Martial Arts useless?

Posted by: Crashandburn

Martial Arts useless? - 11/20/05 12:54 PM

I was searching the net for good selfdefense sites and came accross these two http://www.close-combat-video.com/oldss.html
and http://www.topsecrettraining.com/combat.html. They say that Martial Arts is useless and only their methods work. Is this really true?
Posted by: oldman

Re: Martial Arts usless? - 11/20/05 12:57 PM

It kind of depends on how you define useless.
Posted by: still wadowoman

Re: Martial Arts usless? - 11/20/05 01:00 PM

Quote:

I was searching the net for good selfdefense sites and came accross these two http://www.close-combat-video.com/oldss.html
and http://www.topsecrettraining.com/combat.html. They clam that Martial Arts is usless and only their methods work. Is this really true?




If we thought it was really true, we wouldn't all be eiter training or here talking about training (although I understand some members here do have a live outside MA )

In all seriousness, some MA training is useless for self defence. This doesn't depend on what you train in, but how you train. And that goes for self defence classes as well as MA classes.

Welcome to the forums.
Sharon
Posted by: Foundation

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 11/20/05 01:08 PM

Martial arts might be useless, but you can count on it that the video they're trying to sell is even more useless.
Posted by: DragonTiger

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 11/20/05 01:24 PM

Foundation, you're post made me laugh. Good post. Thanks.
Posted by: imcrazy

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 11/20/05 01:53 PM

This is what we like to call marketing gimicks. Instead of competing with competition, they just convince the potential customer that the competition is useless utter crap. That way there is no need to even worry about having to explain why certain things are done/taught differentlty cause the customer is already convinced that those other ways don't work. Here is some advice that will help you greatly in life, NEVER TAKE THE COMPANY'S/SELLER'S WORD AS THE ONLY WORD. This goes for anything you will spend money on. Always do research and get opinions from other places. Its good you asked this question here, as you may have been sucked into the marketing ploys of the sellers.

Also here is something you will hear time and time again on this forum, you cannot learn from videos, books and the like. Proper instruction from a proper intructor is essential if you want to learn how to do things correctly, safely and effectively. Regardless of whether your intentions are for competition, tradition or self defense.

Welcome to the forums and if you keep an open mind, you will learn far more than you thought possible from a forum.
Posted by: Leo_E_49

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 11/20/05 02:35 PM

Many of us have studied hand to hand fighting (or fighting with weapons) from a technical viewpoint for years. I myself have studied martial arts for just over 16 years.

The ways I've learned are the following:
-Technical understanding - How do I do techniques which can hurt/injure an attacker?
-Physical understanding - Why do these techniques hurt/injure an attacker?
-Anatomical understanding - Where can I use these techniques to maximum effect based on the inherent weaknesses of the human body?
-Philosophical/consequential understanding - When and why should I use these techniques? What are the moral and legal implications of using said techniques?
-Fitness/strength training - Enabling myself to use the techniques more effectively and with more strength, speed and accuracy.
-Limited combat - Using these techniques in a controlled environment against people who are resisting every technique and trying to use their own techniques against me.

Now, apart from actually going out and picking fights that's about as close to fighting as you can get. In fact, there are things you learn from martial arts, such as elements of "applied" human anatomy and physiology, which no street fighter will have an understanding of. The benefits of martial arts training are clear and their application to self defense is readily apparent.

There is no way you can gain more than that from watching a video or taking a weekend course in self defense. (Not saying you won't get anything from doing so, just not anywhere near as much).
Posted by: MattJ

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 11/20/05 05:35 PM

Crashandburn -

Please search the forum before you post. Those have been covered several times.
Posted by: chickenchaser

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 11/20/05 07:08 PM

hmmmmm.......i think this is kind of a yin/yang thing to some MA is useless to others it is useful.....there are 2 sides to everything, and if there isn't, it's non-existant.
hope you can understand that guys because i think i do.....or do i?
Posted by: eyrie

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 11/20/05 08:03 PM

Not really....

MA is useless because people don't understand the basics.

All you really need is the basics. Without the basics, all the self-defense video technique in the world is useless.

What is "basic"?

1. Standing
2. Breathing
3. Stepping
4. Striking

From these basics you have everything you need. You just have to dig deeper to understand the basics.

Everything else is really an extension of the basics.
Posted by: UterusEscobar

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 11/20/05 08:09 PM

Most of those street defense courses rely on the idea nobody has any resistance to pressure points, that it will apparently take only 4lbs. of pressure to break the knee, and that everyone will fall from a kick to the groin. As useless as martial arts may seem to others, it's much more useful than arming yourself with ignorance.
Posted by: Zombie Zero

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/20/06 11:28 AM

Quote:

They say that... only their methods work. Is this really true?




