in YOUR opinion, does Height matter in a fight?

I'm not huge. 5 foot 8 inches. I weigh 156-160. mostly muscle. Heres my problem. Everyone who wants to pick a fight is usually big. It's almost certain that they WILL be. I'm 18, and probably not going to get more than another inch or 2, likely because im still growing.

What form of martial arts would be recommmended for a shorter guy taking on six footers and up?

As always, your input matters to me. my life may depend on it.

 

Height can matter in a fight. If a person is tall, they will most likely have a long reach. If you wish to learn a MA that can help with your diminuative size, then I would suggest one that teaches you to get inside a person's reach and break them down or a grappling strategy. Really, I don't have a large amount knowledge on size use in fights, but I think I would suggest Krav Maga, Sambo, or Ju-Jitsu. Best of luck in survival.

 

Well I'm biased here, but i would suggest Taekwondo. Why? Because your leg will likely be longer than the arm of the average bully.

Whatever art you choose, you'll likely be sparring against people who are taller than you, so you'll get a chance to practice what works in a safe environment and learn to avoid what doesn't work when fighting a taller opponent for real.

 

Well I am also biased towards TaeKwonDo, but in reality I would agree that a smaller guy would do well to learn a grappling MA of some sort, BJJ. Unless the big guy knows some defense tactics for takedowns, you normally would have a big advantage in speed and if you are strong as you infer then you should do well with it.

Mix that with some basic boxing skills and then as per my background some TKD and you would be a well rounded individual for opponents of any size.

 

IMNSHO, it only matters in two different situations:

1) The taller fighter is trained
2) The difference is greater that 6 inches

The kick comment is valid, since kicks generally have longer range than hands. However, if you're up against a really good striker, having a good ground game is your best defense.

 

6 inches? 2 inches can make a significant difference. if your opponent even knows how to jab, you'll have trouble with it. learning to box has helped me more than anything when it comes to dealing with a height disadvantage. obviously, grappling and clinching is going to be the best way to negate the reach, so i would recommend something along the lines of wrestling or bjj as well.

 

If I were small and were fighting a much bigger opponent I would probably just give'em a hard kick to the nuts.. as those would be of much easier reach than their head, if we're talking a striking art.. but that's just me, nevermind.

 

Hard decision.

I've been doing TKD for about 8 years. Man I hate being under six foot. Six foot flat seems to being a great height. It's not too tall...and it allows you to distrubute your weight evenly with good work. Anyone at that weight can weigh 180-200 and still be able to move quickly. I on the other hand could never weigh much more than 185 at my current height...and be able to use TKD in a fight.
I Need to not only be able to take opponents bigger than me, but mutliple opponents at once. Whats great for incaptasitating opponents without being lethal?

Btw..Most people i will have to deal with will be more than likely six foot. Thats 4 inchs bigger than i am currently. I'm really praying for a couple more inches in height..Does anyone know when men stop growing?

 

Tyson is only 5'10". Weight is much more important than height. The tyson peek a boo style is perfect for a guy your height though.

 

yeah if you are a boxer. when you start adding more things into the equation being taller usually becomes an advantage with the exception of grappling really. but striking involving kicks, knees, etc- a taller guy is gonna have an advantage. so whats the secret to success? train really hard so your skill overcomes it

 

you want to learn how to beat up multiple attackers, but not really hurt them? you have two options- change your way of thinking and carry a blade, or invest in a good pair of running shoes.

well men can continue growing into their early 20s, but you arent going to get much taller if at all than you are now.

 

Knew a band roadie/soundman that was your height..He was a Wing Chung practioneer and he was BAD...Height meant nothing to him...

 

Height's a definite advantage. I'm 5'4", so I usually don't go up against anyone shorter than me, but where I'm training right now, most people are around my height or smaller. The other day I was sparring someone several inches shorter than me and I noticed that it was easier for me to block her attacks and launch some of my own. One good way to overcome the height differential is to get in up close, inside the taller person's guard. This gets you too close for them to do serious damage, and close enough to inflict some damage of your own.

 

In my opinion height definately matters. I'm a bit biased as I'm 6'7" about 245lbs. or so. But seriously think about it. Against someone who is 6'2" which for most people is considered tall that is "regular" to me. A straight on elbow for me is a shot in the eye/nose for him. A knee that I would raise to hit someone in the chest my height is a perfect gut shot against him. Height definately helps but it's not the be all end all. Whichever style you do just make sure you put your all into it. If me and the shorter person are the same skill I'll usually prevail, if the shorter person is a higher skill than me that's where it gets interesting!

