What is the best martial art for self defence?

Answer 1

As Jerry L said there is No BEST Martial Art for self defense, because EVERY Martial Art has it's respective strength and weakness, but it mainly lies in what discipline you find interesting, and training to perfect the techniques you learn by training and training frequently to increase your ability to defend yourself and expand your knowledge.

it's not the Martial Arts discipline that matters, but rather the individual who studies it. If he or she trains poorly, they'll learn poorly and get poor results, but if they train with the proper attitude and frequency, then they'll progress.

this question is asked almost on a daily basis, and many Martial Artists will try to plug in THEIR favorite discipline because it's what THEY have trained in, and while it has wroked for them, it does not mean that it will necessarily work for you.

look for a school that interests you to build a foundation in Martial Arts, make sure that they look to train you in perfecting techniques instead of spit game on how soon you'll get a black belt or how many belt ranks you've attained before the end of the year

another tactic they like to throw out is how many championships they're school has won or what their top students have placed in the local or even national tournaments because competition is the LEAST important aspect of Martial Arts, no matter how lucrative it may be.

good luck

Answer 2

Ask yourself what your REAL goal is and look at what really happens when you get into a situation.

99% of the time an unarmed fight, you can walk away from, you are fighting for ego not self-defence. That still doesn't change the fact that most of us will not walk away even though it is not a necessary fight.

Those fights that are necessary, thus falling under the realm of self-defence are those situations where there is a weapon involved or multiple attackers. No unarmed martial art can adequately prepare you to handle these situations with confidence.

While if someone pulls a gun or knife, your training may not all go out the window. The vast majority of it does. A novice, unskilled in the use of a weapon becomes a deadly threat, and would have a huge advantage over the unarmed master with a knife, gun or something equally as deadly.

People forget that weapons are "final" and awareness is your best and first line of "self-defence". In today's world for those few (if any ever come up) situations where you really need to defend yourself- your best bet is a weapon as it gives you a chance against someone with a weapon, and a better chance against multiple attackers than the most skilled unarmed martial artist.

If you really are looking for self-defence you should look into a carry permit (depending on your state) for a firearm and LEARN TO USE IT PROPERLY. If you do not wish to, or are unable to obtain one for obvious legal reasons then your next best bet would be to learn small weapons that can be concealable like a knife or small metal stick (jitte).

In the reality of today's world- a bar fight is not a necessary fight and thus not self-defence as you are not initially in danger and there are other non fighting options to deal with the situation most of the time that you cannot generally classify this as a "life threatening" situation requireing self-defence.

Answer 3

I like that guy's answer- "A gun." X-D

Unless the other guy can kick faster than 480 ft. per second (the average speed of a 9 mm bullet) he'll most likely leave you alone. However, you can't always carry a gun around with you- in fact, we don't have concealed-carry permits where I live, so ....

I don't think there's any ONE best martial arts, especially for self-defense. Just look around and decide what style you like best, and what style is most suitable for you.
I think your biggest concern is avoiding a "commercial" school- a school that's out there just for profit. If they promise you a black belt within, say, 2 years, and focus more on tournament stuff and fancy kicks, don't go for it; see if you can find better schools elsewhere.
Even with a good school and a good instructor, it's up to you to listen to the instructor and take in what he teaches you. He may be a great teacher, but if you slacken in class attendance or don't really work at it, you probably won't get much benefit from the courses.

And, keep in mind that regardless of martial arts experience or body size and weight, EVERYONE has weak points- the nose, the throat, the solar plexus, the groin, and the knee.

Oh, and one more VERY important detail... Always, always, always be aware of your surroundings. This is the number one and most important step in self-defense; no matter how good you are at martial arts or street fighting or whatever, if a guy sneaks up behind you and knocks you out, or grabs you into a choke hold and you're not prepared to react.... *shrug* not much you can do.

