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Jenkins Reacts to MMA Debut is a post from: Mixed Martial Arts | MMA | Articles |

The project first began a couple of weeks ago, when this martial artist/writer was spending an exciting night watching TV. Exciting, because it was man to man contests of the most brutal nature: the mayhem and mania of grown men pounding one another to bloody pulps. At some point during these contests the idea was born: do martial artists with tattoos adorning their bodies win more, or lose more?

A tally sheet was begun that night, and the results gave a decided advantage to the uninked ones being more victorious in the ring. Mind you, there was much to be considered in evaluating the data. After all, the gladiators causing the statistics had to be compared for tattoos.

Two fighters had designs inked across their chiseled bodies. Which artwork used the greater amount of ink? Which design covered more skin?

Regardless of proportion of design to skin, the martial arts fighters with less ink were coming out on top more times than their inkier brethren. The actual figure was around 75 per cent. These statistics held true for later analysis, perhaps favoring the superiority of unmarked Mixed Martial Artists even more.

One factor that was of interest, but proved too difficult to keep track of was whether the type of tattoo had any effect on the win percentages. The speed of the matches, the movement of the combatants, it was difficult to tell whether the contestants had a Karate tattoo, or a Bruce Lee Tattoo. The only specific tat noticed by this writer was in conjunction with a victory by a Latin fighter with the face of Jesus emblazoned across his body.

Now we have the consideration: why would a tattoo make a difference in a fight? Various theories were analyzed and discarded, theories having to do with the amount of ink having an adverse effect on the ‘breathing’ of the body. Or whether ink could have an effect on the musculature of the gladiator.

In the end, there was no scientific theory for all the facts, one could only reach the conclusion that fighters who cared more about image were not as concerned with developing punching power. That fighters who cared about the image they presented were not as serious about building the unique fighting willpower that is critical to the successful gladiator. That a Martial Arts tattoo could, indeed, weaken and dissipate the fighting spirit of a man.

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Martial Arts Tattoo Weakens the Spirit of MMA Contestants is a post from: Mixed Martial Arts | MMA | Articles |

It is said that a chain is only as strong as it’s weakest link. This principle can be found in the martial arts when it comes to any hand technique, and especially punching. The punch is only as strong as it’s weakest finger.

The first drill is nothing more than a push up. You must learn, however, to do these push ups on the fingers, and thus make the fingers as strong as steel bars. It is hard, however, to begin on the fingertips, so one should practice a variety of easier push ups first.

First, practice your push ups on the palms of your hands, then on the backs of palms. This will make the wrists stronger, so that they will be able to support the fingers. After you can do push ups on the fronts and backs of the hands, go for the fists.

Fists are great for hitting, but you want to hit with a smaller and smaller fist area. You can knock a ball a mile with a club, but you can punch a hole in it with a screwdriver. This is the theory you want to pursue.

Practice your push ups on half knuckles, and slowly work your way down to two knuckles, and finally, one knuckle on each hand. After a while, you will be able to do push ups on just the fingers. At first, the fingers will be bent, but with practice you will be able to do them on straight fingers.

You can help yourself along by doing the push ups in sand, or on a folded wash cloth, which will adjust to the lengths of the various fingers. As you get better and better, you can reduce the number of fingers you are supporting yourself on. Eventually, and this may take a while, you will be able to do push ups on the index fingers of your hands.

This method for improving the strength of the fingers can take a while, and you will find that it takes a high degree of mental concentration. The mental concentration is, however, the most important thing you can get out of this exercise, for the mind will last longer than the body. Whatever you get out of this martial arts exercise, no matter whether you practice karate, kenpo, kung fu, taekwondo, or another martial art, you will find that strengthening the fingers in this way will give you a hard punch.

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A Hard Punch in Taekwondo: Steel Finger Martial Arts Exercises is a post from: Mixed Martial Arts | MMA | Articles |

The first thing to be learned are forms. There are people who look down on forms, deride them as mere dances, and that sort of thing. The truth of the matter, however, is that forms contain all the tricks and techniques, and they provide a learning platform which not only leads one to learn how to fight, but far beyond.

When practicing a form one has to to have a stable stance, and that is the moving platform necessary to deliver powerful self defense techniques. By doing martial arts forms you will striving to relax, and learning that to relax creates power. Also, every time you practice a form you are making your body more powerful, even as you practice fighting techniques.

The second thing to be learned has to do with the self defense techniques themselves. Self defense tricks teach one how to move the body, how to set up for action, how to stay calm in the middle of the fight. The thing to remember is that every time you do a self defense technique you are doing a miniature kata.

