This is a rare but exemplary mindset which all people should learn. It doesn't work for you, doesn't mean it's bad. We all have different things that fit us.
I think the biggest problem with Tae Kwon Do is that a lot of schools don’t teach the traditional version of Tae Kwon Do. My master was the 8th degree Kukkiwon certified, and 7-Time national champion grandmaster Yoo and he not only taught us about fighting, but also about spiritual calmness and inner peace and was taught the traditional ways of Tae Kwon Do. Problem is that many masters nowadays don’t seem to know what they are doing and are just in it for the $$$😕
I agree, the sport is so much better when the school takes the time to focus on the mental/spiritual aspect of tae kwon do. It is such a large part of the traditional art, and for a good reason !
I agree 100%! I had an amazing instrucor from 2000-2004, he would teach us Poomsae, Sparring, Basics (On spot or moving forwards), self defence and application of the Poomsae (Forms). Some days we would spend much longer on forms, other days we would spend longer on basics, stances and using basics on bags. Once a month a class would be all sparring and sparring techniques. I agree that TKD can be disjointed and have different skills, yet if they are taught well enough (Not in an ADHH way), then they can make sense. I would say sadly that 80% of TKD schools are sport and competition focused and have a McDojo element that is missing MuDo (Budo) and any etiquette, discipline and values are lost. This is why after getting my 2nd Dan, I might switch arts soon and am looking to try Japanese Goju Ryu soon. Seems more streamlined and also the issue about kicking mobility/flexibility. I am 34 and have hip pain and issues with this. I think TKD quality is up to the person and the teacher.
I left TKD for MMA because I wanted to learn how to fight but now I realized style doesn’t really matter at all, what matters is your goal. If you wanna train just for fun, any style is fine as long as you enjoy it and it matches your goal.
Martial arts is actually for health, self control and self discipline 😉 if you make it a competition, you actually already lost the goal of the art 😊 it was invented to keep your inner peace in focus, and protect against the wild animals in Korea. Never for a show, as it ended. Just like every martial art today.
@@bamsemh1 making martial arts a competition is pointless? Striving to improve and test your skill set against others is pointless? I think you are the one who has defeated the purpose of martial arts.
I think Tae Kwon Do is a good Martial Arts to start. For developing basic fundamentals and agility. Then move on to the next like Bruce Lee said absorb what is useful and discard the useless
He's so right. I quit TKD because of injuries and it wouldn't last until old age, it's so physically dynamic by the time i was 34 I had dislocated my shoulder (hapkido) , my knees were in agony all the time and my hip range was severely reduced. I had two 'real life' fights and TKD didn't even come into it, I beat both opponents down with boxing.
At age 63 I have trained shorin-Ruy ( 40 years), do all the katas. I also train Kung fu have spared with every type of artis over years. All have there place, but at 63 I can still perform the katas, spar younger guys. Kung- Fu allows me to perform very difficult body movements break falls, rolls and fighting technique and take downs with wrestlers.
I think I get where this guy is coming from! My first martial art was Aikido, stay with it for a few months and it wasn't for me! Went to Kempo karate a year later, stayed with that for 7 years, realized it wasn't for me, felt it was too Americanized, had nothing to do with any of the traditional okinawan/japanese styles (especially on the katas), that's when Kyokushin Karate caught my interest, so 4 years later I found a good Kyokushin Dojo, and I couldn't have been any happier training and learning real Karate!
Exactly.. I just changed back to Kenpo from a Tae Kwon Do based system. It had kickboxing and Kali with it. Just turned 60 years old and the kicks were hurting me more than what I was getting out of it. The younger instructors just didn't get it. "Just stretch more, can you kick with your good leg?" Worse than breaking boards was holding them and getting your fingers kicked or your wrist sprained. Glad I know how to do the funky kicks, but don't want to have to do them. Now I have instructors in their 50's, one 67 and another 72..One of the Karv Maga instructors in 82.. They get it.. Thank you for this and have a marry Christmas Sir.
tkd nowadays is like glorified gymnastics you're never going to do a 900 degree heel kick in an octagon or a ring that's just impractical but tkd masters are going to be like you need to showcase to get your 7th degree black belt like tf???
