Today, it’s widely believed that a person’s aptitude for martial arts is largely a genetic trait. But when Bruce Lee was just 17 years old, he was already a trained kung fu fighter.
Today, there are more than 3,000 different kinds of martial arts—but which ones actually work?
Martial arts are typically practiced for the following reasons:
To improve the body or mind
For self-defense
For competition
Whether you want to learn self-defense, fitness or a martial art that could help you defend yourself, there are hundreds of styles to choose from. Here’s a breakdown of some of the most popular martial arts out there.
Types of Martial Arts: You may have noticed a lot of commercials showing people doing different types of martial arts. You may have seen this type of commercial where a guy jumps in the air and does a flying kick and then lands on a mat and continues moving with kicks and punches. You may have also seen a commercial showing someone throwing a spear, or kicking a heavy metal object. There are several different types of martial arts that you can learn. Some of these styles include Kung Fu, Kung Fu TKD, Karate, Jujitsu, Silat, Jeet Kune Do, Boxing, Kick Boxing, Wing Chun, Hapkido, Wushu, Muay Thai, Eskrima, Savate, Capoeira, etc. There are also many other styles such as Aikido, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Jujitsu, Judo, Ninjutsu, Capoeira, Kali, Shotokan Karate, Taekwondo, Wrestling, Sambo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Judo, Tai Chi, etc.
The term martial art comes from two characters in Chinese mythology, “martial” meaning “to fight without weapons” and “arts” meaning “skillful”. With a wide range of different styles and traditions, the martial arts of China and Japan can be divided into three major categories: internal, external, and external-internal. Internal martial arts are designed to improve one’s physical well-being, including training of the mind and body, whereas external martial arts are geared toward defending against an attacker. External-Internal martial arts combine both of these elements and aim to achieve a higher state of mental/physical well-being by training the body and mind simultaneously. In general, there are eight styles of martial arts in the external-internal category: Boxing, Wing Chun, Tae Kwon Do, Muay Thai, Judo, Goju Ryu, Kendo, and Aikido.
Martial Arts is all about technique, timing, and power. There are different styles that focus on each of these concepts. Here’s what makes each style unique:
So, what are you going to do today? You could go out and buy a cheap plastic knife and start beating people with it. Or you could go to the mall or your local YMCA and get some lessons.