Martial arts are considered very important depending on the culture of each person. Depending on someone’s age, older generations used martial arts as rituals and traditions whereas the younger generations use it as a sport. Some people even take part in both forms. People use martial arts as self-defense or to improve different skills or to even get fit. Martial arts have all kinds of purposes. Now with that being said there are too many to count and it’s hard to mention them all. So let’s look at some of the most well-known and effective ones.
1
Boxing
Probably the most well-known martial art in the world. Boxing is also considered a fighting sport. It came to surface in Ancient Greece as part of the Olympic Games which evolved later on in Great Britain. Then a more modern version was created which made it very famous in the United States. The two fighters are in a ring and fight (with gloves) using mostly punches with rounds until one of them can’t stand anymore. Boxers have quick reflexes, are really fast on striking and avoiding hits from the enemy while they have lighting fast and agile punches. Clinches are also used by the fighters to stop getting hits and/or to create a pause during the fight.
2
Muay Thai
This is also a fighting sport and involves rituals too. As you can guess its origins are from Thailand. Muay Thai is like the next step of Boxing. The fights are similar with two fighters in a ring with rounds until one of them can’t fight any longer. It involves punches, kicks, elbows, knees and clinches. These fighters are ferocious and all of their limbs are used with fast and agile moves. Some moves even involve jumping for more powerful strikes.
3
Wing Chun
One of the most famous “Kung Fu” styles from China. It was created by a woman called “Yim Wing Chun” and it became well-known to the world by the legend “Ipman” aka “Yipman”, for those that don’t know who he was, that’s the person that trained Bruce Lee. It’s a close-combat fighting system which involves striking and grappling techniques using all of your limbs but mostly your hands. For some it is considered the absolute defense because the practitioners focus on the centreline, which helps them defend against any stand-up attack. While they use that absolute defense, practitioners counter-attack simultaneously the attacker and it’s really hard to defeat them on a stand-up fight.
4
Pankration
Like many other things, mixed martial arts’ origins are from Ancient Greece. Also martial arts in general didn’t start in Ancient China or Japan. Pankration was shown to the Asian countries and all the different styles were created one after the other since then. Pankration was one of the many reasons why Spartans were some of the most feared warriors of all time.Moreover you can watch pankration matches in the Olympic Games. Almost anything is allowed. It involves boxing, wrestling, kicking, locks and chokes on the ground.
5
Jiu–jitsu
Most people know this martial art as “Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu” or “BJJ”. Let me explain. Jiu-jitsu was the fighting style used by the Samurai in Ancient Japan and later on by Ninjas as well in cases of close combat whilst losing their weapons. Later on it was brought to Brazil and with some modifications it came to be the modern version called BJJ. It’s considered a fighting sport and you can watch the world championship for matches. It’s a close-combat fighting style involving grappling, joint-locks and chokeholds. The practitioners mostly try to move their opponent to the ground in order to proceed with the locks.
6
Jeet Kune Do
This is the martial art of the famous Bruce Lee. He wanted to create a new martial art which will include the best techniques and moves from different martial art forms in order to be more effective. Practitioners combine teachings from Wing Chun, Boxing, Muay Thai, Taekwondo and many other martial arts. They practice all these techniques while trying to be more efficient, quicker and more powerful at the same time. They mostly use punching, kicking and grappling.
7
Krav Maga
Probably the most efficient self-defense system in the world since its creation. The reason for that is because its practitioners use as little moves as possible in order to eliminate the threat even when the opponent holds any kind of weapon. It’s the martial art used by the Israeli army and it eventually spread around the world. It’s also a hybrid martial art that combines different ones like Muay Thai, Judo, Boxing, Jiu-jitsu, Wrestling and Taekwondo. Practitioners have fast and efficient moves for any situation either within a ring or on the streets.
8
MMA
Aka “Mixed Martial Arts” is the future of martial arts and one of the most well-known martial arts. It was created in the United States during the early 20th century. The name came to be since it is the absolute definition of a hybrid martial art. Different events were created and now UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) is the most famous fighting sport event in the world. In this event fighters fight each other in a cage until only one of them is standing and the fights are brutal. There is no style in MMA. Fighters create their own fighting style depending on the fighting systems they train. Some of the most used are Muay Thai, BJJ, Boxing, Kickboxing, Capoeira, Karate, any kind of Kung Fu, Taekwondo and Wrestling. From these guys everything can be expected.
For every individual the reasons to practice martial arts are different. Some want to be safe, others want to become fit and others to learn cool tricks/skills. Every martial art has its advantages and disadvantages. Moreover how effective the person will be is dependent on the level of the practitioner. Decide what your reasons are and choose the fighting style or styles that suit you to train the ones you like.
Share this article to inform more people and tell us your thoughts in the comments below: Which fighting system from the above is your favourite? Which ones will you choose to learn? What are your reasons for practicing martial arts? Do you have any other suggestions? If yes then – Why do you like that specific one?