# A Few Questions for a Hapkido Novice



## MattofSilat (Jun 17, 2014)

Hello everyone!  This is my first thread (And Post) outside of 'Meet and Greet', and is in one of the sections which I am most interested in, so hello to all you regulars!

I am, infact, a martials arts novice as of yet. I am having my first class (Being in Jujitsu) on Sunday 22nd, which I am looking forward to. However, any classes I do currently are a means to an end. As you could probably tell by a combination of this thread and my username, I am interested in Silat and Hapkido. I guess I don't have much more to say, so I'll go straight on to:

1) Would you say this video is a relitively acurate depiction of what one of the best Hapkido schools should be like:

Fight Quest S01E04 Hapkido - YouTube - Please skip to the start, I don't know why it started where it did, and I can't fix it. 

I find it very entreaging. The combination of flashy and effective kicks is extremely appealing to me (Who doesn't like to look cool whilst being effective). The basic wrist throw, shown at about 14:00 if I remember rightly, also looks very appealing, due to the variety of follow ups. It also appears that it can be used outside of the situation shown, such as catching a punch or knife lunge as they are extended, especially against the untrained.

2) What sort of strectches are especially good for Hapkido? I would like some examples so that I can be sure that if I focus on <Insert stretches here>, it will show results, so I KNOW that I'm not working for nothing. 

3) Would you say that my skills from Jujitsu will translate very nicely into Hapkido? I know they are different styles, but Hapkido is a descendant if I remember rightly, and some of the throws seem to be similar to Jujitsu/Aikido. AKA, They seem to use manipulation of joints to make the opponent succumb to the throw, as opposed to Judo where you usually 'force' the throw upon them, with the Hip throw for example.

4) If I cannot train Hapkido over here (Nor Taekwondo), would it be smarter to go to England for example to train at a good school before going on to Korea to train properly, or would going straight to Korea be best. I've also heard many rumors about difficulties staying in Korea without a work permit, anyone have any comments on that?

5) How would I train my Hand Eye Coordination, Reaction Time and Balance? Specifically the former and latter. They're both quite poor as of yet, and I am definitely willing to train them, but training is nigh on impossible if you have no idea how to go about it. I'd say I'm  determined, especially when it comes to things I'm passionate about (Martial Arts and Astronomy, specifically).

6) Is the mountain training in Korea that you'll see in the video a possibility for a regular martial artist, or is it very restricted? 

7) Has anyone got any additional comments they'd like to put to me in terms of Hapkido? I'm still only 15, so although I'm older than some when starting Martial Arts, I'm not niave enough to think that it's too late. I'm not doing it to do MMA or anything like that, I'm almost as interested in the spiritual and art side as much as I am the Martial side. Additionally, What degree of emphasis does your school put on the spiritual side? Would I have to travel to Korea to truly experience it? (I plan to go travelling at some point before 40, so going to Indonesia (Silat), Korea (Hapkido) and Japan (Because I like it, and I could try out different arts) is a likelyhood. I'd probably go to Korea and Indonesia far beforehand though to study these arts if I remain passionate).


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## MAist25 (Jun 17, 2014)

1. Hapkido varies a lot from school to school and federation to federation, so there really isn't a great 'standard' for what a good HKD school should look like.

2. Any stretching is good. Make sure you are warmed up before you stretch and make sure to do a lot of dynamic stretching.

3. Yes, Jujutsu and Hapkido have a lot in common, if you are talking about Japanese Jujutsu and not BJJ. 

4. Do not move to Korea simply to train in Hapkido, or Taekwondo, for that matter. It is not worth it, as there are excellent teachers all over the world. A short trip to Korea once you become proficient in Hapkido could be very interesting and beneficial, but it is not necessary. 

5. This is something you will learn simply by training under a qualified instructor. If you are new to a martial art, it is assumed that you will lack these skills and your instructor will help build you up from square one.

6. I do not have any idea whether or not training in the mountains is a common thing in Korea, but would I assume not. If it is done, it would just be because a particular instructor likes doing it, but it is not something you can expect from most dojangs.

