Contemplating adding Tae Kwon Do along with Combat Hapkido

[gkygrl]

I have been taking Combat Hapkido for about 2 months now and have watched some of the TKD classes that typically take place before the CH classes. It looks challenging and fun ...

At first I really did not think I would be able to do it (disability and all) but I have seen people of all ages, shapes, sizes and abilities take the class and give it their all doing the best they can do. That's pretty inspiring. So, in a few months, my partner and I are going to consider adding TKD to our training.

We'll join our Dojang's "Black Belt Club" which will allow us to attend as many CH and TKD (including sparring) classes as we want.

One question I have, is taking classes 4-5 times a week too much for the body to handle? Does the body need a certain amount of rest for healing?? I know I am dealing with some muscle strains and working through these (from some Combat Hapkido joint locks). I do train every day pretty hard (hard for me)

Would love some feedback. I don't work (I am retired due to MS) and am really enjoying immersing myself in MA. I study it from books and DVD's, train in it in classes (I feel like I want more formal classes -- I only get formal training 2x a week) and find that it is becoming my "job". I'm having so much fun and it gives my life a lot of purpose, meaning and challenge.

I just want to know how realistic it is to do two martial arts with a disability like MS.

Thanks a ton.

 

[terryl965]

It would depend on you, al I can say is give it a try and see.

 

[FieldDiscipline]

I cant advise as I know nothing about MS. Only you (or your doctor) can decid what is right for you.

For everybody however you need time to recover. Dont work the same muscle groups day after day after day or you will encounter problems.

Best example is when doing weights, you can do weights every day by doing arms and shoulders one day, legs th next and chest/back/trunk etc the next. As lomg as you allow your muscles time to recover you should be fine. 4 times should be fine, as you'll have rest days in there.

Good luck.

 

[arnisador]

If you have the time and financial resources, great! I would wonder about joining a BB club before you know if you'll really want to to go that often. Even if you don't get (physically or mentally) tired from class every day, will going to martial arts 5 times per week keep you from doing other stuff? I find when I go that often in the evening that my family and I can't fit in the movies we want to see, etc. (When I can get to day classes it's different.) But if you're retired, maybe it's fine!

 

[YoungMan]

One word of advice: Don't.
Aside from the fact that Tae Kwon Do and "Combat Hapkido" are often different versions of the same thing, 4-5 nights of practice a week is a lot. You need rest.
Tae Kwon Do will have you do a kick one way, while "CH" will have you do it another. Which way should you do it? Pick one and stay with that. Unfortunately, this a typical American attitude: I want to practice this on these nights and this and this on these nights.

 

[IcemanSK]

I would say speak with your doctor. The need for rest is my concern for you. Although if you're tired taking class all the time, you'd certainly have good reason for it!

 

[crushing]

Check it out and see how you like it and if it works for you. Maybe they offer a trial period for TKD and you see how it may work (or not work) studying both.

I've been studying both TKD and CH for a few years now doing 4 classes a week (two of the class are on Sunday with a 5th class a week every 6 weeks). My CH teacher does poke fun at me when I get to linear and resort to size and power over technique, but overall I think TKD has helped me in CH and CH has helped me in TKD.

Personally, I think it's great you have a typical American attitude that encourages you to act on your curiosities about the martial arts and your participation in self-defense and physical activities.

I say, check it out.

 

[dancingalone]

Less is more. Combat Hapkido contains the basic kicks used in TKD already, so you'd be duplicating much of the material and introducing other material such as one-step sparring and forms that may confuse your progress in CH, particularly since you are a beginner.

I'd suggest training hard two nights in a row and then taking a night off to recuperate. When you're not at the dojang, supplement your practice by hitting and kicking a heavy bag to understand what a good blow should feel like against a target. When you're consistently folding the back in half with your sidekick then you might consider expanding in TKD. Until then, I don't see the point since you already train in a perfectly viable art.

 

[gkygrl]

Thanks for the feedback everyone. Something to think about in the future. The one thing I (well, we) are definitely going to do is to expand our CH to 3x per week to really work on it in more depth. As we progress in that, I will look at the other.

I appreciate everyone's experience and will definitely "try before I buy" if I decide to do it that way. The TKD classes I would be interested in are in the middle of the day (like one of my CH classes). I'll have a chat with the instructor in the Fall perhaps when the weather starts to cool down.

I appreciate the advice and will talk to my doc too.

 

[jim777]

I don't see a problem with doing two arts at once, per se, but I would first look into adding a day or two more per week of the CH. That is such a great system to learn, I think you would be fine by just continuing with that and maybe ramping up a bit if your health can handle it.
As others have said, if you get your doctor's clearance first to make sure you're going to be ok with the art and the MS (don't do Anything to worsen that, even accidentally) then I would step a little further into the CH. Two months isn't really very long, and your body may take to more classes pretty easily. TKD is definitely fun to do, but you've got yourself a great art already. I think I would try to get two years or so of the CH under my belt before starting another art to do concurrently.

jim

 

[gkygrl]

I don't see a problem with doing two arts at once, per se, but I would first look into adding a day or two more per week of the CH. That is such a great system to learn, I think you would be fine by just continuing with that and maybe ramping up a bit if your health can handle it.
As others have said, if you get your doctor's clearance first to make sure you're going to be ok with the art and the MS (don't do Anything to worsen that, even accidentally) then I would step a little further into the CH. Two months isn't really very long, and your body may take to more classes pretty easily. TKD is definitely fun to do, but you've got yourself a great art already. I think I would try to get two years or so of the CH under my belt before starting another art to do concurrently.

jim

Jim - sounds like good advice. My plans are definitely to ramp up to the 3X per week of CH and progress and get into that more. I really love it! Some of our fellow CH'ers who do TKD too have been trying to encourage us to jump the bout into both.

