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[Trapezohedron]

Wing Chun.

Wing Chun is all about countering attacks, locating an opening and then pummelling the opponent down to the ground while keeping its arms and legs away from you. I have to say that it's the most pragmatic fighting style I've ever known yet.

Have some awesome movie video clip.

Also, Krav Maga is more or less Wing Chun, but requiring more force and demanding more muscle mass from its user.

[Askot Bokbondeler]

i want to refute the notion that wrestling and joint locks is all about strenght. i started to practice luta livre esportiva(sorta like jiu jitsu but without gi) at 9 years of age and there were a couple other kids of my age in my class. when i was 12 i was the only kid doing it in my gym. weighting 60kg, i was fighting guys weighting between 80 to 100kg with more seniority than me, and fights would usually either end up with me winning or in a draw. the top student in my gym was also 80 kg, which was in the low end of the scale, until he actively started to try and gain weight so he could fight in the heavyweight category, and then proceeded to consistently kick ass in national, european, and luso-brasilian mma competitions, despite being really shy about throwing punches and kicks

E:

The problem with wrestling and any other ground-based styles is that they don't work if there's multiple participants in the fight. And in a bar fight, which is the most likely fight situation you'll find yourself in, multiple participants is the norm. Going to the ground in these situations is just an invitation for a good hard kick to your kidneys.

this is true. this might be the missing element in the hypothetical RPS i mentioned earlier

[Scoops Novel]

On that note, according to TvTropes, most bottles are harder then most skulls, in addition to further enlightening me as to how dangerous knocking someone out is. http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/GrievousBottleyHarm Any tips on that front?

[Xantalos]

I'm gonna say the best martial art is the art of dropping a load of high-explosive ordnance on target from several thousand feet up.

This.

[Gamerlord]

Best beginning martial art: Taekwondo. It's easy to transition to another martial art because in Taekwondo (at least the style I do) you practise the a lot of stuff. Sure the focus is on kicks, but you also get quite a lot of things that other martial arts cover.

[LordBucket]

Wing Chun is all about countering attacks, locating an opening and then pummelling the opponent down to the ground while keeping its arms and legs away from you. I have to say that it's the most pragmatic fighting style I've ever known yet.

Wing chun is a very specific body mechanic. It's not really a fighting style. It's more like...the art of fighting somebody bolted to the ground 18 inches away from you while both of you are paralyzed from the waist down. It's like western boxing in the sense that it's a very small window into an extremely limited aspect of fighting and it only really works if the person you're fighting agrees to also use only that aspect.

Here's a wing chun practice session:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zLH3c37QBA

You'll notice that the participants spend the entire time standing squared off to one another about two feet away, and they barely move their feet the entire time.

Now, here's a guy with 17 years of wing chun fighting against a kickboxer with 6 years experience:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TH0cjMNVbfs

You'll immediately notice a couple things. First, the wing chun guy is obviously totally clueless and has no idea what to do. His training is just not relevant, so he spends most of his time standing there getting kicked. And when he finally does manage to get close enough to "do wing chun" he basically just slaps the guy ineffectually. Second...very obviously by comparing this and the previous video, you'll see that what they're doing is totally different. Despite having 17 years of wing chun experience, if it weren't for the fact the video is labeled, you probably wouldn't even know he was a wing chun fighter from watching him. All of that wing chun training he did was basically not useful, and it was so obviously not useful that most of the fight he wasn't doing any wing chun.

Incidentally, this is a huge failing of karate styles too.

Here's a basic shotokan video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeNQ5fhK6EA

That's ippon kumite. It's a fighting pratice. This is specificlly what shotokan fighters to do train for sparing.

Now...here's a video of shotokan sparring:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEprW3db2kE

They're doing totally different hings. The stances are different. The weight distributino is different. The hands are open instead of in fists. They're parrying instead of blocking. They're not doing all the "bring your fist to your waist" nonsense.

It's totally different.

This is a major failling of many martial arts. The training is a highly stylized form of body movement, that bears no relation whatsoever to fighting. This is generally acknowledged even within the schools that these styles are taught. You might spend years learning to hold and move your body in a certain way...and yet if you ask they'll tell you right away that "yeah, you'd never actually do this in a fight."

Wing chun has some basically good ideas, but they don't stand well on their own and they're typically taught in ways that aren't useful, and can be extremely counterproductive. Imagine if you trained all your life to fight while walking on a tightrope. Sure, it would be difficult. It would look good. It would require balance. But all of your training would be designed to protect and attack an opponent from exclusively one direction. So the moment you try to apply that training to somebody who's able to take a simple 20 degree step to one side...your training is now working against you because you've applied limits to yourself that your opponent isn't also limiting himself with.

[LordBucket]

Best beginning martial art: Taekwondo.

Out of curiosity, have you trained in anything other than taekwondo, or are you simply asserting that it's best because it's what you did?

[Xantalos]

Although I still agree with Redking's assertation, the best martial art is the one which wins.

[Heron TSG]

In a slight variation of the original question, which martial art would be best for me to try? Mostly for the exercise, but also for the incredibly unlikely circumstance of self defense. My distance running is probably better training for that, but one can never be too prepared, I suppose. I'm 5'9" and 120 pounds (~1.75 meters and ~54kg.), and have low upper body strength. I've been recommended Wing Chun, but...

