jiu jitzu

[b]I want to learn Tai Chi, Kung Fu, Wushu and Capoeira. Yes I typed AND, I wanna learn them all so I can kick butt! [/b]

taekwondo. but i want to try kung fu... because it's exhausting when using your legs against your opponent...

[i][align=center]taekwondo,i guess[/align][/i]

yeah!. martial arts is a good exercise and self defense!.

taekwondo..!!

Taekwondo! simply coz i'm a taekwondoin

If I was going to try to learn a martial art, most likely I would try boxing as my first choice. However, I'd also be interested in learning capoeira. For more information on capoeira, just open my spoiler [spoiler]Capoeira (IPA: [ka.pu.ˈej.ɾɐ],Tupi-Guarani word for - clear area) is a blend of martial art, game, and dance originated in Brazil, from the regions known as Bahia, Pernambuco, Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais and São Paulo. The art-form started up in Brazil during the 16th Century, an obvious result of the slave trading that took place in conjunction with the previously slaved native Indians. Capoeira was created and developed by both the native slave Indians in Brazil and slaves brought from Africa. Participants form a roda (circle) and take turns playing instruments, singing, and sparring in pairs in the center of the circle. The game is marked by fluid acrobatic play, feints, and extensive use of groundwork, as well as sweeps, kicks, and headbutts. Less frequently-used techniques include elbow-strikes, slaps, punches, and body-throws. [img]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1d/Capoeira_Dance.jpg/800px-Capoeira_Dance.jpg[/img] History Capoeira originated in the country of Brazil. From the 16th to the 19th centuries, slaves were brought from Africa by the Portuguese explorers to work on the Brazilian's sugar cane plantations. The main ethnic group of slaves brought to Brasil were the "bantos" - from Angola, Gulf of Guinea and Congo; "sudaneses" - from the Gulf of Guinea and Sudan; and "maleses" - from Angola and Costa da Mina However, the origin of the Brazilian martial arts-dance form known as Capoeira is the subject of heated debate. Brazilianists believe it was the slaves way of expressing their reaction to oppression while Africanists believe Capoeira originated in Africa and that the slaves continued their traditions after being transported to Brazil. Some sources provide evidence of a ritual fight/dance called N'golo from Southern Angola as proof that it did exist in martial form before it reached Brazil. According to Talmon-Chvaicer (2008), "Another theory suggests that it was based on a contemporary war dance, the n'golo (the zebra dance), performed during the Efundula, a puberty rite for girls of Mucope, Muxilenge, and Muhumbe tribes of southern Angola. (Talmon-Chvacier, 2008, p.19). . Another combat dance is Danymé (also called Ladja), from the Caribbean island of Martinique. As in the Brazilian form, there is a ring of spectators, and each contestant enters the circle, moving in a counterclockwise direction and dancing toward the drummers. This move, called Kouwi Lawon, or "Circular Run" in creole, is an exact parallel to the capoeira interlude called dá volta ao mundo, or "take a turn around the world." Once the Danmyé begins, the contestants' movements are mirrored in the music. Some superb examples of danmyé drumming were recorded by Alan Lomax in the early 1960s. In Cuba, with its wealth of Kongo-inspiried music and dance, there was a mock-combat dance called Mani. It was performed to the sound of yuka drums, the precursors of modern conga drums and rumba. A dancer (manisero) would stand in the middle of a ring of spectator-participants, and moving to the sound of the songs and drums, would attempt to knock down someone in the circle. Some of the manisero's moves and kicks were comparable to those of Brazilian capoeira, including its basic leg-sweep (rasteira), which also occurs in samba duro, a dance found in Salvador. Exactly as in Martinique, the Cuban master drummer's patterns would mirror the contestants' actions, and supply accents to accompany certain blows. Some of these forms are known only to a handful of ethnographers and none has taken root the way capoeira has in Brazil. In addition to the ring form and basic movement patterns, what makes all these genres African-based is that the mock-combat is coordinated with a percussive musical accompaniment. Many African dances are war dances and some say Capoeira can be referred to as a war dance too. Slaves in Brazil definitely added to the martial qualities of the game for Capoeira to become a weapon but the dance qualities were never disregarded or lost. Dancing