Are you too old (fat, out of shape, handicapped, untalented) for karate?

I actively read a large number of martial arts related forums, mostly because I have a social media problem and not because there's a ton of value in their contents (though I do find some gems). I frequently see questions that look like this:

"I'm (old or fat or out of shape or handicapped in some way). Is it worth starting karate (or some other martial art)?"

Now my strong suspicion is that this isn't a real question - the person knows that it's okay to start karate, no matter how old or fat they are, but they want some encouragement and positive feedback. And that's fine, I have no problem with people using social media to get some metaphorical massaging from strangers.

But the real answer is twofold:

1. Of course it is. Literally no matter who you are (maybe other than an actual quadriplegic), you can train in martial arts - and if you do, you'll soon be much, much better than you are now!

2. Probably not. No matter how hard you train, you'll never be as skilled as a truly gifted athlete who has been training since youth. You literally will never catch up to them and be as skilled as they are!

Which one is the real answer? Both. Because the question is ambiguous.

If you are only willing to start martial arts training if you have a reasonable chance of being one of the best in the world at it, then yes, you're probably too fat, too old, too out of shape, and too un-talented to start.

BUT if you want to study martial arts because you're interested in the myriad benefits of martial arts training (better physical health and fitness, improved self confidence, better mental health, improved capacity for self defense) then, unless you're a quadriplegic (sorry to quadriplegics), you can absolutely gain those things.

If you want to be better at martial arts than other martial artists who have been training since childhood, your chances are slim. If you want to be better than the general population, your chance is almost 100%.

The 'trick' to being happy with your training is recognizing what you want, and to whom you should compare yourself, and realizing what your expectations should be.

I will never be able to win a UFC match. I would absolutely win a MMA fight against 90% of my peers (meaning, men of my size in my age category) - because most of my peer have absolutely no training. Compared to my peers who train in martial arts I am probably below average (I've taken long breaks from training). Maybe I'm average? I'm not really sure.

BUT I guarantee that I'm much, much better at martial arts, and more fit, and healthier, than an alternate version of myself who didn't train at all.

So the real secret to success in martial arts is in carefully choosing how you evaluate your success! If you only think you're 'good' if you're holding a UFC belt (or have won an Olympic medal or an international tournament) then you'll most likely never be happy. If you are happy knowing you're better than you would have been without training, then you're guaranteed to benefit from training.

Osu.

Bollywood Martial Arts films

I love Bollywood movies.

I barely remember how I got hooked - I'm pretty sure I started with Krrish, which I watched because it's a superhero flick and I was curious (quick review: it's fine, not great). Then Netflix offered up Baahubali, which is an amazing 2 part movie that everyone should see (though it's a Tollywood movie, meaning it was shot in Tamil and Telugu, not really Bollywood). From there somehow I got addicted to standard Bollywood movies, especially those from a golden age from 1997-2012, and especially romantic comedies. Ironically, my wife is South Asian, and I've introduced her to these films (if you didn't know, I'm an American Jew of Eastern European descent and I have no real connection to South Asian culture other than a love of spicy food and the fact that I recently married into a South Asian family).

So if I criticize Indian movies, I'm coming from a place of love. My favorite actor is Shah Rukh Khan; my favorite actress is Kajol; I love Bollywood and watch Indian movies all the time. I'm not a hater on Indian movies.

But most Bollywood action movies have terrible martial arts.

[Small caveat: I'm not really in a position to comment on Indian cinema as a whole. India produces a ridiculous number of movies each year, and other than 50 words in Hindi I don't speak any South Asian languages. So I'm really only commenting on the Indian movies that are available in the US, on Netflix or Amazon Prime, with English subtitles. If you're reading this and can speak to other Indian movies with great martial arts, please comment on this post!]

I mean this in two ways. If you watch a standard Indian action movie, like the Dhoom or Race series, when and if there are unarmed combat scenes, they're pretty mediocre compared to similar Hollywood movies. The Bourne series, for example, has much better fight scenes.

Also, there are relatively few Indian movies with a real martial arts focus (or, as I mentioned above, they aren't getting subtitled and/or aren't available for streaming here).

The closest thing India has to a martial arts focused actor is Tiger Shroff (son of famous actor Jackie Shroff). Tiger (not his real name) seems to have some legit martial arts background in tae kwon do. He has 3 films you can watch in the US, in English (all have been on Netflix):
1. Heropanti - very entertaining - I found Tiger super charming is this one. B- for the martial arts (not bad, but nothing super innovative or exciting. This is no Ong Bak).
2. A Flying Jatt - superhero movie, also quite fun, maybe C+ as a martial arts film, but B- as a movie.
3. Baaghi - straight up martial arts standard movie plot and style. B+ as a martial arts movie, but nowhere near in the can't-miss level of something like Ong Bak or The Raid.


