rwogh

I took Tae Kwan Do for a few months when I was a kid but never really got into it. What is so different about this than other martial arts?

easyG

Tae Kwon Do isnt THAT effective as a fighting style. Obviously it would give you an edge over someone untrained in it so as a form of self defence is very good. However its not ideal for use in MMA.

It does have benefits though :

• It gives you an excellent cardio workout
• It improves your speed
• You get increased flexibility
• You can impress people with your jumping spinning back-kick - watch out hollywood!

Matt Walker

There are too many other arts to compare the differences to Tae Kwon Do. However, I will do a brief comparison of Tae Kwon Do and another very popular art - Shorin Ryu Karate.

The main difference between Tae Kwon Do and other arts, such as Shorin Ryu, is that Tae Kwon Do is a linear art, whereas Shorin Ryu is a straight and circular art. Tae Kwon Do uses straight techniques and Shorin Ryu uses straight and circular techniques.

Circular techniques are often harder to learn, have less power, and are not things you would do in the real world. Straight techniques are easier to learn, have much more power (generally) and are often things you would do in the real world. Please note this is not an opinion, it is a fact. If you would like an explanation of why this is a fact, ask.

Another major difference is the fact that Tae Kwon Do is a Olympic sport, whereas Shorin Ryu is not.

The best thing you can do to truly understand the differences of Tae Kwon Do compared to other arts is by joining a school and training in other arts, or even just watching other students perform them. I believe most dojo's give the first month free to any would-be students. If you would like a bigger comparison, please don't hesitate to ask. I am a 2nd degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and a 1st degree black belt in Shorin Ryu karate, and I have started taking Uechi Ryu Karate. My posts are not biased.

Your statements are not necessarily true. Tae Kwon Do can be an extremely effective martial art, it all depends on how long you train and how well you absorb it. There is no superior martial art - there is only the more experienced martial artist. I have seen many Tae Kwon Do students win MMA competitions. It was never because Tae Kwon Do was superior, it was because the TKD students were more experienced and had a better understanding of their art.

I believe I have the competitions I was talking about above on video, and I would be more than happy to share them if you want.

Bryan

Really good write up Matt. I enjoyed reading that. Learned a lot actually about Tae kwon do.

rogue

I'm still a bit iffy on Tae Kwon Do. I mean, as with every art, you have your masters that really excel at it and bring out its true colors, while you have your ... non masters that really kill it.

Then you have the American mainstream who's out to get a quick buck. I think the fact that it is so widely offered, makes it become that much more criticized. And because of that, people get really critical about it because you aren't going to find 100% top notch instructors every time.

Ensicon

Tae Kwon Do is great, but in Korea they're much more disciplined than in America or Europe, the average Korean is much more serious about it.

wahpah

Yes, good write up, Matt. It's nice to know people who study and analyze the arts. Keep it up.

e2thehu

I was never really into actually doing Tae Kwon Do. My cousin did it and I thought it was cool. I do enjoy seeing it, though.

LyricB

I did it for a while, but my teacher and I had a real language barrier so I didn't get much out of the class.

Kennon

TKD is a effective martial art if there are still qualifying instructors out there.

One has to remember that TKD is comprised of other Korean arts, created to restablish a partiotic past time sport for the country.

The rush was on from Korean insructors to promote inertnationally, that they didnt have many students training hard core and not teaching them good defenses.

The goal was to get many people past the black belt level in order to franchise out.

These people opened schools without much knowledge, other than business and incorporated more ranking/testing, and curriculums geared towards children.

Thus making it what it is today