Wing chun is a very specific body mechanic. It's not really a fighting style. It's more like...the art of fighting somebody bolted to the ground 18 inches away from you while both of you are paralyzed from the waist down.

...

Wing chun has some basically good ideas, but they don't stand well on their own and they're typically taught in ways that aren't useful, and can be extremely counterproductive.

So that's sounding less like a good idea. Plus it'd be difficult to find a place to learn in this area.

[Max White]

Out of curiosity, have you trained in anything other than taekwondo, or are you simply asserting that it's best because it's what you did?

I'm assuming that taekwondo is best for beginners because people know it is a real thing, so they won't think that you are making things up and want to fight you to prove it. When you say that you know I-Don't-Know-A-Real-Example-So-Settle-For-This-Jutsu the average Joe feels obliged to kick your ass for you.

[Gamerlord]

Out of curiosity, have you trained in anything other than taekwondo, or are you simply asserting that it's best because it's what you did?

I'm assuming that taekwondo is best for beginners because people know it is a real thing, so they won't think that you are making things up and want to fight you to prove it. When you say that you know I-Don't-Know-A-Real-Example-So-Settle-For-This-Jutsu the average Joe feels obliged to kick your ass for you.

I can throw punches in a boxing context fairly well due to taekwondo and I can block incoming punches better than most, but most of my knowledge about how Taekwondo makes a good beginning is what I'm told by friends who moved on to kickboxing and things like that.

[Maldevious]

In a slight variation of the original question, which martial art would be best for me to try? Mostly for the exercise, but also for the incredibly unlikely circumstance of self defense. My distance running is probably better training for that, but one can never be too prepared, I suppose. I'm 5'9" and 120 pounds (~1.75 meters and ~54kg.), and have low upper body strength. I've been recommended Wing Chun, but...

Wing chun is a very specific body mechanic. It's not really a fighting style. It's more like...the art of fighting somebody bolted to the ground 18 inches away from you while both of you are paralyzed from the waist down.

...

Wing chun has some basically good ideas, but they don't stand well on their own and they're typically taught in ways that aren't useful, and can be extremely counterproductive.

So that's sounding less like a good idea. Plus it'd be difficult to find a place to learn in this area.

Go to some local classes, as many styles as you can. Personally, I would advise you to avoid any place that tries to push an overly restrictive contract on you or refuses to let you try a lesson before signing up. See which instructor seems to gel with your personality. See which styles interest you when you actually see them in person.

As you can see from this thread, there are going to be way too many opinions on which style is best... But I think with a bit of research into your options you can find a school that fits you.

[LordBucket]

which martial art would be best for me to try?

I suggest you check out various schools in your area. Watch a class and talk to an instructor. Explain that you're looking for a school, but haven't decided what you'd like to do yet. Ask for a free trial lesson. And...important: watch an advanced class. They won't let you participate in an advanced class, but they'll probably let you watch it. This is important because while the beginner class is what you'll be doing if you sign up, the students in the advanced class will let you see what you'll eventually be able to do if you train at that school.

Style aside...some schools are just bad. You don't want to decide to take X and therefore sign up for the first school you see that teaches X if it happens to be a bad school. By watching the advanced class you'll see what the experienced students are doing. If students with 3-5 years of experience at particular school look like clueless, flailing baboons...you probably don't want to go there.

So, see what your options are. Visit a bunch of schools. Do half a dozen trial lessons if that's what it takes. Look at social environments. Some instructors run their schools like military drill sergents. Some schools have highly ritualized opening and closing ceremonies with bowing and speech in japanese. Some schools are casual, some are formal...it varies a lot.

Find a specific school you'll be comfortable at.

Mostly for the exercise,

Probably just about anything would be fine for this. Martial arts in general tend to be a full body activity. But if exercise is your primary goal, I might suggest something more aerobic, more active, and less technical. For example, you'd probably get a better general workout in a women's kickboxing class than you would at a school that spends a lot time in groups practicing joint manipulation and knife evasion techniques.

also for the incredibly unlikely circumstance of self defense

Find a school that you enjoy, and just don't buy into the hype. Even a style that's bad for fighting will probably provide some good foundational material. Some are certainly better than others. Taking brazilian jiu jutsu would probably be more helpful for learning self defense than say...tai chi, for example. But if "being good at fighting" is more of an afterthought than a goal, it's probably better to find something that you enjoy enough to stick with it rather than choosing something that might be technically more effective, but that you hate every moment of and quit after a month.

Visit several schools. Watch advanced classes to filter out the McDojos. Do a few trial lessons. After you'e done this at a couple different places you'll be better able to evaluate what you're looking at, and more prepared to choose a school you'll be happy and comfortable with.

[Korbac]

I had a dream last night that I had to fight someone in a ninjitsuu contest. The contest involved us standing about 2ft away from each other, with our hands on each others forearms around the elbow. We'd nod and then suddenly we'd let go and try and slap the other person in the body / face while blocking attempts to do similar. When a point was scored the situation was reset. (I was terrible at this, and lost to a 12 year old who was trained.)

Is there a real martial art like this?

[LordBucket]

When you say that you know I-Don't-Know-A-Real-Example-So-Settle-For-This-Jutsu

I'm reminded of a joke: "I know karate, judo, aikido, ninjutsu, sushi...and 27 other japanese words."