Tweet
TKD gets a bad rep from the over emphasis of olympic TKD or point sparring rather than contact fighting.
-
-
Another thing to keep in mind also is that not all serious martial artists are TKD stylists but they are all passionate about the arts that they practice. I also remember that about 10-15 years ago, TKD people used to talk a lot of crap. Having been involved in TKD since the early 70's I saw a lot of it.
Open mindedness is something that will only develop so far in the martial arts world due to the level of passion people have about their practice. Say if someone says that TKD sucks or Shotokan sucks. To the person that said it, it's more or less just an opinion about how effective an art has been based on their observation. To a stylist of that art, however, it is an insult to their art, their school, their master and their lineage. Essentially it is an attack on their entire belief system.
Fortunately it's not as bad today as a lot of people think it is... anyone remember the "Blood and Guts" era. Members from one school would sometimes attack another. I remember hearing about at least one instance when a school was bombed by another.Comment
-
Bombed...eh? Talk about your over-zealous MMA fools...
I think part of the problem is that there's too many McDojangs these days and the reason for this is that it is so easy to exploit Taekwondo, as it is the most popular martial art in the world.
And also another thing is, I think people underestimate Taekwondo because - it does not apply to everyone - but in general, Muay Thai/Submission Wrestlers/Boxers are more well conditioned and stronger than most Taekwondo guys.
There are too many Taekwondo guys who practice it but don't take it seriously. Even at my dojang, there are many people who probably never practice outside of the dojang.
Crappy practitioners + crappy instructors = Bad rep.Comment
-
That's true for just about every martial art that is practiced. You can't make every person that comes thru your door a world class fighter. TKD training does a lot of good... these days mostly for children. It gives them a sense of discipline and establishes a good system of values and an increased sense of respect. But not everyone who walks thru a school door will want to be a fighter.. as a matter of fact, I would say that the number of people that do is less than 10%.
Lots of people circulate through the doors of TKD places... thousands a year. Most of them just want some exercise, but every school also has those one or two people that everyone thinks of as being the "school warrior". The people who are there to learn how to fight. Those people that are looking for that element of the training will gravitate towards those individuals.
There are a lot of systems out there that stress only the fighting aspects of martial arts. I personally feel proud to have studied a martial art that has something valuable to offer everyone regardless of age, physical attributes, race, sex or creed. TKD does a lot more good that a lot of people realize.Comment
-
i dont know much about TKD atall, i dont dissrespect it atall as a style, but i do know TKD fighters use alot of high kicks, i myself use high kicks to train with, but i have never used a head kick in a fight, unless there heads on the ground maybe,
i think high kicking in real fights is a dangerous thing to do, i wont completely dismiss doing it because it can work and be pulled off its not impossible but in a real fight i keep my kicks low, the highest i kick would probably be a thrust kick to the body maybe, or a high knee (muay thai style maybe),
just my 2 pence
peace,Comment
-
Wow... i dont' undersatnd who's circulating the high kick rumors
why can't people get it through their heads that high kicks aren't the majority of kicks thrown by tkd guys?
This is not addressed to gong_fu but it makes me mad that people who have no idea what Taekwondo is about whatsoever spread such retarded rumors.Comment
-
Taekwondo is about 70% kicking.Originally posted by tkd_person89
They do throw high kicks to the head and body. The self-defense portion of TKD focuses on low snap kicks and side kicks, but if you spend most of your time throwing mid or head high kicks in sparring, that is how you will fight.Comment
-
Are you suggesting middle kicks are bad? Low kicks are HIGHLY overated. What will you do to a person with very strong legs? Will it hurt? Yeah. Will a nice, good kick to the GUT hurt MORE? YEAHHH...Comment
-
Based on my experience, most TKD fighters will throw their stong linear kicks to the body. They will also throw most of their round kicks to the head or, if their school allows it, to the thigh. Since most tkd schools don't allow leg kicking it is safe to say that most round kicks will go to the head. Since most tkd fighters kick with the top of the foot, it is much safer to attack the head than the body. You're less likely of getting your foot smashed with an elbow and let's face it, if you've thrown any round kicks to the body, you know what I'm talking about.
I've also noticed that a lot of generally accepted beliefs about certain martial arts or certain techniques are unfounded. To me, head kicking is one of them. Yes, it can put you of balance, but most TKD fighters are specialized in that area. Head kicks are not just wantonly thrown at someones head. There are set ups, feignts, draws and lines of attack that are used to make the technique more likely to score. If you train to fight a particular way long enough, you will get good at it.
Plus, very rarely do I see head kickers pay for the attempt. Most people are more worried about getting out of the way. Don't get me wrong, it happens, but I've seen a higher level of success than failure.Comment
-
No. I did not suggest kicks to the body are bad. Low kicks are not overated.Originally posted by tkd_person89Comment
Comment