Martial Arts is a big word to define different traditions and combat practices followed throughout from generations to generations. It has a deep impact meaning which is practiced for reasons like: Self-Defense, Spiritual development, law enforcement and for even military purposes in today’s world.

Self defense techniques has been developed by masters in past so much that it has given new names and various styles of martial arts to this world. This all styles have one common goal which is proper self defense technique with most effective attack. People nowadays are categorizing it and listing it as most dangerous and most Lethal however they forget the core meaning of the Martial Arts that is SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT. People need to understand that all martial art types has its own style and its own way to offense and self defense techniques but these all strives for one mission to get you a proper physical and mental development by practicing its technique in a dedicated manner. We may call it by different names which has spread all over the world and has developed a lot from many years but we must not forget that Martial Arts is a big family and we are all big Family.

I would like to mention few different Types of Martial Arts which is practiced now in different parts of the world.

MMA (Mixed Martial Arts): MMA a full contact sport that allows a variety of fighting styles to be used (including martial and non-martial arts techniques). Striking and grappling techniques, either standing or on the ground are allowed.

Muay Thai: Muay Thai a martial art from Thailand which uses stand-up striking and clinching techniques. It makes prominent use of punches, kicks, elbow strikes, and knee strikes, using eight points of contact, in contrast to the hands and feet (four contact points) more often relied upon in other martial arts.

Karate: Karate a martial art developed in Okinawa, Japan that stresses striking techniques, such as punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands (karate chop). In comparison to tae kwon do, karate tends to focus more on hand strikes, whereas tae kwon do emphasizes kicking techniques

Judo: Judo a relatively modern Japanese martial art (created in 1882). The goals of judo are to either throw or takedown one’s opponent to the ground and immobilize or subdue them with a grappling maneuver, joint lock, strangle hold, or choke.

Taekwondo: Taekwondo the Korean art of self-defense one of the oldest forms of martial arts reaching back over 2000 years and the most widely practiced martial art in the world. Training involves learning a system of blocks, kicks, punches, and open-handed strikes, as well as varying forms of takedowns, throws, and joint locks, all of which develop strength, speed, balance, flexibility, and stamina. Taekwondo is known for its emphasis on kicking techniques, as compared to other martial arts such as karate.

Krav Maga: Krav Maga a hand-to-hand combat system developed in Israel that involves wrestling, grappling and striking techniques, mostly known for its extremely efficient and brutal counter-attacks used to keep the practitioner safe and incapacitate the opponent by any means necessary. Generally, there are no rules in krav maga, and it has no sporting federation. In addition, there is no official uniform, although some organizations recognize progress with rank badges, levels, and belts.

Capoeira: Capoeira is an Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance, acrobatics and music. It was developed in at the beginning of the 16th century and is known for its quick and complex maneuvers, predominantly using power, speed, and leverage across a wide variety of kicks, spins and techniques.

Chinese Shaolin Kung Fu : Chinese Shaolin Kung Fu also called Shaolin Wushu is one of the oldest, largest, and most famous styles of Chinese martial arts which was developed in the Shaolin temple in China. There is a famous saying “All martial arts under heaven originated from Shaolin”. Animal Style practices and many others like Iron Fist, Wu dang, Wingchun and Drunken style are considered to be developed from Shaolin KungFu.

Boxing: Boxing is a combat sport in which two people usually wearing protective gloves throw punches at each other for a predetermined set of time in a boxing ring. Amateur boxing is both an Olympic and Commonwealth Games sport and is a common fixture in most international games. It also has its own World Championships. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of one to three minute intervals called rounds.

Kickboxing: Kickboxing is a group of stand-up combat sports based on kicking and punching, historically developed from Karate and Muay Thai. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, general fitness or as a contact sport.