7. I started when I was 15 years old as well. The best advice I can give you is to just find a good, reputable school and train hard. Listen to your instructor, and stick around here on Martial Talk because you will learn a lot. Korea is an amazing country, I was there for 29 days and it was a great experience. But it is not necessary to go there to become good at a Korean martial art. But, it is something you should try to do at some point in your life, if you are financially able to, simply to become immersed in the native culture of your art. The most important part though, is to just find a good teacher near where you live that you have easy access to, which will make it easy to dedicate more of your time there. And also, do not become stuck on doing Hapkido. The instructor is more important than the art. Look around your area and try out a class in each school, regardless of what style it is, and choose where to train based on the quality of instruction that is offered there. Best of luck to you and welcome to Martial Talk.


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## skribs (Jun 17, 2014)

> 1) Would you say this video is a relitively acurate depiction of what one of the best Hapkido schools should be like:
> 
> Fight Quest S01E04 Hapkido - YouTube - Please skip to the start, I don't know why it started where it did, and I can't fix it.



One thing about Fight Quest is I don't think you're seeing a typical day in those studios, just like when you invite over a new girlfriend your house is much cleaner than it normally is.  With that said, the joint locks, kicks/strikes, and emphasis on self defense seem to be what Hapkido is about from my limited training in it.

I find it very entreaging. The combination of flashy and effective kicks  is extremely appealing to me (Who doesn't like to look cool whilst  being effective). The basic wrist throw, shown at about 14:00 if I  remember rightly, also looks very appealing, due to the variety of  follow ups. It also appears that it can be used outside of the situation  shown, such as catching a punch or knife lunge as they are extended,  especially against the untrained.



> 2) What sort of strectches are especially good for Hapkido? I would like  some examples so that I can be sure that if I focus on <Insert  stretches here>, it will show results, so I KNOW that I'm not working  for nothing.



If you want to learn the kicks, they exist in Hapkido, but you might want to look at Taekwondo instead.  Leg stretches, largely splits, are what you want for high kicks.  This playlist might be a good place to start.

My hapkido class is part of a TKD school, so we focused specifically on the joint locks.  As such, wrist stretches were very important.



> 3) Would you say that my skills from Jujitsu will translate very nicely  into Hapkido? I know they are different styles, but Hapkido is a  descendant if I remember rightly, and some of the throws seem to be  similar to Jujitsu/Aikido. AKA, They seem to use manipulation of joints  to make the opponent succumb to the throw, as opposed to Judo where you  usually 'force' the throw upon them, with the Hip throw for example.



I think Jujitsu and Judo are a little different from Aikido and Hapkido.  JJ is about ground fighting, while Hapkido is about taking the other person down without going with him (in the majority of the skills I learned, anyway).  I think having the two together would be a very good complement, and the knowledge of body mechanics would translate well.



> 4) If I cannot train Hapkido over here (Nor Taekwondo), would it be  smarter to go to England for example to train at a good school before  going on to Korea to train properly, or would going straight to Korea be  best. I've also heard many rumors about difficulties staying in Korea  without a work permit, anyone have any comments on that?



I would worry more about the instructors than the art.  If you can find a good instructor in any art, you'll learn a lot more than if you have a mediocre instructor in the art you want.



> 5) How would I train my Hand Eye Coordination, Reaction Time and  Balance? Specifically the former and latter. They're both quite poor as  of yet, and I am definitely willing to train them, but training is nigh  on impossible if you have no idea how to go about it. I'd say I'm   determined, especially when it comes to things I'm passionate about  (Martial Arts and Astronomy, specifically).



Everything is important.  Slight changes in how you step, where you grip, or how you move can make a huge difference.



> 7) Has anyone got any additional comments they'd like to put to me in  terms of Hapkido? I'm still only 15, so although I'm older than some  when starting Martial Arts, I'm not niave enough to think that it's too  late. I'm not doing it to do MMA or anything like that, I'm almost as  interested in the spiritual and art side as much as I am the Martial  side. Additionally, What degree of emphasis does your school put on the  spiritual side? Would I have to travel to Korea to truly experience it?  (I plan to go travelling at some point before 40, so going to Indonesia  (Silat), Korea (Hapkido) and Japan (Because I like it, and I could try  out different arts) is a likelyhood. I'd probably go to Korea and  Indonesia far beforehand though to study these arts if I remain  passionate).



