Martial arts???

[Mike357]

Greetings, I ask for the opinions of LEO's on what would be the most useful martial art and why. There is a retired sheriff deputy at the casino I work at, I asked him the same question, his answer was judo. He also told me that knowing judo or aikido could show a department that I know how to take care of myself if I were to be on my own. I want to know the most practical martial art, so that if/when the time comes for me to subdue a threat, I could do so without using a more lethal weapon.

[knightstalker83]

Shou shu martial arts, it is also known as the seven beast. Check it out

[9mmepiphany]

The closest the to the stuff they'll teach you in LE is Aikido.

The easiest to learn in Krav Maga

The most useful is Bagua

[Hornetsnest]

If you wanna learn to effectively take down suspects and control them, then I would agree with Judo being a great choice.

If you are worried about surviving and winning a knockdown-dragout fight with a suspect, I would train at an MMA gym. There you can learn to deal with being completely exhausted and defending takedowns while taking punches, kicks, knees, etc....all while looking to takedown your oppenent (suspect) and control him.

Just another opinion...for what its worth. While my opinion says you need the ability to takedown/grapple, take punches during the process, and be inshape enough not to gas out....another important aspect is your mental toughness and will to fight under adversity....rather than a specific defined "style".

[gianyveedub]

If you are in the Jail setting like me I would say Jiu Jitsu and Military Muay Thai. Both of these have come in handy.

[USMC169]

Shou shu martial arts, it is also known as the seven beast. Check it out

This. Some of the best stuff out there IMO

[NastyNate]

MCMAP

[crazyucbr]

BJJ works for sure especially if your not a big/strong guy. I would start there as your base. Then work on your boxing skills. There is really no one style that defeats all others.

[crazyucbr]

If you are in the Jail setting like me I would say Jiu Jitsu and Military Muay Thai. Both of these have come in handy.

I'm curious as to what a military must Thai is? I've done both and don't see how the two connects? Is that like a must Thai except your wearing cammies and boots? I'm not being sarcastic but military have a long tradition of renaming things they adopted after its been used in the said organization.

[crazyucbr]

If you are in the Jail setting like me I would say Jiu Jitsu and Military Muay Thai. Both of these have come in handy.

I'm curious as to what a military muay
Thai is? I've done both and don't see how the two connects? Is that like a must Thai except your wearing cammies and boots? I'm not being sarcastic but military have a long tradition of renaming things they adopted after its been used in the said organization.

[Notorious]

Depends on what you want to do. Stand up fighting arts are great, until you find out, it's not too easy to execute some of those moves when you have a 5 pound vest and 20 pound belt weighing you down while you try to move around.

Same as the grappling or control arts, such as aikido or jujitsu. When I went through, they taught us some very watered down aikijutsu or whatever it was called, that was used by the Japanese police in arrest and control techniques.

The instructor said it was enough to get us into trouble. I promptly forgot it the day after we had to demonstrate it for the test. It'll never work for the streets in a real fight with someone who is resisting you.

Learn some basics from everything. Learn the fundamentals of human body mechanics. How far and which direction each joint goes. What it takes for a joint to break. Learn some pressure points. Learn how to throw a punch, and how to take a punch. Get your conditioning up so you can stay in the fight if you get in one.

Those things are way more useful for LE than any system of martial arts, because you do not want to get into a prolonged and protracted fight at all. You want to be able to hold your own and get it done. If that means throwing a lock or hold on the guy and maintaining it through strength and endurance until he runs out of gas or backup arrives, so be it. You do not want to stand up and go toe to toe boxing and kicking with a suspect for 5 minutes. You're going to get hurt, it also looks terrible when lawsuit time comes.

[Armed24-7]

Greetings, I ask for the opinions of LEO's on what would be the most useful martial art and why. There is a retired sheriff deputy at the casino I work at, I asked him the same question, his answer was judo. He also told me that knowing judo or aikido could show a department that I know how to take care of myself if I were to be on my own. I want to know the most practical martial art, so that if/when the time comes for me to subdue a threat, I could do so without using a more lethal weapon.