The host may have quitted Taekwondo but the elasticity, speed and reaction time gained during his practice, remains ingrained in him and will always be.
At 63, I am far too afraid to routinely practise any kick higher than the potential opponent's waist level, and I'm certainly not even happy to practise at/to that height. Why? Herniation absolutely anywhere is one of the risks! Hip injury that might not heal is one of the risks! Lower spine injury is another of the risks! Not practising such kicks feels truly ROTTEN, because kicks are my very best moves. I really love them - but, I won't risk the safety of my body in order to increase safety against something that might never happen. You were absolutely spot-on when you chose your body health and integrity, in later years, than flashy and showy kicks that were likely, sooner or later, to put you on a stick or in a hospital. You were not just thinking about your body...you were thinking about family, friends and future students, also. Please, accept my empathy and congratulations on a very wise choice!
Hi I am really happy to find an active practitioner of your age. What martial art do you learn? Can you tell me how you practice and increased your strength to avoid possible injuries? Also how you're dealing with drills and aspects that require kicks? My mum is learning karate and she is 60. I feel like with more practice her form will get better ofc but the kicks are something she struggles with. How can she gain more flexibility and add more strength to her kicks without getting hurt? I know she gets upset and I get worried that she might get hurt/topple over if she overdoes it :/
@@samchau3476 There's no name for what I practise, Sam. I took a little of this, a little of that and lots of littles of plenty of others and put them all together, once I identified that they suited my body height, limbs lengths and what I observed as being natural weapons...which used to be my feet. I had many, many sparring partners, starting from when I was a teenager and lots of equipment was built/adapted by us all, really. For general strength, I weight train at home and use fixed weight dumbbells in most other rooms in that home. I use a punching bag in another room, with plenty of grappler gloves used (unless I'm attempting to strengthen skin/bone in my fists, at which point, the gloves come off and a carpet tile/square on a house brick is next in line for hammering, while I watch TV, sometimes, too). I include front crown head butts, every type of punch, forearm strikes, elbow blows, knee blows and even shoulder charges (the door opening kind). I've also always practised what I call "The Clay Shoot", where an incoming fist is punched by my outgoing fist. It's one of the risky practices, a sacrifice measure, really, because you have to remember that it might be your own fist that gets hurt more. I started with punching gently thrown cricket balls out of the air. There is no completely safe way of practising that, though...please, note. The key to doing it without injury, I think, is repeating a move as many times as you can when injury is highly unlikely, but you still get in plenty of hard work and a great feeling from that hard work. However, if ANY of the above is tried without LOTS of loosening, stretching, generally limbering up...you're heading for trouble. I hope that that was, in some way, helpful. Please, remember...I am not a professional anything and what I have to recommend is mine and mine alone, to describe. Nobody but me is responsible should somebody decide to borrow anything I've mentioned above. Everything I do is already professionally covered by the owner of the channel. One might say that I, "Do lots of somethings...with quite a few somethings!"
@P Melkin That's a good idea. Thanks, PM. I would've thought, however (and, I think you'll've already wondered about this, yourself) that when a kick is targeted higher than waist level, it's actually partly stabilised by an entire planet, so it's hard to imagine it weakening your energy. The ultra slow kicking sounds to be as good as you say. That, to me, is still effective practise for when FAST is needed, later. I think the brain is ingenius at knowing when to move slow practise into becoming rapid reality, later. I've found that with the Escrima/Kali stick drills, also. Thanks for that, PM!
4:40 what you described is what makes you a blackbelt. When you can see the flaws in an art, it shows how much you've grown. That's when you have wings to fly on your own and find your own path. You can begin to discard what doesn't work and perfect what does, thus breaking away from tradition.
