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I am brand new to the forum and to martial arts/self defense and need some help choosing which discipline to start in. Here is some background about myself:
-40 year old male never involved any any sort of martial arts before
-6’2″ 210 lbs – I’m in fairly good shape. I lift weights (bench, deadlifts and squats) 2 to 3 times a week. I wouldn’t consider myself strong but I do have some muscle. My cardio could probably use some work and my optimal weight would be around 190 lbs.
-I have a desk job but am pretty active outside of work (yard work, house improvement projects, helping kids with sports, etc).
-I have two kids (7 and 13). My wife supports me in getting involved in some sort of martial arts/self defense and may get involved eventually herself.I am looking for a discipline that provides the following in order of importance:
-Self defense of myself and/or loved ones – I haven’t been in a fight in over 15 years and don’t find myself in dangerous situations really, but I would like the piece of mind just in case.
-Confidence – I’m a stereotypical “nice guy” and would love to find a discipline that gives my confidence, the way a carry myself and my overall presentation a bit of a boost. Maybe a bit of “edginess” for lack of a better term.
-Fitness – Like I said, I would like to loose approximately 20 pounds, so an activity that helps (I’m also working on my diet) would be a bonus.
-Eventually may be able to teach my wife and kids some self defense from what I learn. My daughter is 13 and I worry about her safety in today’s society.I’m not really interested in a discipline steeped in tradition, one that is based upon a lot of discipline (I’m 40 years old so not so worried about this aspect) and aren’t worried about fancy robes/garb.
So I ideally would like to get involved in Krav Maga. It seems to have all the qualities I’m looking for and I’ve wanted to get involved in it for over 5 years now. My problem is that it isn’t offered locally. I live in the far west suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, and up until a couple of months ago, the closest location offering such classes was around 45 minutes away (lots of traffic) and only offers beginner classes at 7:30 on Tuesday and Thursday nights. The facility is run by a Certified Level 5 USKMA Krav Maga Instructor and Certified AFAA Kickboxing instructor and is an United States Krav Maga Association member. I think it would be really difficult to attend training classes regularly due to the distance and late classes (kids sports and I getting up at 5 AM for work would make it difficult).
A new facility recently opened that is only 25 minutes away. It’s only been open since March and beginner classes are only offered on Saturdays (a better time for me but only one class time a week leaves less flexibility). The instructor is a Level 1 United States Krav Maga Association certified instructor and will be suppose to take her Level 2 Instructor Testing in April (I haven’t talked to her since then). She trains as a Level 3/4 Student at the first facility I mentioned.
My other option is to take a different discipline. For example, Tae Kwon Do, Hap Ki Do, Judo, Jujitsu, Aikido and a couple of self-defense classes are all offered in our town and are within 5- 10 minutes from our house. Any of these would be more convenient but I don’t feel that they fit my criteria as well.
So I can’t decide if I should 1) Enroll in the further Krav Maga program which has been around for a long time and seems to have the most experienced instructors; 2) Enroll at the closer and more convenient Krav Maga program; or 3) look at a discipline. Any and all suggestions/advice are greatly appreciated!
Re: Newbie Needs Advice
See if the closer KM gym offers a free class and see if you like it. Since you’re starting out in KM, you should be good at this facility. Hopefully as more people go to this new gym, they will begin to offer multiple level 1 (beginner classes) throughout the week. Judo/Jujitsu are good options as well. Is there a Muay Thai gym near you?
Re: Newbie Needs Advice
I agree I think the closer venue should be fine. After all you’ll be taking a beginner class and shes qualified to teach that. Then as she progresses her advancement she will be able to pass that information down to you when your ready for it.
Re: Newbie Needs Advice
By the way, here are the two links:
http://www.dupagekravmaga.com/ (further)
http://www.sfkm.net/ (closer)
Re: Newbie Needs Advice
quote justanormalguy:By the way, here are the two links:http://www.dupagekravmaga.com/ (further)
http://www.sfkm.net/ (closer)
Ahh Mark Slanes schools, he’s pretty good. Don’t know his instructors but the head instructor Mark is talented.
Re: Newbie Needs Advice
Thanks…that’s good to hear. I know the instructor at Spitfire is Ria Punzalan and the head instructor at Dupage is Scott Lorenz.
Re: Newbie Needs Advice
I talked to the trainer at the closer Krav Maga location (Spitfire Krav Maga). She said they do not spar in level 1 (they want students to learn and practice the fundamentals of combatives and make them safer in as little amount of time as they can). They introduce light sparring in Level 2 and progress from there once their students have the philosophy and fundamentals. They do full gear boxing and MMA sparring.
She also said she is working on adding classes (maybe a week night) but needs to make more classes feasible. She said she would have no problem with me taking some classes at the further location (Dupage Krav Maga) and is sure the instructor at the other location would be fine with it too (she trains there). She also said most of her students are concentrating on the self-defense aspect (fitness is secondary) and she has a couple of boxers/trainers that drop in when they don’t have classes of their own. She said she has a couple of guys that would be suitable training partners for me.
So I think I am going to check it out Saturday and see how it goes.
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