In case you are wondering how to defend yourself then learning self-defense might be a good way of learning the art. There are various styles in fighting that are available to you and you will find that some maybe easier to you while others are more advanced and require more intensity. The next factor that is important to consider are your personal motivation goals such as why you want to take up martial arts? Is it for self-defense, self-discipline or staying healthy and fit?
Evaluate your strengths
The first step to knowing where your strengths lie is to figure out the sense of fighting style you like to work with. There are physical traits that will attribute to making the right choice as certain fighting styles will come to you more naturally than others. Most of the successful fighters develop their own unique fighting styles which is what ultimately makes them better than their opponents. Unlike using air rifle pellets when shooting, the mastery of fighting comes from within you. For example; if you are short and muscular you can focus more landing hard and powerful punches at a closer distance.
Find your weaknesses and address them
While no fighter is perfect, the best ones usually spend a lot of time to find out their weaknesses and understand how to find ways to prevent others from using it against them in a fight. One fine example is Bruce Lee. He uses no additional equipment to protect himself from his opponents such as cometa air rifles; and although he is fast, powerful and intelligent he was also short which made him an easy target for a long-limbed opponent to keep their distance. Bruce Lee knew he had to overcome this shortcoming soon so he developed blazing speeds and counter-attacks that let him get close to his opponents to deliver hard hits. If you struggle to be aggressive in a fight, then it might help to practice more on your blocking techniques, counter-attacks making opponents to over exert and make mistakes.
Spar or practice regularly
There is no way to determine your fighting style and understand what works best for you other than to engage in the fight itself. It is important to spar the right way in order to make the best use of the fighting style so make sure to warm up well. Try to spar with as many different people as you can as this will give you experience of how others fight and what you can do to change or improve on your own.