I know there are a lot of MMA fans here so I'm hoping for some good advice.
I'm taking a break from school due to personal reasons and will work during my break.
With my free time and money, I want to learn some MMA. I'm a big fan and watch all the major MMA events and regularly follow the sport. I've trained jiu jitsu recently when I went to school just for a bit and I truly enjoy it. My gym was filled with very friendly and supportive people with no egos and that helped me tons.
Now I know MMA is a different ball game. I have no experience boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, wrestling or anything other than BJJ whatsoever. I'm not too fond of getting hit in the face but I'm guessing that it's something people get used to.
How tough is learning MMA? I mean it seems like it can be pretty painful and I'm not sure if I'm talented in the fighting sense because I've never really tried (I got into fist fights up until middle school but that's far as my experience goes).
Anyone here train MMA and wanna give me any advice?
I actually want to learn the sport, not just for fitness or hop on the bandwagon to try and look cool.
I'm guessing learning MMA in general is pricey and that might be a factor in my decision.
Please give me any input, advice or anything that might help.
On April 20 2011 18:27 danmooj1 wrote: I'm not too fond of getting hit in the face
Yeah I don't think you'll like MMA then. Have you seen those guys' ears and noses? They look like they've been chewed on by rodents for months...that's how many times they've been hit in the head.
Honestly, I wouldn't even touch MMA until you have a lot of martial arts experience. Let me tell you, I have 4 years of taekwondo (black belt), 2 years of kung fu, and I did krav maga for about 8-10 months...and I wouldn't even CONSIDER trying MMA. Most of the people who get into that go into it with a heavy background in martial arts. It's like having a good resume before you get your job. Just throwing you into a manager position with no experience and background is going to be rough.
Instead of going for that manager position (MMA)...why not start a bit lower? Start at a lower position as like a sales associate (let's say by continuing BJJ or some other form of martial art) and do that for a while. If you want harsher form of martial art, try krav maga perhaps, or look for a more disciplined temple. THEN when you have many years of experience, see if you still want to beat people's faces in and get yours beat in as well...
I'd just really think about it before you jump right in.
On April 20 2011 18:27 danmooj1 wrote: I'm not too fond of getting hit in the face
Honestly, I wouldn't even touch MMA until you have a lot of martial arts experience.
Hey man the current LHW champion in the UFC, Jon Jones, did not have any martial arts experience when he started MMA 3 years ago. So your statement is an outright lie.
He had of course wrestled since he was a kid but that is a minor point.
I wouldn't worry about the being hit in the face bit either, the UFC had a HW champ that turned around and ran as soon as he got hit in the face. And you're not planning to compete so it's not like you will bash eachothers faces in practice... it's not that brutal.
On April 20 2011 18:27 danmooj1 wrote: How tough is learning MMA? I mean it seems like it can be pretty painful and I'm not sure if I'm talented in the fighting sense because I've never really tried (I got into fist fights up until middle school but that's far as my experience goes).
Anyone here train MMA and wanna give me any advice?
I actually want to learn the sport, not just for fitness or hop on the bandwagon to try and look cool.
I'm guessing learning MMA in general is pricey and that might be a factor in my decision.
Please give me any input, advice or anything that might help.
Thanks.
As for MMA standing for Mixed Martial Arts, you need to learn a few disciplines to be an MMA fighter. Generally this means that you should learn at least two stand-up disciplines; like Boxing, Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Capoeira, Wing Chun, Wushu; and one or two ground disciplines; like Judo, BJJ, Wrestling. You might also call them hitting disciplines and grappling disciplines respectively.
I'd go for either a punch-kick, punch-kick or punch only, kick only combo for stand-up disciplines.
For the latter, I may suggest Boxing-Capoeira or Boxing-Taekwondo. While with the former you'll be learning too many irrelevant pieces of shit like acrobatics (who needs to know how to backflip in an MMA ring), you'll also advance further in terms of movement in the ring as Capoeira is much more fluid compared to Taekwondo and kicks are much more advanced.
Two examples of mma knockouts with capoeira kicks
As for other factors, capoeira works your upper body significantly better than taekwondo even though it has little to no punching in it (there are no direct punches in capoeira). By upper body, i mean it strengthens your back a LOT. I mean, A FUCKING LOT. Other than that, it also strengthens your arms but i can't cross-compare with taekwondo.
