# Tae Kwon Do



## Gary Shorto (Aug 20, 2018)

I want to start taking Tae Kwon Do lessons a few times a week once my ankle heals up (I tore ligaments in a football game, 16 days left in a cast). I am looking at two different schools.
1) Is about 2 minutes away from my house.

Two main instructors, both very experienced. One instructor is a 3 time National Champion in Sparring in Korea. He has a degree in TKD from Kyung Hee University and a 5th degree BB in TKD and Hwal-Bup. He is also a certified Referee. The other is a 6th degree BB and also does Kung Fu. He has 30 years experience.

The studio has lots of trophies and medals and I assume participates in lots of competitions.

They were friendly, no long term contracts, WTF style Tae Kwon Do.

2) Is about 15 minutes away from my house.

Main instructor is a 3 time middleweight karate champion, 4 time world kickboxing champion. Holds a 1st degree BB under Chuck Norris and a 3rd degree under Mike Dillard. This gym is more kickboxing/boxing oriented. The martial arts system is a combination of TKD/and Chun Kun Do (Chuck Norris' system). It also teaches throws. There are lots of belts at this studio but most of them belong to the instructor. I know he has produced a few competitors in kickboxing, but it seems more fitness oriented than actual kickboxing.

3) What I want from a martial art?

1. Fun
2. Improved Fitness
3. I want to have good, powerful kicks and punches. I also love grappling (I do Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu), so I would enjoy a karate system with throws.

My questions:

1. What are marks of a good TKD school?
2. Anyone know anything about Chun Kun Do?
3. What is WTF fighting like? The instructor said it was full contact and continuous. I don't know much about Karate fighting or karate tournaments. If anyone could enlighten me, this is the subject I want to know most about. I want to compete eventually but not if it means playing "tag" and calling it fighting. I don't want to do Muay Thai/Boxing because I don't really want to endure a lot of serious injuries, but I don't want to teach myself bad habits by over-pulling punches. If I am going to learn to kick, I want to kick HARD. It's my understanding that kicks to the body can be full power.

Any enlightenment would be nice. I am reading up and posting everywhere on the internet for information. As soon as I do some physical therapy, I want to get back into martial arts!

(I'll probably still grapple at least twice a week as well as doing a striking art.)


----------



## now disabled (Aug 20, 2018)

would you not be better going to an MMA gym as you want to do the lot lol kick punch grapple compete and do it full on ...to me MMA would be a better fit but just my opinion


----------



## Xue Sheng (Aug 20, 2018)

I did Pre-Olympic TKD and I've always been intrigued by Chun Kun Do, however with that said, the best way to approach this IMO, is to go and give each school a try and go with which one feels better to you, which one that you are simply more comfortable in and feel you will have a better relationship with the instructor.

I also, and this is just me, avoid anyplace that requires me to sign a contract.

Also, run this past your doctor and see what he has to say as it applies to you going off and training an art that is big on kicking. The cast may be off soon, but the recovery time may be longer. I can tell, you based on experience, listening to the MD is the best way to go here.


----------



## Deleted member 39746 (Aug 20, 2018)

Look at the organization the club is ran under, that can give you a insight into what they do.   

I personally prefer the ITF variants given their rule set allows punches to the heads defacto, but i haven't been under the ITF but a break off group from it. (actually, i dont know what the relation is to that group other than they teach ITF with a few extra patterns in it)  I cant really state anything other than i liked the feel of the group i went to when i did it. 


I think i have heard bad things about the American TKD association or something.   And i think i have seen it get memed on pretty hard. 

Im pretty sure contact type depends on the competitions you do rather than the group as well. Granted there are organization rules if its ran through them, but i dont believe you stated you just wanted to stay in house.


----------



## dvcochran (Aug 20, 2018)

Gary Shorto said:


> I want to start taking Tae Kwon Do lessons a few times a week once my ankle heals up (I tore ligaments in a football game, 16 days left in a cast). I am looking at two different schools.
> 1) Is about 2 minutes away from my house.
> 
> Two main instructors, both very experienced. One instructor is a 3 time National Champion in Sparring in Korea. He has a degree in TKD from Kyung Hee University and a 5th degree BB in TKD and Hwal-Bup. He is also a certified Referee. The other is a 6th degree BB and also does Kung Fu. He has 30 years experience.
> ...



That sounds like two "heavy hitter" instructor schools. I am guessing you are in a large market/city. In my area it is quite unusual for two highly decorated instructors to be close together. Nothing wrong with it, just unusual. I agree with another post that said try both classes. You don't have to be in a big rush to pick one so take your time and figure out which one checks the most boxes for you. Also, do look into the background and affiliation(s) of each school. If you want this to be a long term commitment this is very important. Good luck and let us know how it goes.


----------



## Monkey Turned Wolf (Aug 20, 2018)

Rat said:


> I personally prefer the ITF variants given their rule set allows punches to the heads defacto, but i haven't been under the ITF but a break off group from it. (actually, i dont know what the relation is to that group other than they teach ITF with a few extra patterns in it)  I cant really state anything other than i liked the feel of the group i went to when i did it.


You decided on a school?  Good for you


----------



## tubby (Aug 21, 2018)

WT sparring scores through kicks to the body or head, and punches to the body only, and the scoring favours kicks heavily - 1 point for a punch (if you can get a judge to score it at all), up to 4 for spinning kicks to the head. knockouts are allowed, and it is continuous - score a point you keep going and score more, no stop and reset after each score. It's definitely a bit removed from self defence fighting, but can still be quite intense and a lot of fun, two people trying to kick each other in the head. It is possible to hit the body hard enough to put someone down but the hogu (body armour) takes the sting out of all but the hardest back kicks.
It is good for fitness and cardio. your legs will feel very heavy after 3 rounds, and good for flexibility.  You may find it develops bad habits with your hands - with no punches a low guard becomes common as agility takes priority - it is a long range game.

The best bet is to go and take a couple of intro classes. Some schools focus on poomsae (patterns/kata), some on self defence and some on competition sparring. Participate and see if this aligns with what you are after.


----------



## 77Wolfpack (Aug 21, 2018)

Check out each school and see which one you have more enjoyment in.  Ive been to good schools but they were ran by complete asshats and i left, quality is not just the instructors, but fellow students.  If you are going to be spending time at a dojang, find the one thats the best fit for what you are looking for.

Here is a useful link that you might find useful.  Warning: 93 Signs Your Dojo is a McDojo


----------