Now, techniques aren’t totally street oriented, and one will have to adjust them to use them in a street fight. However, the classical power you have developed with forms and techniques will come out in your street defenses. Your punches and kicks will draw on that classical martial arts power that is available through traditional methods.

The third thing to be learned is freestyle, and this is where everything comes together. This is where you get to try to use the traditional tricks, or at least tap into that classical power in a controlled environment. Remember, freestyle training is as close as you can get to the chaos of street self defense as possible.

When freestyling you must learn how to control yourself and not hurt your opponent, and yet build the ability to inflict great damage should you wish. This is a difficult thing to learn, but it is at the heart of the oriental disciplines. Anybody can learn to fight, you see, but only a real artist can learn how to control himself in the middle of a fight.

To summarize, one can learn how to fight easily, but that is not the point of it all. What is important is to test yourself, to expand yourself, and learn how not to be a fighting animal, but a human being who can wield great power. This is what one is trying to learn when they learn Martial Arts.

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The choice becomes one of, do you study Karate or Kung Fu? Or Aikido or Tai Chi Chuan or kenpo or Pa Kua or Krav Maga or…the choices can be a bit overwhelming. So let’s think our way through a few arts and consider what the correct decision should be.

Karate tends to be powerful kicks and punches. The training tends to be regimented, and a heavy emphasis is usually placed on sweat. Depending on the style of karate, you may end up studying jointlocks, sweeps, throws, and so on.

There is a large variety of kung fu styles. There are styles which focus on close quarter combat, like Wing Chun, and there are styles like Shaolin which allow for more space and arm swinging techniques. There are very combative methods, like Preying Mantis, and there are esoteric and athletic methods, like Monkey style, Drunken style, or even the Drunken Monkey Style.

Most people usually start studying at corner malls, and these locations often showcase Chinese Kenpo Karate. Kenpo tends to be a tournament oriented style with an immense range of one on one self defense techniques. The difficult thing here is to ascertain whether the instructor is more focused on the combat, or on trophies.

Another art one will see in strip malls is Taekwondo. Taekwondo advocates a variety of kicks. This is an excellent strategy which keeps attackers away, and gives a tremendous work out. There is usually an emphasis on sparring in some taekwondo dojangs.

If one wishes to study more peaceful methods, one should look into Aikido. Aikdio means ‘the way of harmony in the spirit,’ and it concentrates on circular movements which harmonize with the incoming force. This is an art where it becomes obvious that one must truly conquer oneself before attempting to conquer another.

Another peaceful and harmonious art is Tai Chi Chuan. Tai Chi is slow moving, good for old people, but possessed of some of the finest self defense moves. Mind you, being slow moving, it sometimes takes a while to get to the level of good self defense.

Speaking of functional self defense moves, one should consider Krav Maga. Krav Maga was developed not just for street use, but for use in actual combat. It is technique heavy, and one of the most useful arts one can study.

The last martial art we will consider, though there are more that one will come across and should examine, is jujitsu. Jujitsu has a classical history going back centuries, but most of it is heavily related these days to such things as Ultimate Fighting Championships, Mixed Martial Arts, and venues of that sort. This is an extremely useful martial art, though one should always try to avoid going to the ground, as this presents an opportunity for an attacker’s friends to wade in, there could be sharp objects on the ground, and so on.

As I said, there are many other martial arts one should look at when selecting the fighting discipline that is right for them. In the end, there are as many arts as there are individuals teaching them. Which study of martial arts you pursue is going to be up to you.

A good place to study Martial Arts is a free online site like Free Martial Arts Online. Head on over over to Free Martial Arts, and take advantage of free Martial Arts instruction, free Martial Arts books, and more.

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According to one study this may not be the case. In fact, it appears that many of these large, tattooed thugs may be creampuffs! Well, perhaps not total creampuffs, but according to one survey martial artists with more ink on their skin lose more MMA matches!

To be honest, this is not a highly scientific survey. It was more of an observation on watching several UFC contests on television. The fighters with more ink on their bodies just seemed to lose more matches.

One reason for this odd fact may be that inked flesh is not able to ingest oxygen as well as uninked flesh. This may be true, especially when considered in light of the fact that Yakuza criminals (those guys with full body tattoos), die of liver failure (if they live to old age at all). Apparently the liver needs oxygen, which inked surfaces are not capable of passing through the skin.

Another factor that seems to weigh in is the type of symbol adorning the fighter’s body. This one was hard to pin down, as the fighters are moving about, but people with religious symbols adorning their bodies seemed to lose more than the less religious tattooed martial artists. One must admit, there is a certain oxymoronic value to a UFC fighter trying to spin kick the head of somebody while adorned with figures preaching eternal peace.

