Effective, low contact training?

Discussion in 'General Martial Arts Discussion' started by bigreddog, Jul 14, 2014.

  1. bigreddog

    bigreddog Valued Member

    So, I have recently discovered that I have a congenital condition that is going to age my joints quicker than expected. I'm 42 - already have some damage to my fingers from jujitsu and kickboxing, and it looks like my knees and possibly toes are likely to be a problem next. (There are some medical options that are being explored which will decide how much the progression can be slowed, so I might be a able to roll for a bit longer, we will see)

    Don't want to stop training, but have to consider the possibility that impact will need to be limited. Have done a little bit of trad kata work and hated it (largely unrealistic imho), but can anyone recommend a style that has limited impact training / is easy on the joints, and still has some kind of effectiveness? Or is it, as I have always assumed, a bit of an oxymoron?
     
  2. ap Oweyn

    ap Oweyn Ret. Supporter

    I'm not sure it's an oxymoron. I dare say you could practice eskrima/arnis/kali, for instance, without necessarily doing a lot of sparring. Or any, given a medical history. The movements are the movements. In order to learn all the little nuances that optimize a movement, I believe you have to spar, etc. But if you want to train in something to stay active in martial arts, understanding that you're not going to be able to spar, you have options.
     
  3. aaradia

    aaradia Choy Li Fut and Yang Tai Chi Chuan Student Moderator Supporter

    Is it just impact you have to avoid or all contact? I mean, like getting hit or kicked or thrown type of impact?

    I am wondering if Tai Chi Chuan might be the answer then. You could still do stationary or restricted step push hands - but not moving step.

    It's particularly hard to find a good school in TCC. The realistic part is there IF you find a good school that teaches it the way it was originally meant to be taught. But it does have forms, so I don't know if it is your thing.

    Still, something to consider.
     
  4. bigreddog

    bigreddog Valued Member

    Thanks guys. No need to avoid all contact, just cut it right down; it is a question of the amount of wear and tear and how fast it will cause problems - my hands feel like crap after a heavy grappling session already due to gripping the gi, so how many of those I will do is a tough question.

    But then I have also heard of people who feel karate stances have messed up their knees, so it is really about minimising wear on the joints - in essence mine won't be properly lubricated
     
  5. callsignfuzzy

    callsignfuzzy Is not a number!

    You can always up your % of partner drills and maybe directed sparring as opposed to free-sparring/rolling. Might also try aqua-kickboxing if you have access to a pool: just shadow-boxing in 5' or water or so. Bas Rutten also, according to his book, did some grappling drills in water, but I have a hard time seeing that without a) having your partners give you really weird looks and deciding to pass or b) getting kicked out of the pool for "fighting".

    Do you know if there are any treatments for your condition? Joint-mobility drills, "pre-hab", that sort of thing?
     
  6. PointyShinyBurn

    PointyShinyBurn Valued Member

    Maybe just roll no gi? I find it infinitely easier on my hands.
     
  7. mr_sunseeker

    mr_sunseeker New Member

    I agree with this, kali, and if you do want to spar it can be with training knives, so you avoid the impact of sticks.
     
  8. YouKnowWho

    YouKnowWho Valued Member

    The "foot sweep" development will be easy on your joints (because you don't have to carry your opponent's body weight). Old saying said, "If you are good at foot sweep, you can use it to handle most of your problems." If your opponent wants to punch you, he has to shift weight onto his leading leg. The chance for you to apply your foot sweep will always be there. Besides, you can always use your foot sweep to set up your next favor move.

    I'll suggest to spend some of your training time to develop a good foot sweep. It will always be a good investment for your training time.
     
    Last edited: Jul 14, 2014
  9. matveimediaarts

    matveimediaarts Underappreciated genius

    :) If weapons are up the OP's alley, I would add kobudo and japanese sword (I only have experience with shinkendo and toyama ryu. Other styles may not be for the OP)-just tell the instructor you want to stick with controlled sparring (i.e. kumae bo and ichi no tachi). Free sparring generally isn't introduced until several ranks down the road anyway.

