Which martial art?

So, turning over a new leaf after turning 30, I am going to take up a martial art after the holidays. My question to you all, is which do you think is most practical for LE?

I have it narrowed down to Muy Thai or Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. There is a full MMA school here, but it's more geared towards competition, which I don't have the time to devote, and honestly the interest in doing.

Krav Maga is ruled out mostly, because except the rare "fight for your life" occaision, you aren't going to be trying to destroy the perp. Muy Thai with it's striking and BJJ for the ground stuff is, at least in my opinion, the ways we mostly fight, so those are the top of my list.

I have an "in" with BJJ, as one of my best friends is heavy into BJJ, and is an olympic medal winner in wrestling.

Anyone here a practitioner in either? Opinions?

No says I


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_j1-xQA_ufE

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Why not Krav? A lot of it can be adapted to LE...lots of agencies train in it as a force option. Note I said force option, not a COMPLETE use of force system involving cuffing, searching etc..

For police work I found a few Aikido moves to be the most useful. It was not something I studied, just things taught during self defence classes while on various courses with SF.

The Instructor was of the opinion ( and I agree ) that you only need a few moves that you can call on. Those few moves can then be learned thoroughly, and become second nature. The simpler, the better.

The study of a fighting system is a personal and often a lifestyle choice. I like the idea that you are looking at more than one and that you have the time to devote. Myself and a lot of officers I know simply work to much to have the time. I try and spend what little time I have walking a half a block to a fire dept weight room with a treadmill.
I personally do not see just one fighting system having the edge over the other. A combination of systems, including wrestling, seems ideal. However, like Trojan, I would prefer to keep it simple. Read the situation and explode off the line in an attempt to dominate the suspect and then climb the use of force as necessary. Best wishes to you in your decision and keep us posted on your progress.

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Originally Posted by ChesCopPodz

So, turning over a new leaf after turning 30, I am going to take up a martial art after the holidays. My question to you all, is which do you think is most practical for LE?

I have it narrowed down to Muy Thai or Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. There is a full MMA school here, but it's more geared towards competition, which I don't have the time to devote, and honestly the interest in doing.

Krav Maga is ruled out mostly, because except the rare "fight for your life" occaision, you aren't going to be trying to destroy the perp. Muy Thai with it's striking and BJJ for the ground stuff is, at least in my opinion, the ways we mostly fight, so those are the top of my list.

I have an "in" with BJJ, as one of my best friends is heavy into BJJ, and is an olympic medal winner in wrestling.

Anyone here a practitioner in either? Opinions?

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There's no one perfect martial art. Each has strengths and weaknesses, and each can benefit you at work.

Krav Maga actually is very practical, very effective, and you can scale the responses more than you seem to realize. It's likely to give you an ass-kicking workout, and you'll gain functional competence quickly. If all you want out of martial arts training -- that's where I'd point you.

Thai Boxing is also rather direct. It'll likely also be a good workout. It has some applicability to defending yourself at work -- but you run into the fact that it's competition oriented. There are huge differences between the street and the ring... Nothing insurmountable, but certainly something to be aware of.

BJJ is a solid grappling system, and SOME teachers know the strike side of it. It can have applicability on the job -- though I'm not personally keen on getting tied up like that when dealing with a bad guy. I haven't seen a lot of BJJ that honestly takes into account the restrictions of a gun belt and body armor, either. It'll also keep you fit, in most cases. Plus for you here is your buddy...

Beyond the three you mention, there are literally hundreds of martial arts, and a lot depends on what's in your area, and your goals. For all you know, you live around the corner from some real grandmaster, who just keeps a lower profile...

I'd encourage you to visit the schools and decide what fits your interest, and where you feel like you'd be comfortable training. That's really what matters more than the particular style.

And -- in a shameless plug, since I'm an admin over there -- you might check out the forums over at MartialTalk. Let me know if you register there (it's free), and under what username, and I'll ensure that you get approved quickly.

Actually I've just googled the guy I spoke of and found he runs a school now. Check out Mick Gould. Toughest little Welsh bastard you could ever meet. I'm sure I still have bruises he gave me 20 years ago. He was recruited by the SAS because of his Ninja skills. Mick would make Chuck Norris cry like a girl!

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Originally Posted by Trojan 42

Mick would make Chuck Norris cry like a girl!

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Omg.

Is this your guy?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_WBfk7MJ84

Welcome to the Frontpage

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

I think Akido is your best bet as well, more along the type of fighting we do. Judo would be another good one. Also it would depend on you. For example, I am 6'6" 330lbs. I wouldn't be good at high flying kicks. But using an opponents weight against them and throwing them is perfect for me. Of course if your built like Jet Li, then more power to you.

Yep that's him Lew. As my unit worked closely with the SAS on major incidents we went to their base for training for a couple of weeks each year. After long days of hostage rescue training, storming buildings, planes, trains etc. we ended the day with a couple of hours in the gym with Mick. I still remember the trepidation when I heard the phrase, "come y'ere", which was Mick calling you out for a practical demo. It never ended well.

I also attended a 3 week SAS Close Protection Instructors Course where the day ended in the Gym with Mick. Toughest gym sessions I ever did. He'd teach the techniques and then beast us on the equipment until we could hardly stand, and then practice the fighting stuff. He said, " Everyone can fight for a few minutes, but the guy that wins can fight until he doesn't need too".

You dont have to compete to train MMA. Having wrestled my entire live and competing in MMA for four years, i would say MMA or Krav would be the best choices. I am a DT instructor at my agency and to be honest, I teach alot of wrestling/BJJ as well as Muay Thai. MMA is pretty much a combination of all three of those disciplines. Wrestling is great for positioning and leverage, BJJ is great for sumbissions/pain compliance and of course Muay Thai for striking aspect of fighting. MMA will also get you accustomed to stiking while grappling. You would be surprised how hard it is to remember to strike while wrestling with someone when it hits the fan.. Muscle memory.

I liked Kempo. Also, take a look at this book. I have it and its follow-up, and they are very, very good.
Solo Training: The Martial Artist's Guide to Training Alone: Loren W. Christensen: 9781880336595: Amazon.com: Books