I see flaws in All martial arts that I have practiced. I started in karate Shotokan reaching blue belt, then switched to karate Contact for 3 years, then did self defence for 4 years, and now i do BJJ, kick boxing and MMA. But as I said, I see flaws in every art that I practiced and I am not a black Belt in any of the arts that I practiced. But I can tell all of them have something to teach you. At the end it is all about the fighter and not the art. Karate will teach you timing, goin in and out, and will teach you to minimize you strikes (fewer atacks like mc gregor) but in short range you will get punched in the face or get submitted BJJ will teach you how to fight in close range and on the ground, but will not work against more than one opponent and the last place you want to be in a street fight is on the ground unless you are sure that none else is joining the fight. So BJJ, that I love, is only effective in controlled situations.
I did WTF Tae Kwon Do throughout the 80s into early 90s (Glory Days) I enjoyed it as a kid. I quit TKD to do wrestling in Highschool. Then got a job. I took a 20 year break. At 34yrs old I restarted at a very traditional (General Choi Military influence) Tae Kwon Do school. I'm very satisfied with this school and it's teaching. (10years attending). I also train GoJu Karate, (8yrs attending). At 45 years old, I've learned to listen to my body and let myself rest and recover after training. We do all the different things you mention including sparing. I love it all and don't have any conflict with the different aspects. I do have challenges but I love and welcome the challenges that each class brings. As far as self defense goes..... I hope I never have to use my training in a real life situation; However I will be ready to do what needs to be done, if I ever have to.
It doesn't matter what style you are learning. If you are not fighting, you are not training. Fighting allows you to truly apply techniques under real pressure and will filter out the nonsense quickly. Great video.
Martial arts is for self defense only. If you're statement isn't right. You go to jail. Then 2-? For how bad you beat an unsupecting fool. Maybe you didn't need arts maybe a guns more your cup of. Yes. When an instructor had me show skills 2 years after his instructions. I should. Him y iron hand on a huge. Sandbag he.supportted with his palm. I hurrt is hand really good. So he took me to the gun store that's how overdoon my conditioing was.
@@joekestel909 Ah, my apologies, Joe. When I said one needs to fight to train correctly, I did not mean one needs to get into street brawls or attack unsuspecting victims. I mean full contact sparring with willing and competent opponents.
If your goal is Self-Defense, then I agree that sparring is important. And the more it ties into everything else you are doing, the better. Thanks for the comment!
I sneezed today and hurt my back. I'm only 39. Longevity in a martial art is a huge factor for me too. Red uniforms are the most important factor is this. Just look at Master Ken. If you aren't wearing red are you even doing martial arts? This is the only problem where I'm at now. We don't have red uniforms. In fact, we don't have uniforms at all.
Excellent video. I’m an older student (50s). Started with Kenpo when I was 17, moved to a short period of TKD when I was in the Army then stopped for years. At 46, I came back to TKD. I (either white or yellow belt at the time) was free sparring with a 1st Black Belt when I accurately delivered a spinning back fist to the side of her head. I was wearing pads, she wasn’t. I rang her bell. Sparring stopped so instructor could explain why “we don’t do that move in TKD” (because it’s blind). My argument was the landed punch. It’s one of my favorites and, apparently unlike most, I was looking directly at her when I landed the punch. Didn’t matter. Illegal technique. Okay. Move on. As a green belt, instructor heard me coaching an yellow belt about focus while punching. In Kenpo, we were taught to punch through your opponents face (because you were focusing on the back of their head, not their face). I tell student to punch through opponents face and instructor pulls me aside and says “We don’t punch through faces, we strike targets”. I knew then my time in TKD would be short.
