What's a great form of Martial Art to learn?

I'd say MMA because that way you get an all round view in what to do in different situations (whether you're standing or on the ground.)

I do Muay Thai and I enjoy it quite a lot, I would like to start on BJJ soon :)

A little offtopic but i would like to learn the martial arts on this page. No one would challenge one stick Wattman.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_martial_arts

Muay Thai or Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (or both if you can).

Sambo, Judo, Boxing, or even Wrestling are all high up on the list of effective self defense martial arts too imo.

You'll notice that one thing they all have in common is that they are competition martial arts. If you train any of the above, you spar full tilt with resisting opponents on a daily basis.

That's not really the case for a lot of other martial arts. Or if it is, they usually put some strict rules on competition and sparring that really hamper their effectiveness.

Boxing, muay thai, wrestling, any of those.

Learn to simply fist fight. You need to learn how to properly throw a punch.

Learn to punch right and defend your face (namely the lower jaw), AFTER that, expand into more specialty areas.

You wouldn't learn algebra if you didn't know how to add, right? Start small. Don't tell yourself you need to be Jackie Chan day one, because that's unrealistic.

And I agree with Bianca, you don't want to pull a gun or a knife any day of the week, that is extreme and excessive at best. It doesn't work out like it does in the movies. Like I said, start small and start simple, you have to crawl before you walk.

everything bruce lee did

and u will pwn not as much as brucie(nnot even close) but still u might be able to pwn

[QUOTE="DEVILinIRON"][QUOTE="IrishPunk"]

Brazilian jiu jitsu. It has really gotten popular due to the popularity increase of MMA, so there are a lot of places that do it.

But you should definitely find one that suits your interest (ground fighting, traditional, weapons, etc).

Paladin_King

Difficult to apply in a real fight at times though. Sort of hard to armbar one dude while his two buddies are trying to kick your head off.

BJJ is probably one of the, if not the best art for one on one fighting. Unfortunately, real fights often aren't one on one.

That said, guillotine chokes a really, really good in most any situation.

Quite the truth.

But takedowns and throws would be more useful than actual grappling because although most fights end up on the ground, it's usually the first person that gets on the ground loses. It wouldn't matter if you knew ground grappling because by the time you can react, the person may have already pulled out a weapon and seriously hurt you or his friends may join and kick the crap out of you while you are on the ground. If you got him to the ground first without you falling, you'd have time to decide to flee or continue disarming.

That's why Sanda or Sanshou is one of the best forms for self defence because it incorporates kickboxing type striking and a mix of judo/jujutusu/and shoot boxing take downs.

Or another great combo is Muay Thai or Kyokushin and Judo or Jujutsu.

Krav Maga. Jason Bourne's style.m45t3rch13f

based on fairly easy offensive: Boxing, most people dont consider it a martial art, but it is quite effective.

Defensive: Judo, it is really good for keeping people at a distance, or taking them down without causing permanent harm.

Some schools of Karate are effective, but Karate is not a single martial arts dicipline, it can be really diverse, and CAN be effective.

Most martial arts however are not very good out in the world, most of what is taught is flash with little substence, so alot of the more popular ones, are so because they look neat, not due to performance, small precise strikes, are always better then a wide kick, or some half arsed show off punch (why I put Boxing in there, no real beauty, but you WILL feel like youve been hit by a train if you catch someones punch)

based on fairly easy offensive: Boxing, most people dont consider it a martial art, but it is quite effective.

Defensive: Judo, it is really good for keeping people at a distance, or taking them down without causing permanent harm.

Some schools of Karate are effective, but Karate is not a single martial arts dicipline, it can be really diverse, and CAN be effective.

Most martial arts however are not very good out in the world, most of what is taught is flash with little substence, so alot of the more popular ones, are so because they look neat, not due to performance, small precise strikes, are always better then a wide kick, or some half arsed show off punch (why I put Boxing in there, no real beauty, but you WILL feel like youve been hit by a train if you catch someones punch)

Maddie_Larkin

Also agreed. I took pure boxing for a couple of years and it is absolutely the most effective striking art because it is based on natural movements and body nature. Kicking can be useful, but even for experienced practitioners, it is very difficult to successfully perform any kick(even a leg kick) in an actual situation.

If someone is interested in flashy martial arts, it is better to just learn tricks on your own(called Tricking) rather than paying large amounts of money for something that will not work in self-defence.

Kyokushin Karate and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu(try to find a Gracie Barra dojo, as they are founders)

[QUOTE="Gammet25"]

Whats a good reliable martial art to defend or fight with? I wanna learn one...

Suggestions?

SamusFreak

The art of the .45, its is very quick and easy to learn, and most people will see your knowledge of it and flee without a fight

Traditional Okinawan Goju-Ryu.

Hupkido anyone? (spelling might be wrong:?)

Origami the mastery of the paper cut is the most effective way to defend one self.markop2003

Wing Chun or Krav Maga. th3warr1or

If you just want to defend yourself then boxing is probably king, although if you can get somebody to teach you some then hand to hand owns (my Grandad taught me some when I was young). The most important thing defending yourself is to make an opening then use it to run the %&*! away :P, the graceful or competitive martial arts don't usually apply very well in real life no rules situations.

If you by chance just want something to keep fit and look impressive I would recommend Hung gar to start, it sets the foundation and disciplines your body.

The Way of the Seagull. ...Aikido. It's awesome and has a very interesting philosophy. Pure defense.

[QUOTE="SamusFreak"]

[QUOTE="Gammet25"]

Whats a good reliable martial art to defend or fight with? I wanna learn one...

Suggestions?

lightleggy

The art of the .45, its is very quick and easy to learn, and most people will see your knowledge of it and flee without a fight

Which is why you should also take up the art of Kevelar :P

Muay Thai, I was trained by a World Champion at it, the training was mental though!