Which Martial Art is the best for a 15 year old girl?

Question

She´s never been into any physical activity except PE classes at H.S.

Please explain reasons

Answer 1

To answer this question, we'd have to know her motivation for taking it.

If she wants to learn how to defend herself against real life attackers, then Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu would be the best. It is all about grappling, however, a 15 year old girl may not be comfortable rolling around on the floor wrapping her legs around her male training partners (most BJJ schools are dominated by male students, so it may be difficult to find an all girls class).

Judo is also good for self defense, it's all about throwing people. This is bad if she's ever had a back injury or knee injuries or is overweight. Because beginners get tossed and flipped over a lot.

Muy Thai kickboxing is the most effective standup fighting style, along with Western boxing. She should probably go with Muy Thai over western boxing, since the kicks will make her feel more like a martial artist. This is a great workout, but it is intense and she has to be tough, because she will get hit in the face when sparring.

Jeet Kune Do is the style that Bruce Lee invented, and it mixed all aspects of martial arts. Grappling, striking, blocking, etc. If you can find a school that teaches this, she will learn to defend herself and never get bored because there is a lot of variety.

If she just wants to take something to get exercise or lose weight or have fun, then I'd recommend Tae Kwon Do. It focuses on high-flying kicks and spinning kicks and all the cool moves you see in the movies. It's great for showing off and impressing your friends, and it's a fun sport. However, it would be largely ineffective if she were attacked for real on the street.

If she likes the mystique of the orient, and perhaps wants to unite mind and body and develop self discipline, I'd recommend a form of kung fu.

Answer 2

I would shop the school and instructor not the style. If there is a particular reason why she wants to take martial arts then that should be the driving force in choosing a school. If there is no particular reason then shop and pick a school that appeals to her the most. Things for her like the presence of other females in the class, how the instructor relates to his/her students, how hard and how much physical contact there is along with price and convenience for you are all factors. Most people won't stay long where they are not comfortable, or if what they want is not being offered and a busy schedule and long drive make it difficult to attend.

Answer 3

American Kenpo and BKF Kenpo are the best styles for all ages. Any martial artist over the age of 30 know about he Long Beach International Martial Arts Championships that was hosted by the Late Senior Grandmaster Ed Parker Sr. and if you were not from a Kenpo style, Tang Soo Do, or Kajukenbo your skills could not keep up.

In Bruce Lee's Autobiography he states that, "Steve Sanders has the fastest hands he have ever seen in Martial Arts and that he might be the only man he would not want to fight."

Sijo Steve (Sanders) Muhammad founder of the BKF Kenpo system (now named Wu shur shin Chuan Fa).

Answer 4

It would depend on why she wants to get from the Martial Art.
If it is for primary protection and some cardio I would go for the Standard grappling styles such as Judo, Jujitsu, Hapkido, Wrestling and one most don't mention Krav Maga(due to its practicality). Throw in some straight hand to hand such as Muay Thai kickboxing, Hiep-Tinh-Mon Vietnam, Boxing and again Krav Maga because it instructs in many styles in one.
If it is for primary Cardio and some protection I would go with some of more well known TKD, American Karate, Okinawan Karate(different styles), Japanese Karate(different styles).
These are just my choices and have studied some of them and have Friends in others. Not trying to disrespect other styles.
Main thing is she needs to know how to defend herself in a stand up position and she needs really good submission and ground work because if she gets put on the ground by a bigger opponent then she needs to know how to get him off.

Answer 5

Honestly, after taking Tae Kwon Do for about seven years, I have found that it you get better results if you WANT to do it. So it would be better to expose her a bit to the different styles and let her choose something that she finds intriguing.

For more information you can visit
http://www.youtube.com/
and watch videos of different styles
or
http://www.wikipedia.org/
and search for a "list of martial arts"

There are many different branches of martial arts. For example:
-grappling styles such as Judo, Jujutsu, Hapkido, and Wrestling
-striking styles such as boxing, Tae Kwon Do, and Karate
- weaponry styles such as fencing, gatka, and kendo

or if she REALLY hates physical activity, you can try styles that focus more on spirit and mind and less bodily activity such as Qigong and Tai chi chuan

Another approach can be if she likes the idea of dancing, she can try the brazilian art of Capoeira, which is kind of like a warlike dance that incorporates aspects of both martial arts and dancing.

Hope this helps!

Answer 6

i would originally say judo, but i read some were (i think it was here) that jujitsu would be better for a person who has never done martial arts.


- these art the ones i would suggest Shooto Box (i thank i spelled it right), Jujitsu, Judo, or an MMA (mixed martial art) gym. they all have string and grappling, you want the girl to know what to do if she is held down on the ground. I'm not sure if Judo has striking, but Judo will work in a street fight. Judo is based on Jujitsu, so it has many of the same things.

Answer 7

I would go with Judo or BJJ, both of these are strong in grappling. BJJ is more effective as self defense though.

Stay away from Karate, TKD or Kung Fu none of these are good real world effective.

Muay Thai is a great striking art but I would go with grappling in that most altercations end up there. With this being for a girl she could be overpowered by a larger male but with BJJ she could easily surprise him with a choke, arm lock etc...

Answer 8

I have been doing karate for about a year and I think it is really good. It is lots of fun, good exercise and it is a great social place! I am loving it and you should really join! Look in the phone book for a place near you!
Hope I Helped,
:)
PS: Any age can start!

Answer 9

from personal experince and being a martial arts instructor for 7 years i would say for your daughter judo or kick boxing depends on if u want her to do damage to some 1 judo is a good defence which is mainly blocks and thows and would help to get her out of trouble and kick boxing is more full contact but if used wrong could cause serious injury ir even death so i would go with judo

Answer 10

I'd say TKD, but that's because I'm an instructor about to test for master...

Oh, and don't pay any attention to people who bash styles and say they are ineffective in the real world. They have no clue what they are talking about 99.999999% of the time.