Whats the best style for quick and powerful self defense?
A good question from a young person…
I recommend Traditional Kenpo in your area contact Dave Simmons twindragondave@hotmail.com
You will learn fast powerful techniques for self defense and the martial art.
You Have The Power,
Dave S 
Quick and powerful self-defense, no frills, no flowery moves, no wasted motion? Shotokan. For a CMA I would suggest Wing Chun.
K. Mark Hoover
When fighting, don’t think too much and just fight.
Any martial art style you learn will be helpful if you train it in that manner.
It’s hard to find any traditional school that offers proper full contact training. I would suggest either a local kickboxing or boxing gym or if grappling is more your flavor then a local Judo club.-ED
“The grappling arts imply most fights end up on the ground…take them there. The striking arts imply all fights start standing up…keep them there. The mixed martial arts imply any fight can go anywhere…be ready and able to go everywhere.”-a mix martial artist
fast self defense huh?
Well, there really is no best style. They all have their merits. I personally recommend Ed Parker’s American Kenpo or A.K.K.I. American Kenpo
They are very closely related (since A.K.K.I. came out of Ed Parker’s Kenpo) and are both centered around real life self defense. However, most styles of traditional Karate and even Kung Fu will work well on the street. For maximum benefit I would recomend crosstrianing in both a stricking art (Kenpo, Kung Fu, Karate) and a groundfighting art like Brazillian Jujitsu or akido. I say this because your best bet is to stop the attacker while standing up (where a striking art is most effective), but in case you do end up on the ground you kneed a good knowledge of how to fight there as well.
Anyway, I hope I have been of some help.
Assumption is the mother of tragedy. Just keep and open mind, be ready, and go full force.
If all you want is quick and powerful, I wouldn’t even worry about styles learn about 5 techniques and work on perfecting them against an opponent.
- Front thrust kick (pelvic area)
- vertical punch (solar plexus, head)
- spear hand (throat, eyes)
- vertical knee (groin, sides of leg)
- elbow strike (ribs, chest, head)
You can take out any untrained person if you truly understand all of those techniques. NOW, if you want to be able to handle trained people or people with streetfighting experience then I would find a good school and join.
In my experience with Kenpo it is mainly concerned with the untrained person who steps with his left and throws a right punch (yes there is more, but at the beginning at least in my training this is what it was). My experience in my other art is more concerned with training you from the start against another trained fighter and then you use those principles for an untrained person as well, but it takes a little longer.
“There are many who talk of the Way, but few who walk the Way.”
Shuai Chiao
There is an old Chinese saying that translates as “One year of Shuai Chiao is better than three years of other fist arts.”
I am a big beleiver in luck. The more I work, the more luck I have.
“In my experience with Kenpo it is mainly concerned with the untrained person who steps with his left and throws a right punch (yes there is more…”
You’re right. There’s more.
In general a striking art and a grappling art!
Boxing, muy thai=striking.
wrestling, bjj=grappling.
Please judge according to your body structure and weather you like CONTACT! I use to be a BANGER so I use to do boxing and muy thai…as I got older( 26 LOL )…my body couldn’t take the banging…hurt back and all…so I became more and more a grappler! It ultimately depends on you!
A
…
Glock-Fu.
“You have to consider the possibility that god does not like you; he never wanted you. In all probability, he hates you. It is not until we have lost everything that we can do anything.”
Boxing or REAL kickboxing
SCOTT answer is surprisingly correct also…I’m a future police officer…so I would have to say…a gun can intimidate 80% of an opponent out there…the problem is in most fight enviornments…bars, clubs, and restaurants…u’re not allowed to bring one in!
A
To Kenpoman
Kenpoman–
I was just curious what branch/style of Kenpo you are studying? My experience has been through Dr. La Tourette’s style.
“There are many who talk of the Way, but few who walk the Way.”
I havent taken any other martial arts besides Wing Chun but it has worked great for me,maybe that can help you.
BJJ and more BJJ fro groundwwork.
Stand Up-
Kungfu-White Eyebrow, Dragon, Choy Lee Fut
Wing chun(NOT)
Karate-Goju, Uechi Ryu, Kyukuoshin
Shotokan(NOT)
And Muay Thai.
Well…
All and none !
All styles contain within them the real capacity for self defense hidden in a lot of other stuff that a body can do (art) but shouldn’t do in a fight.
The trick is too find these things inside the art you practice and then practice them from a self defense, not a “martial art” pov.
So, I tend to agree with Kevin A. Hirakis, except (of course) my list is a little different in its choices of the most lethal / most efficient strikes.
The only blow that I can’t seem to find in classical styles anywhere is the cqc chin jab, a driving of the palm heel straight up into the chin with the hand pointed back to towards yourself…of course palm heel strikes are common and easily modified to this particular form but as a technique in a classical form / kata, it is elusive.
If you know the strike and know a form with this strike in it, please let me know!`
<A HREF=“http://]pacificcoast.net/~ttruscott” TARGET=_blank>The Fighting Old Man
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fighting without fighting.
The most effective and most efficient way to defend yourself is the ancient art of running. Let’s face it, most fights can be avoided if the victim is brave enough to run away, but most don’t because they feel ashamed or think it’s cowardly to run away.
Even if you are good enough to stand your ground and actaully fight, there are always some consequences of your action. Most trouble makers that are intent on causing trouble have some sort of genetic defects, and even if you give them a good beating, they will try to seek their revenge in other ways. I speak from experience.
So, if you want to learn the most effective method to defend yourself in the shortest time possible, run young man. RUN.
However, if you are not man enough to run away, try genuine Thai Boxing. Believe it or not, most Hong Kong traid members learn Thai boxing because the enforcers can get their soldiers to fight in the shortest time possible. Think about it; they can’t wait 3-years to train their members in something like wing chun or choy-li fut.
Why have we sunk so low that a question like this has started a discussion?
With little to no doubt in my mind, the best styles for quick and powerful self defense are Hsing I, P’a K’ua, Silat, Escrima, Praying Mantis, or Shuai Chiao.
Probably in that order.
However, if you are learning from an instructor who is a crock, then what ever you learn is worthless. IMHO, lots of instructors in most arts are not worth their salt. (I am sure that that is at least a little gasoline to the fire.)
If you don’t practice by yourself consistantly, you are deceiving yourself. Generally speaking, I find that a person needs to practice a given technique into the thousands of repetitions before they can realize some of the capablities in their arts.
Of course, I have a glock 40 that is quite fast and powerful…
Peace
yi beng, kan xue