    Hope this helps.
     
  10. Dean Winchester

    Dean Winchester Valued Member

    I'd stay clear of Japanese swordsmanship if you are worried about your knees.

    It can be rather hard on them, styles of course will differ but the legs are rather important in JSA.
     
  11. Grass hopper

    Grass hopper Valued Member

    I guess this really depends on what you mean by effective. If you want to train in such a way that you will have an edge on an untrained opponent, most martial arts will do just fine. If you want to be a real dreadnought, heavy contact may be a must.

    So what do you mean by effective?
     
  12. bigreddog

    bigreddog Valued Member

    Its a good question. I have competed and always felt that the martial arts should be about the ability to fight - I have little interest in it as a cultural exercise or to develop my chi or anything else. So by effective I think the techniques learnt should all be applicable against a resisting opponent.

    (PS - I like the term Dreadnought very much!)
     
  13. m1k3jobs

    m1k3jobs Dudeist Priest

    I'm not sure where you live but being 60 I have similar issues with arthritis. So, I have started to make pistol shooting my martial art. I've gotten my carry permit and try to go to the range weekly. At this point I am focusing on my known distance shooting skills from 7 to 25 yards. The range I go to has all sorts of tactical shooting courses which are my next step once I am comfortable with my static shooting skills.

    As a former US Marine I have found the transition from long gun to pistol to be rather different and really enjoyable.

    BTW, even though I have a carry permit I seldom wear the pistol. For me it is a convenience so that I can transport my gun with loaded magazines and not have to spend as much time at the range loading rather than shooting.
     
    Last edited: Jul 15, 2014
  14. bigreddog

    bigreddog Valued Member

    I would love to train with handguns, but this side of the atlantic it isn't really an option :-(

    On the plus side, I don't need to worry too much about firearm disarms :)
     
  15. GenghisK

    GenghisK Jiu Jitsu Kempoka

    Strike me that with the condition as you've described it, the best bet may possibly be a weapons art?

    There are numerous sports and traditional fencing styles, both eastern and western which might give you good excercise, sparring at whatever level of aggression you choose, but little by way of hard loading to the joints.

    If you want to go unarmed, possibly a wushu style that emphasises sticky hands or soft flowing contact - some Win Chung styles certainly do that, although I'm not knowledgeable enough to say which ones.

    G
     
  16. jorvik

    jorvik Valued Member

    I have had two hip replacements on the one hip and the other is dodgy. I tried Tai Chi but it was too slow and too stretchy.I do Wing Chun which doesn't have all the running around and sticking hands can be enjoyable, it is very effective but be warned that there are a lot of bad WC clubs and finding a good one can be hard. Other than that I have done escrima, and I find boxing on my own oe even bag and pad work ae doable.......I haven't been near a mat since I had my first operation over 10 years ago.
     
  17. Dead_pool

    Dead_pool Spes mea in nihil Deus MAP 2017 Moi Award

    id make sure my jitsu game wasnt overly grip focused, pick my training partners and dont get drawn into wars with people. nogi with good people will be great, just be carefull with leg locks.

    for striking, it depends how how much heavy contact is apart of the usual classes, id be wary of doing too much bag work as its this which will effect your joints too.

    id definitely take up lifting and eating healthy with plenty of omega 3's if you havnt already.
     
  18. Kuma

    Kuma Lurking about

    Pick up archery. Shooting a bow is fun, you can practice at home in most cases, it truly is an art, and you can go hunt with it. I too am essentially permanently sidelined from any kind of serious contact and this is my current route. I shoot almost every day, go stump shooting on the weekends, and occasionally ping small critters to eat. Cheap too if you do it right.
     
  19. Bobby Gee

    Bobby Gee Valued Member

    Pretty sure wing chun will hurt your knees.
     
  20. bigreddog

    bigreddog Valued Member

    Thanks for the input guys - blood tests this week, so fingers crossed!
     

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