# G'day



## BMhadoken (Oct 9, 2014)

G'day folks, new lurker saying hi. Ended up here on Dirty Dog's recommendation, since I'm slowly but surely trying to get back into some kind of practice and it can be tough to find good resources outside of schools.

Not much of a long-time practitioner, I've only got about 2 and a half years training Mudokwan Taekwondo. Got up to 4th geup, was probably a month-ish from testing for 3rd when I changed cities to chase work. Not remotely impressive but I did alright.

I loved my time training in TKD but returning to my old school is currently infeasible, and most schools I've seen in this city appear at a glance to be more of the McDojo/advanced babysitting variety. I'm also interested in pursuing a study that's not so much "kick kick kick kick and kick a little more."

I've been out of practice for probably about 3 years now, and I'm  looking to get back into training as resources allow. Right now I've got  my eye on Hapkido as a well-rounded art, and some style of kenjutsu or  other weapon art on account of a lifelong fascination with such archaic  weaponry. The trouble is, of course, finding decent study resources that can help me get my feet wet outside of some formal school. So any suggestions would be much appreciated.


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## Cirdan (Oct 9, 2014)

Welcome to MT, glad to have you


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## jezr74 (Oct 9, 2014)

Will be interested how you go with Hapkido with your TKD background. Welcome aboard.


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## K-man (Oct 9, 2014)

Welcome to MT.


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## Buka (Oct 9, 2014)

Welcome aboard, bro.


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## tshadowchaser (Oct 9, 2014)

Sorry can not help you out with your quest to find a new school but wanted to welcome you to the forum


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## Brian R. VanCise (Oct 9, 2014)

Welcome to MartialTalk!


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## donald1 (Oct 9, 2014)

Keep on training,  welcome to martialtalk 
Best of luck


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## seasoned (Oct 9, 2014)

Welcome aboard, hope you enjoy the site and find it helpful in your martial arts journey.


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## Rich Parsons (Oct 9, 2014)

Welcome to MT. Continue to lurk, yet also feel free to ask questions and reply with answer or perspectives you might have.


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## Instructor (Oct 9, 2014)

Welcome to Martial Talk!  I think you will love Hapkido it has a nice balance of skills.  Do you have any Hapkido Schools in your area?


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## EddieCyrax (Oct 9, 2014)

Welcome, from a fellow lurker


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## Dirty Dog (Oct 9, 2014)

Welcome to MartialTalk. But it's spelled Moo Duk Kwan...


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## oftheherd1 (Oct 16, 2014)

Welcome to MT!  I am sure you will like it here.

I agree with Instructor, if you elect to study Hapkido, I am sure you will like it. Hapkido uses kicks and strikes, but also grappling, throws, pressure points, weapon use and defense, ect.


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## Blindside (Oct 16, 2014)

BMhadoken said:


> I've been out of practice for probably about 3 years now, and I'm  looking to get back into training as resources allow. Right now I've got  my eye on Hapkido as a well-rounded art, and some style of kenjutsu or  other weapon art on account of a lifelong fascination with such archaic  weaponry. The trouble is, of course, finding decent study resources that can help me get my feet wet outside of some formal school. So any suggestions would be much appreciated.



I am totally biased, but take a look at the FMAs (arnis, escrima, kali), they tend to skew older in population, my group probably averages 35 years old.  It will also appeal to your archaic weaponry interest.

Where in Colorado are you?


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## Tames D (Oct 16, 2014)

Welcome.


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## Mephisto (Oct 16, 2014)

I trained Hapkido for about a year and it was a good introduction to martial arts. I do have a few criticisms about hapkido, first it's heavy on wrist locks and fancy kicks. Both have their place but are low percentage techniques that require finesse and high level of athleticism that few have. Training mainly on compliant partners the majority of the time makes it difficult to develop the finesse and sensitivity needed to apply a technique to real time or to a resisting opponent. Second, the large skillset of hapkido makes it very difficult for your average person to get good at any one area of practice. For example, hapkido has a lot of throws but I doubt most hapkido guys would be able to hold their weight against a judo practitioner with the same amount of time in training, or possibly less. The same goes for the ground fighting and weapons techniques. You'll probably learn just enough to do each of these things poorly unless you devote an unusual amount of time to training the art. More areas of discipline sounds good on paper but in reality it just means you're getting less good at many things. Hapkido is good for those new to martial arts to preview the areas of technique but unless you're training as a full time job find a specialty and get good at it. Would you try to learn to play the violine, oil paint, and perform complex mathematics at the same time and expect to get any good at it? Yes, it can be done by extraordinary people with the resources to practice full time, but we have jobs and families. Just consider that when choosing a style, if you like hapkido than by all means train it, but don't fool yourself into thinking your getting "good" at all of these areas of practice at the same time.

