There are a lot of martial arts out there…

Why did I choose Judo? Why should you consider it?

For me, it come down to three main points:

• Fitness
• Capabilities
• Environment

Fitness:

I have done several Martial Arts off and on for years. Although I enjoy kicking and punching, nothing has just flat kicked my butt physically like grappling. Wrestling class in high school use to just wipe out the football players. Judo, JuJitsu, and other grappling arts are an amazing workout.

Also, When I feel fit, I feel good about myself.

Capabilities:

Okay, so assuming you are learning a martial art (or considering it) because you might actually need to sue it one day, or at least want to self confidence and assurance of knowing you could if you wanted to… The applicability of Judo is great. I am not actually all that big on punching. Most fights that have a punch don’t end with just one. There are a lot of punches. As an adult, that’s not what I need. I don’t need to trade a dozen punches in a mall or parking lot.

But I also don’t really want to grapple if I don’t have to. This can be a mess, and hard to escape. It can be especially bad if there is more than one person facing me.

Judo gives me the ability to take someone who is laying their hands on me, or punching me, or someone I want to lay hands on, and place that person with amazing impact on their head on the ground. Hopefully that is the end of it. Hopefully they walk away, or I take the chance to run.

But If I have to take it to the ground, Judo gives me the skills to end it there. Break an arm, choke them unconscious, etc.

I think this is especially important as a reason it is good for various types of people, not just large, violent males (like me.) It is this ability to throw and run, or cripple someone who holds you down, that made me decide to enroll my daughter.

Environment:

As I said, I have done various martial arts off and on for years. I have also worked with people in our Judo class who came from other martial arts classes. Most martial arts classes are a bullshit ego stroke for the instructor. Many of them are militant, and cold.

I have taken Judo at two different Dojos in Utah: Lehi Judo, and Hidden Valley Judo (where I currently train.) I may be lucky in my experience, but both of those environments were great. I really felt among friends. We train hard, but there are no egos, and we can always enjoy a good laugh.

The class I am in now has really become like family to me. Mike, our Sensei is approachable, light hearted, and a good laugh. But he is also a black belt in Judo and Jiu Jitsu, and can flat kick my butt.

Judo… I just love it.