Martial Arts
According to Wikipedia, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martial_arts) 'martial arts' is a term that was devised in the 1920s. However, the practice of martial arts goes back centuries. Martial arts includes kickboxing, karate, judo, tae kwon do, kung fu, and ju jitsu. There are many other systems that are considered to be martial arts.
While many people regard martial arts to be methods of fighting, they are, in fact, systems of movements that teach humility, honor, honesty, confidence, self discipline, perseverance, respect for others, and, responsibility. Perhaps the movie Karate Kid is the embodiment of martial arts philosophy, while the movies of Bruce Lee and Steven Segal show martial arts as more of a fighting method.
Many women take martial arts classes so that they can learn self defence. Many styles of martial arts teach one how to defend themselves with their bare hands. Mixed martial arts combines many different styles so that the practitioner feels equipped to defend themselves whether they are attacked from behind, thrown to the floor, or threatened with a knife.