Yes I am a geek, and yes I do practice martial arts. However, I do so safely and not for the reasons iterated by that horrible CNN article. I have lost 50 pounds and cut my body fat in half. Jiu-Jitsu and mixed martial arts has helped me break from the introverted shell we geeks can fall into. I have made more friends and experienced more in the past year than the previous five. I highly recommend martial arts to anyone who is depressed or troubled as I was.
Pittsburgh Fight Club is a safe environment for learning mixed martial arts. You can learn the sports of boxing, kickboxing, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and how to integrate them into a mixed martial arts environment. You pick what and how much you want to learn and how intense to work out. Nobody thinks any less of anyone for taking a break. Almost everyone is friendly and happy to work with new people.
They do have a cage for training. However, nobody except advanced students will use it. Most sparring is simply grappling and wrestling with light strikes if any.
Rather than feeling violent and agressive, mixed martial arts is more like a very tiring chess match. Unlike boxing or other sports, nobody cares if you lose by surrendering - tapping out is an honorable way to lose akin to staying checkmate. Nobody is trying to kill anyone - indeed learning to pace oneself is one skill you must learn in the sport. There is rarely blood involved unless you have an individual predisposition. Injuries are simular to what athletes risk in wrestling, judo, and other sports.
So don't think that Pittsburgh Fight Club is in any way related to the "geek fight clubs" in the CNN article or in the movie/book. They are completely different.
Note: The "Pittsburgh
Submission Fight Club" is a different organization. That club is not run by Eric Hibler (see link). I had a bad experience with them. In fact, I don't recommend going to them since they are simular to the CNN article. However, don't confuse that bad club with the numerous good schools in the area.
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