As for the weight issue. Grappling is where weight is a concern, and by weight I mean compact weight. My weight is spread out over a large amount of mass. One of my best friends who I roll with now and then is about 5'10" (if even) and weighs about 245lbs. as well. His weight is much more compact. A third friend of mine even comments that when I'm in the mount it isn't that hard to breathe as compared to when my friend has him in the mount. My weight being distributed so far out changes how "heavy" I feel to the person on the bottom. Just thought I'd throw that thought in there as not many people really consider that when grappling.

Just my .02 but just make sure your training is good and it should all work out in the end. Let us know how it goes.

 

I don’t understand your logic, are you saying that big guys go looking for fights whilst small guys don’t. I think you will find that big guys are normally quite gentle whilst small guys often have something to prove.

If you approached a big dog or a little poodle, which one will most lightly bite you? Which one has the potential to cause the most damage?

 

A difference of 1" can make a difference, and with or without any height difference a difference in aggression/attitude will often level out against training quicker than you seem to think.

Hope you're not talking about the street here, because a very very old can of worms is about to be opened if that's the case!

Are you small? Have you fought a much bigger opponent? Have you ever kicked anyone hard in the nuts? What happened? Oooooooorrrrrr, are you blowing this out of your rear end?!

Kicking people in the nuts sometimes works... depends on
1) your footing
2) your accuracy
3) the direction of said nut-kick
4) the tightness and swing-space of the underpants
5) the size and freedom of said nuts
6) the speed and penetration of said nut-kick
7) the lack of any training of your attacker
8) the thickness and friction of the attacker's trews
9) the hardness of your footwear
10) most importantly, the amount of adrenaline buzzing round his system...

Conclusion: there are no simple martial techniques guaranteed to stop someone; if there were we wouldn't need to train a system, we could just train nut-kicks all day long. Nut kicks will not necessarily stop a fight.

To the thread starter, of course size matters. It's one of the factors in any fight, along with strength, speed, timing, environment, technique, aggression, experience, positioning, structure etc. It doesn't really matter what system you practice as long as your training in the dojo and common sense on the street is increasing a fair number of these variables.

Ikken Hisatsu of course has the best answer: train your running!

 

I think this is the real deciding factor. Yes height (and thus reach) and weight can matter in a fight. But skill is going to take you a lot further.

Of course, the larger question is, why do you have so many people picking fights with you in the first place? Are you just talking about in-school sparring or tournaments? If so, that's one thing, but something tells me you're talking about "street" confrontations. Well... you may want to figure out why that's happening in the first place and do what you can to avoid such situations to begin with. Use your head before you use your fists. Because if you are talking about multiple attacker situations, like Ikken Hisatsu also said, just invest in a good pair of running shoes.

 

As far as self defense goes you'd be unlucky to meet anyone who can kick effectively. Though with someone who knew how to kick it would be a problem. It makes the biggest difference at clinch range arguably. But even than a small guy who knows what they are doing can do well in the clinch range. I used to know a short guy who practised throwing shovel hooks to the opponent's balls.

 

Something people don't think about when try to hit someone in the nuts. If I'm standing right in front of you and you are a foot smaller than me a hit to my nuts might be a problem for you. You hit me in the nuts, i bend over and screan "Oof" and which point you might get a nice headbut right to your nose. When you do the nut shot you have to be prepared for the recoil of the person you are hitting.

When in doubt do the Nike defense and scoot away!

 

Speaking from sparring experience - there are 2 guys I spar with regularly who are taller then me. Both are named John, and so am I.

Crazy, huh?

Anyway, I'm average height (5'11" or so). The other 2 John's are about 6'4". The first John (John 1) is a bit less skilled than me (just a bit) and is a defensive fighter. The other John (John 2) is much more skilled than me, and pretty much stands his ground.

I'm a very aggressive fighter, and I fight for my range when I go against a taller person. This works to great effect with John 1. I rush him, get my range and batter him. He usually tries to back out to get back to his range, but I just follow him, crowd him, and usually "win."

John 2 manages to stay outside of my range and pepper me. He usually "wins."

If you are fighting a tall guy, fight to get in range, and stay there, and you will be fine. Intent comes from the ground up. Even your footwork has to have intent if you want to beat a larger opponent.