TheFourth

When my body says no, I remember that the people I train with will try to take advantage of it. I won't let that happen.

Glass, I put this up as a thread ages ago, I feel its appropriate to your situation: "What art is right for me? I could write 100 pages on this alone, there is a massive number of systems worldwide one can study, most of which specialise in a certain aspect of martial arts. To be able to answer this question adequately though, you need to ask yourself why you want to train? People train for all different reasons. Some want to learn to fight, some want competitive glory, some just want to look cool in their shiny white gi/dobok etc. All these and other reasons are valid (as an aside, I began training because I wanted a lazy afternoon of my highschools sport elective and just never stopped). For instance, if your only concern is looking cool kendo makes a great choice, with their imposing armour and big sticks to clobber each other with, but it won't be much help if someone decides to try and stab you with a broken glass bottle in a pub one night. Once you have honestly answered why, it's onto the what. And in this case Google and YouTube can be both your friends and enemies. Obviously the internet can be used to find a class but beware, there is alot of misinformation flying around, so be careful researching prospective martial arts. Double check with other sources if at all possible. When you have narrowed down to what and where, the next step is the actual class. I would recommend contacting the instructor. Have a chat with them about what you want and how they will help you get there, and if satisfied with that see if they have a free class or two for you to attend. When attending the class keep an open eye. You want to see not only what you do, but also how the students conduct themselves. Do they like the instructor? If not, why? These are things you need to know before committing to anything. You should also use this time to affirm that the class and the teachings will serve your purpose. Assuming you are happy with this, comes the time to commit. Take a pay per class option if available, and buy equipment gradually. I have seen so many students join enthusiastically, then leave never to be seen again in a month. Remember that ultimately it is a financial exercise, so use all the caution and trepidation you would for a gym membership or similar. The cost of a 12 month contract will suck if your work hours change a month in and you can't train. In the end, caveat emptor applies. I'm too unfit to do x. In my time training, I have trained with lean and fit gym junkies, personal trainers, chain smokers, obese middle aged people. A class takes all types. Don't be afraid and jump in. Only train to your capabilities, and find a training partner in the class that is close to your fitness. So what if you can't do 20 roundhouse kicks in 30 seconds? Do as many as you can, and build on it. If you happen to be training in a less formal system,them modify the technique for yourself. I used to be really skinny, since getting fat some things don't work anymore, but my armdrags are much improved by the extra fat. Sprawls are very effective when you're 110kg. I have injuries. In that case, train smart. Alot of the above paragraph applies here. Work with your instructor to make the art work for you. For instance I have lower back problems, and eyesight issues. My back problems interfere with my ability to use knees effectively, so I either knee to my opponents legs, or I use them as a way to pull myself up and knee to their chest/head area. A similar example is my eyesight issues. I'm longsighted and as a result can't see what's going on when trapping. So I've learned to do it by touch, not sight. My point is, your instructor should work with you to go around your limitations, rather than be stopped by them. I'm worried I will get hurt. Unfortunately this is a fact of martial arts training. Inevitably accidents happen, and your instructor should attempt to minimise the risk through instruction and supervision. I'm worried about competition. Entry into competition should be entirely up to the entrant. You should never be forced to compete, or even spar in training. In the event of sparring in class, the instructor should supervise closely and be on hand to prevent the training becoming a fight. New students, in my opinion, should never spar. Is x a good art? Depends entirely on what you want to get from it. BJJ is fantastic in the ring, but not necessarily a good idea in the street. Kali is lethal, and thus not much use in the ring. Everything has its strengths and weaknesses, research and honesty are the keys here. I hope this has answered any lingering questions, feel free to ask any of me though, I will answer as best I can." Quoting myself.

What position is your head in when you throw the hooks? If you're tucking your chin when you throw them, you lock out your shoulders and limit your range of motion which could be the issue.

My background is Filipino martial arts, the concept of 'going easy' is entirely foreign to them. As for getting close, that's what trapping is for.

Never done any crossfit, this is a complete outsiders perspective. If this is what passes for crossfit, I think I'd prefer to stay the hell away. http://broscience.co/horrible-deadlifts-crossfit-games/

Trapping followed by elbow to throat. Only need to hit them once.

Also, I have to comment again. Like dijos, I am heavily biased toward Filipino martial arts, my background is Kali, a relative of Arnis. If there's Fma close to you as dijos pointed out you should seriously consider them.

Also, check the monk's knowledge base, you'll find some good resources there, as well as a way to contact practitioners of those arts directly.

I have varying degrees of experience with all but one on that list, I will tell you what I know of them: Karate-Do: This is the one I know the least about. You'll need to specify a particular style for me to give any meaningful insight, and unless it's one of the very few I have had experience with I'm going to be no better than a wikipedia article for it. Aikido: A soft japanese system emphasising joint locks and throws over striking. Particularly effective if one knows how to utilise it. The most well known exponent of the family of aikido systems would be Steven Seagal. Kung Fu: This term covers literally thousands of different and extremely diverse styles, you will need to be more specific. Wing Chun: Ah, the kung fu style made famous by Bruce Lee. Known for its rapid fire centreline strikes and impressive looking trapping. This art is fantastic if you have the mentality of just ploughing through an opponent, they go forwards like nothing else, relying on their trapping abilities to keep them safe. The style was said to be developed by a chinese woman after one too many bouts of domestic abuse, whether that is true or not, I have no idea. However, being a chinese system it was developed with the assumption that the user would be smaller than their opponent, something that may not be relevant to you. A point about their mentality in going forward. They go so far as to turn their toes inward, locking out their entire structure from doing anything other than going forward. To get technical, while standing that way, they cannot use (or at least I've never known any of them to use) circular lines effectively and they are particularly vulnerable to attacks on those lines as to meet those attacks, they need to shift their entire structure. Their entire structure is devoted to going forward, effectively resisting pressure designed to force them backwards but they are vulnerable to other angles. Tae Kwon Do: Aka, korean karate. Almost kickboxing in the truest sense of the word, TKD today is essentially teaching someone to play a game of high speed footsie. Most classes are belt mills, trading cash for classes in choreographed dance. Very limited real world self defense applications.

What annoyed me most about the ending, was that most of the choices I made up to that point didn't matter at all. The ending turns an epic, complex story into an A,B or C ending.

It's fantastic, up until the final half hour.

I did 3 years of tkd, my advice re head kicks is don't. They look impressive and are easily executed when in the dojang. Where you are barefoot, on nice grippy flooring wearing pants with the crotch modified to allow you to kick high without restriction. I am yet to find a pair of jeans that allow the same.

Yeah I study up there as well.

That's exactly my point. If they're only teaching the techniques that Bruce used, then they're not teaching you JKD. They're teaching you to mimic Bruce Lee, which isn't bad itself, just not the best unless you also happen to be a perfect physical copy of him. Bruce cultivated those techniques for a reason, and those reasons are only applicable to him. Everyone is different, no martial art is a perfect fit for anyone. JKD gives you the tools you need to decide on what is and isn't useful for you, it doesn't teach you the techniques.

Also, in relation to Jkd. Be very wary of any school claiming to teach Jkd, as Jkd is not a martial art. Alot of people get caught up in the myth of Bruce Lee and not realise that Jkd is a concept, a way of thinking. The martial art Bruce Lee developed is known as Jun Fan Kung Fu.