The most unfortunate thing when it comes to martial arts is that a great number of people only turn to them after they had a traumatic experience or felt that their life was in danger. Martial arts can serve as a skill to be used in self-defense, but they are also an incredible booster for our confidence and they teach us how to understand our bodies better.

When opting for a martial art it is important to understand yourself as well the martial art in question. Every martial art is unique in its own way, and different martial arts agree with different people. However, no matter which one you choose you can’t go wrong. You will soon see yourself performing acts that you once thought were meant only for the people in the movies. To help you make the best possible choice, we have compiled a list of most effective martial arts that will help you feel safe and prepared.

Krav Maga

Krav Maga, when translated from Hebrew, means contact fighting and it is one of the most popular forms of self-defense in the world.

The martial art, created by Imi Side-Or, is used by the Israeli Defense Forces as the official defense method.

Even though there are many variations around the world, in its basic form you can learn how to disarm someone with a gun or knife, but also grappling, striking, and kicking.

Aikido

Many will disagree with putting Aikido on this list. But, while some of us need to use martial arts for defending ourselves, there are people like prison guards, security detail, and police officers who have to use force all the time.

Aikido is good in that case because it cannot cause too much harm to the person you are defending against, but it can be good for restraining the opponent.

Of course, keep in mind that when it comes to Aikido, if you reach a professional level you can lock your opponent’s wrists and push them away easily, but only if your adversary is unskilled and has no other martial art in his/her sleeve.

Karate

It is only natural that Karate has found its place on this list.

Punching, kicking, blocking, and sometimes grappling are all parts of Karate, and can be very useful in self-defense.

Straight strikes, powerful punches and kicks are all benefits of this budget-friendly martial art.

Although there are those who claim this style to be very stiff in comparison to other martial arts who don’t use blocking as much, it can work wonders on your punches and kicks.

Keysi

Superhero and comic books fans will live this style since it was featured as one of Batman’s main moves in Batman Begins. This Spanish street fighting style is ideal for someone who is being attacked by several opponents.

Silat

Originally from South East Asia, this dance-like self-defense style is like no other. By using energy and manipulation of balance, this martial art is designed to confuse your opponents and potentially hurt their limbs.

In terms of recreation, the elderly and the people leading a sedentary lifestyle are often encouraged to do some sports. However, recreational activities and sports are not the same. There is a lot of overlap between the two, as many competitive sports can be used as recreational activities, albeit with a more relaxed pace.

What Is the Difference?

A sport is a physically demanding activity that requires an individual or a team to compete against others while pushing their body and their skills to the limit for the purposes of earning money or entertainment. Granted, we find that this definition is somewhat lacking, but you get the gist.

Recreation, on the other hand, refers to everything we do for pleasure. It is something that is not work but play, in a way. You can still play football, go mountain-climbing, or use parkour to get to your favorite coffee place, but if you are not doing it to entertain anyone or to make some money, but simply for the pleasure of it or because you can, that is recreation. It is an important part of personal development and mental and physical health.

Recreational Activities That Are Not Sports

This is a wide category, so we are going to have to break it down. For the sake of simplicity, we have opted to divide these recreational activities into two groups: physically demanding and relaxed.

Physically Demanding

This is a category to which all martial artists and amateur athletes belong.

Martial arts that are not combat sports but are legitimate skills where no scores are kept are used here either for self-defense or to keep your body in top physical condition. We’ve already talked about some of the benefits of martial arts for the elderly in another piece, which you can read here.

Hiking, jogging, riding a bike, playing Frisbee in the park, and walking your dog, for example, are all activities that do require some physical exertion. This is not the level of exertion you would find on an average sports field, but it is something that gives us pleasure and keeps us healthy.

Workout programs and different practices that are not about competitive results but rather your own well-being, like yoga, pilates, and tai-chi are also physically demanding recreational activities that have nothing to do with sports.

Relaxed

There are many recreational activities where you don’t have to move a finger, figuratively speaking.

Hobbies like reading, fishing, playing video games (despite the existence of eSports), chess, cards, and board games have more to do with taking care of your mind, rather than your body.

Meditation is a practice in many religions and personal philosophies where you tune out the world, which helps put things in perspective. Think of it as taking a deep breath when you are stressed, but doing it properly and not trying to fit an hour of relaxation into 20 seconds.

What Does This Mean

Sports are great for your health and can be used recreationally and not just competitively. However, doing sports is not the only form of recreation that is valid. Anything that gives you pleasure and is not self-destructive (this is important) can be used as recreation. Bonus points if you can make it benefit your body and/or mind. Don’t overdo it.

