Kung Fu Fighting

[Elsaraw]

Does anyone have any knowledge of the various forms of martial arts? The more I try to read up on them, the less I seem to know and understand. I would like to learn something, but I don't know if that something is
karate
kung fu
capeoria (sp?)
tae kwon do
ju jitsu
any experts in the house?

[plethora]

Here is how I would break it down...

I would say that Kung Fu and Capoera would be the most artistic out of the two. Kung Fu, while not viewed as practical compared to Karate, Tae Kwon Do, or Jiu Jitsu, is usually a striking art. The different techniques are typically adapted from the movements of different animals, i.e. Dragon, Tiger, Mongoose, Crane, Cobra, etc. Capoera is more of a rhythmic, dancing type of martial art. You "jenga" and get your body moving in a certain rhythm. I would say it is one of the more acrobatic of the MA's you mentioned. A lot of spinning kicks and flipping at whatnot. Also a striking art.

Karate and Tae Kwon Do I'll group together as the two most mainstream of the MA's. There are both pretty straight forward kick-punch styles. Nothing too fancy. It has been my experience that these two styles have been "watered down" through the years. You can find a Karate or Tae Kwon Do studio in any strip mall across the US or Canada. A striking art.

Jiu Jitsu is quite different from the other 4 in my opinion because it is more of a throwing, joint manipulating, and choking art as compared to a kick-punch, striking art. Jiu Jitsu can allow you to subdue someone without having do punch them in the face or strike them in any way. I personally have studied Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and I loved it. It can be very pratical in a one-on-one confrontation.

If I had to list them in order of my favorites I would say

Jiu Jitsu
Kung Fu
Capoera
Tae Kwon Do
Karate

If you're considering training, do yourself a favor and research who you train with. Training with someone legit makes a world of difference.

I hope this helps. Cheers.

[stars11973]

On the subject of karate does anyone know if there is still ways to be trained that does not involve the legs, because I have a knee that pops out?

[Double Helix]

I practice Taekwondo, which means art of the foot and hand. The moves are about 90% leg work, which are essentially kicking. There are also a lot of blocking techniques.

The artful part of TKD are the forms or patterns, called Poomse, which are different moves that take a short amount of time, about a minute usually.

TKD is split into two different schools, one is the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) and the other is the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) - most practice the WTF and the ITF is considered somewhat of a classical, old school type of art.

I've been doing TKD for over 3 years now, and am working on my black belt.

My Master's site: www.cliffhong.com

These sites tell more about the history of TKD as well:

http://www.itfpoomse.com/
http://www.wtfpoomse.com/

[Heart Ace]

In a nut shell Karate and Jiu Jitsu originated from japan. Karate literally means "Empty-hand". A form of martial arts where there are a lot of punches and throws. Power-based attacks.

Jiu Jitsu concentrates more on effortless attacks like targeting the joint and locking opponents, disabling them.

Tae Kwon Do came from Korea where one uses the legs as the primary weapon.

Kung Fu if i'm not mistaken came started in china. A combination of punch and kicks with some acrobatics.

Capoiera is an Afro-Brazilian martial arts partnered with dance. The use a lot of acrobatics, tumbling and kicks.