advice for newbie

tiptap

Hi All,

Just wondering what peoples thoughts/opinions are on this.

I'm 30, and am wondering, am I too old to start a martial art. I've always been interested in it but have never taken it up.

Is it something that you only start when you're young or in your teens ?
If not too old, would you recommend a specific type of Martial art.

What I'd like to get out of it is more for the exercise and discipline part of it.

Thanks for reading.

Lab_Mouse

hi,

im 34 and took up muay thai.The first 2 or 3 weeks are tough but the fitness you get out of it is unbelieveable and is very enjoyable once you start sparring.It is full contact which might or might not be your cup of tea:)

I also done a bit of karate and taekwondo which I found enjoyable as well but the training itself wasnt as tough as the muay thai.Having said that learning the forms was fun .

Sure other people on this forum will put in their 2 cent for you aswell.Pick a martial art then and go to a club and give it a go till you find one that you enjoy,

either way good luck

conor rowan

ah youre never too old.

when looking for a MA the main thing to bear in mind is what are you going to stick with. there is no best MA. just the one you enjoy the most.

so when looking for one, look at ones which are nearby/convenient to get to and you enjoy training a. most places offer a free first class to newbies so shop around and see what you like. if you post where you live you should get people posting about clubs nearby.

the one i train in is BJJ. i started in it as it was a club in UCD where im a student and was recommended to me by a friend who practised aikido for 6 yrs.
BJJ or brasilian jiujitsu is a form of wrestling made famous by the gracie family in early UFC competitions. it works on the principle of gaining a superior position , then using joint manipulation (bending arms and legs to make you go ouch) and/or choke holds to make the person submit.
i like it because its a good workout and something different. everyones seen punches and kicks before but this is unexpected, so im my humble opinion its good for 1vs1 self defence. as for 1 vs many, run run run...

in saying that i really enjoyed a kung fu class i did recently.
its all about enjoyment, if youre not enjoying it theres not much point doing it.
other people should be along shortly to post shortly about their resoective clubs/MA

Nothingcompares

There is a lot of guys in my Submission Wrestling/ BJJ club that are in their 30s and 40s. This type of grappling relies on skill and timing and therefore older people (30 isn't old though!) can often become very good at the game because they don't try to rely on speed and strength. You should give it a shot yourself, what is you location, perhaps we can recommend a club nearby (and others will suggest different types of martial arts to you).

ColinJennings

1. 30 is not old.
2. You are never too old to start (the average age in my beginner class is 26ish)
3. Tell us where you are and we can give recommendations

tiptap

Many Thanks for the replies all, appreciated. It's good to hear inflexible oldies can start too :-)

As to convenience, I'm in Greystones.

One of the arts that has appealed to me is Aikido (don't ask me why! ! !).

I'll have a google on nearby classes but if anyone has recommendations I'll certainly go on them.

Thanks again.

Black Swan

Age is not the factor. All you need is the will to learn the skill. As to the discipline? I would suggest that you shop around before committing. Some dojangs, dojos, studios or gyms offer introductory classes at discounted rates. One way to sample an MA or MMA or whatever.

pearsquasher

I've got 4 new students recently - 3 of them are over 35. (I'm 34). They're all doing fine and they know that they can do this art - Bujinkan - till they're playing with their great-grand children.

I'd imagine Aikido is the same for longevity. (My dad's 66 and still has some moves).

deegs

tiptap wrote: »

Many Thanks for the replies all, appreciated. It's good to hear inflexible oldies can start too :-)

As to convenience, I'm in Greystones.

One of the arts that has appealed to me is Aikido (don't ask me why! ! !).

I'll have a google on nearby classes but if anyone has recommendations I'll certainly go on them.

Thanks again.

Google kendo.

David Jones

There is kickboxing, tai chi, tae kwon do and some bjj in Legends Gym in Kilcoole. There used to be an Aikido club in Bray but I think you would have to travel further than that now.

RNCFAN

You're never to old to begin training

columok

Aikido can be tough on the body with all of the breakfalls (Judo can be similar but I feel a judoka is better conditioned). As a sustainable martial art you should be careful which club you train with as the approach will differ from place to place.

I think BJJ is low impact enough to be trained for many years while having enough of a conditioning emphasis to make you fit and strong for day to day.