I would like some advice on how to go about in my quest for learning Martial Arts. Any ideas?

Question

After all the price shopping I've made I have come to realize that joining a Martial Arts school is out of my budget reach. Some have allowed me to stay even up to a month for free to see if it's what I'm looking for and I have practically been comfortable in all of the classes that I was in. Everything is cool except that I don't have enough dough to pay an almost $600 initial fee and then $300 monthly (excluding uniform and equipment). I really, really want to learn Martial Arts but I wish it wasn't this expensive. Can someone please give me some advice/cool ideas in how to go about it? I mean, is school THE ONLY way to go to learn self-defense? And if I buy instructional dvds, do you think this method is effective? Thank you for taking the time to answer my question.

Answer 1

WHOA buddy, what's the name of the McDojo that you unfortunately entered into?

Unless the school open up in Trump Plaza, I can't see anything that justify that money.

Albeit it was 3 yrs ago when I last go to MA school, my silat school charge me $80 a month unlimited time, and he was pretty good teacher too as he even has contract to teach in the nearby military camp nearby in knife fighting.

Here's some of the rules that I think is easy to follow to find a good MA school.

1. Ask whether they will have 'REAL' sparring later on. Sparring is important to prepare you when you really have to fight. If the school only do 'point' sparring, then don't join them.

2. Ask how soon you can get a black belt. If the answer is not that long, then don't join, it's a definite McDojo.

3. Ask how much you have to pay for your belt test, if it's too steep then it's a McDojo

4. Do go in several different schools, most schools give free sessions, take those free sessions and see whether you like what you see.

Answer 2

That's way too much money for a martial arts class. It smells like a McDojo to me. At my taekwondo class, I only pay £2.50 (approx. $5) per class and £20 (approx. $40) for gradings. The black belt gradings are a little more expensive though.

You should hunt around for a while, and take advantage of free classes to see whether you like them or not. When you go to them, look around and see what the more advanced belts are doing. If they're training seriously and can perform moves that are required at their level, then the teaching should be good enough quality.

Don't just go to big commercialised schools either, 'cos they are more expensive and aren't necessarily better  than smaller schools. Smaller schools are less expensive and less likely to be McDojos. The training quality is usually good as well, so it's worth doing a little extra research to find one, rather than sticking to bigger schools.

Answer 3

Try looking for Martial Arts classes backed by a society like the moral uplifting society or YMCA or stuff like that. It's usually cheaper. $600 registration fee and $300 monthly is outrageous. I can't imagine that there are people who would charge that much. Self learning dvds are a bad option. Most dvds produced by westerners are below par except for the ones produced by the Lopez family (maybe. I heard the dvds were not bad). Self learning dvds are only for those who have a basic in martial arts actually. As a beginner, you can't learn with self learning dvds. Well you don't have to look for Martial Arts clubs which are affiliated to a recognized body unless you are keen on competition. If you still can't find any martial arts center charging reasonable prices you can always come live in Malaysia lol. It gets cheaper as you go north up the country. My state has an average price of less than 5USD a month while I charge 3USD more than them. The most expensive I've seen is 20USD a month. I think it would do me a lot of good financially if I just moved over to your country lol

Answer 4

A good school is truly the only way to go, but with that said it doesn't mean you need to end up going broke and living on the street to pay for lessons. Those amounts you mentioned are ridiculous and totally absurd. Keep shopping around. As for DVD's they will give you some good information, but with out a qualified instructor with a trained eye to watch you, it kind of starts you back at the begining. Plus you need a partner to train with. I think you need to keep searching your area for a teacher thats more reasonable. Don't give up!

Answer 5

I suggest you find a club that focusses on competitions. They usually are cheap, have a lot of members and train very well. They do MA competitively, not just for fitness/recreation.

I live in Singapore and I pay $60 a month for my taekwondo club. My club focusses on winning competitions and doing demonstrations. They keep things simple, no admin stuff, just lotsa hard training, discipline and a close knit community. National team members train and coach at my club also.

I've been to clubs where they charge $200 + a month, but those clubs have receptionists and Korean coaches and that kind of pointless ****. It feels like a "fitness gym" rather than a true blue martial art dojang. They are running a business, instead of excelling in the sport itself. Lotsa adults there--just doing MA for recreation.

Martial arts does not equal to self-defence. If you want to learn self-defence, I suggest you sign up for self-defence courses. Using MA as self-defence is ineffective as MA sparring has a lot of rules to ensure safety during competitions. So, no dirty fighting.

