What types of martial arts are available?

There are a lots of martial arts to choose from but here are the most common:

• Karate

Karate is definitely one of the most popular Martial Arts worldwide. It was first created to help the user to attack and potentially kill an attacker. These days it is more commonly used as a self defense activity and it is widely learned by all ages.

There are different styles of Karate and all schools may vary in their techniques.

• Judo

Judo is another popular Martial Art and it was first developed in Japan. It is commonly used as a fun, cardiovascular workout which really helps with physical fitness. As with Karate, it is widely used by all age groups and both sexes. The main purpose of Judo however as with all Martial Arts, is for self defense.

• Kendo

Kendo is one of many people's favorite Martial Arts as it mainly focuses on self defense using a sword. It is mainly used by soldiers who need to constantly attack their enemies and it is also used by people who simply want to take part in a fun Martial Art. Obviously for self defense this might not be the best form of Martial Arts which you could take as you are not likely to carry a sword around with you and even if you did you would not be permitted to use it on an unarmed attacker!

• Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is one of the best forms of Martial Arts for self defense and it mainly focuses on ground fighting. It has been around for quite a long time but it did not really become very popular until the 1990's. It is ideal for all ages though some may see it as too much for children. It generally teaches you how to use your attackers strength against them.

I have selected the most common martial art forms but most important is to find one for you.