That being said, I always recommend Filipino martial arts to adults looking to get into training. FMA can be a good workout but the weapon usually takes the abuse rather than your body, of course if you spar with rattan you'll get your lumps but not everyone has to spar and many don't. FMA can be very practical while also offering some sense of novelty, it has both practicality and a sense of traditionalism few other arts offer. All of the movements of FMA in most cases can be performed with the stick, knife, or empty hand. One technique can be applied many ways, but I also keep a realistic outlook. FMA is a weapons specialty system that will teach you some great empty hand skills, but don't expect to be able to defeat a boxer.


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## Instructor (Oct 16, 2014)

Mephisto said:


> I trained Hapkido for about a year and it was a good introduction to martial arts. I do have a few criticisms about hapkido, first it's heavy on wrist locks and fancy kicks. Both have their place but are low percentage techniques that require finesse and high level of athleticism that few have. Training mainly on compliant partners the majority of the time makes it difficult to develop the finesse and sensitivity needed to apply a technique to real time or to a resisting opponent. Second, the large skillset of hapkido makes it very difficult for your average person to get good at any one area of practice. For example, hapkido has a lot of throws but I doubt most hapkido guys would be able to hold their weight against a judo practitioner with the same amount of time in training, or possibly less. The same goes for the ground fighting and weapons techniques. You'll probably learn just enough to do each of these things poorly unless you devote an unusual amount of time to training the art. More areas of discipline sounds good on paper but in reality it just means you're getting less good at many things. Hapkido is good for those new to martial arts to preview the areas of technique but unless you're training as a full time job find a specialty and get good at it. Would you try to learn to play the violine, oil paint, and perform complex mathematics at the same time and expect to get any good at it? Yes, it can be done by extraordinary people with the resources to practice full time, but we have jobs and families. Just consider that when choosing a style, if you like hapkido than by all means train it, but don't fool yourself into thinking your getting "good" at all of these areas of practice at the same time.
> 
> That being said, I always recommend Filipino martial arts to adults looking to get into training. FMA can be a good workout but the weapon usually takes the abuse rather than your body, of course if you spar with rattan you'll get your lumps but not everyone has to spar and many don't. FMA can be very practical while also offering some sense of novelty, it has both practicality and a sense of traditionalism few other arts offer. All of the movements of FMA in most cases can be performed with the stick, knife, or empty hand. One technique can be applied many ways, but I also keep a realistic outlook. FMA is a weapons specialty system that will teach you some great empty hand skills, but don't expect to be able to defeat a boxer.



You didn't master Hapkido in a year, it must suck.


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## ST1Doppelganger (Oct 16, 2014)

Its hard to find a good school that you'll like so I would suggest researching several schools from different styles and trying an intro course out from the ones that interest you. 

P.S. If they charge for an intro lesson you can usually get the fee waived by sounding interested but saying you are still researching other schools.


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## Mephisto (Oct 16, 2014)

Instructor said:


> You didn't master Hapkido in a year, it must suck.



I wouldn't make such a bold judgement, but if you think so...surprising a guy with a link to an online hapkido school on his page would think hapkido sucks!


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## Instructor (Oct 17, 2014)

I don't think that way actually. I was just trying illustrate the point that proficiency in any style takes time. A year is not that long really in terms of learning an entire art and getting good enough to use it. I felt that the other poster was dismissive of Hapkido without much actual experience to back it up.


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## Mephisto (Oct 17, 2014)

Instructor said:


> I don't think that way actually. I was just trying illustrate the point that proficiency in any style takes time. A year is not that long really in terms of learning an entire art and getting good enough to use it. I felt that the other poster was dismissive of Hapkido without much actual experience to back it up.



Lol, I was that person and I was using sarcasm to combat your sarcasm. Obviously one year isn't enough time to master an art. I've spent enough time in martial arts to form an educated opinion though, and I've trained regularly in other arts since my time in hapkido without taking a break. A guy who trained half heartedly for a year and hasn't trained since May be deserving of your skepticism but, the view that you must be proficient in any art to comment on it is ridiculous. If you don't like my opinions you're more than welcome to write me off as someone who doesn't know what he's talking about because he hasn't trained the system long enough. This is a fairly common view among people who can't accept criticism, especially in martial arts.

My point is hapkido has many areas of skill that divide the practitioner's training time. Martial arts is a journey and many of us train for reasons other than fighting ability. In which case, who cares what art you choose? I was sharing my thoughts on the OP. Hapkido certainly isn't the only art with a comprehensive curriculum. Im personally not a fan of comprehensive arts and explained why. If proficiency is your goal spreading yourself thin in many areas of study is like taking the long route. I don't think hapkido sucks by any means, I just take an objective view. No single art is perfect, and being well rounded is a good goal for a fighter. As a student looking for an art, it's important to consider all pros and cons of a system, bearing in mind your reason for training.


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## sfs982000 (Oct 17, 2014)

Welcome to the forums!


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## jezr74 (Oct 17, 2014)

Personally I've found that the syllabus of HKD to be building blocks of the principles and not as extensive as first perceived. I agree the soft side of martial arts takes more time  for a student to understand and learn but has its unique rewards as well.

It will come down to the individual and your capacity, train in what feels right for you and keeps you going back each week.


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