Depends on what you want out of it. Are you looking for exercise, self-defense skills, how to disable someone with practically no effort, looking to impress someone with some “ninja moves,” etc.?
When I was stationed in Japan 20 years ago, I found a martial arts course taught at our base’s gym. Ninpo Budo Tai Jitsu. I had never heard of it before, but they were offering a free month before you had to start paying for classes, so I figured I’d check it out.
Turns out, it’s not a self-defense course like I thought. It’s an assassination art. They said the goal was to kill your opponent as quickly as possible, before they had a chance to kill you. They made a point to say that we weren’t allowed to practice our training on each other or spar with each other, in case we accidentally killed someone.
Suffice to say, I dropped the course after my free month and signed up at a nearby Karate dojo. That was much more my style. It’s probably the most basic of martial arts. Gives you good exercise, some self-defense skills, and mental focus.
Definitely research different art forms and decide for yourself which works best for you. I’ve sampled a bunch over the years, but I think Aikido spoke to me personally now than any other form.
I’m sorry, I’m just laughing over the idea of some dude accidentally signing up for classes in assassination. I can believe it happened–but it’d also make a great story.
Make it so the guy is too timid to stop going (maybe because he was taking martial arts as a way to learn assertiveness) and you have a book or TV series about an accidental assassin.
There’s been some big changes in that style. The most extreme stuff got removed from the curriculum. I once got a look at a manual from the 70s, and yes - there was some disturbing eye stuff.
Depends on what you want out of it. Are you looking for exercise, self-defense skills, how to disable someone with practically no effort, looking to impress someone with some “ninja moves,” etc.?
When I was stationed in Japan 20 years ago, I found a martial arts course taught at our base’s gym. Ninpo Budo Tai Jitsu. I had never heard of it before, but they were offering a free month before you had to start paying for classes, so I figured I’d check it out.
Turns out, it’s not a self-defense course like I thought. It’s an assassination art. They said the goal was to kill your opponent as quickly as possible, before they had a chance to kill you. They made a point to say that we weren’t allowed to practice our training on each other or spar with each other, in case we accidentally killed someone.
Suffice to say, I dropped the course after my free month and signed up at a nearby Karate dojo. That was much more my style. It’s probably the most basic of martial arts. Gives you good exercise, some self-defense skills, and mental focus.
Definitely research different art forms and decide for yourself which works best for you. I’ve sampled a bunch over the years, but I think Aikido spoke to me personally now than any other form.
I’m sorry, I’m just laughing over the idea of some dude accidentally signing up for classes in assassination. I can believe it happened–but it’d also make a great story.
Make it so the guy is too timid to stop going (maybe because he was taking martial arts as a way to learn assertiveness) and you have a book or TV series about an accidental assassin.
There’s been some big changes in that style. The most extreme stuff got removed from the curriculum. I once got a look at a manual from the 70s, and yes - there was some disturbing eye stuff.
“That time I accidentally signed up for assassination classes”
Hmmm. that art name is cool, but I think I am with you on going for a more “general” art with karate do or Aikido.
Some arts are too specialized that you can’t enjoy or appreciate it for day-to-days.