The gym you're studying at matters way more than the martial art itself, except for a handful of martial arts that are consistent stinkers. Go to the gyms and see what they're doing, and ask what sort of training they do.
What's right for you depends on what you're looking for. I'm going to assume that's self defense because that's usually the subtext of these sorts of questions, but if you want to look cool you should look for people who look cool doing their thing, if you want to get in shape you should look for people who look sweaty and exhausted, if you want a competitive sport you should look for what competitions they compete in, etc.
For self defense, the things to look for are:
Do they spar? Giant red flag if they do not (no useful practice, no way to confirm anything works, always bullshit). Never listen to people who have secret techniques too deadly to use in sparring, or whatever the fuck excuse.
How long do you train before you start sparring? If it's not a couple of weeks, that's also a giant red flag, this time because they're being insane and reckless with safety. But if it's a really long time, that gets back into the bullshit angle (all the initiates are going to pretend the bullshit works because they've studied it for two years before finally getting to try).
Are the beginners practicing footwork and spacing? They really should be.
Are they talking about magic? If somebody mentions pressure points, ask what that means, and if it's something about meridians, walk away (people referring to actual anatomy as pressure points is common enough that you can't just ignore anyone who says it, though).
Does the fundamental plan behind the art make sense? "Hit them in the face until they go away or fall over" makes sense. "Know enough about leverage to throw people on the ground" makes sense. "Hit them with a dizzying array of light but fast blows" does not make sense - speed and power are the same thing. "Grab their wrist and put it in an awkward position" does not make sense - they've got a spare hand to hit you with.
I think this comes back to Owl's “Know enough about leverage to throw people on the ground.” Holding someone in an awkward spot won't be helpful unless you're immediately using that leverage.
The gym you're studying at matters way more than the martial art itself, except for a handful of martial arts that are consistent stinkers. Go to the gyms and see what they're doing, and ask what sort of training they do.
What's right for you depends on what you're looking for. I'm going to assume that's self defense because that's usually the subtext of these sorts of questions, but if you want to look cool you should look for people who look cool doing their thing, if you want to get in shape you should look for people who look sweaty and exhausted, if you want a competitive sport you should look for what competitions they compete in, etc.
For self defense, the things to look for are:
Do they spar? Giant red flag if they do not (no useful practice, no way to confirm anything works, always bullshit). Never listen to people who have secret techniques too deadly to use in sparring, or whatever the fuck excuse.
How long do you train before you start sparring? If it's not a couple of weeks, that's also a giant red flag, this time because they're being insane and reckless with safety. But if it's a really long time, that gets back into the bullshit angle (all the initiates are going to pretend the bullshit works because they've studied it for two years before finally getting to try).
Are the beginners practicing footwork and spacing? They really should be.
Are they talking about magic? If somebody mentions pressure points, ask what that means, and if it's something about meridians, walk away (people referring to actual anatomy as pressure points is common enough that you can't just ignore anyone who says it, though).
Does the fundamental plan behind the art make sense? "Hit them in the face until they go away or fall over" makes sense. "Know enough about leverage to throw people on the ground" makes sense. "Hit them with a dizzying array of light but fast blows" does not make sense - speed and power are the same thing. "Grab their wrist and put it in an awkward position" does not make sense - they've got a spare hand to hit you with.
would add to your wrist comment: if they show any training involving knife disarming like this that's a hella red flag.
As they say - the loser of a knife fight bleeds out in the street, the winner of a knife fight bleeds out in an ambulance.
If someone pulls a knife on you, you should run away. And if that's not an option, you should hit them with a chair or something.
Fiore's dagger sections show a lot of disarms involving twisting the wrist. But to be fair:
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They're a part of Chinese traditional medicine. But yes, they show up in Wuxia bullshit.
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I think this comes back to Owl's “Know enough about leverage to throw people on the ground.” Holding someone in an awkward spot won't be helpful unless you're immediately using that leverage.
This is the way.
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