I am 20 yr old guy, a little overweight. I wish to learn karate or any other martial art for self defence.?

Question

how long does it take to learn karate? what about the other martial arts?

Answer 1

It depends on what you mean by "learn". You will learn a little the 1st class. You should never stop learning. I have 15 yrs & am still learning. My instructor has 50 years & is still learning.

The study of Martial Arts is a journey, not a destination.

Answer 2

Hello,

We are all individuals and learn things at different paces, some are quick with math, some with Spanish while others maybe slow.
With this in mind you should know that Karate works the same way, thou, you may learn or pick up on style quicker then another.

Over the past 30 some years I have taken lessons in about 6 different martial arts, but today and for the last 10 years it's been one art, Kenpo Karate!

Check out Kenpo in your phone book, on the web..even youtubes kenpo demos. If you call a place within your driving distance watch some classes and ask questions.

I wish you the best, good luck and whatever you do, Don't give up.

Answer 3

Question Is sparring necessary for a martial art to be good for self-defense? Using the keyword necessary, I would say NO. 1. Sparring is used to help refine techniques and principles taught by the art, just like kata. 2. Sparring rarely involves the choas, variety and unpredictability that can be found in real life encounters 3. Non-Martial Artists are capable of defending themselves without even studying an art, much less sparring 4. Also there is such a wide range of training simulations that are called sparring, what is sparring in one dojo is not allowed in another, it is hard to draw the line on what is considered "practical sparring" look at WTF vs ITF Taekwondo 5. Sparring can help you, but it can also let you slip into a comfort zone. As in you become to comfortable fighting and expecting to be fought in a preconcieved manner. A good example of this, now hold on Im not trying to ruffle feathers here, the first few UFCs. Many of these Martial Artists had trained and fought in a certain manner, they were caught off guard by being rushed and wrestled to the ground. They had gotten too comfortable. Expierance can also do the same thing though. A bully who is getting into 1on1 schoolyard scraps, may become comfartable with that scenario and expect things to just work that way. Then he is in for a suprise when his target has four friends coming out of the woodwork. I however do think sparring and kata are both great training tools.

Answer 4

I'm sure you could do it! Karate or Tae Kwon Do are good self defense arts. Tae Kwon Do is based on Karate so they are similar. I train in Tae Kwon Do, it is a great martial art and I lost a lot of weight! (But that's not why I started Tae Kwon Do) Martial Arts isn't something that you can finish, it's a never ending journey! Getting your Black Belt takes 3-5 years, sometimes longer. Attaining your Black isn't the end, it's just the beginning!

Good Luck! : )

Answer 5

Karate is a lifelong pursuit. There is no graduation such as an educational facility has.
It is practiced everyday forever.

Find a good school, not a good style.
Never pay for rank testing.
Never sign a contract.
Find a school where the people are respectful and the floors are clean.
You will spend much time there training.

A tree grows slightly ever day in time it becomes mighty.

Answer 6

Generally, most martial arts take between 3-5 years of consistent training (2-3 times per week) to get to Black Belt.

You want to find something that incorporates a lot of movement and aerobic work (such as karate, tang soo do, tae kwon do or kempo). You can even try something like boxing or kickboxing, if you are just looking for a way to stay in shape.

The key I will give you is to find a studio close to your house, so you are more likely to attend often. Most places offer a few free lessons so you can try it out and make sure you like it.

Answer 7

huh?what the hell is the other bloke on?any way in answer to your q. go with karate(not tkd),find a good freestyle one if possible.if not do karate then when you've learnt the basics cross train in another style.if you find a good freestyle karate it'll teach you stand up,ground and grappling.don't worry about the weight or being unfit no ma instructor in any style expects you to be a dynamo as soon as you walk on the floor.go with karate my friend you'll get there,it all takes time though.like any thing good it takes time.

Answer 8

As yupchagee said, Martial arts is a journey, not a destination, much like life is.

Learning Martial Arts takes as long as it takes for you to absorb what you've been taught, but on average, it usually takes about 5 years to attain first degree black belt.

Martial Arts doesn't have specific disciplines for people with certain body characteristics (height, weight, body type, gender or age) so you have to find out for yourself which discipline will suit you, no one here is an expert on EVERY discipline to rate each individual discipline and tell you which one is the "best".

Only you can make the decision about which one is best for YOU and what you want to get out of studying Martial arts and no one can tell you which one will suit your goals. choosing a Martial Art is about personal choice. What is it that YOU want to get out of studying Martial Arts for YOUR OWN PERSONAL BENEFIT?

more confidence, fitness, sport, a hobby, self defense, perhaps it's for personal enrichment (ie becoming a better person through learning discipline and respect) or enlightenment?

again each person who studies Martial Art has to figure out for themselves what they want out of the discipline they choose, no one can tell them which discipline will work for them.

What many people fail to realize about Martial Arts is that there isn't a particular discipline that is a "best" fit for certain people.

they ALL have their strengths and weaknesses so therefore not one single discipline is better than another, so it comes down to the individual and his or her own training ethics to really determine how good he or she has learned the discipline they have chosen. If one has a good training ethic, then one can become a good Martial Artist, but if one has a poor training ethic and does not train on a regular basis, then they will be a poor Martial Artist; the discipline is only as good as the individual who uses it.

What you have to do is research the local Martial Arts schools where you live (either in the phone book, or internet search engine) to find out what's available to you and pick 3 that interest you the most, then watch a few classes at each of these schools to make your decision about which one you want to study at.

the next thing you should do is find out if they have some trial classes (up to a weeks worth to help you make a decision, hopefully without being hassled to join or sign a contract to join the class), and if you find that you like the school, then enroll in the class. If not, then try your next choice, and so forth and so on.

You just need to find a Martial Arts School that will provide a safe, friendly, "family like" environment for you and that the instructor(s) are going to help you become the best Martial Artist that you can become. What really matters is that you feel comfortable in the classes (and like the classes) and feel comfortable that the instructor (and the instructor's TEACHING style and not the discipline itself) can properly teach you self defense without the "smoke and mirrors".

Just try to avoid the "McDojo's" and "belt factory" types of schools, because they basically "give" their students a belt rank every few months just as long as their paying the schools monthly dues and promising a first degree black belt rank within their first year.

Answer 9

under a good teacher you can learn a lot of stuff in any art. in my own experience by the end of three months of training in Pencak Silat and Kali. I was capable of sending my opponents to the hospital in many different ways.

Answer 10

If you wanna lose weight go into kick boxing. If you want to learn something that's f-ing bad@$$ learn Muay Tai or American Kenpo.