is a tribute to the joy of life. It was also used as a disguise when officials came upon capoeiristas practicing their art. One theory is that capoeira originated amongst the Afro-Brazilians in the "Senzalas", the living quarters for the slaves on Brazilian plantations. Others believe that capoeira was practiced and used to fend off attacks by Portuguese slavers in Palmares, Brazil's most infamous Quilombo maroon colony of escaped slaves. There is no historical evidence to support any of these claims; many written documents regarding slavery in Brasil were burned when the first government of the new Republic was established. There is, however, evidence and agreement that Capoeira is aesthetically and philosophically an Afro-Brazilian art form. The most acceptable claim is that slaves developed the art based on traditional African dances and rituals in the work free hours left to them, thus training both mind and body for combat situations. As the slave-masters forbade any kind of martial art, it was cloaked in the guise of an innocent-looking recreational dance. In the 16th century, escaped-slaves founded a number of "Quilombos" , in which the art of Capoeira was further perfected. Many escaped-slaves, before they could reach the Quilombos, were captured by the Capitães-do-mato that ironically were sometimes African decedents or mulatos themselves. The "Capitães-do-mato" were hired by the Portuguese slavers and usually worked on their own. The inhabitants of Palmares, the largest of the Quilombos, lasted 65 years. The "Quilombo dos Palmares" was located in what is today's state of Alagoas, northeast Brazil. Its population was composed not only of escaped African slaves but also of native Brazilian Indians and other mixed races(Mestiços). It had an organized government system similar to an African Kingdom with a King and his Assembly. The best warriors on battles were chosen King; "Zumbi" was the most known King of all. The "Quilombo dos Palmares" fought for many years and was finally destroyed in 1694 by Domingos Jorge Velho and his troops. "Zumbi" managed to escape and many believed that he was immortal. Wanted by the authorities, he was captured on November 20th, 1695. He was killed and beheaded on the spot. His head was brought to a public Plaza at the "vila do Recife". "Zumbi" was considered a national hero and warrior, a symbol of liberty ; his name became a Capoeira legend. Capoeira was used not only in direct combat, it also inspired the battle strategy itself; feigning retreat, thus luring the over-confident enemy into remote territories only to strike back at an unsuspecting place and time. During the "Paraguai War" (1864 to 1870), many capoeiristas were sent to battle in the front line. The official prohibition of Capoeira remained even after slavery was abolished in May 13th, 1888. In 1890, Brazilian president "Marechal Deodoro da Fonseca" signed an act that prohibited the practice of capoeira nationwide, with severe punishment for those caught. It was nevertheless practiced by the poorer population on public holidays, during work-free hours and similar occasions. Riots, caused also by police interference, were common. Persecution and punishment were almost successful in eradicating Capoeira from the "streets" of Brasil by the 1920s. In spite of the ban, Master Bimba (Manuel dos Reis Machado) created a new style, the "Capoeira Regional" (as opposed to the traditional "Capoeira Angola" of Mestre Pastinha). He incorporated new moves and techniques from "Batuque", a martial art that he learned from his father (the unified champion); The "Capoeira Regional" or "Luta Regional Baiana" was than a more effective and efficient style of capoeira. Mestre Bimba was finally successful in convincing the authorities of the cultural value of Capoeira, thus ending the official ban in the 1930s. Mestre Bimba founded the first Capoeira school in 1932, the "Academia-escola de Capoeira Regional", at the Engenho de Brotas in Salvador-Bahia. He was than considered "the father of modern capoeira". In 1937, he earned the state board of education certificate. In 1942, Mestre Bimba opened his second school at the "Terreiro de Jesus - rua das Laranjeiras"; today rua Francisco Muniz Barreto, #1. The school is open until today and supervised by his ex student, "Vermelho-27". He also taught capoeira to the army and at the police academy. Mestre Bimba was born on November 23rd, 1900, at the "bairro do Engenho Velho" in Salvador-BA. The son of Luiz Cândido Machado and Maria Martinha do Bonfim, Mestre Bimba started capoeira at the age of 12. He was taught by "Bentinho", an African that used to