15 Must-Read Martial Arts Blogs

… at least for me. I thought I’d introduce my blogroll blogs and explain why I follow them. Maybe you’ll find some new favorites among them, too.

1. American/Traditional: A/T’s author is a teacher and student martial arts and is highly traditional, as am I. I enjoy reading his philosophy and often find his beliefs echo mine. He makes a very good case why traditional martial arts practices are necessary, even for 21st century Americans.

2. Black Belt at 50: The newest member of my blogroll. As another martial artist who became a serious student after 40, I enjoy reading about bbat50’s experiences and can relate to his aches and pains.

3. Black Belt Mama: One of the more widely known martial arts blogs, BBM has a casual, “easy to get to know you” style as she blogs about karate, parenting, teaching and other aspects of her life. A friendly, welcoming blog with a strong sense of community and long page of resources.

4. Combat Sports Psychology: Written by Dr. Randy Borum, this blog discusses the medical and psychological aspects of the martial arts. A great health resource and I find his topics, such as “Beating the Jitters” inspirational. I often find information I can directly apply to my practice.

5. Just a Thought: The blog’s author, Michelle, is a martial arts student and instructor. She writes about her T’ai Chi practice, being a karate instructor and her life in general. Another blog with a strong sense of community and an accepting atmosphere, Michelle is one of the people who warmly welcomed me when I started blogging.

6.Martial Arts Mom: Though infrequently updated, I really relate to MAM’s situation. She’s also a martial artist who got a later start in life. And she’s a parent going through a divorce and trying to raise an ADHD child. Many of the issues she talks about echo my own feelings so much it’s uncanny.

7. Memoirs of a Grasshopper: This blog chronicles author Krista de Castella’s experiences of studying karate in Okinawa. I enjoy her insights into martial arts and her impressions of life in Okinawa.

8. My Self-Defense Blog: One of my all-time favorite blogs and the one that introduced me to blogging. John Zimmer has a knack for breaking down complicated movements and ideas into simpler components that are easy to follow. His self-defense advice is practical and based on experience. And he’s an entertaining read to boot!

9. Self-Defense & Violence Prevention Blog: Another blog that updates infrequently. Author Scott Hughes discusses violence and abuse from a societial perspective. His focus is on how we, as members of society need to change our attitudes and to help society as a whole change.

10. State of My Arts: SoMA’s author has some great information and advice on Tae Kwon Do basics, such as how to correctly perform a side kick. Additionally, he blogs about his life and how it relates to his martial arts, as well as his teaching. A great blog resource for understanding more about the teaching side of martial arts.

11. Stitching with a Shimmy: Okay, so it’s not a martial arts or self-defense blog. But it is the blog of my bellydance teacher and heart-sister, Romilly Mueller. I’ve mentioned before that I do bellydance as my cross-training for the martial arts, so I’ve decided to include this on my blog list.

12. Striking Thoughts: I read Bob Patterson’s blog primarily for his Martial Arts news, which isn’t to say his other posts aren’t interesting — they definitely are, but it’s the news that keeps me coming back. That and the fact he runs the Martial Arts Toplist .

13. Ultimate Self Defense Blog: A blog that teaches women basic self-defense moves they hope their readers will never have to use. The site has a “lesson plan”, so it’s a good idea to start with their First Visit Planning post and continue from there. I’ve found this site useful for showing Dynamo really basic physical self-defense.

14. Urban Samurai: Author Neal Martin’s blog is casual and fun to read. He wants Urban Samurai “to provide quality, informative information on the martial arts.” and is well on his way to achieving it, if he’s not there already. I enjoy his writing style and his insights on the martial arts and how it pertains to life outside the school, as well as in it.

15. Women’s Self-Defense Institute: Self-Defense Blog for Women: The WSDI blog focuses primarily on non-physical self-defense education. Their articles cover issues such as survival mindsets, ways to reduce your chances of being seen as a target and how society as whole perpetuates a culture of violence towards women.

There you have it: the 15 blogs of my blogroll. If you don’t see your favorite blog listed here, it’s probably because:

1. I haven’t found it yet (the most likely scenario)
2. It didn’t capture my interest enough (I have limited reading time, so I try to keep it to the blogs I feel the strongest connection with.)
3. It hasn’t been updated in two or more months. I delete blogs from my blogroll that have gone two months without an update.

Of course, this isn’t a perpetual or exhaustive list. There are many, many fine martial arts blogs out there. My blogroll is constantly evolving as I find new blogs that capture my interest and drop old ones that stop updating.

So, what blogs are on your “must read” list? Please leave me a comment about your favorites. And don’t forget my book giveaway contest. I won’t enter anyone automatically, so please note in your post if you want to be included.

Tags: Blogroll, favorites