Review of Martial Arts After 40 (Paperback)

The hardest I've ever been hit was by a 57 year-old Japanese martial artist who nearly broke my leg with an arm block, a truly amazing feat. If you truly understand the techniques and bio-mechanics, age matters not in the martial arts.

This interesting book covers attributes of fitness, flexibility, power, reflexes, coordination, speed, and endurance with a focus on older martial artists. There is pretty good coverage on the effects of aging and how to train hard without hurting yourself. The sections on injury prevention, self-care, and over training are worth the price of admission. If you've never practiced martial arts before, the sections on progression in the martial arts, sparring, and forms are also very good. They are not particularly useful if you've been doing this a while, however. The introduction and the first few chapters are very basic indeed. The section on weapons forms near the end is a nice bonus though.

All in all the vast majority of material in this tome has been covered better in other books, some written by Kim himself. The target audience is the middle-aged beginner who is interested in pursuing an education in martial arts. If you are over 40, new to martial arts, and only going to purchase one book, this is it.

If you have been training for a while I wouldn't put this too high on the priority list. I'd recommend "Ultimate Flexibility: A Complete Guide to Stretching for Martial Arts" by Sang H. Kim along with "The Fighter's Body: An Owner's Manual: Your Guide to Diet, Nutrition, Exercise and Excellence in the Martial Arts" by Loren W. Christensen instead. Yeah, it's two books rather than one, but I think that combined they have the depth advanced practitioners require.

Lawrence Kane
Author of Surviving Armed Assaults, The Way of Kata, and Martial Arts Instruction

Product Description
Martial Arts After 40 is the first book on the market tocater to two growing populations, martial artists and babyboomers. Once a blood and guts sport for tough young men, martial artsis now touted by athletes, aerobics trainers, actors, super models andsoccer moms as the number one way for adults to get fit and stay inshape. This book addresses important questions like:
How old is too old start a marital art?
What type of exercises are best (and which ones are dangerous) forthe over-40 martial artist?
What are the effects of aging and how can martial arts combat them?
How can baby boomers keep up in a martial arts class full ofgen-Xers?
What types of injuries are most prevalent after 40 and how can theybe prevented?
This book takes a positive and enthusiastic approach to taking up orcontinuing a martial art in middle age or later. Readers will beinspired, reassured and educated.

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