People today are involved in all sorts of fitness crazes and I believe the most dangerous one is cardio kickboxing or any of the variations of aerobics classes that combine martial arts and a group atmosphere. They may be fun and you might feel like you have learned a little about how to punch or kick and defend yourself, but guess again.
A real attacker is something you must connect with and protecting yourself, your friends or family does not amount to throwing your fists and feet into the air and it does not prepare you for a fight. Depending on an aerobics class or dance class for kicking defenses will never prepare you for a martial artist's onslaught either.
If you take up real fighting courses, you will not only attain a skill you might use one day, but you will get into a heck of a lot better shape than any aerobics instructor could hope to be. Consider the following recommendations:
- I recommend getting instruction in boxing.
- Learn to use a speed bag. Doing just 5 minutes on a speed bag like Rocky after a weight training workout is not only good for your heart, but it is good for eye to hand coordination.
- I also recommend practicing Muay Thai. This requires a heavy bag or something else that hangs a little lower than your hips because you will use knee and shin blows during the sessions.
- My last recommendation is that you look into ground fighting, something like Jiu Jitsu (without the use of a uniform/gee). You had better learn this before your attacker forces you into a wrestling match.
Unless you want to fight professionally, and sometimes people do, this will be all you need. It will probably come as quite the surprise how much fat you lose the first month, but it will also be interesting to note how confident you will become too. How good you get, and how fit you become, depend on your attention to detail and consistency in rehearsing these arts after each weight training session (3 times a week).
Do not become fascinated by rewards like belts and trophies. On the street, there are no rules or 'time outs', not even a bell or a referee, let alone a belt check. There is an old saying, "Everyone wants to be a fighter until they get hit." Do not get hit, and if you do, be prepared to hit back.
There are a thousand different moves and techniques and a million different ways of applying them. The combinations of all these moves and techniques are therefore countless and infinite. You should always use only what is quick, easy, effective and efficient for you. Realize that every situation and instructor is going to be different. No matter the situation, you must always consider the possibility that a trip to the store, to the gym, the bank, or worse, sleeping at home, may lead to an attack by a stranger or someone we happen to know. It is best to be prepared and not have to use your skills, than to need skills you do not have!
For more, take a look at Don Lemmon's KNOW HOW Book Two which features our very own take on Martial Arts Champions training programs through the eyes of those who partake in the best of the best instruction the world has to offer.
Just as you never want to be out of shape, you also never want to be caught off guard. Ultimately, you are more important than the system of any fighting arts you learn.
