Martial Arts Styles for Women

Frailty, thy name is woman! ~ William Shakespeare

This quote from Shakespeare's 'Hamlet', alludes to the alleged, inherent weakness of character of women. But this quote does not hold true in today's world. Women are no longer the frail and weaker sex and have proven themselves better than their male counterparts in many fields, professionally and in personal areas.

But, alas! Women still face many forms of harassment, even though they are liberated and successful in all walks of life.

Women have been able to reach the moon, but they still have not been able to overcome the fear of mental, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse that perverts and the so-called macho men dish out to them.

It has been found that in 29% of all violence against women by a lone offender, the perpetrator was an intimate person like husband, ex-husband, boyfriend or ex-boyfriend. There were annual reports of about 500,000 reported rapes and sexual assaults, almost 500,000 robberies, and about 3.8 million assaults on women and girls aged 12 and up.

These hard-hitting figures are not just numbers, but a jolt to bring women to reality and make them understand that harassment is standing just outside the door.

In such a case, it is very important for women to know some form of martial arts styles. Martial arts help them take up self-defense and get them out of dangerous situations.

There are many martial arts styles for women, and in this SportsAspire article we will go into more detail about these. The following martial arts style list will cover the different martial arts styles.

This is one of the oldest form of Oriental martial arts which is a self-defense technique that is popular among the women folk. It helps in improving body contours and builds a strong personality. Karate does not involve the use of weapons, and uses strikes and kicks that are inflicted upon the pressure points of opponents.

Karate helps in making an individual practicing it become alert, both mentally and physically, and watch out for possible evil advances and intentions. Karate also strengthens the body and builds hand and eye coordination.

Muay Thai is a form of martial arts practiced by Thai people, also known as kick boxing. Muay meaning boxing, was a self-defense technique taught to the soldiers to fight without weapons when they lose them or have to undergo a hand to hand combat. Traditionally, women were not allowed to enter the Muay Thai ring.

It was thought women would distract the fighter's concentration and thus result in their injury. Also, it was said that Muay Thai was a very difficult form of martial art that could not be learned by women.

But, times have changed and so has the Muay Thai tradition. Women are now being accepted as Muay Thai Boxers. But there are separate arenas for women and men boxers.

Muay Thai involves using the head, fists, elbows, knees, and feet as weapons. This self-defense art is considered to be the most powerful and deadliest style of martial arts. There are many training camps in Thailand that train women to become professional Muay Thai boxers and take it up as a career.

The benefits of women practicing kick boxing not only includes self-defense, but it is great for toning the legs and the butt as well. It is also a great cardio exercise and helps in weight loss as compared to other exercises or techniques.

Boxing is mostly thought as a man's world, but there are many women boxing champions who have earned world recognition for their boxing prowess. Boxing involves punching the opponents with your knuckles covered in gloves.

Boxing provides great physical benefits―it helps get rid of stress and helps in keeping ulcers away. The most important benefit of boxing for women is that it helps them knock out cold their attacker in self-defense.

Taekwondo is a Korean martial art and means 'to strike or break with foot'. This national sport of South Korea is one of the best and most popular martial arts for women. It is a combination of self-defense, exercise, sport, meditation, and philosophy.

It helps women use their entire body and increases natural physical strength. It also strengthens the arms, hips, and the core. This martial art style uses a lot of kicks (that are quite damaging) and hence can help women in combating the strength of their attacker.

Jiu Jitsu is a Brazilian sport that helps women become physically strong and aggressive. It is a perfect defense art for the physically weak. When a woman is attacked, her attacker mostly wants to pin her to the ground and control her movements. In such cases, when women cannot blow kicks and punches, Jiu Jitsu proves to be a boon.

Jiu Jitsu lets women learn the methods of escape, control, hold, and get away from the attacker when on the ground. It helps women get away from larger or stronger attackers using principles of leverage and angles. Jiu Jitsu teaches women what to do if someone is on top of them and how to get away with using fast movements.

Akido is another good martial arts style for women looking for self-defense. It does not rely on physical strength. The basic movements of Akido techniques help in strengthening the core muscles and increase lower body strength. It also helps in increasing stamina and over-all muscle tone.

This is a Chinese martial arts style for women, designed by women. Wing Chung has explosive short moves and is developed for close range fighting. Thus, people of a shorter stature are at an advantage when practicing Wing Chun. It helps teach how to deliver an attack to the opponent and to endure an attack from the attacker.

The principle philosophy of this martial arts states, 'You may hit me, but my punch is going to hurt more.' It is one of the best martial arts for women who have smaller bodies and a bony structure.

This is an Israeli martial arts style for women and helps them gear up for self-defense and hand-to-hand combat. Krav Maga helps women defend themselves in case of attempt to rape, fighting with one arm held behind the back, and fighting someone with a weapon.

It is designed to suit any street or combat situation, and this highly aerobic style helps women continue fighting till they are safe or have totally incapacitated their opponent.

Mixed martial arts is a highly male dominated martial art form, but can also be taken up by women. This is a combat sport and includes a variety of martial arts styles. Mixed martial arts for women involves strikes, kicks, throws, elbows, knees, grappling, and submissions.

There are many techniques involved in mixed martial arts, like, kick boxing, Jiu-Jistsu, Judo, wrestling, etc. This form helps women understand each martial arts style and strengthens their skill in the different elements of each style. It helps women strengthen themselves physically and benefits them throughout their lives.

• Martial arts helps in maintaining and losing weight. It also helps in developing a well-toned body.

• Benefits also include the development of a strong cardiovascular system. It helps in improving health, as it teaches to breathe better, sleep better, and become more active in daily life.
• These act as stress busters and relieve tensions.

• These instill a positive attitude in women and helps them face the world in a more confident and determined way.
• It helps them avoid risky situations and helps them think of a solution to get out of a dangerous situation.

You can undertake a martial arts styles comparison and come up with an answer that will suit your personality and needs better. This is just a short martial arts styles list and you can ask experts about more styles that suit your needs.

It is always better to be well prepared than being sorry later. Today, women are facing more forms of harassment and abuse than before. Which is why it becomes even more important that one knows how to defend themselves. Never think that you are physically weaker than any man.

Women are equally powerful as men and can emerge victorious in any combat situation, knowing any form of martial arts will certainly help in this quest. If you are thinking of taking up marital arts or have never given a thought to do so before this time, then do not waste time and register yourself to learn a martial arts style.

Besides, learning martial arts is not only for your safety, but can also help you save others in need.