Effective?

Hello,
I'm new here, so be gentle!!
I'm new to martial arts. So forgive me if my question is a bit naïve.
Is Japanese Ju Jitsu as good as its made out to be? I have heard it is one of the best close combat and realistic martial arts? What I have read and seen on the internet certainly impressive (to a newbie) but what do you more experienced guys think? Will this work in a real street confrontation?
I will link a video of Ju Jitsu and Aikido (which I also like the principles of) below for your opinion. My main concerns are that Aikido is considered 'weak'. But can JJJ and Aikido be effective if I train in the gym also to be fit and strong? Is it about the conviction in the application of the techniques that could make it effective? Or would combining with another style be beneficial?
Sorry that I have rambled on!
Zack
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGNQBg-vl6w[/ame]
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqxNV0MMKXc[/ame]

 

So, what people will tell you is "it's not what you train, it's how you train" and that's true, but it's only half the story.

There are, undoubtably very good JJJ schools and very good Aikido schools where the students train hard and drill their techniques against committed attacks. They are very much the exception to the rule however and a beginner stands absolutely no chance of being able to separate a good school from a bad one.

There are other styles that are more consistent in their training methodologies, which make them better options for most people looking for something 'realistic'.

 

Darn straight. It doesn't matter if you take Krav Maga, Kajukenbo, WTF Tae Kwon Do, some obscure sport karate, kick boxing, the effectiveness of a martial art for an individual is solely determined by the competence of the individual and the learning environment. Stick with what feels right to you, with time you can make it work. I know some people who hold ranks in some obscure form of martial art that probably was just made up by the instructor that could hand my butt on a silver platter, but on that same note I know people who learn Kajukenbo, Kick Boxing, or Jiu Jitsu who couldn't fight their way out of a wet paper bag. Rather than ask about whether a style is weak, ask yourself if the school itself and the teachings are weak and ill taught.

 

Thanks mate, so which styles do you favour?

 

That second clip was bloody awful

 

That's my main concern, will the techniques be effective against an attacker who isn't going to be compliant and who is genuinely going to fight back/resist

 

Drill it against resistiance and you will find whether or not a technique will work. I have seen - and done - some very "esoteric" style moves in live situations, but the common denominator is always how they were trained

training method>style

 

His answer will be something along the lines of "Muay Thai, BJJ, judo, MMA, boxing, kickboxing". Perhaps not in that order.


Mix it in with some proper self defence knowledge from Geoff Thompson and you're good to go.

 

Ok cool, I do appreciate your advice.
Would Aikido or JJJ work well if combined with another style? And which style?
As I do like the principles of the styles

 

All of it was awful.

 

A lot of these principles are shared with judo and BJJ, since training in both of these my own Jiujitsu ability has increased exponentially.

 

That is a blanket assumption right there Dean, my 4 year old girl actually seemed to quite like the 'Soundtrack'.... :hat:

Regards,

Travess

 

Great stuff, how long have you trained Judo for? And BJJ? and JJJ? which one takes your priority?

 

To zackstevens:

Beware of schools that say they train against "committed attacks." You can commit to tackling forward with your whole body and still not hit anyone.

Ask:

1. Why do they WANT to hit the other guy (aka you, the one doing the technique?)
2. What are they doing to increase the chances of hitting the other guy (meaning how to hit YOU!)?

Only the you can answer the question:

3. Is what they're doing, aka the technique being shown, enough to foil the other guy's methods of hitting you?

A committed attack can still be considered a token punch, a placeholder, not indicative of a real-time setting. If one really wants to hit you, doesn't matter how soft or hard, they'll do their best to connect/hit.

At the same time: TIMING.

If they attack you now, will they pay dearly for it? What if they wait until you shift your weight backwards? Will they be even more successful and able to get away without damage in return?

See for yourself if they train that way. If all they do is attack without security (securing oneself from counterattacks), LEAVE. Unless you really want to train just for fun and camaraderie, then it doesn't matter if it's not realistic.

 

True, but I can ALMOST forgive the first one as a demo of a flow drill

 

was that second clip real?

 

Patrick trains regularly with Erik, so he certainly has some force-on-force skills.

 

The one titled "real aikido street fighting. Real street fight & aikido skills" ?

I seriously hope it isn't for real but who ever put it on YouTube seems to take it seriously . . . Somehow

 

It wasn't actually bad at all - little contrived in places, but clearly it was intended as a low intensity technique demo and aso such it was fine. At least the techniques are workable and valid

The second one was just horrendous on so many different levels

 

Basically if you find a school where the students regularly do the things they train "for real", you should be fine. If they're teaching self defense, scenario training with fully resistant "opponents" should happen with some regularity.
If they're teaching sword fighting, someone should actually try to hit you with something resembling a sword, and often. If they're teaching joint locks, you should be jointlocking people who are actually trying to jointlock you on a regular basis.

Training standing jointlocks for self defense and then doing point-stop sparring doesn't really work. So if your teacher teaches you a technique but you never get to really do it or nobody ever really does it to you, you won't ever understand it. No style can overcome this.
Now, if you do practice your techniques against real, fighting opponents, it doesn't much matter what style you practice, you'll learn to tell for yourself what works and why. You'll naturally gravitate toward effective techniques and versions of them that work well for you.


So Judo, BJJ, wrestling, boxing, Muay Thai, kickboxing... They're all good choices because you you actually use the techniques in small, controlled fights every class. It's not a fight-or-die assault but it's far closer than performing the techniques with an opponent who is permitting or even helping you to do it.