Different Types of Martial Arts Explained

What Are the Different Types of Martial Arts?

Striking Martial Arts Styles

Striking or stand-up martial arts styles teach practitioners how to defend themselves while on their feet by using blocks, kicks, punches, knees, and elbows. The degree to which they teach each of these aspects depends on the specific style, sub-style or instructor. Also, many of these stand-up styles teach other components of fighting. Striking styles include:

Boxing

Boxing is also a martial art and is one of the most ancient combat sports dating back to Greece. It was considered an Olympic sport in 688 BC. That is a long time ago, but the sport really started evolving into what it is today, in the 16th century.

Boxing can teach you a lot mentally. It doesn’t teach us life lessons in the traditional way that other martial arts do. With Boxing, it is more about learning more about yourself through trial, error, pushing yourself to your physical limitations and pain.

Physically, you will learn balance, composure, strength, how to avoid punches, and more.

Just to recap, these are the things that Boxing, even as a hobby can teach you:

Heart. You will learn how much heart you have when you start getting punched. How much does it take before you throw in the towel?
Mental and Physical awareness. This is great for any situation you might find yourself in, especially for self-defense. Being able to read what your opponent will do and what your current position is will give you an advantage.
Courage. Nobody wants to get punched. That said, you will start learning that most things aren’t as bad as they seem. You might find yourself being more excited to try new things.
Discipline. Sometimes, when we watch Boxers before a fight, they seem a little unhinged and undisciplined. This is far from true. You might be thinking of the most vocal fighters like Muhammad Ali, Tyson Fury, Mike Tyson, and Floyd Mayweather and think, they aren’t disciplined. When it comes to training and fighting, they are, trust me, they would not have been as great as they are/were without discipline.

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Capoeira

Karate

Firstly, karate originates from Japan. It was later expanded on by Chinese influence, and that is where the two forms of martial arts, karate, and kung fu, get their similarities from. While they do have similarities, both are very different from each other.

Karate, as a form of martial art, is straight forward in the sense that you are taught how to get yourself out of trouble by attacking. Karate teaches you how to move straight towards your opponent, instead of backing away. This means that, while karate is taught as a form of self-defense, and it is a form of self-defense, it is actually more offensive than defensive.

This does not mean that karate encourages you to look for trouble. What it actually means is, karate can help you get out of trouble when trouble finds you. Karate does this by teaching you how to defend yourself by being offensive.

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Kickboxing

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Krav Maga

Krav Maga was developed by the Israeli Defense Force and it is still used by them as a close combat fighting technique. Krav Maga teaches you how to not only attack but also how to defend yourself against attackers which makes it the ultimate self-defense martial art.

All of that being said, Krav Maga is usually used as self-defense rather than something for attacking other people. It is so effective that it is being adopted by some of the most prominent militaries in the world including the United States of America military.

Whenever somebody asks me about Krav Maga, I use one way of explaining it to them and here it goes: Krav Maga is a martial art that removes the spirituality that most martial arts incorporate into their training. It also removes things like discipline. It focuses on technique and how to get out of trouble or to counter attack your opponent.

Philosophy

The philosophy that drives Krav Maga is straightforward. It is encompassed in one word – Retzev – and that means continuous motion. Krav Maga uses explosive aggression and a system of simultaneous attack and defense maneuvers while moving forward.

Krav Maga fundamentals are the backbone of the system and can be summarised as follows;

Neutralize the immediate threat.
Keeping it simple.
Simultaneous attack and defense.
Retzev – continuous motion all the time.
Weapons of opportunity.
Weapons defense.
Soft body points and vulnerable areas.
Subduing techniques like choke

Students are taught to do whatever is necessary to neutralize the threat, do as much damage as possible to the attacker and get away safely. This means you need to be as ruthless as possible and keep it as simple as possible.

Ranking System (Belts)