Never ask a barber if you need a haircut.
Posted by: Ted_Karate

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/20/06 04:51 PM

I lost interest the minute i saw "topsecrettraining" MCDOJO ANYONE??

Any self defence that presents itself as "top secret" is obviously wanting to attract the wannabe ninjas who have dreams of being bruce lee while they smoke and eat pork rinds....

Ted
Posted by: MattJ

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/20/06 05:52 PM

Apparently, someone admitted that the whole "Lt. X" thing was a fabrication -

http://www.bullshido.net/forums/showthread.php?t=48089
Posted by: Leo_E_49

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/20/06 06:47 PM

Finally, I was waiting for someone to do that!
Posted by: Boomer

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/23/06 02:48 AM

way to go. outed the ol' LT
Posted by: fileboy2002

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/23/06 07:51 PM

No, it is not true.
Posted by: Leo_E_49

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/23/06 11:09 PM

Quote:

No, it is not true.




Well said.
Posted by: Wushaw

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/23/06 11:59 PM

truthfully martial arts are not useless in any aspect...people that believe that usually are the ones who couldn't stick with it long enough to experience the rush of a technique being performed on Q without a conceince thought... this only comes after hard work and practice, and fully learning the potential of his or her body...any knowledge is useful to someone for some reason, as in any martial art has something useful to someone depending on there needs, body type, skill level...etc...the fact is the only time any martial art could be deemed useless is when the s**t! hits the fan, and the martial artist forget's how to use it...
Posted by: crablord

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/24/06 03:48 AM

Quote:

Martial Arts useless?


AH [censored] HELL!!!! its over guys...we've been exposed..
Posted by: Unlimited Possibilities

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/24/06 04:07 AM

Even if one did not ever encounter a conflict of any sort, Martial Arts are still useful.
Posted by: Jeff_G

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/24/06 04:07 AM

My MA is better than your MA. (This said while lips do not match words.)
Posted by: crablord

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/24/06 04:09 AM

Posted by: ButterflyPalm

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/24/06 07:52 AM

I personally agree. Martial Arts is useless because in all the years I've practiced it, I've never used it.
Posted by: Prizewriter

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/24/06 08:16 AM

Quote:

I personally agree. Martial Arts is useless because in all the years I've practiced it, I've never used it.




Same here, but then again, doing MA has increased my confidence, has made me much more aware of myself at all times, destroyed any ego I had about me in a fight (good thing). All of which means I am more likely to avoid trouble.
Posted by: ButterflyPalm

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/25/06 02:19 AM

Quote:

.....doing MA has increased my confidence, has made me much more aware of myself at all times, destroyed any ego I had about me in a fight (good thing). All of which means I am more likely to avoid trouble.




Thanks for completely my sentence for me. Merry Christmas!!!!!!!
Posted by: Steel91

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/25/06 10:50 PM

Quote:

I was searching the net for good selfdefense sites and came accross these two http://www.close-combat-video.com/oldss.html
and http://www.topsecrettraining.com/combat.html. They say that Martial Arts is useless and only their methods work. Is this really true?




Ok, if martial arts is useless, then why tha hell have people been doing it for thousands of years! I mean if we've been doing it this long and it was useless the whole time, don't ya think someone would realize it before now! Yea you got the sport martial arts point sparring crap that might be pretty useless on the street but that's not even martial arts in my opinon.
Posted by: Ironfoot

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/26/06 12:56 AM

Quote:

Apparently, someone admitted that the whole "Lt. X" thing was a fabrication -

http://www.bullshido.net/forums/showthread.php?t=48089




Thanks for bursting our bubble, Matt! Next you'll be telling me there's no Santa Claus, and that Nigerian prince will never send me that 14 million he owes me!
Posted by: crablord

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 12/26/06 07:58 AM

Quote:

Next you'll be telling me there's no Santa Claus




Posted by: shadowkahn

Re: Martial Arts usless? - 01/03/07 01:20 PM

Quote:

It kind of depends on how you define useless.




and how you define martial art. If it's a fighting system, it's a martial art, whether it involves asian systems, belts, pajamas, or not.

I automatically take with a very big grain of salt anyone who dismissses ALL martial arts as useless. The world is not black and white, there are very few all or nothing situations. Anyone willing to dismiss all of something out of hand hasn't bothered to look around much.
Posted by: bigbair

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 01/03/07 01:48 PM

Have you ever thought that the reason that you have never used it is because you were trained properly. Meaning that you display the calm assertive (to steal the saying from the dog whisperer) attitude. or because of your training that you subconciously saw a problem about to happen and avoided it.
Other than some idiot walking right up and attacking me or one of my family members I would not use my traiing either.
Posted by: ButterflyPalm

Re: Martial Arts useless? - 01/12/07 09:40 PM

Quote:

Meaning that you display the calm assertive...attitude.





Yes, like Dolly Parton used to say, ...'when you have it, it shows'