Self-defence courses teaches you "dirty" techniques to take down opponent quickly, and how to use everyday objects as weapons.

Ask yourself, what is you aim for learning MA? Is it self-defence, fitness, competition or artistry? If you like the artistic aspects of MA, you might want to consider Wu shu (Chinese MA) or Karate (doing kata).

Hope this answers your question.

Important point to note: Make sure your MA school is affiliated with national/international MA groups. This ensures that your ranking is valid during competitions, when you change club or when you decide to become a coach.

For example, my taekwondo club is affiliated to Singapore Taekwondo Federation, which is under World Taekwondo Federation, which is the only style/federation recognized at Olympics.

Answer 6

Hi.

Many legitimate schools will not even charge you a start up cost.  The reason some schools do is so that if you decide you don't like what they teach, the way they teach it and/or are just all around dissatisfied with the school you are faced with wasting that money.  Essentially it's an incentive for you to stay and continue to spend your money with them.  This doesn't mean all schools with a start up fee are bad; there are also legitimate business reasons to do this.  Just be cautious about what you are getting yourself into.

$300 also seems a little steep for a monthly fee, I know for fact you can get quality instruction for no start up cost and for right around $100 a month, or even less.

I take martial arts at a Tracy's Karate Studio (a self defense school).  All of them are different but at the one I train it is only $20 for a half hour private lesson that most people take weekly.  Also there are group classes that are free so long as you train at the school.  No start up or monthly fee, also you get a uniform for free in the introductory course which consists of three lessons for $30, not to mention no additional fee for belt testing until black belt, and even then it's only $50.  I'm using this primarily as an example to show you that you don't have to spend a fortune to take martial arts.

There are hundreds of Tracy's Karate Studios all across America and Canada (and even in a few other countries) so if you’re interested you can look them up for one in your area.  However the point is that you just need to keep looking as there are other, cheaper options out there.  And don't think for one second you will sacrifice quality instruction for price, in fact sometimes the places that charge the most are the worst when it comes to instruction.

There are also martial arts clubs that will meet in gyms or even in someone’s garage.  So an actual school isn't your only option.

Instructional videos are a great way to supplement you training but they are not a substitute.

Again, just keep looking; there are many good schools out there that you can train at for a reasonable price.  You may have to drive a ways but it sounds like to you it would be worth it.

Hope I helped and good luck finding a school :)

Answer 7

That's way too pricey for a start up cost.  I can tell that these are big commercial schools you found.  

I strongly suggest that you keep trying, try the communities center or the YMCA types center.  I believed that they offer martial arts program.  

Let me add a quick note that there are good number of good instructors that do not advertise or teach for commercial purpose thus you won't see them advertise anywhere. They are mostly located in private gyms or community centers.  Just them a call and even if they don't have a program ask to see who they can refer you to.

As for training alone using DVD or books. Here are my thoughts:  

With all the sincerity of my response, training via online, videos, or books without proper instruction and guidance from a qualified martial arts instructor are rarely a path one chose if they want to succeed and progressed as a serious and decicated martial artist.

Self-training using video, internet and books cannot turn you into a good or an effective martial arts practitioner. Many can argue that Bruce Lee did it, but how many had forgotten that Bruce Lee had a solid martial arts background before he ventured on to create Jeet Kune Do.

Another detrimental result by training online , videos, or books is that this method teaching medium cannot correct or give you advices either you're doing things right or even wrong. Training martial arts without proper instructions and supervision can also cause minor or even serious injury.

Learning martial  online, videos, or books can be best described  having a online, videos, or books romance. You don't quite get the real thing !

You might think that you may have discovered the ultimate and cheaper way of training in the martial arts, but when reality strikes, the facade and sloppiness of your "self-training" will show.   The worst that can happen also is having a false sense of security.

A majority of self-taught, pseudo blackbelts, MMA poseurs and other fraudulent wanna-be martial arts "practitioners" are one of the main reasons why the general public looks down on the martial arts and its practitioners. Many of the long time legitimate practitioners of the martial arts regardless of styles finds this awfully frustrating and horrendous , when we spent half of our life trying to live up to the highest standard and virtues of our beloved art.  

For long time and experienced practitioners of the martial arts , video training or other forms of training such as DVD's and the internet are just another "tool" in our  "toolbox"

Good luck and let me if there's anything I missed.