Learning as a child is much easier than when you are an adult. This is a general rule and usually goes with every skill or practice. But it is not impossible for a full-grown adult to learn something even if they are absolute beginners during a certain point in their lives.

Sports are specifically good for an adult to start. Mainly because they are healthy and they allow you to keep fit. It does not matter if it is easy or not. The point is to start doing something as it will greatly benefit you and may even prolong your life.

But which sport should one choose? Here are some prime examples.

Longboarding

Skateboarding is a very fun sport. It is even being added to the upcoming Olympics as a new sport. Therefore it is the best time to try it. But skateboarding can be a bit hard for certain people. Doing tricks is the idea behind skateboarding but those can be really difficult if you are not into it as much.

So longboarding is the next best thing. You can’t perform flips or kicks with a longboard, but you can ride on it anywhere you want. It builds up your core strength, allows you to add muscles to your legs, and is generally fun.

Basketball

Basketball is an international sport. To start with it you only need a ball and a good pair of shoes. There are basketball courts, inside and outside ones, almost everywhere so it has become much easier to start playing it than before.

Gather your friends and start hooping.

Full-court basketball may be a bit difficult at first as it requires more stamina. But street basketball is quite enough. You can play 3 vs 3 and get all the exercise you need. It is as competitive and great to both play and watch.

Swimming

If you don’t know how to swim, it might be high time to learn. Actually it is never too late.

But if you do it is time to get those muscles to use.

Swimming is considered as the healthiest sport that you can pick up. It allows the whole body to develop naturally. That is why swimmers are probably the most good looking athletes on the planet.

Swimming pools are available everywhere today so simply start making rounds and timing your laps and in no time you will build up the conditioning you need.

Rock Climbing

Spending a day in nature is a great activity that you can do. Spending it by climbing up a hill is even better. This is a really fun activity and there is absolutely no age limit for it. You do need strong arms though and the ability to overcome a fear of heights.

We hear the mantra all the time – playing sports is healthy. The problem is that most of us are quite unaware of how sports affect our health. In fact, not all sports have the same impact. Some would increase our stamina, and others would positively affect our metabolism.

However, there are some things that are universal. Let’s take a look.

A Better Heart

Overall, your heart will pump better, increasing its health and prolonging it. People who exercise and play sports generally have less heart-related diseases.

Reducing Diabetes Risk

When we are not playing sports, our body tends to be confused by the insulin spikes. As soon as we set going, the insulin hormone is balanced, thereby lowering the risk of diabetes.

You Can Lose Weight

This one goes without saying – you are likely to lose weight if you are switched on. However, food intake is also an important factor. Overall, people who casually play sports are more likely to look better and avoid obesity.

Reducing Hypertension Risk

Hypertension can be dangerous, and it can even lead to heart disease or a stroke. When you play sports, your body protects you from high blood pressure by maintaining your heart health, blood, and body fat.

Cholesterol Balance

Cholesterol is one of the main reasons why we get hypertension and other similar diseases. Playing sports lowers the levels of cholesterol and keeps us overall healthy, making all the bad cholesterol go away and leaving you with just the good one.

Blood Flows Better

Cholesterol often causes the bad blood flow which can eventually lead to a heart attack. However, when you play sports, you make your body well-oxygenated, and the blood circulation is significantly improved.

Stronger Immune System

A weak immune system means that you are more likely to get attacked by viruses and it would be more difficult for you to fight them back. A strong immune system is self-sufficient, and you do not need to go to the doctor and drink antibiotics as much – your body will take care of the viruses for you. Sportspeople are known to be very healthy and do not get sick often.

Stronger Muscles

Stronger muscles will give you the power of doing physical things with more ease. Every sport strengthens the muscles, but not all will strengthen them equally. In fact, you need to choose an appropriate sport if you want to train a particular muscle group.

Stronger Bones

Bones that have higher bone density are stronger, and sports is the #1 way to maintain the strong bones. That will keep your body agile and reduce the risk of osteoporosis.

Reduces Risk of Depression

Some people have constant depression, while others get depressed when things do not go their way. One thing is sure – depression can be lowered and even cured with moderate sports activity. We constantly release dopamine when we play sports, and this is what eventually makes us happy. If the sport is competitive and we win, that’s a big plus.

