Looking for Style/System Opinions

[Luarien]

You may notice my post looking for schools in my area; I think I may have found a few to check out, but just in case San Soo or another Kung Fu system doesn't work out, I'm curious what opinions the posters here could have on the kind of training I'm looking for.

I'm a stocky (muscle-dense) guy, but I've got pretty good balance. I'm looking for both an open-hand and a weapon form of some kind (I collect weapons in general, it's always been something I'm fascinated by as both pieces of art as well as the majesty of melee weapons themselves). I'm exploring Kung Fu in my area, but are there any other styles or systems you guys can suggest that include both an open-hand and a weapon form?

[BDPulver]

I'm not familiar with your area all that much. my style does both which is Isshinryu but not sure if there is one around.

I'm not as limber as some of the kung fu practiioners are, I think thats why I stuck with karate based forms.

[Luarien]

I'm not familiar with your area all that much. my style does both which is Isshinryu but not sure if there is one around.

I'm not as limber as some of the kung fu practiioners are, I think thats why I stuck with karate based forms.

I'm pretty sure I can find almost anything within an hour of me (I'm in Southern California; we've got more "Japanese Sister Cities" and "Chinese Sister Cities" than you can shake a stick at). Just really looking for any styles that might meet my needs.

Thanks for the suggestion, I'll look into it.

[algernon]

Have you considered training in two separate arts? A single style that teaches both empty hand and weapons rather narrows your options, but there are schools that teach both an open hand style and weapons; many schools teach a weapons-only art such as Kobudo in addition to their unarmed system. Searching for such schools could greatly broaden your options, as there are really no limits on what empty hand or weapons styles might be taught under one roof. My suggestion would be to find the schools in your area that offer the sort of traditional weapons form that you are looking for, and then choose from that list the empty hand style that suits your needs.

[Luarien]

Have you considered training in two separate arts? A single style that teaches both empty hand and weapons rather narrows your options, but there are many schools that teach both an open hand style and weapons; many schools teach a weapons-only art such as Kobudo in addition to their unarmed system. Searching for such schools could greatly broaden your options, as there are really no limits on what empty hand or weapons styles might be taught under one roof. My suggestion would be to find the schools in your area that offer the sort of traditional weapons form that you are looking for, and then choose from that list the empty hand style that suits your needs.

Yeah, that'd be fine with me. I expecting separate styles under the same roof. The problem so far with that is finding schools. The one thing I can't seem to find online is local MA schools or clubs.

[algernon]

Yellow pages, my friend! Martial arts schools seem to be trailing behind on website development, so find some schools in the phone book, and give them a call. Make a personal visit to the ones that sound promising.

[bushido_man96]

You might see if there are any Filipino styles around. They usually consist of hand-stick-knife training, and it all tends to overlap very well.

[Dark Planet]

I cannot stress enough the psychological training of a good sword training regiment. There's nothing like training for 1/4 an inch.

[bushido_man96]

On the sword issue, if there aren't any Eastern sword classes around, you might check to see if there are any ARMA study groups in your area. It would be worth checking out.