What is the best martial arts combo to learn, study and train?
This will differ by person as each person has different goals when it comes to learning and training martial arts.
But the best martial arts combo would really depend on your goals with the martial arts and these can be summarised in 3 overall goals for someone training martial arts.
- To compete and become a competitive fighter and even a champion
- To learn martial arts for real world application
- To learn martial arts for fitness, health and self discipline.
And we will look at which is the best combination of martial arts to learn for each of the three overall goals for anyone training martial arts.
But first it is important to get a grasp of the general types of martial arts out there in order to effectively combine these combat arts into something applicable to you for whatever goal you may have.
So lets start there.
What are the Main Styles of Martial Arts? 5 main Styles
For the purpose of simplicity, the main martial arts out there in the world today can be grouped into 4 overall categories and these are:
- Striking based
- Grappling based
- Traditional
- Modern or Mixed/Hybrid
- Competitive sport based
Then as we delve deeper there are even combinations of these martial arts styles within the four categories listed above.
For example there is the traditional-striking based style such as Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo and Wing chun.
There are also modern striking based styles such as Kickboxing and Sanda (which is a modern take on traditional chinese kung fu).
There are the traditional grappling styles such as Judo and Greco Roman wrestling which do not include any striking techniques.
And there are modern grappling styles such as catch wrestling, BJJ and submission grappling.
A further division can be made between more street or real world fighting styles where there are no rules and survival is the main objective i.e Krav Maga and combat sport styles such as Boxing.
So there really are a large variety of styles out there.
But in order to determine which is the best martial arts combo for you let’s go back to the 3 overall goals a person may have as a martial artist and see what is the best martial arts combination under each.
What is the Best Combination of Martial Arts for Combat Sports
If you are looking to compete or are an amateur or even pro fighter then the best combination of fighting styles would have to comply with the rule set which you are competing under.
Someone competing in submission grappling or BJJ would have no use for learning and training muay thai or kickboxing.
But combining your BJJ with Judo and Sambo and even Olympic wrestling could be highly beneficial to your BJJ game.
If you are in a predominantly striking based combat sport such as muay thai it could be beneficial to cross-train in kickboxing, Dutch style kickboxing and even Western Boxing to improve your punching ability.
Competing in a hybrid style such as shoot boxing or Mixed Martial Arts, then obviously you time would be divided between striking styles such as Boxing and Muay thai and grappling arts like BJJ and Wrestling.
So the best combination of martial arts for a competitive sports based martial artist highly depends on the competitive rules you are fighting under.
As a grappler, combining BJJ, Judo and Sambo would be a great combination to train.
As a striker combining Muay Thai, Dutch style Kickboxing and Sanda would also be another great combination.
What is the Best Combination of Martial Arts for Self Defense?
For someone learning and training martial arts for real world application i.e law enforcement, disciplined forces and the military or a Bar or nightclub bouncer then being able to handle yourself against a striker or a grappler is quite necessary.
So training in both striking and grappling would be highly beneficial.
A hybrid or modern style of martial art such as Krav Maga or even Gracie Jiu Jitsu (the more self defense focussed version of BJJ) would be a great asset for someone who’s job it is to be able to subdue someone or handle themselves in a physical altercation if required.
This relates mainly to unarmed combat.
Weapons training is a highly developed and separate area that would require its own study.
But modern styles such as Krav Maga and Gracie Jiu Jitsu do train to deal with an armed opponent and how to subdue them.
For someone who is interested in learning self defense for self confidence and to be able to handle themselves in the street then a combination of a striking style such as muay thai or boxing and a grappling style such as Judo or BJJ would be a great advantage.
For self defense training a combination of striking and grappling would be suggested. combining martial arts styles in training such as Karate with Judo, Muay Thai with BJJ or Kickboxing with Sambo would excellent for your training.
Best Combination for Health, Fitness and Self Discipline
If you are training and learning mainly for health and fitness as well as developing self discipline then, combining martial arts may not even be necessary.
You could attain all of your health and fitness goals by sticking to one martial art such as muay thai or BJJ.
But if you have the time and energy, then there is no harm in learning and training both styles or a striking based martial art combined with a grappling based style.
But really training a physically demanding training style such as muay thai and following a typical muay thai session 2-3 days per week really will help you achieve major goals in terms of health, fitness and weight loss.
As well as helping you to develop self discipline but staying committed to such gruelling training sessions in the long run.
BJJ, Judo and Wrestling are no different. The training sessions in these grappling arts are known to be very gruelling with a lot of calisthenics, body weight resistance training as well as drilling and sparring.
Training martial arts for health and fitness as well as self discipline then the combination options are endless.
Muay thai with BJJ again is a great combination to achieve any health or fitness goal you would like to achieve.
What Do I think in the best Combination?
In my opinion, I think combining a striking martial art with a grappling martial art is the best combination to learn.
And this will help to develop you as a well rounded martial artists with a variety of expertise and skills.
This will help you to become proficient in stand up striking as well as stand up grappling (i.e the muay thai clinch) and ground work.
If you learn a style such as BJJ or Judo then submissions including arm locks, leg locks, chokes and strangles that can be applied in real life would also be a key part of your martial arts game.
This will not only help you become fitter and stronger but also develop self confidence as well as street applicable self defense techniques.
What About Mixed Martial Arts?
MMA is definitely an excellent style to learn.
And combining martial arts styles is ingrained into MMA training from the very beginning.
And MMA class includes a high level of physical exercise training, solo and partner drilling and sparring.
There are also dedicated sessions of pure striking (i.e kickboxing sparring and drilling) as well as pure grappling (BJJ or Judo randori (free sparring) where strikes are not permitted).
Some of the more traditional aspects of martial arts may be lost in pursuing more modern or hybrid styles such as MMA.
And these include the etiquette of bowing to your sparring partner and sensei, wearing a uniform and progressing through belt levels i.e from white to black.
But as a form of combining striking with grappling martial arts (which I think is the best combination), then you really will find it hard to beat MMA as a style to learn and train.
What is the Best Martial Arts Combo? Wrap Up
The best martial arts combo depends on the individual and their personal goals with training martial arts.
If you are competing then the best combination depends on the rule set you compete under.
For self defense and for overall health and fitness then a combination of striking and grappling styles would be really great to train if you have the time and dedication.
In my own opinion combining a striking martial art such as muay thai or boxing with a grappling style such as Judo or BJJ would really help one to develop into a well rounded, fit and healthy martial artist.