Better Discipline

Finally, you will start to value your time and better organize it. When we are playing sports, we are inspired by our achievements and always want to become better by devoting time and discipline to that sport. It means that other areas of our lives become more organized as well.

If you are a football fan, you are probably already familiar with the fact that this noble sport originated in England and quickly became #1 entertainment on the Old Continent. It soon spread worldwide, and people from every part of the Earth accepted it and fell in love with it.

However, its cradle is still Europe, and it seems that Europeans have a specific passion for it – especially when it comes to nurturing the culture that revolves around football.

Stadiums of Europe are the epicentres of the biggest football events in the world. Here are some of the most famous stadiums.

Camp Nou

Barcelona is a beautiful city with a rich history and amazing architecture. Apart from the Gaudi’s buildings, another important architectural giant is Camp Nou, home to Barcelona Football Club. It is probably the biggest stadium in Europe, and it can take a total of 99,354 spectators. If you happen to be in Barcelona during a home match of the club – feel free to visit it and feel the thrill.

Wembley

Wembley is the national stadium of the English football team. However, with a slightly different history, the stadium grabs as much attention – it is the stadium on which many celebrities are doing their concerts, some of which are pretty memorable as well. The stadium can take up to 90,000 people and is one of the many stadiums that you need to visit when in London.

Stade de France

The French had their national stadium built way before the English (Wembley was built in 2007, Stade de France in 1998). The stadium was initially built for the purpose of playing the FIFA World Cup finals in 1998 on this very stadium. However, they also use it for various other purposes, including the Rugby World Cup finals.

Santiago Bernabeu

The eternal enemy of the FC Barcelona is Real Madrid, a football club coming from the capital of Spain. Their stadium is called Santiago Bernabeu, and it takes up to 81,044 spectators. It is also home to the national football team of Spain. The same goes as for Camp Nou – if you are in Madrid, this is one of the architectural wonders that you must visit.

Luzhniki

The original name of Luzhniki is Central Lenin Stadium, and it was opened in Moscow back in 1956. At the moment, it takes up more than 80,000 spectators and was the main stadium of 2018 FIFA World Cup held in Russia. At one point, the attendance of the game between the USSR and Italy in 1963 was more than 100,000.

San Siro

Italy also has its stadium-representative, and it is home to AC Milan from Milano. It is actually a really old venue, built back in 1925. However, Milan is not the only club to use this venue. In fact, Inter Milan also uses it for official games. When the two teams play – you are up for a great atmosphere in a duel called Derby Della Madonnina. The stadium takes up to 80,000 spectators.

Traveling long distances can become quite dull. Some of the people fall asleep immediately, while others put earphones and listen to the music the whole time. It seems that people forgot how to hang out in a car, van, or a bus.

Once upon a time, there were games that people played in this type of situation, and they made the traveling a much more enjoyable experience. And we’re not talking about online games and bets that can be made on your phone, even though there’s a Mgabet bonus or any other similar things that you have available. Take a look at this list of games that are effective when traveling.

Sure, you can play a game on your phone – but this time, the focus is only on technology-free games.

I Spy with my little eye

This is a perfect game to play in a car as it requires a lot of imagination. There are not a lot of things in a car, and it takes creativity to think of something that is difficult to notice. Do not let the driver participate in this game, as they need to focus on the road!

Who am I?

One person thinks of a person and lets others guess who that person is. The only rule is that the one who has a mysterious person in mind can only answer with yes or no. The best thing about it is that the driver can also participate without getting distracted from the road.

Zitchdog

Zitchdog is a relatively new game, and it was inspired by an episode of the popular TV show How I Met Your Mother. The rules are simple – say “ZITCHDOG!” every time you see a dog on the road. The one with the most Zichdog points, in the end, is the winner of the game. This can also be a bit tricky for the driver. He can play, but he also needs to remain cautious and concentrate on the road.

Hangman

Hangman is the game that actually requires a pen and the paper. If you ever played hangman – you probably already know the rules. Just let someone who is not the driver take notes down, and others can guess the letters.

Various card games

Finally, there are cards. If your card is comfortable enough and you do not have motion sickness, you can enjoy multiple card games such as poker, Uno, etc. Once again, this excludes the driver from the list of the players, which is a slight disadvantage to cards. However, the others can enjoy cards during the whole trip.

Conclusion

As you can see, traveling can be a pretty enjoyable experience, especially if you are with a group of friends who like playing games. All it takes is a bit of imagination and creativity. Once you have these, the road trip can turn into an unforgettable adventure.