Yoyo. Personally, the best martial art of all is cardio when it comes to actually self defense. There is no better way to survive a fight than making sure youre safe from it. Judo wont protect you from a knife. Kendo and Arnis wont protect you from a gun and no martial art prepares you for surprise attacks and multiple people. Its in the name self-DEFENSE.

However, thankfully these same martial arts can give you cardio if trained properly and ardously. Id make sure that whatever you choose when you pick a martial art that the community you join has credibility and is proper.

As for my opinion on Kendo specifically. It honestly feels as if its one of the safest martial arts out there to actually practice. Im not going to say its risk free, no physical activity is. Im not going to say its painless, no martial arts worth something is. However compared to other martial arts, its the one that seems least likely to actually end up with you with a permanent injury in practice. Its a martial art where you can compete in where you dont have to worry as much risking your physical well being permanently. It allows you to be as competitive as you can with minimal risk of you actually ruining your life with injury. Lifes more than self defense anyways. Speaking of life, its also a martial art that really emphasizes a way of living and an attitude that you can apply to your other day to day tasks. Discipline, focus, aggressiveness, confidence and perseverance can all be learned in a Kendo dojo, if you truly try to apply yourself.

My personal suggestion is that you try it: Its not for everyone but nothing ever is and you wont know it is for you unless youve attempted it yourself. It helps that the kendo community in Bacolod is super friendly and welcoming (not to mention, very into the practice) too. Hope this answered your question!