But, capoeira requires significantly more time compared to taekwondo in order to advance. By that, i mean you have to spend at least 10 years in order to be decent (you can be a monitor or instructor in 10 years or slightly longer, which is decent) while Taekwondo requires half as much time (I think you can get first dan of black belt in 5-6 years, at least this is what I remember from my friend who is doing taekwondo, I myself do capoeira) and time is money. Also, capoeira training for same amount of time may cost significantly more than taekwondo. Especially considering their origins (with taekwondo being a korean discipline, you may have an easier time finding a cheap academy which is also really good). Also, despite taekwondo having more basic kicks compared to capoeira, kicks are stronger.
A test done by Fight Science team
For capoeira groups, i may suggest either Muzenza Capoeira, Capoeira Cordão de Ouro or Capoeira Sul da Bahia. Other than these 3, Axé Capoeira is good too (Well, not exactly in my place. They suck here and all other groups hate them ). But as I don't live in S.Korea, I don't know which capoeira groups are there, so if none of these groups exist, I have no advice on group selection.
Do I have to talk about boxing? It sure is the best discipline possible if you want to improve punches.
So, punch only-kick only vs punch&kick-punch&kick: Punch only-Kick only combo will increase the efficiency of your training compared to punch&kick-punch&kick. But the latter combo will give you more advanced vision and fighting sense compared to the former. Consider these and decide for your needs. If you need both, physical qualities come over mental counterparts as the latter can be gained through experience. For punch&kick-punch&kick combo, i have no advices on what disciplines to select but taking on muay-thai and one other discipline is better than not taking on muay-thai and 2 other disciplines imo.
For ground discipline, you already have BJJ under your belt (no pun intended). You might want to add one other discipline, but that's optional. I guess you're either blue or purple belt in BJJ and you might want to extend your advancement into a brown or black as being blue in BJJ and being some random color in some random discipline gives you nothing that brown or black BJJ belt can't give. Unlike stand-up disciplines, ground disciplines are nearly identical with having very small differences (gets even smaller when compared to the difference between capoeira and boxing), but you might still need to learn tips&tricks of judo or some other discipline like that.
That's all from me, I will add more when necessary. You can also pm me if you have further and more detailed questions.
ive wrestled and won jiu jitsu tournaments and have had people say i should do mma, but i know for a fact i dont like getting hit so ive never actually pursued it
On April 20 2011 18:27 danmooj1 wrote: I'm not too fond of getting hit in the face
Yeah I don't think you'll like MMA then. Have you seen those guys' ears and noses? They look like they've been chewed on by rodents for months...that's how many times they've been hit in the head.
Honestly, I wouldn't even touch MMA until you have a lot of martial arts experience. Let me tell you, I have 4 years of taekwondo (black belt), 2 years of kung fu, and I did krav maga for about 8-10 months...and I wouldn't even CONSIDER trying MMA. Most of the people who get into that go into it with a heavy background in martial arts. It's like having a good resume before you get your job. Just throwing you into a manager position with no experience and background is going to be rough.
Instead of going for that manager position (MMA)...why not start a bit lower? Start at a lower position as like a sales associate (let's say by continuing BJJ or some other form of martial art) and do that for a while. If you want harsher form of martial art, try krav maga perhaps, or look for a more disciplined temple. THEN when you have many years of experience, see if you still want to beat people's faces in and get yours beat in as well...
I'd just really think about it before you jump right in.
Im not sure if you are serious or not, but training MMA is pretty harmless - they dont throw beginners in with Wanderlei Silva as sparring partners....
Op, just go - getting hit in the face, meh, who likes it but its not like its gonna be full force in training.
Djagulingu, it seems much easier to just find an MMA gym -_- Otherwise, BJJ/Thaiboxing is the standard mix. And no offense, but Capoeira and Taekwondo are not the most well regarded in this regard - doesnt mean they are useless, just I dont think recommending the average taekwondo school if you want to learn something useful for MMA is a good choice.
go take classes and meet ppl. a couple of my best friends are pretty entrenched in the LA scene for this shit and its just about going and doing it. You dont go fight professionally until you learn a lot and that starts by taking classes. Most people learn jiu jitsu, wrestling and boxing to be well rounded in mma but specializing in something or finding out you really like something in particular and just going with that is cool too!
also this is just imo but you might find that you really just get enough out of jiujitsu by itself as its still very physical and technical but doesn't include getting beaten up constantly. good luck: ]
Lot of useful, unexpected, and interesting replies. Thanks.
