OOT: What self-defense class should I take?

[gmack15]

I am looking to take a self-defense class at my University. These are the three choices that I have. I am looking to better defend myself and have some fun.

What do you recommend and why? Do you have any experiences with any of the three? Which one will help me defend myself best? Which one is easiest to apply in the world (i.e. I am about to get jumped by 2 guys...)

Thanks OOT

[Performify]

Hapkido is a korean martial art. Its a middle ground between striking martial arts and the defensive arts like Akido. Its pretty eclectic - you're not going to find as many Hapkido practitioners out there as others. If you're super-serious about continuing this long term, its probably not the best choice for that regard. However it incorporates striking and grappling, as well as (usually) some weapons training and weapons defense.

Judo is a pure grappling art - its all about taking down your opponent, and then submitting them with an armlock or a choke. Its far and away the best martial art of these three in terms of ability to take on a single opponent in the real world - you'll learn sweeps and throws that will allow you to put an opponent off balance and get them to the ground, and you'll learn ground skills that will let you incapacitate an opponent on the ground by breaking their arm or choking them unconscious. That being said, as with most grappling skills, they're much more suited to a single opponent. So I'd say Judo is by far the easiest to apply in the world (has the most value for application in the world, anyways) but if for some reason you're continually finding yourself in fights with two people, may not be the best choice.

Taekwondo is also a korean martial art, but its obviously a lot more popular. Combined with Karate, these are both strking arts. You're going to learn to punch and primarily to kick. Its likely to have the best male/female ratio of the classes, if that matters to you. Its very applicable in the real world - striking is always something of value in the real world. But its no where near as effective as grappling against a single opponent. This class is probably also easier and less physically demanding, if that matters to you (as a positive or as a negative).

I voted judo, but I think its close between judo and taekwondo. Hapkido is a solid choice if you were going to be devoting yourself to it long term, and had an instructor in your area you really liked, but if its just a single class in college I'd go with Judo or Taekwondo as they're going to be easier to continue if you like them, and both have better chances of teaching you something very usuable inside of a single semester.