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First thing is first. Make sure you ask your doctor to check for what your weight needs to be for your height.

Now, once that is out of the way, there is no such thing as the perfect art. And it’s not about what i prefer for you, it’s what you prefer for you. All styles are effective. What makes the difference is who’s teaching and who’s learning.

Where all arts can be used for self defense, there are a few that are specific for what you say you want out of the martial arts. Krav Maga, Aikido, Judo, and Hapkido.

But again, it’s not about the art, it’s the quality of the teacher.

Good luck,
Master Feller (4th dan tkd, national referee)

I’d like to welcome Nola2kd (whatever his name is) to as he already knows the biggest b*llshit section on YA. Bet you didn’t know that i’ve trained for 30 years in martial arts & own a black belt in 5 different styles?

Honestly listen to the Top Contributors here or people who approach yer question with reason & common sense, 99% of the other posters are wannabe martial artists who think MMA is the end all.

You do realize doctors cannot tell you how tall you are gonna be right?I doubt you get to 6’6 or 6’7.Futhermore if your do get to 6’6 and weigh 120 pounds your gonna be about 100 pounds underweight.I think your should concentrate on food more the MA atm.

LOL at skin that flick.Wow black belt in 5 diff MA who cares,have you ever been in a real fight?When the first UFC came out royce gracie dominated a guy who had a black belt in 6 diff MA without breaking a sweat.There is also a guy who started a reality based defense system after being beaten almost to death in a traffic incedent infront of his family,his 4 diff blackbelts didn’t do a damn thing for him.A belt is used to hold your pants up it has no bearing on fighting.Most traditional MA focus on katas fighting isn’t a kata and won’t happen like that,it is quick and violent.While your trying to figure out which of your 3000 moves you have learned over the years to use the other guy is kicking your teeth into the cement.

Just to let ya know i have a 1st degree black belt in taekwondo,wrestled in high school,have taken submission grappling,Muay thai,boxed for a while till i got a concusssion lol:) and currently take BJJ.I have been in quite a few fights as i was rather cocky and aggro when i was younger and no im not proud of it.In a real fight i have never used anything i learned in taekwondo other than a sidekick or a front kick outta all the bs i learned in it.When the adrenaline starts pumping,boxing and my grappling skills come out naturally.So in my opinion todays more reality based MA work in a real fight while traditional stuff doesn’t.Maybe 500 years ago in Asia when everybody fought like that it worked,but people don’t fight like that anymore so it’s not as realistic anymore.I think if the traditional MA got rid of the kata bs and shed the wasted movements and focused on live sparring then it would shed the years of bs people have been fed.

Look at Lyota Machida for instance he is a traditional MA.Of course he practices on groundfighting and Muay Thai also im sure.But when the bell rings and his adrenaline is pumping how much of what he is doin is actually what your are taught in a traditional MA not much that’s for sure,and anybody who says diff is full of crap.

to be honest, most traditional "real" martial arts can’t really help you in a street fight. the thing is, you learn all of these different forms and techniques, but you are not taught most of the time how to use them properly and apply them correctly. now of course, there are exceptions, and some true martial arts, such as akido or judo can be helpful in a street fight if learned and trained properly and it does depend on who the instructor is, but still, in my opinion, martial arts is not the way to go. take it from me. i have trained in both traditional martial arts and currently, Mixed Martial Arts, and i can tell you that you will definitely feel more confident and better prepared to go in a fight after having trained in mixed martial arts rather than martial arts. and like I said, of course, it still depends on the school you are training at, but if you at a good MMA school, you will train in all facets of the game including stand up striking (boxing/kickboxing), wrestling, and ground (brazilian jiu jitsu). and as you feel more confident in your training, you will start sparring. so no matter where the fight goes, you will be better prepared to take on your opponent in any area.

JIt doesnt really matter what you want to get into… but for martial arts, it basically wants you to choose which one you want… but for Mixed Martial Arts its mixing everything… such as karate, tae kwon do, jui ditsu, shotokan karate, muay thai, and any other… but for you. You can choose which one to go to. I strongly suggest you to do some weight lift to gain muscle not alot but to boost you to at least 135 to 140. And when you train for which ever martial art you choose you also strengthen your muscle the same way… and gain flexibility..

I would STRONGLY suggest gaining some weight first!!!

If you weigh 120 and aren’t under 5’4", there is no way you can defend yourself properly no matter how well you’re trained!!

I would recommend some weight training before any combat training. If you feel like you can handle yourself at the weight you’re at then disregard my suggestion.

If you’re looking for more self defense training then actual competition training, there is no need to join an MMA gym. Look for either a boxing or muay thai gym, they’ll teach you the proper techniques needed to defend yourself in hand to hand combat.

there is no best style, martial arts weren’t developed to only be effective by certain people with a certain body type. All martial arts are effective for self defense if they are taught well and if you put the effort in. Have a look at what MA classes are offered where you live, go down to a few and check them out look at whats taught best and what you think you’lll enjoy the most. Just one point, stay away from McDojo’s, any place that guarantees you a black belt in a certain time frame, has black belts under 13, forces you to grade every time instead of at your own pace. They wont get you anywhere