Other Indian martial arts films that you can find on Netflix or Amazon Prime:

Waarrior Savitri: retelling of a famous Indian fable in the modern day, using martial arts. Not a terrible movie, but not a good martial arts movie. Maybe C- as a martial arts film.

Kung Fu Yoga: Might be Jackie Chan's worst movie. Avoid at all costs.

Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota: This is the gem. On Netflix now, this is both a pretty entertaining movie (nice plot, funny moments, good acting, everything you'd want in a good movie, B+ as a general film) it also has some excellent martial arts. Ironically, the best moves are probably done by the female costar, who has some really lovely scenes using a scar as a weapon.
Watch this one! B+ (maybe even an A-) as a martial arts film!!!

Generally speaking, martial arts haven't penetrated India's entertainment industry the way they have in, say, Thailand.

If you haven't watched any Bollywood and are looking for a primer, that's something I might do at some point. Watch Kal Ho Na Ho - if you don't love that film, give up (also, what is wrong with you???)

Please comment if you think I've missed anything!

Osu.

Karate for Fat Bastards

[Please note that I'm  using the term "Fat Bastards" in the most affectionate tone possible. And also note that I count myself as absolutely a member of that group!]

What's a Fat Bastard? For the sake of this post, I'm talking about anybody who is thickly built. Stocky, big boned, actually fat, or even lean but with a lot of muscle. Anybody who couldn't be called lanky. And I don't mean to exclude women, but the term 'Fat Bitch" doesn't have the same playful connotation (at least in American English), so I'm going to avoid it.

Why am I writing about thickly built people? Because in many ways karate is designed to favor the lanky, the scrawny, the width challenged individual. Karate is easier for skinny people.

Now you're probably thinking, "Surely this is overstating things, Joe?" No, it's not. It starts even before the class begins, as soon as you put on a gi. Why do we wear a jacket that wraps a double layer around our midsection? Who looks good in this? Only skinny people. If you are already wide through the torso, a gi just makes you look fatter and blockier. If you're very skinny, it gives some substance.

Second: point fighting. Point fighting is combat designed to strip away all the advantages of solidity and mass. In a full contact fight, solidly built people have some advantages - being able to absorb bigger impacts without falling, generally being able to hit harder. Point fighting is made to take away those advantages and make frail, skinny people look more effective than they are. Don't agree? Find someone your height but 25 kg heavier and similarly skilled to you. Stand toe to toe and trade full contact left hooks to the body with them. Then do 2 rounds of point fighting. See who 'wins' each phase.

Third: jumping techniques. I promise you the first person who decided to try a spinning jumping kick did not weigh over 100 kg. How good you are at getting into the air has a lot to do with different kinds of strength, but weighing more is always going to make it harder.

What should the thickly build karateka do? Well, if you're carrying a lot of extra fat, you should probably try to get rid of some of it, for health reasons (remember, having extra fat isn't particularly healthy, but neither are some of the methods people use to lose fat, so be sensible. If you can safely remove some fat, great, but don't starve to death or shoot your stress levels through the roof to get skinnier). At some point, though, many of us will have realize that even with reasonable efforts in that direction we're still thickly built; either big boned or heavily muscled or carrying stubborn fat or some combination of those.

My first instinct is to tell the thickly built karateka to sort of focus on the aspects of karate that work well for the thick and focus less on those that don't. For example, focus on clean technique, rooted stances, fighting from up close and with greater contact. Worry less about anything with jumping and spinning. Work to break lots of boards in a stack, and not to break a board flipped up into the air with some kind of jumping technique. Get really strong. Make sure you are training a style that does some contact!

But the more I thought about it the less I liked this answer.

The truth is this: If you're thick, you're at a disadvantage developing those kinds of skills (jumping, spinning, speed-based stuff). You'll probably never be truly elite in those areas. But if you really love that stuff, you can also definitely get much, much better at them than you are now.

So if you love that type of karate, you have a decision to make: either focus on those skills knowing that you'll never be quite as good at them as people who are better suited to them (and also work hard) OR shift your attention to the type of karate that your body is 'designed' for.

And really, neither answer is wrong.

I personally know that I would find focusing on skills that don't suit my body too demoralizing - for me. I personally couldn't sustain that kind of martial arts practice over a lifetime. I, instead, focus on being able to hit the heavy bag as hard as possible, and focus on strategies in kumite that get my opponents closer to me. I'll never be truly elite at anything in martial arts, but I can be pretty good at those sort of things.

But if I loved the jumping stuff enough, I'm sure I could work on it and get much better at it than I am now, even if I could never be great.

And the more I think about this, the more I feel it's true for other types of limitations.

If your'e genetically suited for endurance rather than speed, you'll never be a great sprinter. So if you're trying to compete in the Olympics, you'd better train for marathons and not the 100m. But if you're just a recreational runner who loves sprints, and you can handle the idea of working on sprints your whole life without ever becoming really great at sprinting, then go for it! But go for it with open eyes.

Find a way to train that YOU will love, then do it. There is no right or wrong beyond that.