The Beginner To Yellow Belt. As a beginner, white belt, or level 1, you will be introduced to some of Krav Maga’s history. You should be taught about its origin, its purpose, and what you can expect to achieve as you progress. The groundwork for any sport, martial art, or self-defense system is to have the foundation solid. Each student will need to attend at least 40 classes in the Beginner or Level 1 curriculum to pass on to the Yellow Belt. It should take you around four months to complete Level 1.
The Orange Belt. After grading through Level 1, the following belt insight will be the Orange or Level 2. In this part of the curriculum, you will learn more technical aspects of Krav Maga. Usually, a student must attend between 60 to 90 lessons over a minimum of six months to 9 months. All these techniques and more will be executed under stress to simulate a real-life situation.
The Green Belt. Advancing from the Orange to the Green belt or Level 3 will start you on a journey where you will begin to learn what the body is capable of. To grade for the next belt, students must attend at least 120 classes or 12 months of training, several training workshops, and fight Introduction classes.
The Blue Belt. After training on Krav Maga for almost two years now, you should be able to transition to training towards your Blue belt or Level 4. To become the best, you need to continue learning and advancing your skills. The Blue belt curriculum is demanding and more extended, and you will start to work with all sorts of simulated situations. To grade for your Blue belt or Level 4, you will be required to attend a minimum of 120 classes over 12 months, as well as the prerequisite workshops needed.
The Brown Belt. After training in the Blue belt curriculum for the minimum required 12 months or 120 lessons, you succeeded in grading. You can decide to advance to Brown Belt or Level 5. For the Brown belt Level 5 curriculum, you will be required to train for a minimum of 120 lessons over 12 months. You will then be invited to graduate with the Brown belt for the possible advancement to Black belt Level 6.
The Black Belt. In the Black belt levels, there are 5 Dans. Each invitee student will be required to do the grading in Israel, as is the tradition in Krav Maga. When you grade for the first Dan, three senior Black belt holders will preside over your grading. You will not be tested on how much you know. Instead, it is how your execution of the techniques is applied. You will be required to have trained for at least ten years before you can take your Black Belt 1^st Dan grading. This means you need to commit fully. Below is a brief description of the Dan levels.
- 1^st Dan Black Belt. You will be tested not only on your knowledge of Krav Maga’s fundamentals but technically, you need to know the entire Krav Maga curriculum from Yellow belt to Black. There are 49 Black belt topics that you will be required to know and apply. Most importantly, you will be asked to demonstrate your execution. You will endure a multiple-person attack, left and right sides, and show the ability to execute all the variants within each topic.
- 2^nd Dan Black Belt. After you have practiced and trained in 1^st Dan for five years, you can be invited to grade to 2^nd Dan. You will need to show proficiency in 52 topics and the 220 techniques in each one. There will be five examiners present of 4 and 5^th Dan rankings.
- 3^rd Dan Black Belt. Considered to be the most critically important level of the Dans, your proficiency will be tested to the maximum. You will cover 30 topics and within them 120 techniques each and all of the multiple attacker variants. For your grading, there should be at least two 5^th Dan practitioners present. You will need to have trained for five years within your Black belt 1^st Dan to qualify for 2^nd Dan.
- 4^th Dan Black Belt. In this curriculum, you will need to demonstrate expertise in military and security techniques. This segment concentrated more on advanced levels of teaching, urban warfare, and proficiency in teaching. You will need to train for six years in your 3^rd Dan to qualify for the 4^th Dan invitation.
- 5^th Dan Black Belt. Not many students take it to this level; it is advanced and is only by invitation of the Grand Master. Your training for the last 16 years plus will be tested, tried, and weighed. You will be taught how to teach and grade others for the future.

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Kung Fu

Kung Fu is a word derived from Mandarin and Cantonese that, when spoken in English, typically refers to Chinese Martial Arts. The term Kung Fu in Chinese means – any skill acquired through practice or learning. That would include merits, skills, hard work, and achievements.

Legend has it that the root Chinese Martial art developed in the Xia Dynasty around 4000 years ago. Yellow Emperor Huangdi was the first to introduce a fighting system in China around 2698 BCE. He was a famous general, avid astrologer, and apothecary who wrote many manuscripts on martial arts. Chinese Martial arts is one of the oldest philosophies and systems known and practiced.

Philosophy

Kung Fu is not only physical, but it is deeply rooted in Taoism. Lao-Tzu, between 604BCE and 531BCE, founded Taoism. His collection of writings were recorded in the Tao Te Ching and taught harmony in living between humans and nature and, more importantly, within oneself.

Kung Fu is built upon a philosophy of values, morals, and respect. Emphasizing your conduct in the dojo and on the street, you become a mirror not only of yourself but of your teachers. Kung Fu teaches students techniques to master themselves, stress, and cope with daily life.

Kung Fu is still practiced at the Shaolin Temple by Buddhist/Taoist monks. The Tao is translated as The Way/The Path. It is the transcendent force and source of all of creation. The Taoists have three life goals;

Moderation
Humility and
Compassion.

They are taught that everything is inter-connected, and for every action, there will be a reaction. They believe in the laws of nature and the rhythmic cycles. They believe the practice of Kung Fu keeps them in harmony with all of creation.

