Martial Arts

When taking up a martial arts style, you have to consider your height, weight, and body type. How tall or short you are and how much you weigh plays a big role on how well you can learn whatever style of martial arts that you choose to train in. Having trained in various disciplines of the martial arts since the age of nine, I can tell what style works depending on the situation.

My favorite types of conversations tend to be about applications of martial arts techniques and martial arts styles. I enjoy talking about martial arts and hearing about martial arts. We’re pretty hardwired when it comes to talking about the martial arts and so forth.

I’ve known a few people who can be quite stubborn when I try to give them advice. One of them lives up in New York and trains in a style of Nin-Jitsu. Nin-Jitsu is a martial arts style that emphasizes the use of stealth, hand-to-hand combat, and weapons. Most Nin-Jitsu schools teach mainly hand-to-hand and weapons training. You have to have good strength, speed, and agility to be proficient in any style of Nin-Jitsu.

He told me that he weights between two-hundred thirty and two-hundred forty pounds. For a person of his height, that is a lot of weight. In Nin-Jitsu, that’s way too much weight for what you’re trying to achieve. The kid was telling me how he had to improve his speed and agility. For a person of his weight, the answer was obvious.

I told him that he had to really tone down his muscle. He has the muscle which is a given. Having too much muscle slows you down. In a style such as Nin-Jitsu, his muscle mass would hinder his speed and agility. The kid was giving me some lame explanation on how he doesn’t want to sacrifice strength. Since there’s striking attacks in Nin-Jitsu, strength’s not going to do you any good if you don’t have the speed to use it.

If he wanted to be faster, he would have to work more on the cardiovascular exercises and routines. Plus he would have to cut down on lifting the weights because they will only add more muscle. He would have to tone down on his body mass in order to improve in the speed department.

For a person of his height and weight, he’d be better off learning any style that uses wrestling and grappling. But not everybody will go for the close quarter styles. I told him but he wouldn’t listen to me. I stopped giving him advice since he wouldn’t listen to me.

If you’re big and husky, you’re probably going to lack in the speed department. To compensate for the lack of speed you’ll probably have higher strength and endurance. For those attributes, you should try close range styles which emphasizes a lot on grappling and wrestling.

Some examples of styles would be: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Aikido, Aiki Jiu-Jitsu, Competition Sambo, Submission Wrestling, Greco-Roman Wrestling, Gaidojutsu, and Judo.

Those styles are only effective at close range. Also the creators of the respective styles said that when using them, prepare to get hit. You’re going to have to get up close and personal for the grapple. Don’t discount the possibility that your opponent knows what you’re attempting to do. There’s a high chance s/he will know and will try to stop you with strikes or a counter-grapple.

Jiu-Jitsu was created over a thousand years ago in Japan because the samurai couldn’t punch and kick while wearing the heavy armor. The style would teach people to disarm soldiers in battle. When using Jiu-Jitsu on the battlefield, one would have to expect to get cut and/or stabbed.

It’s the same with Aikido, you would have to prepare to get cut. Aikido was a style spawned off from Jiu-Jitsu. The application of Aikido is used to counter strikes and weapon attacks. You have to prepare to get hit and get cut.

If you have a low constitution (how much pain you can take), you’re not going to fare well up close at your opponent. If you have a lot of muscle, you’re pretty much well protected unless it’s against another person with the same physique. The chances you can take those hits are pretty good.

But if you insist on taking a striking style, take up Muay Thai or Lethwei. Muay Thai is a very effective form of Kickboxing let alone being one of the most brutal styles of martial arts. A good number of strikes can be done at close range providing maximum damage to your opponent. Lethwei is the Burmese variation where you’re also allowed to headbutt your opponent which is absent in Muay Thai.

Still either form is a good style to take in regards to striking in a close quarters combat situation. Also, you can supplement Muay Thai/Lethwei with styles like Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Judo, Wrestling, etc. Many UFC and Pride fighters do the same thing.

Tall people whom are at least 6′5 and up would make better strikers due to the long arms and legs. When I mean tall, think about the tall basketball players. They’ve got good kicking reach with their legs which is crucial for playing the distance game with a smaller opponent. You can keep them at bay by poking them repeatedly with kicks. For this reason, it’s a good idea for tall people to take up styles like Jeet Kune Do, Karate, Muay Thai, Savate, and other striking arts.

Don’t discount the length of your arms. If you’re tall, you got pretty good arm length which enables for a good reach. Asides from kicks, taller people tend to have more punching range.

It’s not a bad idea to take up a grappling style or two just in case you’re going up against someone the same height as you or taller. Shorter people tend to make better grapplers because left effort is needed to execute leg takedowns where you lift up by the leg. This is where the striking part comes in. A grappler’s biggest mistake is attempting to shoot down on a Muay Thai fighter and attempt to do a leg takedown. The Muay Thai fighter doesn’t have to do anything but throw a hard strike upwards.

However, it’s hard for a tall person to grapple with a shorter person. In the case of doing a leg takedown, you have to put forth more effort such as kneeling downwards. When I took Japanese Shootfighting which uses a lot of leg takedowns, I had to put forth a lot of effort in executing single-leg takedowns.

But if you’re tall and very built, go with the wrestling styles. Go for the powerhouse wrestling styles such as Greco-Roman and Pankration. When taking on a smaller opponent head on the obvious winner will be you due to the size, weight, and mass difference.

A person 6′ and under tend to make better submissionists because they can easily maneuver against bigger opponents. This is the case of making your weaknesses into your strengths. If you’re smaller, it makes you more mobile. Being shorter than your opponent is an advantage when it comes to grappling because you don’t have to put forth much effort in take downs. However, it’s not necessarily the case when going up against an opponent with Thai Boxing experience.

Still, shorter people should take up grappling styles. If you’re short and muscular, take up Judo and Wrestling. If you’re short and skinny, take up Japanese Jiu-Jitsu, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Aiki Jiu-Jitsu, and Aikido. The creator of Brazilian/Gracie Jiu-Jitsu was short and frail. Despite his height and weight, he could take on just about anybody with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

If you’re flexible like a wire, take up styles like Lucha-Libre, Wu Shu, Jeet Kune Do, and Capoeira. Those styles require a good amount of flexibility and agility.

I currently weight 185 lbs and stand at 5′11-6′. If you’re of a medium muscular build, you’re pretty much well rounded and can learn just about any style. I do my best to keep my weight in check because it will affect how well I will perform in my respective disciplines.

A person with a perfect balance of height, weight, and build can learn all sorts of mixed martial arts styles like Japanese Shootfighting, Vale Tudo, Green Beret, and Krav Maga.

You can learn whatever style(s) you want. But your height and weight will affect the difficulty.

If you’re very big and want to learn Nin-Jitsu or Karate, tone down your body. If you want to take up Greco-Roman, bulk up your body. If you want to take up Capoiera, work on your flexibility. If you want to take up Muay Thai, strengthen your legs.

How you want your height, weight, and body to affect your overall learning is up to you. You don’t see big muscular men practicing styles of agility and grace like Capioera. You don’t skinny people take up Sumo Wrestling. You don’t see big and muscular men taking up Lucha-Libre.