anyone into Marial arts?

[Mr Bogus]

oK..I hate the gym... but I need to get some kind of exercise activity since leaving AZ no more hiking, water skiing or anything else...

I always thought the martial arts looked like it took some discipline and always respected those who did them... What does a guy need to do to start learning one of them and which would be a good choice...

I going to be 50 and my body has seen a lot of years of abuse but if I dont start doing something now, I will never get of my every growing larger fat butt going in the right direction....

Last thing I need is getting beat up... but I would like to try something like this...

Suggestions? (I gotta do this quick too, I think Semi is going to beat me up at Spring Bash for letting Ms Semi think something is up..)

 

[twotonevert]

well is you pizzed of Colen, you may as well and get ready. I used to practice a combination of Judo/Akido/ and what they called the American style of Karate.

 

[99'busa]

Ya, I was in Tae Kwon Do for several years, I'm a 3rd degree blk belt now. My father has been for about 20 yrs. I haven't taken any classes for a long time. It is a self-defense sport. There are better calorie burning exercises out there, but it is still exercise so if this is interesting at least it is exercise.

 

[firebug]

Jiu Jitsu

I lost a lot of weight then I started. It is very interactive.

 

[Big Red]

Martial arts takes lots of dedication. How about Yoga or Tai Chi?

 

[Mr Bogus]

Yoga? zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Tai Chi? might need a little more action than that.. but maybe a place to start? and then get something a bit more physical as I get into better shape? or is Tai Chi mostly mental? (god knows last thing I need is more mental

)

Tae Kwon Do might be a bit more than I am ready for? or can an old out of shape guy start there?

More about Jiu Jitsu ? how does it start? or am I going to have some 14 year old kicking my ass? (not good)

 

[Wag]

Martial Arts is good because it holds your interest and you never get bored with it.

Go for it, man.

--Wag--

 

[Revolution]

yo B' i'm 41 and been doing some Ma for about a year. i started with a style called Hung Gar which emphasizes strength on strength techniques. being a beginner at 41 i wanted something that would be proficient when i'm 45-50 with less strength due to age and would still work well for self defense, so i began baguazhang. it's more of a diversion technique instead of strength on strength.

here are a few links to baguazhang:

and

also check into tai chi for yourself, might be worth a look for ya. www.youtube.com has lots of vids on MA

 

[99'busa]

Yoga?  zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz    Tai Chi?  might need a little more action than that.. but maybe a place to start? and then get something a bit more physical as I get into better shape?  or is Tai Chi mostly mental? (god knows last thing I need is more mental

)

Tae Kwon Do might be a bit more than I am ready for?  or can an old out of shape guy start there?

More about Jiu Jitsu ?  how does it start? or am I going to have some 14 year old kicking my ass? (not good)

Sure you can. I've seen 70 yo and I've seen 300lb. woman doing it. It's mild exercise consisting of punching, kicking (not very high for some

), stretching (which is also good for circulation), mental focus... I think my Dad did it so many years because he had an office job and it gave him 2 days a week to get some sort of exercise in.

And you learn self-defense at the same time

 

[Mr Bogus]

Martial Arts is good because it holds your interest and you never get bored with it.

Go for it, man.

--Wag--

Now that is what I need to hear

Thanks Rev, will peek at the vids and see how old guys do with all this ..

This guy is right up the street from me.. How do you pick a place?

http://www.hoffmannkarate.com/index.asp

 

[99'busa]

Martial Arts is good because it holds your interest and you never get bored with it.

Go for it, man.

--Wag--

Now that is what I need to hear

 

Thanks Rev, will peek at the vids and see how old guys do with all this ..  

This guy is right up the street from me..   How do you pick a place?  

http://www.hoffmannkarate.com/index.asp

What ever time of day you would be going..check them all in your area at that time to see which one has the people closest in your age group at that perticular time, or which one seems to be ran the best. I can only speak for tae kwon do but those koreans are all pretty straight up, honest, disiplined, and friendly. Took me a long time to understand his english though I usually gave him one of these looks

 

[Wrath]

I have been into it scince I was a very small brat. Great thing about it is there are different levels of participation. I used to teach it on the Marine Corps Base in 29 palms for a couple years back in the late 80's early 90's. I would go to tournaments everyweekend. Really with the Martial Arts you get out of it what you put into it. Great for the Cardio if you train hard enough. You can really limber yourself up too. I highly recommend it.

 

[Wrath]

server lagged out on me, srry for the repost.

 

[Dan]

If you are worried about the flexibility, take a look at Southwestern Kenpo.

My entire family went to the dojang 2-3 days a week for 4 years and all got our blackbelts in Tae Kwon Do. Diana and I also studied/taught Sun Style Tai Chi and it can be more of a workout than people think. The stances and slower movements require a great deal of strength and control and the deeper you make the stances, the more the workout. We also studied Kenpo as a complimentary style to the Tae Kwon Do and really enjoyed it.

 

[Commuta_Busa]

for all around exercise I would go Tai Chi. If you just want something to boost your cardio, slim you down, etc you can also try boxing.

I still think swimming has got to be one of the better balanced exercises. $0.02

 

[DREW]

I do Chinese Kenpo. Look a Tracys karate, they do private lessons rather than group lessons. Get you up to speed before you join their group for sparring. You better just get used to 14 year olds kicking your ass though.

At least for a while..

 

[skoti]

I've been in martial arts off and on for the past 17 years. I would suggest you simply start with something you enjoy, the rest will come after that. You have a lot of options, and many places will let you try a few lessons before you commit.

One thing to be aware of is that many places are simply out to make a buck. They offer big promises and not a lot of quality instruction. They say things like you can get a black belt in 1 year or some simular garbage. You will get a black belt... but it will cost you, and you won't have the talent to back it up.

The best instruction I've received was free. I found a kung fu instructor that simply loved the art, and loved to teach, so he didn't charge for lessons.

Like anything, just be sure to shop around. It is can be quite a commitment, but very rewarding.

 

[Revlis]

Krav Maga... Didn't spend a lot of time with it, but for about 6 months overseas it was a regular part of my day. It's largely instinctive, clean, and effective techniques. Think MMA more than a "martial Art" in the traditional sense. It's nice though cause there isn't a lot of fluff and BS. FWIW...

 

[Commuta_Busa]

since you're not a gym guy or anything else here's a simple technique you can do at home.

When you open a beer and sit down to do something keep the beer in the other room. Each time you want a sip you'll have to get up, walk to the other room and have a gulp. You'll get lots of exercise for your legs, back, arms. You could add cardio by running for the beer!

 

[Mr Bogus]

Commuta.....

Swimming: I grew up on swim teams and yes, it is great exercise but it bores me to tears... we had to swim between 1.5 and 3 miles 3X a week in school... burned me out...

Krav Maga? I saw that on Discovery, I get scared hearing the name now.... that was brutal...

The "Do jo" said I could attend for a month at no charge.. Maybe a serving of the Tai Chi with a side of Tai Kwon Do...