How big are you; what style do you take, and does your size help or hinder your martial arts practice?

I'm 6'1", 235 lbs, and my size has helped the power of my punches, not yet hindered my kicking ability (though I never kick "head" high unless the guy's already on the ground) and definitely helped my grappling ability, though I am not as "wind" strong as I was when I was 185. (7 years ago) Oh yeah, my style is Isshinryu Karate, a strike-heavy Okinawan Karate, that also features a bunch of stand-up grappling, and a few simple throws. (Wansu)

How big are you; what style do you take, and does your size help or hinder your martial arts practice?
I'm 5' 10" 200 lbs. Basicaly short and stocky. A low center of gravity helps with throws and generally lends itself to grappling arts. I practice Yoshinkan Aikido, Judo, and Ju Jitsu.





P.S. Chicks dig short stocky guys with califlower ear :)
Reply:5'7"


walk around @ 175 and fight at 155


Judo, BJJ, and MMA





Judo - I think my size has helped me alot in judo - I am very hard to throw with my low hips and pretty strong upper body.





BJJ - you know I used to think I had the advantage but really I have adopted an open guard and butterfly guard now that I have advanced in skill level. Holding a full guard with my short legs is just too difficult and I am not limber enough to use a rubber guard. My half guard game is pretty decent as well as my X guard - although I have seen tall people use an X guard and half guard pretty well.





MMA - 5 fights - I have beaten people much taller than me but each time I wished I was taller. Height is a huge advantage in MMA - so long as you have enough muscle to move the frame quickly. The only real draw back to being tall is its harder to stop takedowns...
Reply:I'm 5,5 180 lbs (I've lost 10lbs in the past 2 months)





I have an excellent body to be a grappler, as I'm short and stocky, with a low center of gravity, ironically I'm a striker!





I currently do muay thay and kickboxing, I have to say since I'm heavily muscled I'm slower than alot my sparring partners as they usually are faster and leaner, I don't really do head kicks for obvious reasons, but i have nasty, powerful low and body kicks, I have to say that my frame hinders my muay thai clinch, but helps the MMA clinch (underhooks). I have excellent cardio so keeping up is not a problem.
Reply:I am 6'-1" like you, but I have weighed 310 to 360 pounds the last year or so. I invented my own style that combines several Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Tibetian styles. I have won powerlifting contests, so I am a giant in strength and size. My legs are so strong that I have squatted with 780 pounds. I can leap high but not as high as when I was a boy and much lighter. When I weighed 145 pounds at age 11, I squatted with 400 lbs., and I kicked a 6'-9" man on top of his head. My reflexes are faster than anyone I know. A trainer has a device to test them, and he says no one he has tested has ever been nearly as fast as I am. I do not have the endurance I did when I was a boy, so I try to finish foes quickly. Once, 3 men attacked me on the street, and they had knives. Two of them were ko'd before they knew what hit them, and the 3rd set a new record in the 100 meter dash. I could not catch him. I am too big to be a runner.
Reply:I am 5'4" and fairly petite (short legs). I train in TKD, Aikido, Jujutsu, Judo, Shotokan Karate.


Size definitely has an effect on how I train. There are certain things that are more difficult: kick someone tall in the head, uchi mata a long legged person, grappling with someone 100lbs heavier than I am. And some things are easier for me: a lower center of gravity allows for easier throws in general, quickness, I make a harder (smaller) target, just the right level for a wicked punch to the solar plexus. To keep practicing the things that are more difficul makes me exponentially stronger in other areas.


You have to play the hand you are dealt (hmmmm, this sounds familiar). Techniques can be adjusted to your needs and abilities. Find a good sensei who can help you pull it all together. I have.....And NO, chicks DON'T dig cauliflower ears!!!!
Reply:5'10ish, 160ish. Chung Do Kwan Taekwondo. I'd say it helps me, being "small framed" aides my speed/agility, yet I have enough weight to throw behind my technique to make it effective against most people.
Reply:I am short 5'3" and weigh 165 but my waist is a 30 so Im not fat, but starting to add a little weight as I get older ,,, Im 40 right now, i study kenpo and jujutsu , so my weight isnt a problem infact in jujutsu it helps as i have a low center of gravity, If I studied a high kicking system it may be different though
Reply:Man... I am still laughing my @ss off at Garrett B.'s answer.





