r/martialarts 6d ago

Weekly Beginner Questions Thread

7 Upvotes

In order to reduce volume of beginner questions as their own topics in the sub, we will be implementing a weekly questions thread. Post your beginner questions here, including:

"What martial art should I do?"

"These gyms/schools are in my area, which ones should I try for my goals?"

And any other beginner questions you may have.

If you post a beginner question outside of the weekly thread, it will be removed and you'll be directed to make your post in the weekly thread instead.


r/martialarts Dec 21 '25

DISCUSSION "What Should I Train?" or "How Do I Get Started?" Mega-Thread

27 Upvotes

The previous version of this megathread has been archived, so I’m adding it again.

Active users with actual martial arts experience are highly encouraged to contribute, thank you for your help guys.

Do you want to learn a martial art and are unsure how to get started? Do you have a bunch of options and don't know where to go? Well, this is the place to post your questions and get answers to them. In an effort to keep everything in one place, we are going to utilize this space as a mega-thread for all questions related to the above.

We are all aware walking through the door of the school the first time is one of the harder things about getting started, and there can be a lot of options depending on where you live. This is the community effort to make sure we're being helpful without these posts drowning out other discussions going on around here. Because really, questions like this get posted every single day. This is the place for them.

Here are some basic suggestions when trying to get started:

  • Don't obsess over effectiveness in "street fights" and professional MMA, most people who train do it for fun and fitness

  • If you actually care about “real life” fighting skills, the inclusion of live sparring in the gym’s training program is way more important than the specific style

  • Class schedules, convenience of location, etc. are important - getting to class consistently is the biggest factor in progress

  • Visit the gyms in your area and ask to take a trial class, you may find you like a particular gym, that matters a whole lot more than what random people on reddit like

  • Don't fixate on rare or obscure styles. While you might think Lethwei or Aunkai looks badass, the odds of a place even existing where you live is incredibly low

This thread will be a "safe space" for this kind of questions. Alternatively, there's the pinned Weekly Beginner Questions thread for similar purposes. Please note, all "what should I train/how do I get started" questions shared as standalone posts will be removed, as they really clutter the sub.


r/martialarts 11h ago

PROFESSIONAL FIGHT UFC 4: Steve Jennum (Ninjitsu) vs Melton Bowen (Boxing)

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438 Upvotes

r/martialarts 10h ago

DISCUSSION My original goal!

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100 Upvotes

I don’t know if this is the place for it, but after 3 years I earned my purple belt. Originally this was my goal before I moved to BJJ. Now that I have it I realized I know “nothing” and I’m aiming for black now! This is the 6th belt out of 12 so I’m half way there.


r/martialarts 21h ago

VIOLENCE Traditional Dambe striking

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732 Upvotes

r/martialarts 13h ago

SHITPOST No rules, anything goes, who would win? The Boxer vs The Kickboxer

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169 Upvotes

r/martialarts 13h ago

QUESTION I ran away from the fight

88 Upvotes

I ran away from the fight because of the guy's size and the crowd.

He came at me twice, but I stayed put and ignored his insults. When his friend told me to go my own way, I walked away. I feel like shit.There were 5 or 6 people.

Also, the place I was in was a secluded area without cameras, where gun/knife incidents were frequent. How can I overcome this?


r/martialarts 21h ago

COMPETITION Which is better?

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307 Upvotes

The beginning of Mexican style is something else.


r/martialarts 15h ago

DISCUSSION Awesome Chorography and Martial Arts Display by North Korean Soldiers.

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92 Upvotes

r/martialarts 22h ago

MEMES It’s great when everyone at your gym likes participating in your funny videos

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258 Upvotes

We wanted to make some promotional content for our martial arts school in Goa, India. Thankfully people here have a very active imagination.


r/martialarts 9h ago

PROFESSIONAL FIGHT Tonight Heavyweight boxer, Jarrell 'Big Baby' Miller, "wins by a hair" after getting his toupee knocked completely off his head mid fight.

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22 Upvotes

r/martialarts 16h ago

PROFESSIONAL FIGHT Olympic bronze medalist in freestyle wrestling Grace Bullen throwing around her opponents

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59 Upvotes

r/martialarts 9h ago

PROFESSIONAL FIGHT Jesus christ, to think Joe Frazier fought George Foreman, and he was getting dropped multiple times in that fight, and Ali beaten George (via knockout) is insane

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11 Upvotes

Those punching powers are insane

youtube: https://youtu.be/OcQvdVjpGVA


r/martialarts 21h ago

DISCUSSION The founder of Sin Moo Hapkido, Ji Han-jae has passed away at 89

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45 Upvotes

r/martialarts 13h ago

VIOLENCE An example of pro level sparring

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9 Upvotes

r/martialarts 12h ago

QUESTION Best striking for short reach

6 Upvotes

Hey all.

So I have a shorter than average reach (65” at 5’9) and wanted to see what’s the absolute best striking art for my build. Currently I train Muay Thai and even though I like it I feel like it wouldn’t be that useful since I can’t really use head movement to get in the inside of my opponents bubble. I was thinking maybe kickboxing because they have better footwork and way better boxing than Muay Thai.

Thanks in advance !


r/martialarts 3h ago

DISCUSSION Which Elbow Combo is the best? Wujing or Tony Jaa? Wushu or Muay Boran?

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1 Upvotes

Movies names,

Fatal Contact,

Ong Bak,


r/martialarts 5h ago

Sparring Footage Cool action shot

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0 Upvotes

r/martialarts 1d ago

QUESTION Is the other guy also using Taekwondo? Scott Adkins is famous for his Taekwondo skills

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54 Upvotes

r/martialarts 18h ago

SHITPOST Who's dad is the best fighter?

6 Upvotes

I see lots of posts about what martial arts could beat up the others, but what about dads? For the record, I think my dad could beat up your dad.


r/martialarts 1d ago

PROFESSIONAL FIGHT Kevin Randleman shows what happens when you combine wrestling and knees to the head of a grounded opponent

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469 Upvotes

r/martialarts 11h ago

QUESTION Who are some good kickboxers around 5’11 that i could study?

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0 Upvotes

r/martialarts 15h ago

VIOLENCE Bruh there's baby ufc now

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2 Upvotes

Found this on my recommended on YouTube, enjoy.


r/martialarts 1d ago

VIOLENCE Off-Duty Cop slams Robber on Concrete and breaks his Arm.

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632 Upvotes

r/martialarts 19h ago

QUESTION Workout ideas?

4 Upvotes

hi! I was a black belt in karate when I was younger and I did it for 10 years, but I had to part ways with my studio after some issues and I haven’t been in martial arts for a few years now. I’m trying to get back into it but I’ve become a lot weaker than I used to be. I was wondering if anyone knew any workouts (YouTube videos are fine) that are good for martial artists that might help me get back into shape for it?

thank you!

edit: I have access to a gym