What should I be taking?

[tkd_person89]

I take TKD right now

But i heard that TKD falls short in terms of hand technique to Karate.

Would karate be a more "real" MA?

[grey-ninja]

i highly recommend studying one of the three


genbukan ninpo bugei www.genbukan.org
bujinkan www.bujinkan.org

[grey-ninja]

i highly recommend studying one of the three


genbukan ninpo bugei www.genbukan.org
bujinkan www.bujinkan.org

or tai chi , karate is fun but these arts provide incredibly effective hand techniques .

hope u have fun searching , , ryu ha is also a good one

[eXcessiveForce]

TKD has the same hand techniques as karate, most schools just don't emphasize them and instead over train kicks.


ITF tkd is nearly shotokan as an example.

Songahm TKD offers more materal than the other TKD systems I've had contact with but finding decent instructors is now much harder than it was 15 to 20 years ago.

[blitz]

I'd say take tai chi or something that includes elbows, you can probably strike ok and have good kicks you just need to learn something that includes good close combat. I would always recommend jeet kune do to anyone but thats up to you

[bbbb]

Does...

TKD give you the confidence to handle an awkward situation if it were to occur?

If it doesn't- then do karate!

I watched a TKD class once- and there was NO kicking..it was defences to grab's... it looked pretty good to me.

[ddrive]

Honestly

I take TKD right now
But i heard that TKD falls short in terms of hand technique to Karate.
Would karate be a more "real" MA?

Just like most of the other members here, I would give a suggestion on what style I feel would be good for you. The more I think about it, that's where the problem lies. I'm not you. If you really want to know where you need to improve. Find a couple of partners to spar with. After your experience(s), you should know what areas you really lack in, and then you can make a proper judgement. One the members on here said it best: There is truth in conflict!

[Sagacious Lu]

I take TKD right now

But i heard that TKD falls short in terms of hand technique to Karate.

Would karate be a more "real" MA?

My advice would be to not worry about which style to switch to, but rather to look for a good school. Don't get me wrong, you need to have some idea of what type of techniques you want to learn but don't get too hung up on the hype surrounding the different styles. Assemble a list of schools that are within the distance you can travel- a combination of the phone book and Google should turn up a number of them. Go in and talk to the instructors and ask if you can try a class. If the advanced students train on a different day than the beginners ask to observe an advanced class so you can see for yourself what kind of skills the senior students have developed. If you're especially interested in learning to fight ask the teacher detailed questions about how they spar. I've seen schools that barely touch each other when they spar; at my school black eyes and fat lips are not uncommon after a good sparring session. Don't listen to what people say, go and see for yourself so you can choose the school that feels right for you. There are shoddy schools and quality schools in any style. A good school will make you a good martial artist regardless of what they call their style.