6'1, 310lbs and created your own style. That is awesome, also your story about the knife wielding attackers was intriguing. I wish you were near North Florida, I would love to check your style out.





I'm 5'10 (really 5'9 1/2) walk around about 220, cut to 205lbs. I have fought 185lbs before when I had about 4 months to cut.





I am short, stocky, barrel chested. My rib cage sits about 20inches off the mat when I am on my back.





I currently study MMA and Judo. I have previously done a myriad of other stuff.





I am short for 205, but that hasn't really been a hindrence per say, everyone has strengths and weaknesses. My build makes flexibility tough, I took up PNF stretching and Yoga and that has helped tremendously. I am still not really a head kicker, and probably never will be. But as I am primarily a grappler it has been great.





For Judo at 220lbs, my size has been pretty good. Most of the time I prefer to cut to 198lbs, where I am bigger muscle wise and at the top of the weight as opposed to 220lbs, where I am smaller.





My guard work isn't my strongest, simply because I have short, strong legs. However it is adequate to do what I need to do, and I view the guard as a defensive position in which you can do some offense. I prefer to sweep and take position instead of attemping a whole bunch of submissions from guard, though I will take them when given.





Stand up wise, I always have to deal with a reach disadvantage, but so did Mike Tyson. I know I have to get inside and I use leg kicks heavily. I guess my build allows me to really throw my hips into kicks so that is good. One of my training partners is 6'8", so I get a chance to work with reach disadvantages a lot.





Normally I don't have any dislikes or wants about my size, I feel it is a help and have suited my style for my body. Obviously I am not going to be rubber guarding, or head kicking. But hey, Jeff Monson has won Abu Dhabi, and Randy Couture has done pretty damn well without ever having to head kick.





Stand up grappling and Judo, my size kicks ***. I don't have to do a lot to get underneath someone, and my center of gravity like all the other shorties here is low. Being a short stocky guy is great for grappling, and in my experience isn't too bad for stand up if you have the wind to move around as much as you need to move.





I actually view it as a plus with my Thai clinch, once I get control and bring the guy's head down, bending his back, I put his spine out of alignment and sap his strength. I do a lot of flying knees and jumping knees from clinch, and a lot of upper body control, so my size works well for me there.
Reply:im bruce lee size: 5'7 145lbs. i do thai boxing/capoeira. most thai boxers i see in thailand are around my size pretty small but of course there are huge heavyweight thai boxers too. so i lack power but typically make up for it in speed





capoeira due to the agility/speed of it my compact size makes it easier for me to move around
Reply:I am 6'8" 280, and use something of a bastardized mix of Karate/Akido/Judo, though I generally modify it to take advantage of my size and strength (i.e. I don't worry so much about kicks, and make sure I stay balanced, etc.) It's a given that I'm going to be slower than the smaller guys so I have to compensate.
Reply:I'm 5'7", 180 lbs, with some of that being extra weight. The style of martial arts I practice is kajukenbo, although I have studied others. My size is perfect for the inside strikes and grappling of kajukenbo. At least its perfect for me !!!
Reply:6' 2", 200 lbs. Like you I also train in Isshin-Ryu Karate (S. Harrill lineage). I'm not bulky but at 54 I do have a 34" waist. I've only had difficulty in the past with opponents (usually a drunk in a bar who had to leave when I bounced) that are short - say 5'4" or so. They run better than I do, but if I caught them they were tossed like the rest.
Reply:I'm 5'7, short and stocky, and I practice Kickboxing/Muay Thai. My size doesn't really help or hinder me. Its my bad shins and bad back that hold me back most of the time.
Reply:I'm 5'10", 150lbs. I've trained in striking arts (kickboxing, karate and boxing) and found that my build helps. The average person my weight is much shorter with much shorter reach, so i can usually out strike, and land head kicks with ease