To be honest, there is no "best". Choose an art that has most to do with grappling. Almost all fights you might find yourself in, goes to ground very fast. The most important things you will need are; stamina, upper body strength, and grappling skills. Trust me on this. I have been on the job for 23 years, 12 of which has been patrol.

Luckily, I have been able to avoid quite a bit of fights over the past few years thanks to the taser and pepper spray. Much of the time, those are enough to end things, but not always.

[5shot]

First and foremost the martial art has to fit you and your particular needs. It should be a well rounded art that teaches stand up and grappling techniques. It should be a art that is self defense oriented, instead of sport oriented. It should be taught realistically with moderate to full contact, and at fighting speed, after the techniques are learned. It should be taught by someone that is well qualified and experienced.
Visit any school your interested in and watch several classes. If you see or hear any of the following, mark that school off your list:
1. No contact is made when sparring, because the techniques are too deadly.
2. 1-2 year black belt program.
3. Children in the school wearing black belts
4. Senior students beating the crap out beginning students.
5. Contracts
6. Instructor who won't discuss his qualifications, or let you watch classes.
7. Young masters, 20-30 something year old high ranking instructors.
7. Emphasis on only one range of fighting, kicking, boxing, grappling, etc.
8. If something sounds or looks like B.S., it probably is.

[Samuelx]

Greetings, I ask for the opinions of LEO's on what would be the most useful martial art and why.

IMnshO, no "the most useful". Every art has something to offer, some (much) more than others. What are your goals in training?

There is a retired sheriff deputy at the casino I work at, I asked him the same question, his answer was judo.

Only partially agree. Judo is great and develops many important attributes but isn't "the most useful".

He also told me that knowing judo or aikido could show a department that I know how to take care of myself if I were to be on my own.

YMMV. I trained for a long time before I got hired - it didn't help at all in my hiring process.

I want to know the most practical martial art, so that if/when the time comes for me to subdue a threat, I could do so without using a more lethal weapon.

BUT are you doing it in a LE capacity or non-LE? If you can stop the threat and gain control with your empty hands, great - BUT For us in LE, I teach that intially, you're only going empty hands until you can get to a better tool - something that will allow you to make more of an effect, from further away, and lessen the chance of you getting injured.

Notorious and 5shot mentioned some important concepts/principles:

1. ranges in combat - many MA only offer 1 or maybe 2. for LE, you'd want to be as well versed in everything from long distance firearms range to ground/grappling combat

2. "liveness" in training - if you're not sparring or rolling or otherwise dynamically testing your techniques, that's no good. For LE, if you're not getting physically exhausted, punched/kicked, made to critically think/operate in high stress/adrenal situations during training, that's no good either.

3. reality - LE work can be night and day different than training in most schools or participating in competitions. Low light/no light, unfriendly surfaces or settings, weapons, defending against weapons, weapon retention, uncomfortable/restrictive clothes and gear, multiple opponents, no rules/dirty fighting, ambushes/spontaneous attacks, the possibility of getting seriously hurt or killed, taking someone's life in order to protect yours or someone else's, ETC

You also have different types of opponents/suspects in LE - some are going to be trying to kill you, some are just trying to get away, some are just plain stupid or drunk, ETC. Not everyone is a nail and you should have more than just a hammer in your tool box.

For LE, you need to develop these areas:
1. mindset
2. fight conditioning
3. skill/technique
4. proficiency/readiness with your equipment

My parent arts are JKD/FMA so I'm a big believer in 'absorbing what is useful'.

IME, no art/style/school has all the answers. In addition, what works "best" for one person may not be the "best" for another person. Go out and learn whatever you can from wherever you can and blend it for You.

[judoguy]

Judo. It is practical , proven, practiced world wide , and fairly cheapest of class cost compared to all other classes.

Judo you can actually practice going full bar while training and randori "sparring"

Teaches how to use their momentum as well so it doesn't matter if your big or small . Also teaches you how to fall.

Aikido is great but it is not a sport so you can't really spar with it without injuring someone or yourself.

Bjj is great but typically you don't want to be on the ground that long.


If your in oc I recommend ock judo in cypress , in inland empire I recommend Goltz judo in Claremont.

I am a judoka as well but I would really like to learn Krav Maga , because that isn't a sport but serious self defense