15 isn't old at all.  Like I said, don't be so picky about getting a specific art or going to a specific place to learn it.  Good instruction trumps location or the specific art you choose.


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## WaterGal (Jun 18, 2014)

MattofSilat said:


> 1) Would you say this video is a relitively acurate depiction of what one of the best Hapkido schools should be like:
> 
> Fight Quest S01E04 Hapkido - YouTube - Please skip to the start, I don't know why it started where it did, and I can't fix it.



To be honest, I doubt that video is even an accurate portrayal of normal weekday Hapkido training at that school!  Those were probably the best students doing a special seminar/demonstration for that TV show. 

That being said, the actual techniques they were doing were pretty typical Hapkido material, in my experience.  Rolling, falling, grappling, throws, striking, pressure points, weapons training, etc. I think it was a little heavy on kicks and light on grappling, at least compared with my training, but it seemed like that was what the TV host was looking for.  (The stuff he described as "dirty fighting" is actually a lot of what you do in Hapkido, but he clearly wasn't all that interested in it, which is probably why they didn't show much of it.)



> I find it very entreaging. The combination of flashy and effective kicks is extremely appealing to me (Who doesn't like to look cool whilst being effective).



Those guys did have nice form.  Hapkido doesn't focus as much on flashy kicks as TKD, but the kicks they did in the video were pretty ordinary ones you'd learn in a decent Hapkido class.



> 2) What sort of strectches are especially good for Hapkido? I would like some examples so that I can be sure that if I focus on <Insert stretches here>, it will show results, so I KNOW that I'm not working for nothing.



I'd recommend doing wrist stretches, so you don't get hurt working on wrist locks.  Hip/adductor stretches (lunges, butterflies, etc) can help you with kicks.



> 3) Would you say that my skills from Jujitsu will translate very nicely into Hapkido?



I've never done jujitsu, but I've trained with or taught a few people who have, and they had an easier time learning Hapkido because of their past experience.



> 4) If I cannot train Hapkido over here (Nor Taekwondo), would it be smarter to go to England for example to train at a good school before going on to Korea to train properly, or would going straight to Korea be best. I've also heard many rumors about difficulties staying in Korea without a work permit, anyone have any comments on that?



I don't know anyone that's tried that.  If nobody teaches Hapkido in your country, I'd just stay with jujitsu.  Going to Korea just to study martial arts seems like a big pain.  Maybe you'll spend 10 hours a week doing Hapkido - what are you going to do the rest of the time?  What will you do for money?



> 5) How would I train my Hand Eye Coordination, Reaction Time and Balance? Specifically the former and latter. They're both quite poor as of yet, and I am definitely willing to train them, but training is nigh on impossible if you have no idea how to go about it. I'd say I'm  determined, especially when it comes to things I'm passionate about (Martial Arts and Astronomy, specifically).



Um, outside of a regular training program, maybe you could try hanging up a small target (tennis ball, etc) from your ceiling and striking it.  Stand on one leg a lot.



> Additionally, What degree of emphasis does your school put on the spiritual side?



We do some meditation, and talk about being a responsible and ethical martial artist, but Mr WaterGal and I are basically athiests and don't believe in mystical chi energies or praying to Buddha like in the video.



> Would I have to travel to Korea to truly experience it?



To learn Hapkido? No.  There are good teachers in other countries.


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## Jaeimseu (Jun 18, 2014)

Traveling to Korea could be great in and of itself. If you have good Korean language skills, training in Korea would likely also be great. However, with no Korean you would be missing a ton of details, especially as a beginner. 

Sent from my SHV-E210K using Tapatalk


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## skribs (Jun 18, 2014)

> We do some meditation, and talk about being a responsible and ethical  martial artist, but Mr WaterGal and I are basically athiests and don't  believe in mystical chi energies or praying to Buddha like in the video.



I think some of that may have been the video, like you said.  Although if they are all that religion at that school, it would make sense to combine the two.

I think if you have a belief, then being able to express it through your martial art will be a good way to incorporate it into your life, but if you do not have a belief or if you do not connect the two, then it isn't going to give you less of the martial art experience.


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## Tony Dismukes (Jun 18, 2014)

skribs said:


> I think Jujitsu and Judo are a little different from Aikido and Hapkido.  JJ is about ground fighting, while Hapkido is about taking the other person down without going with him (in the majority of the skills I learned, anyway).



You're thinking of BJJ, which is only one form of Jujutsu. Most other styles of Jujutsu are much less concerned with ground fighting. Some of them are very close to the Hapkido curriculum.

Matt - what style of Jujutsu will you be studying?


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## oftheherd1 (Jun 18, 2014)

MattofSilat said:


> Hello everyone!  This is my first thread (And Post) outside of 'Meet and Greet', and is in one of the sections which I am most interested in, so hello to all you regulars!
> 
> I am, infact, a martials arts novice as of yet. I am having my first class (Being in Jujitsu) on Sunday 22nd, which I am looking forward to. However, any classes I do currently are a means to an end. As you could probably tell by a combination of this thread and my username, I am interested in Silat and Hapkido. I guess I don't have much more to say, so I'll go straight on to:





MattofSilat said:


> 1) Would you say this video is a relitively acurate depiction of what one of the best Hapkido schools should be like:



A good school should have a good teacher.  It looks like this school does, but it really isn't easy to tell since this is a show by Fight Quest.



MattofSilat said:


> Fight Quest S01E04 Hapkido - YouTube - Please skip to the start, I don't know why it started where it did, and I can't fix it.
> 
> I find it very entreaging. The combination of flashy and effective kicks is extremely appealing to me (Who doesn't like to look cool whilst being effective). The basic wrist throw, shown at about 14:00 if I remember rightly, also looks very appealing, due to the variety of follow ups. It also appears that it can be used outside of the situation shown, such as catching a punch or knife lunge as they are extended, especially against the untrained.



You will learn kicks in Hapkido.  You will learn some flashy kicks in Hapkido.  But that isn't the thrust of Hapkido.  Hapkido is more defensive.  Most effective kicks are waist height or lower.  That said, any given school may decide to put more emphasis on kicks.  It is also necessary to teach kicking so you have a better idea about what you will be defending against.  Additionally, in the Hapkido I learned, kicks were part of our stamina training and mental training, since our teacher would rattle off up to 8 or 12 kicks.  We then had to remember them and execute them quickly moving forward against focus pads.



MattofSilat said:


> 2) What sort of strectches are especially good for Hapkido? I would like some examples so that I can be sure that if I focus on <Insert stretches here>, it will show results, so I KNOW that I'm not working for nothing.



In the Hapkido I learned, we did a lot of stretching and warmups before actually learning techniques.  Good stretch is good in any martial art.  It is especially so in Hapkido since we manipulate joints against each other.  The good school you want will have a fairly extensive set of stretches at the beginning of class, probably right after meditation and breathing, stretching your neck, back, legs, wrists and arms, ankles, and anything else that may need it.



MattofSilat said:


> 3) Would you say that my skills from Jujitsu will translate very nicely into Hapkido? I know they are different styles, but Hapkido is a descendant if I remember rightly, and some of the throws seem to be similar to Jujitsu/Aikido. AKA, They seem to use manipulation of joints to make the opponent succumb to the throw, as opposed to Judo where you usually 'force' the throw upon them, with the Hip throw for example.



Hapkido is not a descendant of Judo, but Daito-Ryu. Anyone who tries to tell you different is off on a flight of fancy.  There is some controversy about the founder of Hapkido, but it is the accepted history who he was and that he was the founder. 

 When I was in Korea studying, we had a student who had studied Jujitsu.  He showed us some moves.  Some looked similar, but it did seem Jujitsu sometimes used distractors.



MattofSilat said:


> 4) If I cannot train Hapkido over here (Nor Taekwondo), would it be smarter to go to England for example to train at a good school before going on to Korea to train properly, or would going straight to Korea be best. I've also heard many rumors about difficulties staying in Korea without a work permit, anyone have any comments on that?