That said, however, one must take note of the fact that the reason for tattoos in the first place is one of how cool one can look. People do tend to get their bodies inked solely because ‘it looks so good!’ Thus, fighters with tattoos may be more concerned with appearances than actually learning to fight and train as martial artists.

There were things that did tend to slant this study. One factor was that sometimes both fighters in a contest were adorned with tattoos. One then had to adjust for the amount of flesh tattooed, and that this was not a fight between an inked fighter and an uninked fighter.

In summary, while this was very unscientific, there does seem to be evidence supporting the thesis that the more tattoos a martial artist has, the worse he does in the ring. There is at least sufficient evidence to indicate that a more scientific Martial Arts Study should be done. Or perhaps you could just get a tattoo, jump in the ring, and see how you do.

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Well, perhaps I have gone a bit too far in my description, but that is okay. There is enough truth in my adjectives. And, the question, to be honest, is a good one.

Mixed martial arts, or MMA, as as people call it, is the fastest growing sport on earth. While I love the spectacle, I have to be truthful, it is difficult to assemble the finer points of combat. Yes, there will be incredible examples of fisticuffs, and a distinct style of ring wrestling, or jujitsu, but there won’t be the fine study of classical martial arts technique.

A study of Kung Fu, or any traditional martial art such as kenpo or taekwondo or aikido or whatever, is a journey through endless fine points of technique. It is an education in physics that has no match. It does not, however, except in specific instances, offer a totally combat effective science.

Look a little deeper, and we can define the difference between art and sport. An art is a demonstration of the spirit, a seeking within, a distillation of the human being into finer and nobler purpose. A sport, on the other hand, is the throwing of one human being against the other, and often to the point of badly bent ears, broken noses, and consciousness battered to the point of impairment.

Thus, there are good and bad points coming forth from this comparison of the two fighting disciplines. MMA results in vicious and effective street fighting abilities, though there is a cost. Kung Fu results in astounding knowledge, but is not always street effective.

These strengths and weaknesses do, of course, depend on the quality of the sensei one has. In the hands of a good teacher MMA will not just be awe and popcorn, but will adhere to time honored concepts of fair play, strength of personality, and the enhancement of the human being. And, a good Kung Fu instructor will understand the aspects of real life fighting that are a must if one is to survive on the street.

Of course, the original question was more than a mere comparison of art, it is a question of which you would rather do, watch a mixed martial arts fight, or watch a kung fu extravaganza. With the above in mind, this writer has a preference for watching the kung fu, simply for reasons of education. However, I believe the audience will be split down the middle, and that is perhaps as it should be.

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Aikido and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu are instances of this, but now it appears as if more sensei are attempting to set up their own disciplines than ever. Look at Bruce Lee’s own particular style and Gracie Jiu Jitsu.

This makes it even more difficult than ever to decide on which martial art to learn or indeed, whether to train in the fantastically well-liked sport of Mixed Martial Arts, which is actually contested by fighters who have studied a number of martial arts.

There have been competitions to find out which is the best martial art for more than a hundred years but the panel of judges is still out. Some times one discipline wins and other times a different one does.

Maybe it relies on the ability of the fighter rather than the sport itself. Muhammad Ali with boxing won the championship called Kings of the Square Ring in around 1980.

Perhaps the first thing to do is enquire of yourself why you would like to learn a martial art in the first place. All fighting styles will teach self-defence, self-confidence and self-discipline and they will all allow you the chance never to be bullied in unarmed fighting again whether it is in school, in a bar or on the street.

You ought to also scrutinize your self and your body sort. Some combative arts are extremely athletic. Look at the jumps and high kicks in Tae Kwon Do, while other styles are a little more laid back like Jiu Jitsu and Judo, because they teach you to utilize your opponent’s momentum to win an advantage.

Karate and Kung Fu require fast reflexes. Bruce Lee could stand three feet from a person who had a coin on his open palm; raise his hand from his side, take the coin and replace it with another one in 5/100 ths of a second.

Not everybody is going to be able to train long enough to do that, but I think that not all body kinds would allow it anyway.

It is a good idea to rent a couple of DVD’s on the different fighting styles and attempt to work out what appeals to you personally. If you find that you like a number of of them, why not go down to a local dojo that instructs mixed martial arts?

The instructors there will be less prejudiced in favour of one skill and will have experience with diverse body sorts and temperaments.

Be sure you spend some time choosing a reputable gym or dojo to go to for advice. Many places will give you an interview and a free first lesson. If you explain your quandary, they are certain to be able to help you come to the right decision on selecting the best martial arts style for you.

Owen Jones, the author of this piece, writes on a variety of topics, but is now concerned with Mixed Martial Arts Training Gyms. If you would like to know more, please go to our website at Mixed Martial Arts Quotes

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