Capoeira
Capoeira is a Brazilian martial art that combines music, dance and combat.
The art uses complex moves quickly with strength and speed, resulting in a very effective self-defence that is also incredible to watch.
The fundamental move in Capoeira is the “ginga”, which is the rocking/swinging back and forth. This allows you to be in constant motion, giving you greater chance to move out of the way of an opponents attack, and also to use feints etc in your own attacks.
Attacks in Capoeira are done primarily with kicks, knee strikes and leg sweeps. Elbow strikes and punches are also sometimes used, as are a number of other take down techniques.
Defensive moves in Capoeira are mostly avoidance techniques, moving out of the way of attacks rather than blocking them.
Rolls and acrobatics (including cartwheels) are heavily used for takedowns and to circle and opponent.
When fighting, it is rare to stop in one stance, and in this case, you just "follow" your opponent with your legs, preventing him from getting close, or preparing a fast acrobatic move to take advantage when he attacks. The rest of the time, you just keep changing stances, feinting, and doing the equivalent of boxing "jabs".
It’s origins are from Brazil in the 1500s, developed by African slaves sent there by the Portuguese.
For more information please see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capoeira#Martial_Art
Author: The Bear Martial Arts Team