I began my Tae Kwon Do journey in the 70’s. It was a different animal then. I continue to practice today in my late fifties , but with a different approach over the last few decades for sure. No kicking the air with snap , no lock outs on any techniques. I was lucky in that my joints up to this point are pretty robust, even with several knee and arm surgeries. Unfortunately I must agree with your fears about TKD. Most of my peers , including one hall of famer in his sixties are not in great shape. Arthritis, hip replacements, etc. I love Tae Kwon Do, but boxing and now BJJ have become more important to me as I get older. I still train the kicks and certain kicking excersises I find are very beneficial to this day with no ill effects. Almost all martial arts have to be modified as one ages, but by the time most practitioners learn what they must do, they are damaged.
Pretty similar to my story, George! I started in the late 60s and still train today, but like you, I've modified my training, fortunately before I had any serious injuries that needed surgery. Almost all of my contemporaries are unable to train anymore. Best!
Glad you’re still on the path, sir! It’s definitely up to us older practitioners to guide the younger generation to a healthier future! Thank you for the comment!👍🏼
when I began to train boxing i thought that I m the most important person in life and I was a proud boxer till one day I wach a bjj class for young children and it was unbelievable then one day I spare whit an muy thai player and I was so confident till he began to throw low kicks that makes me suffer soI realized that every martial art is great and it s very important to be humble and my advice is spare all the time to test your self and improve your abilities
Every martial art has it's pros and cons. That is why Bruce Lee said to take what is good for you for that very moment. TKD, Aikido, Kung Fu, MMA, Karate all have good points but not one is the answer to everything. Many have limitations. In the real fight you can poke the eyes, kick the groin and punch the throat. None of these sport marital arts allows that. Therefore, use what is useful and create your own style.
I'm a boxer, or at least a former one (in my 50s), and I considered it great for conditioning and self-defense. Muy Thai is also one of the most effective. Do like ju jitsu, but only as a supplement to the other two. I don't think it's practical to take things to the floor in a real fight especially in an uncontrolled environment. I think the rule is: the floor is the last place you would want to be. Street fights don't last but seconds. The problem I have with MMA is that, and I can only speak about boxing, but I feel it might apply to other areas, it's more of a ground fighting game. If you take the best MMA fighter today and I am certain they are not the best in Muy Thai or Ju Jitsu, certainly not even close in boxing.
So true. I had a student who was from Puerto Rico. He was also in the military, but had trained with one of the Gracie's in Brazilian Jujitsu. He was an Aikido student with me, so I asked why instead of more BJJ. He said in streets of PR you don't get attacked by just one, but by multiple attackers, so the last place you want to be is on the ground. In my experience, that is most certainly true.
Many interesting comments. I was taught that if go to war that you should not be effective or efficient in one weapon(style of art foam). If you are familiar with different types of arsenals then the probability is higher to win your battle. All material arts are good to increase your survival. It’s the same Bruce Lee theme or concept. That’s why it’s art. The beauty of it is what one can do with it when it is necessary. Facts. Sorry for being philosophical.
Wow! You just made me realise why my TKD training worked. While we was taught form, most of our training was self defense. We were taught knife defense and then our teacher had a student be a knife wielding attacker to teach us that what we learn in class will be effective on the street, but won't look as pretty. We learned choke escapes from standing and the ground, taught how to try and survive active shooters and he would have us spar in the dark to simulate attacks on the street. Every technique in class was challenged by a student being an agressive attacker who was trying to kill us. Everything had that main focus of "you learned the technique, now time to test it and fight dirty to save your life." All these other schools are too focused on the Art and not enough on the Martial
That is true. Taekwondo (in my opinion) is the best Martial Arts for (Personal Self Defense) if taught correctly. It's a very deadly style of striking if mastered. (But I even agree, it's not best for UFC ect. Because you can't use most of it in that kind of sport for obvious reasons. It's not a death sport. Lol) But yea, it depends on how it's taught, and what you want to learn. I've been fortune to have a excellent master who is truly on the best Martial artist I ever seen. And knows how to teach his students to be masters of defense above all else, which will lead to your offense. (I would know because I put in situation where I had to defend myself from an attacker. And I was able to end it quickly.
