Martial Arts
Martial Arts is a sport that you can do for a variety of reasons:
- Fitness
- Self Defence
- Build confidence
- Flexibility
- Relaxation
- Stress relief
- Competitions
... and the list goes on.
But in recent times, a lot of styles have lost their focus on the benefits of their students and concentrate more on the promotion of their orgaisation.
Some groups spend all their time boosting up their student's ranks and get them achieving black belts at rediculous ages (I have met a 7 yr old Taekwondo black belt). They focus all their energy on gradings and competition, but not much else. Other clubs will look at the interests of the students, working to overcome obesity, bullying, stress and build on fitness and flexibility. It may take students longer to grade through the ranks, but it can be more beneficial to the individual.
There is contraversy over which is the better style, but really, you need to try out different clubs and ones that focus on your goals. If all you want to do is competitions and gradings, look for a 'black belt club'. You won't really know unless you know someone from that organisation or you go for a trial lesson.
Another downside to martial arts, it can be very expensive. I have tried out a lot of clubs. Some charging only $4 per hour and a half lesson, others charging up to $12 for an hour. Some clubs do have packages such as paying $50 a month and training as little or as much as you like. Then you also have to consider the uniform and belt, grading fees, membership, insurance, safety gear (guards), weapons and competition fees.
There are a LOT of styles out there, but they do occur under some main categories. So I won't go through every single style because I will be here for ages. The ones I will explain about I will provide in the following posts:
- Karate
- Taekwondo
- Jujitsu
- Judo
- Kendo
- Tai Chi
- Tai Bo
... more information to come[/]
