I'm a newbie to the board looking for advice. I'm 28 years old whos been very athletic all my life doing a ton of sports like surfing, skateboarding, soccer, basketball (something I was going to do professionally), football, track and field, etc. Most days, I feel 20 years old. I did Karate when I was a young teenager for a year. It was decent but it started to feel robotic so I stopped.
For the last 6-7 years I've been doing weightlifting and Yoga. I've been both big (185) and ripped and now I just like to stay ripped. I just feel faster, more athletic then when I was big. I'm 6'0 170lbs. During weightlifting, I noticed something was missing. I'm now looking to join a martial art because ever since I was a kid, I always wanted to master one.
My goals are of course are for fitness reasons but I want something that has versatility. That does kicks, punches, grappling, weapons, the whole nine yards and I want something that can be done in the real world no matter what the odds are. I also like both internal and external parts of martial arts. I like balance. To much of anything has never been a good thing with me.
Now I'm really a pacifist when it comes to fighting. When I was 5, I had a kid bully me everyday until months I got tired of it and did a sidekick to his stomach and then uppercutted him. He was hurt pretty bad. Ever since then, I realized anyone can have a good day and even when you win, the feeling of hurting someone isn't good. I've been confronted quite a bit in my life. Most times, I don't fight. I try to go as peaceful as I can. I worry for those that can't help themselves however, like my family, and this day and age, its something I think about a lot.
I need advice on what martial art should I take. I recently went to Wah Lum because I always enjoyed the tradition of Kung Fu and the whole idea that fighting should be last resort which is something I was taught in Karate. When I went, they told me how much it would cost. I thought it would be like at the most 70$ or so but when I was told 175 then 120 for Kung Fu and Tai Chi (on top of signing a one year contract), I was like, "mmmmm, have a nice day". The problem, most schools here in central florida are Karate. Theres a JKD but its sorta far. There is a school called Shaolin Martial Art Inc which seems interesting since they teach 5 animal styles. Still a little further then I like but not to far. The gym I work out at, the owner teaches Kickboxing. On his van it says Muay Thai but I don't know how athuentic it is. Any advice please on what I should do and what does one think about Wah Lum compared to my goals I listed above or on anyother martial art would be appreciated. Thank you.