08/26/2026
Some of biggest bullies I've seen online are "martial artists" unfortunately. They laugh at and ridicule other people who practice martial arts.
They mock someone's technique, rank, style, school, weight, age, athletic ability, forms, or the way they move. Sometimes they'll take a video of someone who had the courage to put themselves out there and turn that person into a punchline for thousands of strangers.
And somehow, they call that martial arts.
I don't.
One thing that seems to get lost in these conversations is that not everyone trains in martial arts because they want to become the next UFC champion or prove they're the toughest person on the planet.
Martial arts is much bigger than just learning how to fight.
Some people absolutely love hard-contact training, competition, sparring, and pressure-testing techniques. There's nothing wrong with that. For them, that may be exactly what they're looking for.
But there are also people who would never set foot inside certain martial arts schools because the atmosphere is simply too aggressive for them.
Does that mean martial arts isn't for them?
Of course not.
There are schools that focus heavily on helping shy students become confident. There are people who have never considered themselves athletic who discover through martial arts that they can become stronger, more coordinated, more flexible, and more physically capable than they ever thought possible.
There are children who have absolutely no interest in joining the football team, wrestling team, baseball team, or any other traditional sport. But they still want to exercise. They want to learn challenging skills. They want to improve their coordination. They want to become more confident. They want to learn some self-defense. They want to earn belts and accomplish something that once seemed impossible.
That doesn't make them less of a martial artist.
It simply means they may value different parts of martial arts more than someone whose primary concern is, "Would this technique work in a fight?"
And somewhere along the way, some people decided that "martial artist" means "fighter."
It doesn't.
Fighting is part of martial arts, but martial arts can also develop discipline, confidence, perseverance, balance, coordination, flexibility, fitness, focus, self-control, respect, and character.
Those things matter too.
I've also seen some HIGHLY talented martial artists get absolutely picked apart online because they included gymnastic-type movements in a performance or because they were practicing a form.
People immediately jump in with, "That would never work in a real fight."
Okay.
Neither would a backflip during a gymnastics routine, but that's not the point of gymnastics.
And last time I checked, even boxers practice by themselves. I believe they call it shadow boxing.
They're not actually hitting anyone. There isn't an opponent standing in front of them. They're moving, practicing combinations, developing rhythm and technique, and imagining an opponent while they train.
Sounds strangely familiar, doesn't it?
A martial artist performing a form is also practicing movements against imaginary opponents. Depending on the type of martial arts they practice, they may also be developing balance, speed, power, coordination, flexibility, body control, precision, and yes, sometimes even performance ability.
Not every demonstration of martial arts needs to be a street-fight simulation.
And not every person who trains needs to justify their training by proving they could beat somebody else up.
Martial arts should make you harder to intimidate, but it should also make you less interested in intimidating others.
It should build confidence without arrogance, strength without cruelty, and skill without the constant need to prove that you're better than somebody else.
You can critique technique without humiliating the person.
You can disagree with someone's training methods without insulting them.
You can believe strongly in your own style without tearing down another one.
You can have incredibly high standards without becoming a bully.
In fact, I would argue that the higher your rank becomes, the greater your responsibility becomes to understand that.
A beginner struggling through a technique deserves encouragement, not ridicule.
An overweight person trying to get healthier deserves encouragement.
A shy child trying to find confidence deserves encouragement.
An adult who finally worked up the nerve to walk into a martial arts school deserves encouragement.
A talented martial artist performing an athletic form doesn't need to prove that every movement was designed to knock somebody unconscious.
And someone who trains primarily for confidence, fitness, discipline, personal development, or simply because they love martial arts doesn't need permission from the internet to call themselves a martial artist.
There is room in martial arts for fighters.
There is room for competitors.
There is room for traditionalists.
There is room for forms competitors.
There is room for trickers and performers.
There is room for people interested primarily in self-defense.
And there is room for the 45-year-old parent who just wants to get off the couch, challenge themselves, learn something new, and become a better version of themselves.
A black belt around your waist doesn't automatically make you a martial artist.
And being able to beat somebody in a fight doesn't automatically make you a good one.
How you use what martial arts has taught you—and how you treat people who aren't as talented, athletic, experienced, tough, or interested in fighting as you are—says a lot more.
