There are so many martial arts today to choose from, that it can be difficult sometimes to pick the exact right one for you. They all have different histories, origins and benefits, yet at the core the goal remains the same: to learn to defend oneself while also contributing to finding your inner center. If you want to start practicing a martial arts, but find it challenging to choose one, we are here to help. We have compiled an (not too serious) attempt on which martial arts to choose based on your real life occupation.
Karate
A very well-known and „classical“ martial art due to its huge presence in Hollywood movies. Karate developed in Japan and combines many styles of self-defense involving punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes and open-handed chops. The Japanese meaning of the word karate is “empty hand“. The karate expertise is measured by belts in different colors, with the black belt being the most experienced one.
Karate provides a good overall defending mechanism and is a very useful martial arts to know. It rests on the principles of respect, discipline, and the quest for constant improvement. Officers, people working in the public sector and all other jobs needing a broad spectrum of knowledge to function will probably feel at home in a karate practice, as it offers a clear structure and is functionally oriented.
Taekwondo
Taekwondo, a Korean martial art, combines both self-defense and attack, as a way of sport and exercise. The martial art emphasizes high kicks and quick hand movements. Taekwondo regards the leg as the strongest and potentially most powerful weapon while keeping an attacker at a distance.Taekwondo is great to enhance agility, power, balance, flexibility and endurance, requiring great mental focus and acuity.
Thus, taekwondo is great for anyone with a job that requires great amounts of endurance, resilience a highly flexible schedule and working ethics, while still needing to perform well all the time. It is wonderful for people working in the hospitality and tourism industry, but also for surgeons and nurses in the hospital, where hours can be crazy and you still have to remain balanced and attentive at all times.
Capoeira
This Brazilian martial arts was originally developed by Angolan slaves who disguised their self-defense moves as dance. It combines fighting, dancing, music and constant movement. Traditionally, two combatants, called capoeiristas, take part in the practice's traditional jogo, a one-on-one fight. The other fighters surround them in a circle, playing percussion instruments and using call-and-response singing.
Due to its very acrobatic and creative nature involving kicks, flips and punches, capoeira stimulates every creative mind. Artists, musicians, dancers and choreographers are in good hands with capoeira. Of course you don’t have to have a creative profession to practice capoeira, but a love for acrobatics and dance will help you big time in the practice.
Kung Fu
This Chinese martial art is more an umbrella martial art, combining various Chinese fighting styles. The style has its roots in the Shaolin Temple around 500 CE, where a Buddhist prince developed a series of self-defense exercises to help strengthen the weak and ailing monks. It can be broadly divided into two schools: those that focus on more rapid arm work and those that focus more on acrobatics, incorporating kicks and leg work in the practice as well.
The Japanese Karate has its roots in Kung Fu as well, however, Kung Fu has a bigger variety of techniques and emphasizes more visually graceful, flowing movements. Because Kung Fu needs a very specific precision and knowledge and needs dedication to be mastered and executed efficiently, people that have fun at diving deep into very specific topics of knowledge will thrive here. Some occupations that could work well with Kung Fu are very meticulous jobs based on patience, perfectionism and mastery, such as computer science and programming, academic researchers, scientists and engineers.
Aikido
Another Japanese martial art, Aikido means “the way of harmony“ or “unification of your spiritual energy“. Rather than focusing on punches and kicks, Aikido makes use of the opponent’s kinetic energy against them to take control. Practitioners learn to redirect their force of an attack to weaken their opponent. It also focuses on developing a strong center to remain unmoved when the opponent attacks.
Because of this, Aikido is great for occupations that require a lot of mental resilience and strength and train to use the weapons of the opponent against them. Thus it can be great for lawyers and court defenders or even for politicians in election campaigns.
Tai Chi
The slowest martial arts, together with Qi Gong, emphasizes choreographed, slow-motion postures. It is believed that Tai Chi developed when a monk saw a crane fighting of a snake. Tai Chi combines graceful movements with Taoist breathing techniques. Although it is classified as a martial art, today it is rather practiced as an exercise for physical and mental health and accessible for every age group.
Because it is a much softer and inward focusing martial arts than the other one’s, it is great for occupations evolving around children, healing or education. Anyone requiring a lot of presence, patience and compassion in their job such as (kindergarten) teachers but also counselors and therapists can relate a lot to Tai Chi.
But of course, it is also recommended for managers and CEOs and everyone else with a full schedule and a stressful working environment to remain grounded, balanced and centered.
In Summary…
Obviously, every martial art can and should be practiced by whoever wishes to, no matter the occupation. Here we just tried to provide you with a little overview on how the characteristics of each martial art could play out in an occupational environment. If you are already practicing a martial art, keep going - and if not we hope you found some inspiration to start practicing the martial arts that suits you best. No matter what form of martial arts, it always depends on the individual and its mastery. They are all wonderful and all share great benefits for your physical, mental and spiritual health.
Contributor: Clara Malzer