I’d just like to mention the break falls and rolling I did in Judo and a little Aikido were way more valuable in keeping me from getting hurt than the other techniques I learned.
Along this line, I have a thought that perhaps others can weigh in on as well.
I don't think a high level of skill is needed in a grappling art to defend yourself and get out of a bad situation. I don't think a high level of skill is required in a striking art to avoid getting hit too much and get yourself out of that situation. I think it's far harder to effectively attack someone who trying to evade your attacks and escape you, than it is to successfully attack a less skill opponent who's committed to standing their ground to fight.
Therefore, I propose a person learn enough to be able to run away, and make doing so their primary goal. Thoughts?
It doesn't take a high level of skill to be able to handle yourself against the untrained, but more and more criminals are training in various martial arts these days. If you run into someone stronger and more skilled you are royally screwed.
I would focus on little by little getting fitter and more skilled as time goes on. Don't have a stopping place in mind but keep trying to get a little better all the time and let the journey take you where it will. The same goes with shooting. Don't settle for "good enough" because it might not be, but don't feel like you have to acquire mastery overnight.
My point with that is more along these lines: If you go to a gym or dojo, try asking someone to spar with you, where their goal is to get out of the building. Then see how easy or difficult it is to attack them when they're trying to flee rather than engage. It's a very different dynamic.
Along this line, I have a thought that perhaps others can weigh in on as well.
I don't think a high level of skill is needed in a grappling art to defend yourself and get out of a bad situation. I don't think a high level of skill is required in a striking art to avoid getting hit too much and get yourself out of that situation. I think it's far harder to effectively attack someone who trying to evade your attacks and escape you, than it is to successfully attack a less skill opponent who's committed to standing their ground to fight.
Therefore, I propose a person learn enough to be able to run away, and make doing so their primary goal. Thoughts?
Something that I rarely see mentioned when it comes to empty handed defense is that it's not just important to develop skills so that you can use them yourself, but to learn enough to be able to recognize when someone else is skilled. There are a lot of completely devastating techniques that will result in being choked out or having joints permanently destroyed or bones broken. These happen in seconds and you won't see them coming unless you train. A person who trains may see that technique coming and respond with a higher level of force and be able to articulate it later.
It may even be that such training can help prevent escalation in the first place.
In a recent conversation with a retired Muay Thai pro, the gentleman mentioned two occasions (both in bars, of course) when someone had been in his face looking for trouble, and in both instances the ex-fighter just stood calmly in a relaxed guard, watching and learning and waiting for the first move. It was his belief that calm confidence in both situations encouraged the aggressor to go find something else to do.
It may even be that such training can help prevent escalation in the first place.
In a recent conversation with a retired Muay Thai pro, the gentleman mentioned two occasions (both in bars, of course) when someone had been in his face looking for trouble, and in both instances the ex-fighter just stood calmly in a relaxed guard, watching and learning and waiting for the first move. It was his belief that calm confidence in both situations encouraged the aggressor to go find something else to do.
This is kind of a follow on topic to my earlier thread about trainers being booked out for a year in advance.
I recently decided to look for "empty handed" training, specifically, Tae Kwon Do, Hapkido, or both. I already had some prior experience, many years ago, in Tae Kwon Do, so it was natural to gravitate that way. I quickly discovered that martial arts has become a day care center. I checked out all of the local dojos in my area, and all are primarily for children. Even the "adult" classes are 1-2 adults and 6-8 8th and 9th graders. (Nice, good kids as near as I could tell, but kids nonetheless.)
What is going on? I spoke to one instructor who put it into two categories. Child care was there bread and butter, and ever since MMA/UFC hit mainstream entertainment, most of the adults started doing that. Is this what you are seeing in your dojos as well? Is there something out there that isn't MMA that also isn't kiddie care? I seem to recall that there were always adults in the TKD classes I took in my teen years. Anyone have any suggestions on what an adult looking for real hand to hand training should gravitate toward?
The other thing I noticed is that this is expensive stuff. $2200/year at the one dojo that has any adults in the classes. (6 hrs per week of training.) Perhaps that isn't expensive compred to the $1820 I just spent at Gunsite for one week.
Call me a 'martial arts snob'
You must be-I only recognized one style of martial arts in your list.
But I get it. We need to train close in. I'm already seeing it. I'm doing TKD and Hapkido. They're teaching kicking in TKD at distance that are just too close. I'm hitting the bag or my sparring partner with my shins, not my feet, because that's how close to them I'm standing. On the other hand, everything in Hapkido is standing so close to your partner that you're actually touching bodies together.
Hopefully, anything is better than nothing (and hopefully, this is all for fun and never needed anyway), and the options in my area are severely limited.
Yeah, I looked at the only BJJ dojo in my area. They have separate kids class earlier in the day. (The TKD places do, too, but, as I said, even their "adult" classes are full of adolescents. I expect the BJJ facility to be the same.) Their pricing is about the same on a per-hour basis, but they offer about half as much "mat time" as the TKD places. The only Krav Maga dojo in town has an "adult" class with a minimum age of 13. smh.
I would add that, while I don't know anything about Krav Maga, I really don't like MMA. On the surface, it gives me "Fight Club" movie vibes and just seems to be yet another pop-culture glorification of violence. I'm sure it's a case of having your cake and eating too.
Before I say anything else I am old and I am crippled and I don't study any empty hand fighting skills because my disabilities make it almost impossible. So you can take my input for what it's worth
I don't know your age but I'm not certain that training against adolescents wouldn't be a good idea.
I took Taekwondo classes many many years ago and I got my ass beat (Sparring) by a couple of adolescents.
I don't think sparring against somebody who is younger and has more stamina and is more agile than you is a bad idea.
So now I'm pretty much stuck. I like what TKD had to offer and what I was getting from it-on the increasingly rare occasions that we had a full session without kid drama, but every dojang in town is like that. Since I left, I've been less motivated to keep up with my fitness routine (which amounts to an Army PT test every day.) And in the mean time, my work place has become increasingly more violent. So, I'm still looking for options has that combo of physical fitness (I was surprised at how exhausting 30 seconds of full on sparring was) and usable skill sets. I think it will probably be Krav Maga next, but, after the last 6 months, I don't have high hopes.
Ask to be released from the contract, and if you paid upfront ask to be reimbursed for the outstanding time left...You are a paying customer who is not getting what you are paying for.
Your workplace becoming "increasingly violent" is a problem unto itself. Not only it that an absolutely unacceptable working environment in today's America, but it's also surely not going to be solved by you learning martial arts. You need to find a new job or hold HR accountable for resolving the situation.
I would begin looking for a new employment opportunity immediately. But in the mean time I too would break that same agreement, out of necessity, and carry a firearm in order to protect myself...
The only issue I have with BJJ is that it's great so long as you've only got one opponent at a time. If the dude's got a buddy, I don't want to find out about it while I'm laying on the ground.
I think it's a great tool to have, but I wouldn't want it to be my only form of training.