I would hope you could find good Hapkido schools here in the US, without having to go to England (and how would you know you would find a good one there?).  As to Korea, I don't know what it is like now.  I would think you could get a student permit, or something that allowed you to stay for at least a year.  I don't know how you would find a good school, or if all could be counted on to be good.  And that is probably so since it isn't that popular even in Korea.



MattofSilat said:


> 5) How would I train my Hand Eye Coordination, Reaction Time and Balance? Specifically the former and latter. They're both quite poor as of yet, and I am definitely willing to train them, but training is nigh on impossible if you have no idea how to go about it. I'd say I'm  determined, especially when it comes to things I'm passionate about (Martial Arts and Astronomy, specifically).



Good teachers and lots of practice.



MattofSilat said:


> 6) Is the mountain training in Korea that you'll see in the video a possibility for a regular martial artist, or is it very restricted?



I have no idea on that.  But a good school isn't necessarily defined by its location.  Korea isn't such a large country that you cannot travel in any spare time you have, and it is full of mountains.



MattofSilat said:


> 7) Has anyone got any additional comments they'd like to put to me in terms of Hapkido? I'm still only 15, so although I'm older than some when starting Martial Arts, I'm not niave enough to think that it's too late. I'm not doing it to do MMA or anything like that, I'm almost as interested in the spiritual and art side as much as I am the Martial side. Additionally, What degree of emphasis does your school put on the spiritual side? Would I have to travel to Korea to truly experience it? (I plan to go travelling at some point before 40, so going to Indonesia (Silat), Korea (Hapkido) and Japan (Because I like it, and I could try out different arts) is a likelyhood. I'd probably go to Korea and Indonesia far beforehand though to study these arts if I remain passionate).



Hapkido is my art so obviously I like it and think it is best.  It does tend to be more aggressive in its defense than most arts causing more damage to an opponent.  And it is more defensive than most arts.  If you find you like Jujitsu I would think you would like Hapkido.  Which you would like most only you can decide.

As to a spiritual side, we did not really have that in the Hapkido I learned, unless you count the development of ki.  But that was done more through breathing exercises.  

One other thing you might want to consider:  Martial Talk member 'Instructor' has an online school.  I have often been skeptical about online schools, but he seems to be doing it successfully. and he seems to be keeping his students; that is powerful testimony.  You might want to contact him.

Good luck in your quest.


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## MattofSilat (Jun 18, 2014)

Tony Dismukes said:


> You're thinking of BJJ, which is only one form of Jujutsu. Most other styles of Jujutsu are much less concerned with ground fighting. Some of them are very close to the Hapkido curriculum.
> 
> Matt - what style of Jujutsu will you be studying?



I am studying Traditional Japanese Jujtsu.https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jiu-Jitsu-Guernsey/1420935341469088 - Their facebook site, they don't have a real site so it's the best I can show.


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## MattofSilat (Jun 18, 2014)

Oh! I live in the Channel Islands, which is a group of islands inbetween England and France in that strech of water.

So, that's the reason I'd be going to England, because although I know that there's often masters who teach in places in America, England is much closer to start with.


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## Tony Dismukes (Jun 18, 2014)

MattofSilat said:


> I am studying Traditional Japanese Jujtsu.https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jiu-Jitsu-Guernsey/1420935341469088 - Their facebook site, they don't have a real site so it's the best I can show.



Well ... not quite.

The first clue is that there is no such art as "Traditional Japanese Jujitsu."  "Jujutsu" is an umbrella term covering a variety of related arts, each having its own specific name. Examples of classical (koryu) jujutsu schools would be Tenjin Shinyo-ryu, Yoshin Ryu, or Takenouchi Ryu. Examples of modern (gendai) arts which can be have a familial relation to the older jujutsu styles would be Judo, BJJ, Danzan ryu, and many others.

The club you are looking at appears to be part of the modern eclectic jujutsu tradition in the UK, which dates back to Barton Wright's "Bartitsu School of Arms and Physical Culture" in the early 20th century.


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