In 1877 an eighteen-year-old Tokyo University arts student named Jigoro Kano, the son of an important official in the Japanese navy, began to practice ju-jitsu in the Tenshin Shin’yo Ryu with Master Fukuda. Jigoro Kano was a young man with an inferiority complex that led him to push himself to exceed in many areas. His main motivation for doing ju-jitsu stemmed from (more…)

MMA and sport jujitsu have become all the rage these days. But, are they effective methods of personal self defense?

Many well-intentioned martial artists are looking at the whole MMA/UFC and jujitsu arts to learn effective self defense. The problem is that, these arts aren’t necessarily designed for self-protection.

Fighting – Yes.

Self-defense – Not so much.

Here are (more…)

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) is a sport that is growing quickly, mostly in part to the rising popularity of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). As a skill, Jiu Jitsu is one of the most valuable skills to possess. Not only will it give a person self discipline, but it will provide means of self defense that is more effective than 99% of any other self defense techniques taught (more…)

Every other day in Washington, DC, the nation’s capital, a woman is forcibly raped. The typical reaction among females in the past might be to avoid “bad areas,” not to walk or jog alone at night, etc. — essentially giving in to the legitimate fear that comes with living in a crime-ridden city. This, however, does not have to be your response. Over the last two decades, (more…)

I am an avid mixed marshal arts fan. I especially enjoyed the early years of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Back then, there were no rules, weight classes or ‘scheduled’ fights. It was a tournament. A group of different fighters from different countries and backgrounds would show up and draw who they would be fighting in the first round. The winners would go (more…)