[quote name='LeviathynX']jmcc: it's both actually. I need to exercise as well as learn to defend myself.
About TKD, mostly that's a worthless application of MA, it's acrobatics, it's MA for kids etc. Please don't flame me as this is not how I feel, merely what's been said to me. The sifu always says this (kung fu) is not karate. Karate is down the street (i.e. pay for your belt). I keep getting flashbacks to cobra kai maybe?[/quote]
No, I'm not going to flame you. I specifically asked so that I can educate.
The typical complaint is that it's not applicable to real life, which is pretty much B.S. Most of the people who say that don't typically know enough about TKD to make that claim, and most just hear others say that, then start to think it themselves instead of actually educating themselves and finding out.
There is a great deal of animosity towards TKD, typically more that towards any other martial art. Tai Chi probably gets teased a lot as well. I think part of the reason is because of the popularity of TKD. And no, I'm not trying to act like a high schooler saying that people hate TKD because it's popular.
But it is more well known than many other types of martial arts, and thus receives a lot of attention from people, both good and bad.
Going along with that, since it is popular, you get a great mix of people signing up for TKD. This includes people who actually want to participate in the martial art, and others who are just there to say that they know TKD. The latter are the ones that help give TKD a bad name, because they are concentrated on belt testing and rank rather than the actual martial art. I'm including the many many kids that are signed up for TKD by their parents and don't really get a grasp on it. Although I've seen many kids that understand it deeper than a lot of adults.
Disclaimer for the next part of my post:
I am only speaking from experience from my school. It is a very diverse school and yet it is very traditional. I also have experience from other TKD schools (and martial arts), but please keep in mind that your mileage and experiences may vary.
So going along with the practicality talk, I will say this...you get as much out of TKD as you put into it. This is very very true for TKD. The thing that I love about TKD is that you can incorporate many other martial arts into your TKD training as a supplement. Many people think of martial arts as completely different from one another. So you either do TKD and learn one thing or do another martial art and learn another. They don't realize that there is extreme overlap of material in many martial arts. You do a kick in one martial art, chances are if there are kicks in another martial art there is at least a variation of that same kick.
One thing TKD gets picked on a lot for is our kicks and forms. Most say kicks are impractical and a waste of time, and that you'll never use a kick in a fight. But I can almost guarantee you that if I can get a side kick into the side of someone's knee, they're going to be done. Another thing you have to think about is what is practical and what makes it practical? If you train a kick over and over using real life situations, then it becomes natural to you and becomes as practical as a punch.
When talking about forms, they seem very impractical and stupid on the surface, I will admit. There's a whole sub-philosophy behind forms that I won't get into because this post is already running really long as it is. Suffice to say that once you really start studying the forms and the meanings hidden within and the lessons you can learn by the most basic form, it becomes much more than what it seems on the surface. The second thing I will say about forms is that they are also the more
art form of the martial art. And practicing something to make it perfect and learning something new about the form each time you practice it, and making the form your own is something that cannot really be described. I know that sounds really stupid, but this is the part of what I'm talking about with people who don't actually apply themselves to TKD.
TKD is more of a martial art than others. For instance, one could argue that a school that teaches nothing but fighting and sparring is not a martial art because there is no artistic portion of it. Martial arts are technically supposed to be about bettering yourself. Some may argue that the self defense applications you learn during martial arts is just a benefit of that growing process...wow that sounds really hippy-ish.
I could go on much longer on all the self defense applications that we do, but I've typed too much already.
Anyway, I will say that if you apply yourself to TKD you will get much more out of it as a whole than you will with many other martial arts.
As for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu I think it's a great sport. I have wanted to take it to supplement my TKD as I have learned quite a few things that cross over between the two. However, as it is here, BJJ is mainly a ground fighting/grappling sport. It is true that many if not most fights end up on the ground, but if I can end the fight before it comes to that, for me, that would be preferable. I believe that you should have at least some on your feet training to deal with the situation before it hits the ground and to become a more well-rounded martial artist.
actually uses kung fu in a fight... seems pointless learning it