The Ying/Yang concept that Lao-Tzu developed was simple; both are necessary to achieve and maintain a balance;

Good and Evil
Bright and Dark
Male and Female

This concept is essential in Kung Fu as it is directly related to how the student applies and develops the physical powers used in their techniques along with the elemental Taoist Philosophy;

Locate key pressure points to strategically and quickly defend.
Controlled breathing and use of Qi (chi) for maximum inner strength.
Controlled use of Qi for physical power and sound mental health.
The effective use of hard and soft yin and yang techniques against an opponent.
The effective use of soft techniques against the most vigorous opponents.

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Muay Thai

Muay Thai is also known as Thai Boxing. Someone who does Muay Thai is called “Nak Muay.” The martial art originates from Thailand, and it was first used as a fighting technique for soldiers in war.

Muat Thai plays a huge role in the MMA. Experts of the martial art form bring a lot to the table with their fighting style. Muay Thai involves using your knees, fists, elbows, and legs. It also incorporates clinching. All of these factors make Muay Thai perfect for the UFC.

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Tae Kwon Do

Taekwondo is a Korean combat martial art that is strike focused. It places a heavy emphasis on kicking techniques. The art form isn’t that old, as it was developed in the 1940s and introduced globally in the 1960s. Taekwondo is inspired by other martial art forms, such as karate.

Although there is a heavy emphasis on kicking, it also includes open hand striking, fists, and forearm blocking.

Across almost 200 countries, it is estimated that around 70 million people do taekwondo. The number is staggering, especially when you consider that taekwondo is just one type of martial art out of many.

The sport is great for kids as it is not dangerous and can teach kids a lot of good character-building skills. It is also a great medium for kids to let out their frustrations in a safe and supervised environment.

There are five tenets (rules) that get taught in Taekwondo. The Tenets should be followed at all times because one thing that Taekwondo teaches us is discipline.

Tenets

Here are the five tenets of Taekwondo:

Integrity
Courtesy
Self-control
Perseverance
Indomitable spirit

Ranking System (Belts)

It may seem like the color of a martial art belt is simply selected at random to help distinguish between different levels and ranks. This is not true. Each belt has a meaning and when we explain it, everything will make a lot more sense. So, let’s jump straight into it.

Each belt has a middle phase. So, a white belt will go from white to with a yellow stripe. A yellow belt will go from yellow to yellow with a green strip and so on. This just means that the student is halfway to the next rank. The stripe will always be the color of the next rank.

White belt. This signals that a seed has been planted. The student is still innocent and knows nothing of Taekwondo yet.
Yellow belt. You can look at it as the instructor is the sun shining down on the student. The instructor is feeding the student his knowledge, helping the student grow.
Green belt. The green belt is actually a pretty significant milestone in a Gup’s journey. It means that the seed that was once naive and ignorant to the world of Taekwondo is now starting to sprout from the ground with all that it has learned so far.
Blue belt. As the student grows, he/she is reaching further for the blue sky.
Red Belt. The student now knows enough Taekwondo for them to be considered dangerous. The red signifies fiery danger and the student now needs to learn self-control.
Black belt. This belt signifies that you have the basic knowledge needed to start becoming a true Taekwondo master.

When you start out in Taekwondo, you might think that becoming a black belt makes you a master but this is not true. Earning your black belt is only the beginning. It is now time to start earning each Dan. Good luck.

As we mentioned at the beginning of the article, to get your black belt will take approximately 4 years from the day you start. I thought that it would be important and useful to add a table and so here it is.

The table is taken from the international Taekwondo association. It shows how much time must be sent in each rank before you can advance to the next one.

Tae Kwon Do Rank	Time Required To Advance In Rank
10th Gup White Belt	2 Months (36 Hours)
9th Gup White Belt With Yellow Stripe	2 Months (36 Hours)
8th Gup Yellow Belt	2 Months (36 Hours)
7th Gup Yellow Belt With Green Stripe	2 Months (36 Hours)
6th Gup Green Belt	2 Months (36 Hours)
5th Gup Green Belt With Blue Stripe	3 Months (54 Hours)
4th Gup Blue Belt	6 Months (108 Hours)
3rd Gup Blue Belt With Red Stripe	6 Months (108 Hours)
2nd Gup Red Belt	6 Months (108 Hours)
1st Gup Red Belt With Black Stripe	9 Months (162 Hours)
1st Dan (Il Dan) Black Belt	2 Years
2nd Dan (Ee Dan) Black Belt	2 Years
3rd Dan (Sam Dan) Black Belt	4 Years
4th Dan (Sa Dan) Black Belt	4 Years
5th Dan (Oh Dan) Black Belt	6 Years
6th Dan (Yook Dan) Black Belt	6 Years
7th Dan (Chil Dan) Black Belt	8 Years
8th Dan (Pal Dan) Black Belt	N/A
9th Dan (Koo Dan) Black Belt	N/A

