Martial Arts Thread

Re: Martial arts...

No, they are not both official spellings. Ninjutsu is the only official spelling, while ninjitsu is a term incorrectly used by westerners thanks to martial arts such as Jiu-jitsu, which -does- use the jitsu suffix. Jutsu, in the original Japanese word, means "way" or "art", jitsu does not.

And yes, Mortal Kombat makes mistakes all the time, you can look in almost every game and point out at least 100 mistakes.
 
Re: Martial arts...

ofcourse only one is REAL, but by "official" im saying that they are both used by even the teachers and what not simply because of the recognition they both get. I've seen the signs outside the buildings. I've read the magazines and books. I've seen the variations, so I KNOW they're both used.
 
Re: Martial arts...

there's really no such thing as "official" and "unofficial" when discussing things like this. especially when simply refering to the names of them. styles of martial arts and their names, like any word of any language, can fluxuate directly in connection with the culture to which they are attached and the people who practice them. it's not like the term was coined by some corporation to describe their product and then the name was trademarked and copyrighted. it's a part of cultural nomenclature and can change at any given moment at the will of all parties involved on a majority basis. just like how certain "fake" words can eventually make it into the "official language dictionary" simply because there are enough people who use the word over a long enough period of time. happens ALL-THE-TIME with the english language. it becomes a part of the true, and scholarly recognized language for the simple fact that alot of people use that word.

so, if there are many teachers of the style who want to spell it ninjitsu. many students of the art who want to write it as ninjitsu and pronounce it as such. many scholars who study the history and origins of it, many magazines and books and videos and tournament holders and documentaries and documentarians who all want to write and say it as such. and lets not forget the whordes of general public persons throughout the many many countries who wish it to be written and spoken as such. then so it shall be. is it official? no. is it unnoffical? no. because these terms do not apply. it's a part of culture and will constantly change through time.

denying it, doesn't make it untrue.
 
Re: Martial arts...

I took Tae Kwon Do ah is the spelling right?, for a few months then I just got bored and gave up but I do know a few moves probably not enough to kick someones azz.
 
Re: Martial arts...

Frank, Frank, Frank, you don't get it, do you? There -is- an official spelling of it, and it's Ninjutsu. It's always been Ninjutsu, it will always -be- ninjutsu. You can say whatever you want about how that's not the official spelling, but any person with any knowledge on the subject will say it's with a u, not an i.
 
Re: Martial arts...

i'm just going to agree to disagree because I'm not going to waste my time on a message board trying to convince someone of something they don't want to believe. i know what i know, and you know what you know. that's where I'm leaving it, so you can continue to speak upon deaf ears all you want, but I'm moving on.
 
Re: Martial arts...

I'm doing Karate. I got green for it as proof. I'm trying to self-teach myself Tae Kwon Do first before I go on doing the Dragon style.
 
Re: Martial arts...

I took enough Karate to know how to defend myself. I sprained my ankle before I could move up any belts, so I got stuck as a white belt for 2 semesters. Then I gave up.
 
Re: Martial arts...

My brother did karate for a short time. It was a while back, as in years back. I think the classes were once or twice a week.
 
Re: Martial arts...

It depends on what days you like to go and practice on the skills. I go like between once or twice a week on Fridays and Saturdays.
 
Re: Martial arts...

Self taught hapkido, not very good though. I think any one of you could kick my butt if it came down to best self taught martial artist.
 
Martial Art vs. Martial Art

Okay, so in an attempt to get the TRMK community pumping again, and as a martial artist who's curious to know how mine pits against another, I would like to know. Which martial art, do you believe, do we believe, is the better one? Now, I did see the National Geographic show Fight Science (which you can view on youtube at any time) and it stated that Ninjutsu (Spelled ninjitsu on the show, and I've given up on trying to discuss with anyone how it's actually spelled, because really it doesn't matter anymore) has the perfect balance (literally) of power, speed and prowess.
However, there have been cases where a ninjutsu practitioner has fallen to one of another school, and even to a random street thug. Now, experience and skill must logically be taken into consideration, as must the option that whoever they were fighting may have had a weapon of some sort and the practitioner simply failed to disarm it.
Now, according to Fight Science, the basic necessities of a fight (Strength in punch and kick, speed, locks and throws) are separated into a certain martial art, and here are what Fight Science says are the kings of their respective forms
Most powerful punch................................Boxing
Most powerful kick.................................. Muay Thai
Fastest striker....................................... Tae Kwon Do
Most Balanced........................................ Ninjutsu
Joint locks............................................. Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu

Now, unfortunately for many of us who are childhood fans of the martial art, and the first martial arts we were exposed to were most likely Kung Fu and Karate, neither of them won any of the fields. Now, Kung Fu was runner up in both fastest striker and most balanced (shockingly enough, in the pseudo-balance form of Drunken Boxing, made popular by Jackie Chan) Karate, I believe, came up second in most powerful punch.

Okay, so here's the test here: we're going to discuss, like the mature responsible people I know and have seen us be, what we think are the best martial arts, and if one could possibly be the best of them all. Now, please refrain from saying stuff like "Well, what if a 10th kyu ninjutsu guy fought a black belt Tae Kwon Do master?" This is all hypothetical stuff here, no one martial art can be perfect for everyone, as not everyone is built the same way. Here we're dealing with two fighters. Both equally experienced, but equally skilled, but in different martial arts
Now, since I don't want people constantly spewing out random facts about martial arts, I'm going to post a bit of them and their history here. Now, I realize that there's no way I can possibly post about all of them, but I will post as many as I can.
So let's start with the most famous ones

Kung Fu
Pretty much laid down the foundation for all martial arts. Invented by Bodidharma and taught to the Shaolin Monks, it is a quick martial art that deals out many blows in a matter of seconds. There are billions of off-shoots from Kung Fu, such as Drunken Boxing and Monkey, and all of them master a certain area. Not the strongest of the martial arts, in fact the weakest, but definitely one preferred by many. Perfect for people with flexible body parts, light weight, and are low in height, but not restricted to them. Balance is also a big part of this martial art

Next up we have the Okinawan native martial art.
Karate
Widely hailed as the most popular martial art in the world. When someone says "Martial arts" they think of a muscle bound man in a white gi with a black belt. That's usually what you see in Karate. Mostly a striking martial art, Karate practitioners practice punching from a solid stance, rolling the fists outward as they punch. The martial art takes great pride in it's powerful punches, but also incorporates acrobatic kicks, grappling, joint-locks, and vital strikes. Basically anybody can practice karate, but muscle and speed must either be attained or already acquired when practicing karate.

Tai Chi
Yeah, Tai Chi, not really a martial art you see people using in MMA or on the street, as it is considered by many to be an easy martial art, one practiced mostly for spiritual enlightenment. Ordinarilly I might look this over, but I think that, as it strongly enforces the proper control of "chi" and relaxation of the mind and muscles, it could be just as formidable as boxing or muay thai, as many a time has a fighter fallen just because his body was pumping too much adrenaline and he was struck dumbfounded when faced with a calm and collected martial artist (see Karate Kid 3). People who practice this martial art are usually the same as those who practice kung fu, but as it's an easy martial art, the odds that it would be restricted to the slim and the fit is very slim.

Hapkido
A Korean martial art. I personally don't know ALL about this martial art, but I do get the basic gist of it. It employs the same basic moves as Karate, strikes, kicks, joint-locks, throws and pressure points, but it's way of incorporating them is entirely different. Hapkido relies on a more circular way of avoiding and fighting, known as gyoko (encircling method) Many of the moves start out at long range or arm length distances, but end with the practitioner close to the oppoent for a pressure point strike, or a take down. Mainly a leveraging martial art, those who practice don't have to be especially strong, but must have a good sense of leveraging.

Kapap (Krav Panim el Panim)
An Israeli martial art. Mainly an amalgation of judo and jiu-jitsu, but to an extreme version. Practitioners train of peak physical endurance, and seek to master skill with modern weaponry, such as handguns and knifes. The martial art is employed by the Israel Defense Force.

Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu
A martial art I spent a year training in but simply could not get good at. Absolutely no strikes are taught in the art. Grappling is employed, but the main goal is to get the fighter to the ground. Once there, choke holds and jointlocks are usually enforced, causing the target great pain. Mainly seen in UFC and MMA, this art has become less and less of an art and more and more of a sport. Very ruled down, as it is a tournament art, and is therefore usually not one people use on the street. Practitioners must usually be fairly strong and have a decent amount of weight.

Jujutsu
The father of Jiu-Jitsu, an art from Japan, and the fighting style of the samurai. The art usually focuses on counter techniques, and DOES use strikes and kicks, but unlike Jiu-jitsu is unruled, so gougings and bitings are permitted. The art was proven to work well against other samurai, as it taught to attack vital pressure points such as the eyes, the nerve bundle underneath the ear, or the respiratory nerve located near the armpit, which would have been uncovered by a samurai's body armor. Many schools of jujutsu also teach weaponry, which is logical to expect, as the art was employed by the samurai, who carried katana and tanto, normally. The strikes in jujutsu are normally limited, as samurai usually had a weapon so strikes were unnecessary. Throws are also prominent in the martial art.

Taekwondo
The way of the hand and foot, literally. A Korean martial art, also the fastest martial art in the world. It prides itself in its speed and incredibly deadly kicks. These kicks include turning, front, side and back kicks. Taekwondo heavily relies on being flexible. The martial art is the most prominently practiced martial art in the United States, and can be found during the Olympic games.

Ninjutsu (Ninjitsu)
The art of deception. A very different art in that it is taught with limited to no kata, and constantly aims to have the practitioner seem as though the moves are accidental. The moves include powerful weight strikes (strikes thrown from the weight of the body rather than mass of the muscles) intense bone locks as well as joint locks, and powerful acrobatics. Balance is this martial art's strongest point, as many of the moves must give the attacker the image that the ninja (anyone who practices ninjutsu will be called a ninja here, for simplicity's sake) is offbalance, or otherwise hurt. As stated above, it is the art of deception, and many feints as well as pseudo-fallings are incorporated. Speed is normally a trait found in practitioners, but isn't necessary. Strength is heavily discouraged, as even the most conditioned bodies are succeptible to damage from joint locks, eye strikes, or even groin attacks.
 
Re: Martial Art vs. Martial Art

Sorry, apparently I exceeded the limit for words, here's the rest of it
American Boxing
The most powerful punching martial art in the world. The punches are brought, not from the fists, but from the legs and hips, which increase both power and velocity. Boxers are usually very powerful in the upper body, and more so in the lower body. Many strikes aim for the face, hoping for a knockout or some sort of broken face tissue, however since most fighters will have their arms up for blocking, or will otherwise dodge, quick fast jabs are taught to break down the arm's power, or to tire the attacker down.

Jeet Kune Do
The style invented by popular martial artist Bruce Lee. While based somewhat upon Wing Chun, Jeet Kune Do is heavily influenced by boxing and fencing. Indeed, many times Bruce Lee spoke of the JKD fist being identical to the fencing sword. The straight punch is the pride of the martial art, however kicks, grappling and trapping are also employed.

Wing Chun
A Chinese martial art that excels in close range fighting. As in Jeet Kune Do, the straight punch is the focus of most attacks.

Wrestling
Many times not even a real martial art, as it is strength against strength, trying to get the opponent onto the ground, from which powerful holds and locks are employed. Found prominently in high schools and college levels, the art is not at all recommended on the street, as it's lack of strikes and dependence on physical strength and weight could result in one's death.

Muay Thai
A martial art from Thailand, it's pride is the knee kick. Essentially every part of the body is used in the martial art, the fingers, hands, elbows, biceps, legs, knee's, feet. Anything goes as far as strikes go. It is similar in that the stances look like boxing, however as kicks are employed, it differs greatly. The knee kick is executed by the practitioner grabbing the opponent by the neck, then thrusting the knee into his solar plexus at full force, and at it's peak, going at a speed of 35 miles per hour.

