Cross Training: How Many Fighting Styles Should I Learn?

People often asking me these:

"How you learn so many martial arts without overtraining?"

"How many fighting styles should i learn?"

First, i learned many fighting styles one by one for years, not trained those all in same period.

For example, i learned Jeet Kune Do in 2017 (asked by my friends to train together for fun) after i graduated from Kickboxing club in 2013. I never joining / training at 2 dojos in same time to avoid overtraining problems (unfocus, confusion, fatique and injury).

Second, learn 1 fighting style is already enough. Honestly, i only training 1 fighting style when i training alone at home in holiday. This “Secret” style is my primary fighting style, because in deep of my heart i love this fighting style so much.

I also had the experience of being held at knifepoint by a robbers on the street. Do you know what happened? I can only remember a few martial arts moves in situation between life and death like that.

My brain work slower when surprised while facing dangerous armed opponents suddenly like that on the street. Luckily my subconscious safe my life because it still can command my body to fight back using a few fighting techniques (to be honest, those few techniques are my most favourite).

Focus in 1 fighting style is better than training in 100 fighting styles for nothing. Learning few fighting techniques you like is better than learning millions techniques that you can't remember when you face real robbers.

But if you wanna try cross training so much. Let me give you some advice.

First advice, you must have 1 martial art basic first. Before doing cross training, you must mastering 1 fighting style first. If you master 1 martial art, then learning other martial art style will easier like playing (because you already know the basic principe of martial art training right?).

Second advice, you must learn new martial art which have different focus – different skill with your old martial art. For examples:

- After mastering kicking art like Taekwondo, you can try learning punching art like Boxing.

- After mastering punching art like Panantukan, you can try learning kicking art like Savate.

- After mastering balanced striking art like Kickboxing, you can try learning soft throwing art like Aikido.

If you do cross training at new martial art club which have same focus with your old martial art, that will wasting your money because you will not learn new martial art knowledges much. For examples:

- Taekwondo experts who cross training at Taekkyon club is useless, because both fighting styles are focus on kicks.

- Kickboxing experts who cross training at Wei Kuen Do club is useless, because both fighting styles are focus on balanced strikes.

- Greco Roman Wrestling experts who cross training at Kurash club is useless, because both wrestling styles are focus on high throws.