*edit* I'm not saying be paranoid, but don't be dumb, either. Just take little precautions- like, if you're in an unfamiliar situation or in a bad environment (say, a rough neighborhood) stick to public places where there's lots of people; be aware of who's in the room and who's not, things like that.

Answer 4

There is no 1 "best" art. Martial arts can be divided into 2 broad catagories, each with it's own strengths & weaknesses:
Striking: Tae Kwon Do. Karate, Shaolin boxing
Good: Can handle multiple attackers, can engage at long range, enables you to be pro active when necessary.
Not so good: Ground, hard to control an attacker without inflicting serious injury.

Grappling: Hapkido, Judo, etc.
Good: effective in close, good on the ground, can control an attacker without inflicting serious injury.
Not so Good: Not good at long range, You must wait for the attacker to make the 1st move. Not effective against multiple attackers.

The individual school & instructor are more important than the name of the style, choose carefully.

Good luck

Answer 5

These guys that say a street fighter can beat any martial artist have no clue what they are talking about. There are many different martial arts styles out there, some are more for sport then for fighting. Any martial artist that does sparing and not just forms can handle themselfs in a fight. I think kempo is a good style for self defence myself.

Answer 6

Wow. I can tell some fo these people are either willing to kill an unarmed assailant, or haven't had to use their martial arts in a real situation.

I've got a 6-2 amateur record with a 3rd place in pan-american jiujitsu championships.

First: Best defense is "not be there" (Miyagi).

Second: If that is not an option, then you are doing something wrong.

Third: If you still insist on fighting, defense is a mis-nomer. Offense is what wins fights, not defense. Just keep hitting the face. Treat it like a life or death situation. Forget trying to hit pressure points and solar-plexus and crap like that. That's ridiculous; for James Bond. You aren't James Bond are you? just keep pounding at their face until they drop or go away. If you get dropped first then the fight is hopefully over.

Answer 7

There is no "best", only what you are interested in learning and are willing to spend the time and effort to learn. Go to several different schools, take some free lessons, and find one that has all of the following:

You are interested in the style
The instructors are professional, knowledgeable, and engaging
There are no "contracts" so sign up for and up-front money to pay
The style is one with a history and the school belongs to a national and/or international group promoting that style
They teach both kata and sparring

All martial arts can be effective in real life situations, they wouldn't have lasted this long if they weren't, but they only work well if you learn how to use them properly.

Answer 8

The guy above me is 100% correct. I remeber a while ago there was a question asking if any martial artists ever use their skill in real situtation. Most people brought up stupid quotes such as "I walk away" or something. I was only one of very few who answer the question.

Also no one can show any video of their styles being use effectively so you can't help it but wonder if those guys can actually fight their way out of wet paper bag.

So don't listen to those people who probably can or cannot fight. Listen to those who have actually fight or been involvea full contact tournament.

I am not going to list styles because there's so many cry babies here. I will simply post a website that will help you out a lot, here it's:

www.bullshido.net

Answer 9

The best martial art is what interests you most, but it may be useful to keep that to yourself around certain other martial artists that have bad attitudes. Just pick something interesting to you and stick with it.

Answer 10

you have to find a few that work for you. Yes, I said a few.

sticking exclusively to one isnt enough knowledge in my opinion. they are different because they are just that, different. you need a strong stand up game, and a good grappling knowledge.

off hand I would say try Muay Thai kickboxing (not kickboxing), and BJJ or some C&C (control & Restraint) training through a hand to hand depot. but these are just my opinions, your body type, mentality, outlook on life, life experiences will be different from mine, so feel around a while to find something that works for you.

like mentioned earlier, knowledge is better than moves.

Also, I have known many street fighters that have been awesome on the nightclub doors, having hospitalised many a 'black belt' wannabe. fighting outside the normal is what works for me too.

Beware too much practise with uniforms, they dont move like jeans and a leather jacket. trying to head kick is dumb on the street, let alone when wearing demin that isnt designed to do it.

just like guns, we have our own favourites.