned will do this as well, Muay Thai especially. It'll just be done in different ways. Check the places out and see which one you like the most.

[Jimster]

Kyokushin definately, I go train 3 times 2 hour/week. And also train a lot at home. Also lot of competition/stages,....

I also do tae kwando as extra but it's very boring compared to kyokushin.

[marie curie]

Maybe you could try to meet with an instructor at each, or sit in on a class to see if its what you are looking for. A good instructor will be honest about what they expect out of a student and you can gage from there.... On another note, I was doing 3 Martial Arts at 5' 6" 165 some time ago, and one is a very active art. If you are willing to be worn out for a month or so, like you said, I really don't think that it will be that much of a problem.