athletes make better fighters???

[LEGEND]

Is it the attitude or the constant training??? Well this came up after reading Matt Thornton website on athlete martial artists and hobby martial artists. Most athlete had competition to help push their bodies to the peak and most importantly winning is everything mentality which set them above the pack...while most peeps are more like...I'm doing this as a hobby or for self defense...but do they have the winning mentality??? We often talk about running away or walking away from a fight. I really have never seen someone walk away from a fight...cause once the bully sense the weakness they push forward and cause the fight.

[Merryprankster]

Athletes (the non marathon types) have the potential to be better fighters than non-athletes for several reasons, but they all boil down to attributes:

Better shape.

Better kinesthetic awareness.

Increased ability to handle adrenaline dump thanks to frequently handling competitive stress.

There are probably others.

None of the above can make up for a glass jaw or no willpower, but most competitive athletes have no shortage of willpower....

[Budokan]

Athletes may have better stamina (and I'll even debate that) but that doesn't automatically equate into a better fighter unless they've had the training to back it up.

[KnightSabre]

I think "most" of the time athletes will make better fighters.

In my class there are the two distinct groups,the athletes and hobyists.
In almost all the cases the athletes will dominate the hobyists.

[Repulsive Monkey]

What a misnomer! Atheletes making better martail artists is such a generalisation. Different firleds within athletics mean different areas of focus which may even be drawing ones skills away from that needed for martial arts. Just because their supposedly relatively fit, and train within their field of practice with conviction doesn't necessarily make them potentially better. Thats just like saying Karate experts make good Tai Chi practitioners. Wheres the logic in you intial statement?

[Merryprankster]

I don't think anybody is saying that athletes ALWAYS make better fighters. I think they are saying that people who are athletes frequently have a set of attributes that frequently contribute to ass-kicking. But again, not always, and it depends what you do. A marathoner won't necessarily be great at Karate, but a gymnast or a football player has been training explosiveness and kinesthetic awareness for years.

And yeah... its a generalization, and as generalizations go, it's not a bad one to make. Certainly beats the generalization that Martial Artists are athletes... or that people with no previous athletic experience than running to the bathroom to pee make better martial artists.

[Stranger]

Not everybody who is in incredible physcial shape is an "athlete". I don't know of many professional athletes who would survive SELECTION, BUD/S, and other similar courses.

There are also athletes who are prisses (great physical conditioning, but no mental toughness).

It is hard to make firm rules about such things. Like Merryprankster stated, it is not a case of "ALWAYS".

[Black Jack]

I will put it this way, being an athlete will not always make a better fighter but it will give you a serious advantage over a nonconditioned opponent, that being said in a duelling situation.

Mano vrs Mano, not where a guy just sucker punches you and beats you down because you did not have the forsight to be aware of your surrondings, in that situation anything goes, but if it goes to a squared off position, the athlete has some perks going for him that may even outweigh training.

What is the old saying, if two people are equaly skilled, the one who is most conditioned wins.

[shaolinboxer]

You mean in the ring?

You have to be an athlete in order to be compete and have any chance at all.

[Yung Apprentice]

I remember when I took TKD there was a weightlifter. And he suked. But I also remember a fullback at my high school, who got his ass handed to him by my friend who weighs a mere 120. That guy he fought benched more than 350! But my friend has been in a bunch of fights. Even if the guy is strong, and benches a lot, that doesn't always translate into punching power, or durabilty. I also think just because one is a competetive athlete, doesn't mean that he will have heart or will power.

[Ky-Fi]

Well, athletes don't make better fighters if they're lousy at the sports they play :).

But, I think natural athleticism is a vital factor in being really good. I just know that as far as hockey goes, most players in the NHL were naturally MUCH better than other kids their own age at every level from the age of 5 on up. Certainly, practice and persistence can make anybody improve a lot, and if natural athletes don't work hard it can go to waste, but you can't discount natural talent as an important factor, IMO.

[Yung Apprentice]

Athletes don't make better fighters. Some of the best street fighters I've known, had the body of John Kruk! There are natural athletes, but there are also natural fighters. And they aren't always athletic. I'm not saying that some athletes or natural athletes aren't natural fighters, but you can be a really great fighter, and not be athletic. I've seen way too many underdogs, kick butt, to believe that most athletes are going to win. Both on and off the street. Stamina is a good thing to have in a fight, but so is durabilty, power generated from a punch is a lot different than power used for lifting weights, ability to use and handle adrenaline dumps (like someone pointed out before), experience, and heart. And trust me, there ARE natural athletes who don't have a lot of heart. You don't have to be an athlete to have those traits.

[red_fists]

I don't think it is 100% percent true.

Yes, certain athletic pursuits can help when learning certain styles.

As for the mindset that can be devloped in either.

Build is no good measure of athletic or MA capability.

Just my humble Opinion.

P.S.: I have seen Guys with 120kg's do daily cycling, jogging and partake in events like:
Triathlon
97km races
and the like.
And sport a belly like a beer barrel.

[Stacey]

Traditional training is athletic training, it is training for being an athlete. Its better training than basketball has for making athletes because the movements are better understood and broken down in a more refined way.

Traditional masters, did and do fight. Wannabees are just that, let your body do the talking.

[LEGEND]

Actually I'm talking more of the mindset...athletes are alwayz COMPETING...they are alwayz out there to WIN WIN WIN...while the laid back types are the first to CURL UP AND DIE. I'm not saying jocks in general...but actually the thread should have been titled COMPETING is good for martial artists. If not...then u're all talk...

[Xebsball]

Im with Stacey here.

Martial arts is athletic training.

[LEGEND]

I need I should have posted...do U COMPETE thread instead...darn.

[Xebsball]

Yes now i understand.

Yeah competing pushes you to be better. If you are competitive (and i mean in a healty level cos there are competitive freaks too) you will adapt so much fast and progress faster.

[Yung Apprentice]

AH, now this is a different topic, although both are very good topics. True, athletes maybe better at competions. But in a real street fight, don't discount out the non athlete.



Legend- What if you don't compete, but don't talk?


Although I personally like to compete, others may not, but it doesn't mean they're all talk, or not MAists or not athletes.

[LEGEND]

HMMMMMMMMM...Problem is u should compete...whether it's just sparring class etc...u should try to push yourself...the problem I see is in non sparring...some skools think DRILLs is enuf. No Trial and Error. When u strive to be TOP DOG...it can carry over in real fighting etc...

[Yung Apprentice]

Very true.:)

[Akuma]

what do you guys mean by adreneline dump?:confused:

What does that mean?

[LEGEND]

AKUMA...the feeling u get when u're scared and angry. PROB. EX: when u're driving and get a near car accident...the focus and the RUSH feeling.

[Akuma]

Originally posted by LEGEND
AKUMA...the feeling u get when u're scared and angry. PROB. EX: when u're driving and get a near car accident...the focus and the RUSH feeling.

ahh cool, understood, thanx for the explanation :)

[NorthernMantis]

The answer is yes ans no, they're just healthier than your regular joe.I knew someone who was in worse shape than I was and smoked but the guy would mop the floor with me with one arm tied behind his back.