Okay, so those are the martial arts I could think of off the top of my head. If you want others to be discussed and thrown into consideration, just do what I did. Post a reply describing the martial art and what it's strengths are. I would say the weaknesses, but that's what we're here to discuss, is it not? Now, please, if you didn't read all of that, don't post a reply saying "well dur, Muay Thai is the best because it has the most raw power" (which is true, the kick is the strongest non-lethal attack in the world) take into consideration that when fighting, one may or may not get the chance to attack with said move, and the odds of one getting in a perfect shot to the solar plexus are slim as the attacker may be moving or blocking. Mathematically speaking, the best martial art should be determined by which one has more strengths than weaknesses, but in a real fight a fighter can compensate for his art's insufficiencies by over-shooting the art's main power.

So, let's get to discussing, eh? This should be fun.
 
Re: Martial Art vs. Martial Art

Your descriptions are probably pretty accurate, since I have only ever been in two martial arts, Tae Kwon Do and Karate. However, Karate was developed in India and wasn't introduced to Japan until the early 1900s, so it isn't technically the native martial art of Okinawa.

As for the discussion, you are absolutely right that the effectiveness of a martial art is very much determined by the expertise and experience of the person practicing said martial art. I have only seen Ninjutsu (Ninjitsu) performed once in a UFC competition, so with all of the rules and crap like that, I doubt I saw the full potential of the art. The guy just lured the opponent to the ground in one way or another (I'm not sure how as it's been years since I saw the event) and then proceeded to sit on his opponents chest and beat the guys head in until he threw in the towel.

Muay Thai is extremely powerful and I've seen countless people knocked out by kicks, but I've also seen a Muay Thai fighter break his own leg by blocking another Muay Thai kick. Maybe not the best martial art... Then again, the fighter that had his leg broken was about half the size of his opponent.

Boxing should not even be counted as a martial art. It is more of a sport and there is no way a professional boxer could hold his own against a master of any of the other arts listed.

Wrestling is much like boxing, in that it is mainly a sporting competition and probably not very practical in a real fight. Sure, grappling is great, but there are ways to get around it that are taught in many of the other arts listed.

Karate, while a strong art, demands a lot from the practitioner. When I studied Karate (a very butchered and flashy version called "American Karate"), the majority of time was not spent practicing technique, but working out and stretching to keep yourself strong, fit and flexible because some of those kicks are hard as hell to do when you're not properly stretched. It's basically just an all purpose self-defense art and would probably not do well in a situation where the practitioner is attacking as the strength of Karate is in defense.

I don't know much about any of the other arts, but those are my opinions. I would rather hold my decision on the strongest art until I see more of them in action.
 
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Re: Martial Art vs. Martial Art

Alright, here are some videos of the martial arts

Ninjutsu



Kung Fu



Karate



Tai Chi



Hapkido



KAPAP



Jiu-Jitsu



Jujutsu



Taekwondo



Muay Thai



Capoeira, an art I didn't cover but probably should have. The Brazillian Art of Dance Fighting. Basically it's just a martial art that's disguised as a dance. I don't know how effective that could be on the street, but as my friend who practices it says that it is EXTREMELY difficult to learn and that the body must be in peak physical condition, I doubt that it could be good for a 110 lbs, 5'2'' woman to use when a 180 lbs 6'2'' man comes and tries to rape her.




Jeet Kune Do




Wing Chun (Tsun)



Wrestling


Also, if someone could tell me the name of the first song in the second video, I'd be very happy.

Boxing



Now keep in mind some of these videos may have been staged, especially when I see the wrestling match. Others may have been ruled, possibly the Taekwondo demonstration and the boxing match. Either way, I wasn't trying to demonstrate the full potential of the martial arts, just give you the gist of them.
So let's get some words flowing, eh?
 
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Muay thai/kickboxing thread

Let me start this thread with a question. Im a muah thai fighter for like 2 and half years or so.
what would be the best combination? cause i suck at fighting on the ground...
what sport should i add in my life to combine????
 
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