be the "capitão da Companhia Baiana de Navegação". Master Bimba was a coal man, carpenter, warehouse man, longshoreman, horse coach conductor, but mainly capoeirista; a giant with strong personality! He died on February 15th, 1974 at the "Hospital das Clínicas de Goiânia", due to a stroke. Capoeira progressed from an illegal art to become a national sport in Brasil. It is also growing its popularity worldwide. There have been comparisons drawn between the Afro-North American art form of the blues and Capoeira. Both were practiced and developed by Afro-American slaves, both retained distinctive African aesthetics and cultural qualities; both were shunned and looked-down upon by the larger Brazilian and North American societies within which they developed, and both fostered a deep sense of Afrocentric pride especially amongst poorer and darker skinned Blacks.In the mid-1970s, when masters of the art form - mestre capoeiristas, began to emigrate and teach Capoeira in the United States, it was still primarily practiced amongst the poorest and Blackest of Brazilians. With its emigration to the U.S., however, much of the stigma with which it was historically associated in Brazil was shed. Today there are many capoeira schools all over the world (Capoeira is gaining ground in Japan) and throughout the United States, and with its growing popularity in the U.S. it has attracted a broad spectrum of multicultural, multiracial students. In New York City particularly, Capoeira schools have attracted a representative array of students from White, Asian, Caribbean, Hispanic and Black North American segments of New York's diverse population. While the present demographics of Capoeira students in New York has developed into a multicultural, multiracial base, the demographics of masters has largely remained Brazilian and the philosophy of capoeira has retained its Afrocentric focus. Etymology The derivation of the word "capoeira" is under dispute, as there are several possibilities: The Portuguese word "capoeira" is derived from the word capão, which translates to capon, a castrated rooster. The sport's name may originate from this word since its moves resemble those of a rooster in a fight. Others believe that this fighting style was meant to mimic that of two zebras kick fighting. A capoeira "fight" is one that implies that the purpose is a pretend cockfight, whereby men participate to show off their skills rather than fighting to actually kill or harm an opponent. Though this gymnastic, almost dance-like, display can appear to be a fight, participants are expected to restrain themselves from inflicting grievous harm upon one another. Hence, all participants are reminded by the word capoeira, that the intent of the "fight" should remain one with the restraint of the show-off, yet castrated, rooster called capão. These showy cock-like fights are mock fights of skill between performing capão in the mock cockfight pen known as the capoceira. Capoeira is an extreme display of a cockfight-like competition of oneupmanship between show-off cocky "roosters", absent deadly intent. "Capoeira" has several meanings, including any kind of pen where poultry is kept, a fowl similar to a partridge, and a basket worn on the head by soldiers defending a stronghold. "Capoeira" is also what people used to call a black inlander who mugged travelers.[citation needed] Afro-Brazilian scholar Carlos Eugenio has suggested that the sport took its name from a large round basket called a capa commonly worn on the head by urban slaves selling wares.[citation needed] The word could derive from two Tupi-Guarani words, kaá (leaf, plant) and puéra (past aspect marker), which literally means "formerly a forest", referring to an area of forest that had been cleared by burning or cutting down. In such places a thick, low secondary vegetation would grow, making it a good place for those who escaped slavery and bandits to hide. According to this etymology, the term was first used as a synonym of "outlaw", especially the type of outlaws that would evade justice by escaping to the jungles, to be only later applied to the fighting art most of them knew.[citation needed] Kongo scholar K. Kia Bunseki Fu-Kiau has posited that "capoeira" could be derived from the Kikongo word kipura, a term used to describe a rooster's movements in a fight and meaning to flutter, flit from place to place, struggle, fight, or flog. For further information, just visit [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capoeira[/url][/spoiler]

[color=#ff6699][b]KungFu just like YiFei [/b][/color]

taekwondo - i had lessons when i was in grade 3 and grade 5