Just to give you a info about me: Age: 20 Height: 5' 8'' Weight: 155lbs
White belt in BJJ. Barely trained. Slightly got better at advancing positions and not getting caught in submissions as easily as I used to. So almost no experience in BJJ that would be any use in MMA lol. I stopped recently because I moved.
I've played soccer and tennis years back and consider myself pretty coordinated.
I used to do taekwondo for a year when I was in elementary school. Sparred and all that so I have a gist of what it's like.
My mile time used to be 6:30 back in 9th grade. Not the best, but not bad either. (But there's no way I can run it in that time now, I'm extremely out of shape at the moment.)
Never really lifted weights consistently.
^Not sure any of this stuff matters but it was just to give you guys a better idea about me and MMA
I agree with Jinro about Capoeira, TKD, and other traditional martial arts not being as practical in MMA. I always thought Capoeira looked awesome tho
Zapdos_Smithh scared me a little but so far it seems like it's worth checking out.
On April 20 2011 20:11 red.venom wrote: also this is just imo but you might find that you really just get enough out of jiujitsu by itself as its still very physical and technical but doesn't include getting beaten up constantly. good luck: ]
Yeah if I decide not to do MMA, I'll probably continue BJJ.
However, I really want to learn to striking as well.
Truth is, though, there are few things in life as invigorating as a live sparring session.
I've trained off and on for the last 8 years now, and I truly love it.
Its great exercise, its highly motivating, and great for your overall self esteem.
Honestly, I would advise that you avoid the traditional schools like Tae Kwon Do. That stuff has become so commercialized that its a bit of a joke, imo. Don't dismiss it as being non-applicable, though. If you find a truly legit, traditional martial arts school, you should definitely consider taking it seriously.
Here's the deal with that: MMA is a sport. Its taught and trained for as such.
Traditional martial arts are meant to be lethal... The amount of schools that are around that teach it that way are kinda scarce, though.
Most (not all) BJJ schools are very legit, and many of them incorporate standup for a full "MMA" experience.
On April 20 2011 18:27 danmooj1 wrote: I'm not too fond of getting hit in the face
Yeah I don't think you'll like MMA then. Have you seen those guys' ears and noses? They look like they've been chewed on by rodents for months...that's how many times they've been hit in the head.
Honestly, I wouldn't even touch MMA until you have a lot of martial arts experience. Let me tell you, I have 4 years of taekwondo (black belt), 2 years of kung fu, and I did krav maga for about 8-10 months...and I wouldn't even CONSIDER trying MMA. Most of the people who get into that go into it with a heavy background in martial arts. It's like having a good resume before you get your job. Just throwing you into a manager position with no experience and background is going to be rough.
Instead of going for that manager position (MMA)...why not start a bit lower? Start at a lower position as like a sales associate (let's say by continuing BJJ or some other form of martial art) and do that for a while. If you want harsher form of martial art, try krav maga perhaps, or look for a more disciplined temple. THEN when you have many years of experience, see if you still want to beat people's faces in and get yours beat in as well...
I'd just really think about it before you jump right in.
Im not sure if you are serious or not, but training MMA is pretty harmless - they dont throw beginners in with Wanderlei Silva as sparring partners....
Op, just go - getting hit in the face, meh, who likes it but its not like its gonna be full force in training.
Djagulingu, it seems much easier to just find an MMA gym -_- Otherwise, BJJ/Thaiboxing is the standard mix. And no offense, but Capoeira and Taekwondo are not the most well regarded in this regard - doesnt mean they are useless, just I dont think recommending the average taekwondo school if you want to learn something useful for MMA is a good choice.
