Taekwondo Etiquette

[andyjeffries]

No offense but I live in Texas 110 in the shade. It is not acceptable to be at a venue with parents and kids running around warming up with out a shirt. Yes it is my opinion but if it was at a park or outside training that is different than at a tournament, but this was a TKD event correct? If so follow the proper etiquette and keep a shirt on.

You see, this is where I find it funny.

I could understand if you'd said "keep your dobok top on", but you seem to find any top to be appropriate. Therefore this isn't a Taekwondo etiquette thing, this is a how you see regular etiquette, correct?

I don't understand what's so offensive about seeing a guy with no top on? I wouldn't freak out if my kids saw someone training with no top on and I'd imagine they would take it in their stride too...

Does seeing this link freak you out ;-)

 

[Gwai Lo Dan]

I could understand if you'd said "keep your dobok top on", but you seem to find any top to be appropriate. Therefore this isn't a Taekwondo etiquette thing, this is a how you see regular etiquette, correct?

Interesting viewpoint - we are both thinking about lack of modesty, but in different ways. You are talking about lack of modesty in a half-nude sense. When I saw the guy practising without the shirt, I was thinking about lack of modesty in the sense of "Look at me!".

The traditional martial arts etiquette in terms of skill level is to self-deprecation: "I'm ok at martial arts....not great". To me, the point of practising without a shirt at a tournament (while everyone else is wearing a shirt) is to try to draw attention to yourself, perhaps to show your opponent how confident you are. So it just seemed immodest to me in a boasting sense.

 

[terryl965]

You see, this is where I find it funny.

I could understand if you'd said "keep your dobok top on", but you seem to find any top to be appropriate. Therefore this isn't a Taekwondo etiquette thing, this is a how you see regular etiquette, correct?

I don't understand what's so offensive about seeing a guy with no top on? I wouldn't freak out if my kids saw someone training with no top on and I'd imagine they would take it in their stride too...

Does seeing this link freak you out ;-)

Master Jeffries no I am not freaked out by someone without a top on. I find it inapprobiate at a TKD tournament, especially from a adult BB. Sorry if we see this in a different light, guess my old age is showing.

 

[Balrog]

I'm curious...

How far out of the training hall do you carry your TKD specific etiquette? Do you bow to your seniors when you happen to encounter each other on the street or at work? Do you limit the meal etiquette to official dinners and the like, or do you practice it whenever you're eating?

We could start a "You can tell you've been in martial arts for too long when..." thread.

It is second nature now to shake hands with people with my left hand under my right elbow. Almost no one has ever noticed it.

And my cow-orkers will snicker and rag on me a little bit when we go into the conference room and I bow as I come through the door.

 

[jks9199]

And my cow-orkers will snicker and rag on me a little bit when we go into the conference room and I bow as I come through the door.

See -- to me, that's a bad habit. You're not being aware of where you are and what's going on. This is coming out harsher than I intend, and I'm being lazy about finding a better way to say it, so bear with me, please.

You've developed a habit of bowing as you enter places because you bow into the training floor. That's great; it's a physical, cognitive reminder of where you are. I liken it to blessing myself with holy water as I enter the church. That's great -- and makes sense that way. It's a break from the everyday world. But, then you carry it with you into other places... so what other unthinking training floor practices might you bring to the regular world? Will you bow to someone who's about to hit you? Hand your attacker's weapon back to them after you disarm them? I try to teach my students to be aware of and act according to the environment, and not carry habits that are appropriate to one into another.

It's funny; we see this about martial arts a lot and try to argue that it's not odd, but not too many other activities. What would say if you had a coworker who was an avid actor who literally took a bow after every speech or presentation? Or someone big into the SCA/Renaissance re-enacting who began to speak in Elizabethan all the time? When I was a kid, we went to an historic site, and they had people in costume there who stayed in character. I remember one who was amazed by the silver goose flying overhead (a jet), and pretended never to have heard of cars or tv... (Yeah, being typical 10 to 14 year olds, we tried really hard to get him out of character!) What would his family have thought if he came home and tried to put wood in the pot tray under the oven to heat it?