Types of Martial Arts

Different types of martial arts can be found in every part of the world, each of them developed out of a need for people to attack or defend themselves more effectively. Depending on the region and the founder each martial art has a unique emphasis.Martial arts can be categorized into two groups; armed or unarmed (empty hand). For the most part empty hand martial arts can be split into two categories; grappling and striking. Grappling being the martial arts that emphasize wrestling or ground maneuvers, throws and locks. Striking or
�hitting is self-explanatory - punching, kicking, elbowing, kneeing; 'stand up' fighting.Despite each martial art having a bias it is common to incorporate different techniques e.g. a Karate practitioner can apply a wrist lock to an adversary even though his primary techniques involve striking similarly a Judo practitioner can hit his opponent with an open handed strike.Another distinction within martial arts is whether the art is a hard style or a soft style. Typically a hard style is categorized as such because it emphasizes the use of brute strength over technique e.g. Kyokushin. A soft style on the other hand emphasizes more relaxation and using less effort to overcome an opponent e.g. Tai Chi Chuan. Both hard styles and soft styles incorporate techniques that have to be learned but the emphasis differs. This emphasis can be observed in training: a Kyokushin practitioner will do exercises to harden himself and concentrate a lot on push-ups, knuckle and shin hardening where as a Tai Chi Chuan martial artist will do more posturing and relaxation techniques.Types of Martial Arts

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