Not in my place. Of course if there is an MMA gym, it's easily the only choice (i don't know how but there is no single mma gym in a city with more than 4 million people, of course as far as I know). BJJ/Muay Thai looks pretty standard and generally other disciplines are kind of useful but optional. I am deeply interested in this fighting stuff and watched-read-heard a lot of stuff about it. Muay Thai is like plug&play, easier to learn and apply with advancement giving very little compared to capoeira and taekwondo, which is much more recommended for someone who is 20 years old (no offense, but my recommendations were valid presuming you were a 16 year-old s.korean high school ronin or rebel, whatever it is called ). Plug&play side of Muay Thai is actually useful in MMA as both MMA and real fight is actually "plug&play". BJJ, well I got a blue friend and he's not that bad, one other friend, he's not even white but after learning some tips&tricks from the blue one, he can sometimes submit him (the blue guy). While being a display of advancement, belt doesn't mean too much, especially at white&blue in BJJ.
On April 20 2011 20:20 danmooj1 wrote: Lot of useful, unexpected, and interesting replies. Thanks.
Just to give you a info about me: Age: 20 Height: 5' 8'' Weight: 155lbs
White belt in BJJ. Barely trained. Slightly got better at advancing positions and not getting caught in submissions as easily as I used to. So almost no experience in BJJ that would be any use in MMA lol. I stopped recently because I moved.
I agree with Jinro about Capoeira, TKD, and other traditional martial arts not being as practical in MMA. I always thought Capoeira looked awesome tho
About capoeira, it is never as good as muay thai or other straight up disciplines and it will never be, but I am pretty sure it teaches a lot about movement in a fight, which is something a 5'8'' guy may need a lot. Even in 155 lbs, you will face taller opponents (I'm also 155 and 5'11'' and still consider myself short) and movement will matter in your conditions. But those things will come in with advancement (I've been doing this for 1.5 years and I still can't do a proper ginga )
Like I said before, those traditional martial arts are practical only if you have proper experience with it (Muay thai also can be considered as one of them if you know the state of it in Thailand, I've heard that there are still old school academies). More "plug&play" type of disciplines like muay thai are practical as MMA fights are won&lost by more than pure technique.
I train mma, been doing it for 3 or 4 years now.. (Just training, no competition fights) and the only way to learn how to keep looking at a guy while he is bashing you in the nose is to do it alot..
My advice is start with MMA directly. If you have the time i would recommend doing either thai or bjj/submission fighting as well. This is what the guys i practise with do (The ones that enter competitions).
Also, mma is incredibly fun to do. There are so much more tactics in the whole groundgame, standing game, takedown game than there is in the arts that focus on just one of those.
Even if you don't end up wanting to compete after you start training MMA, it will still get you into amazing shape. I did just a little kickboxing, and it whipped me into great shape in no time, and was alot of fun. I'd say go for it.
On April 20 2011 18:27 danmooj1 wrote: I'm not too fond of getting hit in the face
Honestly, I wouldn't even touch MMA until you have a lot of martial arts experience.
Hey man the current LHW champion in the UFC, Jon Jones, did not have any martial arts experience when he started MMA 3 years ago. So your statement is an outright lie.
An outright lie? So because you find one example of somebody who doesn't have much experience (then again you just mentioned that he does have some), you assume my entire statement is not only completely false but then you accuse me of lying? Yikes...harsh.
It's not a lie at all. The majority of people in MMA have done some sort of martial art. Look at all the top level fighters, almost all of them have a black belt in something. Yes MMA is quite popular now and I am sure there are many more places opening up that get people going straight away with MMA. However, I don't think it's wise to get going with MMA right away if you are unsure about it. There are lots of other martial arts that train in sparring and combat etc., I'm offering to the OP that he shouldn't jump into the harshest form of martial art right away until he has some more experience. Not only will he feel more comfortable if he does end up starting MMA, but he will be able to compete better with others.
On April 20 2011 18:27 danmooj1 wrote: How tough is learning MMA? I mean it seems like it can be pretty painful and I'm not sure if I'm talented in the fighting sense because I've never really tried (I got into fist fights up until middle school but that's far as my experience goes).
Anyone here train MMA and wanna give me any advice?
I actually want to learn the sport, not just for fitness or hop on the bandwagon to try and look cool.
I'm guessing learning MMA in general is pricey and that might be a factor in my decision.
Please give me any input, advice or anything that might help.
Thanks.
As for MMA standing for Mixed Martial Arts, you need to learn a few disciplines to be an MMA fighter. Generally this means that you should learn at least two stand-up disciplines; like Boxing, Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Capoeira, Wing Chun, Wushu; and one or two ground disciplines; like Judo, BJJ, Wrestling. You might also call them hitting disciplines and grappling disciplines respectively.