Some of most sane, reasonable, balanced comments I've heard about the points related to picking and staying with, or leaving, particular martial arts. Thank you.
I started ITF TKD 11 years ago at the age of 39. I'm about to grade for my 3rd Dan. I have to agree with you however. Your old school sounds exactly like mine. For me, this has been the art. One of my gripes has always been the lack of sparing. Instructors are too scared to do too much sparing, for students get injured and miss classes. That reduces income...business is business after all.
@cristian ruberti I guess it comes down to the Master and the school. My "grand" master is the highest ranked member in ITF in Australia. GM Low Ming Tuck. He's very traditional and experienced and has Chinese decent and originally from Malaysia. I respect him very much, I just wish there were more opportunities to practice sparing in class, or even have sparing based seminars. Patterns (forms) are fundamental in TKD, but in the real world they is not very practical. Nothing prepares you more for a fight, than a fight.
This is one if not the best testimony and analysis of a martial artist journey I have heard; truthful, respectful, humble and realistic. I myself have been involved in Taekwon-Do and Taekwondo both (you Sir will understand the difference) since 1974. I quickly noticed the same things as you did; but I had the chance to train under a true, thoughtful master who put human beings before his beloved art. Our teaching and training were thus done accordingly. The result? I'm 62 years old, in perfect health and still able to perform split kicks and multiple aerial strikes, to spar and break boards. A few months back I even had to defend myself and did so successfully. Yet, I never was a remarkable athlete and I am now definitely much less proficient than in my youth. But because I trained intelligently, I can still today be active and most importantly help others also reach their own goals. Like you, I try to be honest; every art has something to offer. But every art is not for everyone or for every goal. I have no qualms sending people away from TKD and to other schools when what someone wants is not what TKD offers; and I strive to be clear about what they're gonna get in TKD. Everyone has to find one's own way. Respecting others, respecting the arts and respecting oneself all go hand in hand. And you Sir are an excellent example of this. Kudos to you.
What an inspiring example of a martial artist you are! I love the fact that you are willing to recommend other arts despite the fact that TKD works so well for you. May your journey continue happily!👊🏼🙏🏻
@@AndoMierzwa more you than I Sir. I would do my art a disservice with false advertizing... and myself by lying to people or not trying my best to help them find their own way. This is true with martial arts as much as with music, books or food. You Sir reach out to many more people by taking time and effort to make your video. That, is inspiring. Please continue to do so.
Thank you for this video, Sensei Ando. I've been training at a good, traditional TKD school, and I love the school and the people there, but the longer I go, the more I am having doubts about the program at our school. You put almost all my concerns into words, and what you said has been very helpful. Thank you again.
There’s no shame in reevaluating your goals and your training from time to time. If you end up staying, it will only make your beliefs stronger. Thank you for the comment!
I started studying Shotokan Karate in 1976 when I was 17 yrs old. During that time I saw an 85 year old Aikido master do some amazing stuff. I remember thinking, "I want to be like that at his age." In 1976, I began studying Cabales Serrada Eskrima under Mike Inay. During my first month, had the opportunity to spar his teacher, Angel Cabales, who was 62 years old at the time. Over the next ten years, I had the opportunity to meet and learn from others such as Dan Inosanto and Leo Giron when they were in their 60s. In 1990, I participated in a demo in San Francisco with Angel who was 76 at the time. He moved just as well then as he did the first time I met him. I am now 63 years and I am moving faster, hitting harder, and am becoming a better Eskrimador every year.
Am a 2nd degree black belt in tkd and boy oh boy I so agree with you. It's like you scanned my brain. Unbelievable. Your first point is so not silly by the way. No one ever talks about it. Thank you a lot.
I am so glad I viewed this video as a Tae Kwon Do school owner, very valid points here. The great news is that our curriculum does overlap into each other, we totally do forms segments and practice techniques in our self defense directly from the form, that way repetition is fun and not boring. I am 53, 5th degree black belt and yes Tae Kwon Do can be hard on the body, my secret is very consistent yoga training, it keeps me going!!