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Tang Soo Do

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Grappling Martial Arts Styles

The grappling styles in martial arts focus on teaching practitioners how to take opponents to the ground, where they either achieve a dominant position or utilize a submission hold to end the fight. Grappling styles include:

Jiu Jitsu

In 1917, A Japanese Judoka by the name of Mitsuyo Maeda taught Judo to a Brazilian man by the name of Carlos Gracie. Carlos and his brothers then further developed Judo into something called “Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.” As time went on, Gracie Jiu-Jitsu became its own sport, and eventually, it became known as “Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ).”

Jiu-Jitsu is a grapple and ground fighting martial art. It can be great for self-defense, especially if you do not want to strike your opponent. Instead of striking your opponent, you could subdue them with grapples and submissions.

Apart from being used as self-defense, Jiu-Jitsu is also a combat sport. Unfortunately, the sport is not included in the Olympics. Jiu-Jitsu does have its own tournaments and competitions.

Just because BJJ isn’t in the Olympics, doesn’t mean that the sport is not respected. The reason why it is not part of the Olympics could be because Judo is already there, and there is no reason to swap one for the other.

Some MMA fighters also use the sport.

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Ranking System (Belts)

From the beginning of the white belt to the blue belt (which is the second belt), the average time is around 2 years. From the blue belt to the purple belt (which is the third belt), the average time is 1 and a half years. And from the purple belt to the brown belt (which precedes the black belt), 1 and a half more years are needed.

BELT	DEGREES (STRIPES)	TIME
White – Blue	4	2 years
Blue – Purple	4	2 years
Purple – Brown	4	1 and a half years
Brown – Black	4	1 year

Remember that in each belt, a student needs to earn 4 stripes and that the average time for these belts is much longer in reality, adding up to 10 years or longer to reach the black belt level.

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Catch Wrestling

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Luta Livre

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Russian Sambo

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Sumo

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Wrestling

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Takedown Martials Arts Styles

Combat always starts from a standing position. The only sure way to get a fight to the ground is through the use of takedowns and throws, and that’s where these throwing styles come into play. Note that all of the grappling styles listed above also teach takedowns, and most of these throwing styles teach grappling. Clearly, there is a significant amount of overlap, but the primary focus with these styles is takedowns. Throwing styles include:

Aikido

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Judo

Judo is a modern style of martial art. Jigoro Kano formed the Japanese martial art in 1882. It is regarded as a combat sport and is even part of the Olympics.

The art of Judo is not just physical. When Jigoro developed Judo, he did it as mental, physical, and moral teaching. All-round, it helps you see things differently. You are taught mental traits that help you in day to day life. You are taught how to act within good morals. Finally, you are trained in combat.

1964 was the first time that Judo found its way into the Olympics, that yeast the event was held in Tokyo Japan. Judo did not return for the 1968 Olympics but has since become a staple event.

In Judo, you will learn two different types of balance, static and dynamic. You will develop speed, flexibility, and power. These are just a few of the things you will learn. These new skills can be applied in any self-defense situation you find yourself in. They can also be used for a career in MMA or Judo tournaments.

We have seen a rise in popularity when it comes to Judo in MMA, but the martial art hasn’t been used by many fighters in the past. Hopefully, we can see the art being used by more fighters in the future.

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Hapkido

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Shuai Jiao

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Weapons-based Martial Arts Styles

Many of the aforementioned styles use weapons in their systems. For example, Goju-ryu karate practitioners are taught to use the bokken (wooden sword). But some martial arts are centered entirely around weapons. Weapons-based styles include:

Kali

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Laido

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Kendo

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Meditative Martial Arts Styles

Practitioners of low-impact styles of martial arts are mostly concerned with breathing techniques, fitness, and the spiritual side of their movements rather than combat in particular. However, all of these styles were once used for combat and still can be, as the 2013 Chinese-American film “The Man of Tai Chi” illustrates. Low-impact styles include:

Baguazhang

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Tai Chi

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Chi Gong-based Styles

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Mixed Martial Arts Styles

Most martial arts styles use techniques found in others. In recent years, many schools are simply teaching several martial arts styles together, which is known as mixed martial arts and has been popularized by contests such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The term MMA generally refers to training in a competitive style of martial arts that incorporates grappling, stand-up fighting, takedowns, throws, and submissions. In addition to the aforementioned styles, hybrid martial arts forms include the following: