Does Your TKD Work Even If You Are Small & Weak?

[dancingalone]

Just a question for self-reflection since the boards are slow.

We train to be strong and fit in order to make our martial art more and more effective. But there's seems to be an assumption within hard styles that the martial artist does possess a certain baseline of strength, speed, and yes, size in relation to their attacker for the techniques to be effective.

First, do you agree with this assumption? If so, discuss the paradox of defending yourself against a seemingly superior foe. If you don't agree, tell us why.

 

[igillman]

There is a certain strength/size gap that can never be overcome no matter how much training you have and how good your techniques are. However, good techniques and training help us to close that gap and to bring more opponents within our reach.

Your build is pretty much fixed, short, tall, heavy, light and gives you the "baseline" you mentioned in your post. Techniques and training add to that baseline but they do not guarantee a win. Likewise, bad techniques and bad training will subtract from that baseline.

Unless you have a death wish you do not defend yourself against a massively superior foe, you simply stay alive long enough to find an escape route.

 

[terryl965]

Like always size matters but not always, skill set can prove to be ones best asset if they are properly train. LIke anything it is always up to the person what they choice to learn in any art.

 

[Miles]

Of course we want to be strong, and fast, and wise, but somethings are not forever.

Will TKD work if you are small/weak-heck yes! I have a 3rd dan who is a pretty good sized guy (6'3 280lbs). He recounts how he was sparring with one of the cute little gals (I think she was a 3 ft 40lb 6yr old green belt) in class one day when she kicked him in the thigh (probably not by accident either-she was a tough kid) and his leg went numb.

I recall working on defenses against same side wrist grabs with a little guy when he nearly dislocated my thumb because I gripped him pretty hard he countered pretty hard.

But, I'm not ready to put away the weight set yet...

 

[taekwondodo]

Heck yeah. TKD can work on any size if you know how to use it properly. I mean EVERYONE has a weak area(s) so a small person just have to know how and where to strike it.

I'm a petite person and I do definately know where to hurt a big person.

 

[dancingalone]

One of my teacher's students is senior to me. When we trained together years ago, he was like a redwood tree to me. Probably around 6'6'' and built like a barrel. We did a lot of those arm banging exercises together and he could make me quit within minutes. The guy was virtually invulnerable to barehanded blows since he lifted weights and did a lot of isometric exercises along with the sanchin/iron shirt training. Really, really tough to spar within our rule set, since we allowed lots of contact and the match goes on and on until Sensei decided you've had enough of a beating.

What I discovered over time was I had to be silk to his iron to even stay in the ring with him. Using my mobility advantage and be prepared to uncoil counters with top power at exactly the right moment. It takes specific training to be able to put that game plan into action though and I still remember the hours I spent sweating thinking only that I WOULD beat this boogeyman if that was the last thing I did on this earth.

I think there's a lesson in there somewhere. By and large, we train to fight people that are similar in size to use with a similar range of abilities. That should be changed up from time to time if possible.

 

[ATC]

To answer the question, Yes.

The first thing you have to remember is that everything is relative. Many on this board think of everyone in the same reference as themselves or a martial artist. That is to say that they think that the everyone is as strong and hardened as a similar in size to themselves martial artist that has been conditioned over the years. This simply is not true. If you are not doing something to harden your body then your size does not matter all that much.

Most people can't punch or kick properly to even really hurt someone. Plus the first time you really punch someone or even a bag or shield it hurts you. All martial artist over time become hardened and desensitized to being hit as well. You will be surprised at what a martial artist can take compared to a non martial artist. Even people that simply workout don't become hardened or desensitized to being hit.

Plus you should be taught to hit the most vulnerable spots as well. So when you do hit or defend against an attacker you hit them where it hurts the most. If you are training for SD then for the most part you will defend againt for the most part normal non trained attackers. So any MA will give you an advantage. That is if you are training properly. Hit, get hit, repeat over and over to every part of your body.

 

[Blindside]

Well, one the of the problems I see is that for most of us that spar we are using a different set of rules than what we would do with an attacker, we are ingraining sport mentality into our motor memory.

Investigation into real world situations shows under real life adrenalized stress situations that time and time again we revert to what we have trained in the most. Be it kicking to the head, releasing a hold because of a perceived tap out, or doing range safety protocols during a firefight. Also during that adrenal dump perception of pain is reduced, if you are relying on pain to stop the fight, that may not be enough if the other guy is similarly amped. Is your motor memory really ingrained to go after the vitals? Is your motor memory ingrained to defend against what are "non-targets" in whatever your main sparring system is?

As an example, our kenpo class allows groins shots during sparring. Groin shots aren't really a fight stopper, but it is a good example of a target that gets ignored in most sparring rulesets. Boxers and muay thai guys who come visiting (and TKD high kickers) who come join our open sparring nights frequently find themselves put "out of their game" because they are dealing with a variable that they haven't had to deal with before. Same as people who spend too much time doing too much standup vs. standup and ignore what a wrestlers shoot looks like. (Guilty!)

I don't doubt TKD has the tools, the questions is if the instructors are transmitting those tools in a useable format. Several of the TKD instructors that I have seen and worked with, well, not so much.

 

[StudentCarl]

The core of your question asks about what "works". I'll come back to that, as there are variables outside TKD to be considered.
It's fair to ask what context you're talking about: in the dojang, at a TKD tournament, in MMA, on the street as part of self-defense. I choose to answer this in reference to street self-defense.

Taekwondo develops some critical abilties and traits that affect whether it works: overall fitness, agility, self-discipline, physical/mental/emotional toughness, and technical ability to apply power to weakness. While none of these is decisive by itself, all of them are force multipliers--they increase the likelihood of your TKD "working".

So what else counts? Intelligence and situational awareness, the element of surprise, dealing with unequal initiative, other training including bridging to in-fight-weapons-access (IFWA), and level of readiness to deal with multiple opponents and/or weapons.

Taekwondo is one component of effective self-defense. Bad guys don't play, and if they target you it's because all of their street experience is telling them they can beat you without much risk.

So will your TKD work? I hope you think about that when you're training, and that you don't neglect the other aspects of self-defense. If you walk around with no awareness, probably the only thing that will help you is your ability to absorb punishment until you can escape.

Carl