Martial Art That Integrates Well With Firearms Training?

[el_chingoton13]

You gotta admit it looks pretty effective

[Ed L.]

Martial arts threads rarely end well.

[lethal dose]

Muay Thai and juijitsu schools are plentiful due to the resurfacing of mma. both very effective... just make sure you go to a reputable school. American kickboxing is my thing. ymmv.
Edit to say: many people may tell you that mt and jj are not effective in real life scenerios... do your research first... I, personally, disagree with such statements.

[jmoore]

Full disclosure:) I am a Godan Renshi in Isshin Ryu karate.

Some things to consider.....

1) While certain styles have pros and cons - the same can be said of the instructors within any one style. Always observe a class for at least a month before considering joining. Talk to beginners in the school - and talk to senior students. If there are any LEOs in the class - talk to them about the applicability of what is taught. (Yes - you CAN teach both traditional martial arts with all of the kata and whatnot along side of actual modern day street techniques!!!)

2) No one style "has it all". So, in addition to my basic style - I have also cross-trained in aikido, juijitsu, arnis and shinkendo. As Bruce Lee said - "take what is useful" from each style.

3) Although there are always exceptions, I counsel people in your position as follows:

Stay away from "tournament oriented" styles. Tournament fighting can get you killed or maimed on the streets. Some styles - in their home country! - aren't even classified as martial arts!!! Instead - they are considered a "sport".

Stay away from styles that espouse "meridians" or "death touch" (dim mak) techniques that are coupled with a heaping serving of yin & yang.

Stay away from styles that have a zillion belt levels, and charge an arm & a leg for testing at each of those levels. (Usually accompanied by a requirement to purchase all uniforms and gear through the school:)

Stay away from schools that promise that you will be a "black belt" in 18 - 24 months!!!!

Stay away from schools that teach kids. The stuff you want to know is not the type of material that should be passed on to a 12 year old!

Stay away from schools that want a huge amount of money (thousands!!!) and multi-year commitments.

Stay away from schools that don't use some degree of "contact" in training, i.e., you need to know what it's like to get knocked on your ass after taking the mother of all punches or kicks!!!!!

Stay away from schools that have excessive restrictions in terms of how you fight/spar in class. True - everyone needs to go home at the end of the night, and make it in to work the next day. But if you train to avoid certain targets over & over in the dojo, or if you simply pitty-pat spar with your opponent - you will likely do so on the street. Example - in my old dojo I always allowed punches/kicks to the neck and groin. Yes - you still can't gouge eyes or kick against the knees in class - but there ARE actually ways to train for that so as to have it in your "toolbox" when you need it.

4) Don't be afraid to bail on a school (after giving it a decent try:) if it isn't what you want! Hell - I used to let students go because they weren't the right "match" for my style and method of teaching.

5) Mindset and focus trump style or belt ranking ANY day!!!!!

jm

PS - There are cases where an officer actually disarmed the perp of his knife, and then turned right around and gave it back to him. Why? Because in their dojo - they did knife drills OVER & OVER - and always gave the blade back to their "training partner" to continue the drill. It is NOT a training partner!!! It is an opponent - treat him as such!

[lethal dose]

Also... look up dog brothers.

[el_chingoton13]

Just to throw some actual advise in here I am a brown belt in jiu jitsu and while not geared towards use with weapons, putting someone on the ground and out of the fight with a nice mounted triangle (my favorite) is very convenient since pretty much all fights end on the ground. And knowing that, it is really interesting to see what black belts in karate and tkd do when that happens.

[Erik 1]

Thank you for all the advice. I clearly have some research to do, and the above will definitely help with that. Obviously my choice will also be driven by what's available around me too, with a schedule I can coordinate with work. I really appreciate the input.

Erik

[huklbrry]

Lemme know where if you find someone who teaches the Gun Kata. It is the most coveted of forms IMHO.

[huklbrry]

Just to throw some actual advise in here I am a brown belt in jiu jitsu and while not geared towards use with weapons, putting someone on the ground and out of the fight with a nice mounted triangle (my favorite) is very convenient since pretty much all fights end on the ground. And knowing that, it is really interesting to see what black belts in karate and tkd do when that happens.

And its probably interesting that once you voluntarily go to the ground either a) bad guy's buddy is there to have a boot party on your face/back of your head or b)bad guy gets freaked out by not being comfortable on the ground and sticks you with a blade repeatedly but you were to close to see what his hands were doing. BJJ has its place, but it is weight-class dependant and as far as reality-based training goes, giving up mobility and opportunity to get the ef out of there, seems to be more of a con than a pro in "grave" situations..

[lethal dose]

And its probably interesting that once you voluntarily go to the ground either a) bad guy's buddy is there to have a boot party on your face/back of your head or b)bad guy gets freaked out by not being comfortable on the ground and sticks you with a blade repeatedly but you were to close to see what his hands were doing. BJJ has its place, but it is weight-class dependant and as far as reality-based training goes, giving up mobility and opportunity to get the ef out of there, seems to be more of a con than a pro in "grave" situations..

this is a valid point that I should have made. jj compliments other fighting styles well, however, I would never count on it as my primary fighting style. it is very weight dependant and, like Huklbrry stated, if you're grounded with someone and his buddy decided to Nazi stomp you, you'll wish it hadn't gone to the ground.