Sorry another Beginners quest for help

[scotto765]

Hello i would like to start my journey in MA. But i'm unsure of which art to study since they're a lot to chose from. I've read alot on different style of karate, kugfu, judo, JJJ, BJJ and many more.

a style im looking for:

Close combat striking since i have short arm's, some locks and chokes, throws, and joint breaks.

i believe in counter the person attack if they throw a punch they leave them self open some where. choke them out or dislocate a arm or something. BC knocking some out alot harder than it seems.

i don't go looking for fights. but when i do get in one i want to end it quickly.

sorry if this seems al over the place been on a information overload on MA

[tallgeese]

Welcome aboard, first and foremost. Next, yes, there are a lot of choices that can be pretty baffling for someone just starting out. To further complicate matters, individual schools within an art will often have slightly different training practices and areas of focus than others.

That said, if I read correctly, you're looking primarily for joint locking and close quarters work with some striking to go along with it. There are several arts that can fit this bill depending on how much you want to be involved with certain aspects.

Several flavors of JJJ would suit the parameters well. And more than a few systems of karate, but you'll have to look long and hard to make certain that the joint manipulations are anything beyond the mere surface detail that many striking arts give it. Look for instructors who can explain, in detail, tuite and it's concepts.

That said, and I'm biased, if you want to focus on closing the gap, tying up and working joints and chokes, look seriously at BJJ. You'll certainly get what you're asking for. To the exclusion of much strike training, but you'll get real used to getting fights to the ground and keeping them chest to chest.

Above all, really try different schools that you think might fit the bill. Usually what trumps the style name is one's relationship with an instructor and how you fit in with the established students.

Keep us posted and let us know how it goes.

[scotto765]

@tall

Thank you for the reply,

Dose JJ have transition into real life application not looking for sport.

But BBJ and JJ sounds good. i found a karate style that look good Goju-ryu. But there none in the Boston, Ma area.

[tallgeese]

As with all things, applicability will depend largely on your instructor and his focus. Make sure you set in on a few classes to get a feel. You'll want to see not only how much theoretical training is done but how the teacher rolls that into free-form spontaneous work. You won't, and shouldn't be, doing simulation training right away; however, you should see upper ranks doing it.

After the above disclaimer, typically JJJ will have good application for real world situations. A lot of police control tactics are based off of JJJ tactics. BJJ will do you well for self defense as well AS LONG as you find an academy that covers it's use in this capacity. There can be a heavy "sport" aspect to BJJ at some schools. That said, taking someone to the ground, getting on top of them, and holding them there until you decide what to do to them, is pretty handy in both arenas.

Lastly, it will always fall to you, the individual practitioner, to keep testing what you do for application. What I use my arts for have changed a couple of times thru my time in. Each time, I had to take a look at what I was doing and adapt it to my situation. You have to keep your focus on combative application if that's what you want. This will go along way.

Goju is a solid art, has some schools that are really focused on the sd side of things. I' m surprised that there are none in your area. Keep looking, you never know when you'll find an out of the way, less-than-adequate advertised place.

Keep us looking and let us know how checking out places go.

[bushido_man96]

If there is a Hapkido school nearby, you might check it out, as well. Aikido is a nice art, too, but I find its a bit too pain avoidance for my tastes in self-defense, but I have learned some good things from it. I'd start checking out schools in your area, see what they offer, and see what fits your desires the most. Who knows? You may practice a while to find out what you thought you wanted in training isn't what you wanted after all, and switch to something else.

Best of luck and keep us posted.