Follow Your Instincts: Learn How to Defend Yourself Using MMA
The art of defense is one of the oldest, most natural instincts known to man, in fact, it’s been a necessity since the beginning of time, so, it’s no surprise that most people have a natural ability of some kind to defend themselves. Defense comes in many forms and where possible, non-contact forms of defense should be attempted first, unless there is no other option. At that point, it’s pretty handy to know how to physically defend yourself and to see off attackers in the most effective way possible;
Mixed Martial arts
MMA or, Mixed Martial Arts is one of the newest forms of self-defense, or attack depending upon how you look at it. Regardless, it has a wealth of history behind it, of which most people haven’t had the joy of appreciating, mainly because MMA is a reasonably new form of martial arts entertainment which most likely is better known by the younger generations.
Characters like Connor McGregor really helped to catapult MMA and clubs into the limelight, making it as popular as it is today and, however much of an entertainer he is outside of the cage, when that gate closes, there’s not much joking going on when kicks and fists start flying. It could be easy to think that the techniques and moves used in MMA were invented when the sport properly kicked off. Have a chat with some local clubs that train MMA in Reading, they will likely agree that MMA owes its success to its predecessors.
Pay respect to the heritage
Mixed martial arts could be likened to two people being locked in a cage and given the green light to use almost any means necessary in order to render their opponent unconscious, which it kind of is although it’s far more technical than it sounds. MMA makes use of wrestling, judo, Brazilian jujitsu (BJJ, karate, Muay Thai, otherwise known as the ‘Art of Eight Limbs’. Understanding which martial arts are used within MMA is really important because then, you can take a look at the individual arts, their history and what makes them so special.
A bit of everything
If you want a varied skillset then MMA could be for your, it’s multi discipline approach means that you will learn more in term of overall techniques. Ranging from ‘stand up, trade and bang’ where nearly anything goes including elbows, shins, knees fists, chops, not only will you need to learn how to defend yourself but, you’ll also need the ability to attack instinctively. On the other hand, you’ve got your ‘ground and pound’ which is super technical Brazilian jujitsu which is an art form in itself. If you want to learn a mixture of styles, MMA is probably the best choice to get started with.