Thanks for the advice.

 

[terryl965]

All I can say is best of luck Diana :surfer:

 

[matt.m]

Diana,

You know of my disabilities.......I re began in TKD for physical therapy: Flexibility, range of motion kind of thing. However, if it were not for the poomsea of Tae Kwon Do I wouldn't even bother taking the art. I love poomsea, I am a junkie for it. It is a great workout. At home I will do poomsea with a lot of time under tension or slowed down under control.

I do all kicking front leg for practice. However, DO NOT PUSH YOURSELF TOO MUCH. It has gotten to the point for me that I instruct my judo class, then sit out of TKD for the most part unless they need my help or to work on my poomsea. Then I only work technique in hapkido.

My point to you is try and tone/muscle build through body weight training, lots of range of motion training. Push yourself within your limits and never "Forget" what they are.

Rest is the best, however......consistant training at home over the long term is worth its weight in gold.

 

[gkygrl]

Matt,

Your advice means a lot to me. I think I am looking to TKD to get the opportunity to feel a little more of the traditional martial arts discipline along with the kata. I know that the memorization of Kata will be a HUGE challenge for me cognitively but I met another woman with MS who is taking TKD and has found that it has improved her memory HUGELY.

I am learning to understand my limits and my partner and I are actually going to convert one of our rooms into a MA room with our Wavemaster, a mat and all our MA books and DVD's. I love training at home -- it is really freeing. I know TKD will challenge me tremendously, but I think I am going to try it in the near future and see how I fare.

I love the self-defense of combat hapkido (and this can be a little rougher on the joints than I think TKD would be with all it's locks) ... but something in me desires a little more of the traditional art as well. I also love my instructor -- he's an educator at heart and is accustomed to working with people with various disabilities (he even has an adaptive MA class for developmentally disabled). I feel like I am in a good, safe place to learn and try.

Thanks Matt, you're golden!

Diana,

You know of my disabilities.......I re began in TKD for physical therapy: Flexibility, range of motion kind of thing. However, if it were not for the poomsea of Tae Kwon Do I wouldn't even bother taking the art. I love poomsea, I am a junkie for it. It is a great workout. At home I will do poomsea with a lot of time under tension or slowed down under control.

I do all kicking front leg for practice. However, DO NOT PUSH YOURSELF TOO MUCH. It has gotten to the point for me that I instruct my judo class, then sit out of TKD for the most part unless they need my help or to work on my poomsea. Then I only work technique in hapkido.

My point to you is try and tone/muscle build through body weight training, lots of range of motion training. Push yourself within your limits and never "Forget" what they are.

Rest is the best, however......consistant training at home over the long term is worth its weight in gold.

 

[whitetigertkd]

I take both tae kwon do and hap ki do. In my opinon they go great together. And you should be fine as long as you are smart about it and relax when needed.

 

[newGuy12]

I cannot give reputation to matt m. The system will not let me, but I would if I could. When I was a teenager and in my 20s, I could practice, hard, I mean hard, 5 nights a week, no joke. We practiced very hard.

But, that is then, and this is now. Anyone in middle ages who can do the TKD 5 nights a week is very special, not ordinary. Its a "blow out" kind of maritial art, very forceful. How can a middle aged person practice like that? I cannot, because I have allowed myself to get out of shape.

I prefer TKD because I wish to keep the partner in kicking range. I don't like people "in my face", up close and personal, none of this grabbing and throwing. It is nice, but not my choice.

I would suggest that you check it out -- why? If you decide you like the TKD more, then it is your choice, you can tell your Teacher that you have decided to learn something different, with respect. Better to find out now than later, I say. Each person has their own temperment and preference with the way to engage freesparring or self-defense. We have many choices in this day in age, and we are fortunate to be able to choose.

One thing -- I suggest that you "pick a horse and ride". I say, don't mix things up. Instead, make your (informed) decision, and then practice in a focused way -- one path. Keep going -- keep going until you have 1 Dan! Then, you keep going more -- why? A brand new 1st Dan is still young in the martial art -- you must continue until you know and your Teacher says, "Yes, you know the good basics".

Then, at that time, if you wish to learn some other marital art -- like say American Kenpo -- to learn vicious destructive combinations -- then the time is right. What you learn will then be "extra".

Some disagree, but this is my way of seeing it. Simple is good, though there is much to learn, more than meets the eye, you see, we see more sublety with more practice.




All the best,

Robert

 

[gkygrl]

Thank you everyone for the great advice. I'm looking at several options and will have a good chat with my doc and my instructor.

 

[gkygrl]

I had a chat with my Instructor and he is encouraging me to try TKD for a couple of weeks and see how I like it (and it likes me). I think that is a wise thing. I also think that learning some of the basic techniques and forms are going to sharpen my Combat Hapkido work. I don't mind that they cross-over somewhat ... I think it will be a good thing to go in and give it a try.

Thanks for everyone's feedback -- very much appreciated!

 

[garrisons2]

Robert, I can attest to your statement that 5 nights a week of agressive TKD is hard on the middle aged person, I try and go 4 times a week, with adults and go at it between 80 and 100%, depending upon what is hurting (presently my left foot), when I get home at night I am often beat and if I do it on back to back days, the third id pretty much out of the question. With regards to multi discipline, there was this gung ho and talented 20 something person at my dojang who originally started out saying over and over that he was going to also do Kempo , or some other MA. A couple months later that talk gradually disapperared, I think that he is found that to make progress in a MA the best path for him is to focus on that

 

[Drac]

So many EXCELLENT responses it will be difficult to add to them...My 2 cents worth would be to get a good SOLID YEAR in with Combat Hapkido before attempting to add an additional art...