Yes thank you! Great post trying to explain what I am telling the OP. MMA = Mixed Martial Arts...mixed...multiple types...i.e. experience. MMA is a martial art competition...going into MMA with very little martial arts experience (although I just read that you have a year of tkd so that's not bad) is going to be rough and might scare you off.
On April 20 2011 18:27 danmooj1 wrote: I'm not too fond of getting hit in the face
Yeah I don't think you'll like MMA then. Have you seen those guys' ears and noses? They look like they've been chewed on by rodents for months...that's how many times they've been hit in the head.
Honestly, I wouldn't even touch MMA until you have a lot of martial arts experience. Let me tell you, I have 4 years of taekwondo (black belt), 2 years of kung fu, and I did krav maga for about 8-10 months...and I wouldn't even CONSIDER trying MMA. Most of the people who get into that go into it with a heavy background in martial arts. It's like having a good resume before you get your job. Just throwing you into a manager position with no experience and background is going to be rough.
Instead of going for that manager position (MMA)...why not start a bit lower? Start at a lower position as like a sales associate (let's say by continuing BJJ or some other form of martial art) and do that for a while. If you want harsher form of martial art, try krav maga perhaps, or look for a more disciplined temple. THEN when you have many years of experience, see if you still want to beat people's faces in and get yours beat in as well...
I'd just really think about it before you jump right in.
Im not sure if you are serious or not, but training MMA is pretty harmless - they dont throw beginners in with Wanderlei Silva as sparring partners....
Op, just go - getting hit in the face, meh, who likes it but its not like its gonna be full force in training.
Sorry but I don't see how fighting with near no gear is harmless.
I know when people are training they don't go full force, but you can still get really hurt. I sparred for 4 years in taekwondo with full gear and I definitely got hurt a hell of a lot.
On April 20 2011 20:20 danmooj1 wrote: Lot of useful, unexpected, and interesting replies. Thanks.
Just to give you a info about me: Age: 20 Height: 5' 8'' Weight: 155lbs
White belt in BJJ. Barely trained. Slightly got better at advancing positions and not getting caught in submissions as easily as I used to. So almost no experience in BJJ that would be any use in MMA lol. I stopped recently because I moved.
I've played soccer and tennis years back and consider myself pretty coordinated.
I used to do taekwondo for a year when I was in elementary school. Sparred and all that so I have a gist of what it's like.
My mile time used to be 6:30 back in 9th grade. Not the best, but not bad either. (But there's no way I can run it in that time now, I'm extremely out of shape at the moment.)
Never really lifted weights consistently.
^Not sure any of this stuff matters but it was just to give you guys a better idea about me and MMA
I agree with Jinro about Capoeira, TKD, and other traditional martial arts not being as practical in MMA. I always thought Capoeira looked awesome tho
Zapdos_Smithh scared me a little but so far it seems like it's worth checking out.
EDIT: I live in LA btw
Yeah honestly dude, I am not trying to be mean or harsh or anything or try to scare you off, I am just being practical in my opinion. If you are unsure about MMA due to the harshness etc. (or whatever reason), then I am offering that you might want to consider just trying out another martial art for some time before you try it. Not only will it be a less stressful transition, but with more martial arts experience you will do better in MMA if you do try it, will have more fun because you are more experience, will be in better shape, and will win more as well. It's just an alternative that is worth checking out...there is no rush to get into MMA is simply what I am saying...especially for something who isn't the most experienced in martial arts.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but nowadays people are starting MMA without a huge martial art background. They're background is well... MMA. So I'm hoping there will be some people like me who are completely new to MMA.
As long there is a good atmosphere and learning environment where people are supportive and can put their ego's aside to help another out I think I'll be fine.
For those who've never trained that environment may seem like it is non-existent but at the BJJ gym I trained at, people couldn't have been more supportive and willing to help a complete noob. Wish I could have stayed at the gym but my current situation won't allow me to.
If you guys know any good MMA gyms around the LA area let me know.
EPT
). But as I don't live in S.Korea, I don't know which capoeira groups are there, so if none of these groups exist, I have no advice on group selection.
)
