which martial art is better for me?

Question

Hi,
I have to choose between Silat, Hapkido, Taiji, Aikido, and Judo. My purpose of learning martial arts are:
1. Physical fitness
2. Mental control
3. Least important - fighting back a toughie, if cornered.
I weigh about 50 Kg and have little active life. Certainly I can't even think of Wushu and Kung Fu.
Which martial art should I choose among these?

Answer 1

You say you can't consider kung fu but list silat and hapkido and judo as some of your options.
All 3 of these arts are as active and as involved as kung fu with judo being the most physical.
I think your best option is AIKIDO and even that can get very physical in the advanced stage which is rarely seen or demonstrated.

Answer 2

To be honest I have never heard of Silat or Taiji, and i have been training in martial arts for 7 years. HAHA.
From my experience i think you should go with aikido or judo. Judo was created for the purposes of fighting someone who is bigger than you. Then there is aikido which also is really good against a bigger person. It teaches you to flow with your moves and is more about wearing your opponent out than actually fighting back hand to hand or doing any ground work.
And hapkido, ... I've heard of it but I wouldn't give it a second thought pal. The two you might want to focus on would have to be Aikido and Judo.

Answer 3

I'm partial to Hapkido since I've been doing it for 10 yrs. I enjoy it because its a very complete system in my opinion. Its related to Aikido and Judo because the three of those arts stemmed from Aiki-jujutsu. But all three are very different. Hapkido is more of a tactical art than Aikido and has much more striking and kicking which is more practical for street defense. Judo is a great grappling art. but is really a sport. Silat I've seen only through video is a very interesting art as well. Hapkido works for me in all the areas you mentioned in your question, because I'm in law enforcement, I need all of those qualities. But you should really do your homework and find out all you can about those arts then watch and try out a class or two if you can from each to give yourself a better idea of what you might like to do. the best art is the one you enjoy doing the most. good luck with your training

Answer 4

Don't do Akido, Kiai, Kung Fu or Wushu. They are really useless in self defense let alone conditioning.

My first answer was going to be Muay Thai or Boxing, but I think they may be too hard for someone who doesn't exercise much so I would recommend Jiu Jitsu. Jiu jitsu focuses on submissions, submission defense, and wrestling. You don't have to be fit to be good at jiu jitsu because it's all about leverage and body movement.

Here are some videos of jiu jitsu versus every martial arts listed by the posters above me: Hapkido, Kung Fu, Karate, Judo, and Kempo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjK0g-cDJI4 - JJ versus Kung Fu

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ciYtazMQE4 - JJ versus Hapkido

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFCwdBEOS1Q&feature=related - Jiu Jitsu versus Kempo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9b6a2VH5HJg - JJ versus Karate

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06Ciy3Bcnec - JJ versus Judo

Jiu Jitsu is the most dominant/effective martial arts.

Answer 5

The quality and frequency of your training will far outweigh the style you train in.
Do yourself a favor, find a good school, not a good style.
never sign a contract, never pay for rank testing.
Always take free classes and check out all the schools in your area. Look for a clean school with respectable people.

Answer 6

Visit each school and watch a class. See how the teacher moves and how their senior students act- this is what you will be lerning and become. Teacher and schools is often more important then style as you will be spending ALOT of time at the school lerning and growing. With your three questions above as each teacher and see what they say. Best of luck in your search.

Answer 7

All of them should be good for what you need it for. Rather than use our experience, learn for yourself. Try all of them and see which comes more natural to you. Most places give you a trial period. Sometimes the best lessons in LIFE you learn on your own.

Answer 8

If your number one goal is physical fitness then I would reccomend judo as it is sport oriented and will have you competeing in no time. This will improve your overall conditioning very quickly!!!!

Answer 9

Silat or judo.

Answer 10

Either hapkido or aikido.