#1 Fear : That's not silly its perfect sense. I used to have a decent roundhouse kick but having just clocked 50 something wouldn't even attempt one now. Happy Xmass to you and yours, have a great one.
It would be interesting to see what styles you chose? If your 40's+ and think about training seriously in BJJ, boxing, MuayThai then you will break just as well. Especially, if you got high mileage (old injuries) on your aging combat chassis. There are many old warriors with jacked up spinal cords, and dilapidated shoulders, hips and knees. You are right in that you have to ask yourself some serious practical questions concerning your training but you need to be realistic about aging and physical limitations and train accordingly.
I gave up TKD years ago, took up JKF Wado Kai 6 years ago and gained my 1st Dan at the age of 60, it is much easier for the older person than doing loads of stretches and high kicks, and let's face it, a high kick is useless in a confined space !
I practice the martial art of "Curl Up Into A Ball and Cry For My Mom." I am the best at it in my class, thanks for respecting my art. If my art could just find the right practitioner we could have the greatest fighter in the world (at least according to the internet's logic of "it's the fighter not the art"). I haven't been able to successfully defend myself with this art but if I keep practicing, it should work right? Because every martial art has moves that work, right?
I obtained my first degree black belt in Judo at age 16 but after entering college I didn't practice much except to teach a Saturday class at the local YMCA. Fast forward to age 29, out of a whim, I took up tae kwon do and got my first degree black belt 3 yrs later; almost simultaneously also a brown belt in hapkido. Not satisfied at the showy skills more akin to tournament sparring and to me at least not street practical, I picked up arnis and was attracted to its submission and stick-fighting techniques. All was good until I came across combat hapkido. All this time though I kept advancing in tae kwon do to 4th degree black belt. I guess I still needed to connect to some routine training and body conditioning... Into my mid-40's, I didn't pursue any other art except to teach the various skill sets to my students. I quit my active involvement in martial arts and taught my last black belt class at age 59. In a few months, I will be 70 years old. Looking back, I don't regret the journey and while my body is no longer the youth it used to be, I have learned from one principle --- the indomitable spirit. With it, I can apply to daily life and tell myself that nothing is impossible. The hurdles thrown at me learning all those arts, very difficult at times what with all my own schedules and injuries, have taught me that as long as I persevere, I will succeed once I have set a reasonable goal. Many of my former students, now instructors in their respective martial arts, are also telling their students the same. Yes, the one positive thing that comes out of all these martial arts is not whether one can fight on the street, but a philosophy of life --- the indomitable spirit.
@Leandro Aude Thanks, Leandro. By the way, I am a man but judging from the handle of my YT channel, I am often mistaken as a woman. The picture you see is my idol Teresa Teng.
I did tkd as a teenager and, since we trained on a hard gymnasium floor with no mats, we never did any "proper" takedowns nor ground defences, it was like we were only pretending, so I was never really interested. I only did it because my parents made me do it in response to being picked on. After five years I felt like I didn't learn a thing, so as soon as I turned 18, I quit. Now in my 30's I have found a local school and have started again and am enjoying it because I feel I am learning "properly." I think the school makes a difference.
I'm a black belt in Karate but wanted to try another art. 4yrs later I chose Taekwondo. I just received my orange belt. We do stretch a lot, but I need that. I'm nearing 50 and my hamstrings and glutes aren't getting any younger. The most challenging part for me is learning it all in Korean.
Your individual story was very well explained whilst upholding nothing but respect for all martial arts styles. I can relate as I have my own individual story. Keep true to yourself. Well done. Thanks.
Thank you for this. I earned a 2nd Dan in TKD. I taught a class of my own for 3 years to young people ages 7 to 14 on the average. I also gave free women's self defense classes for 1 1/2 years. I came to understand in that time that if I were to visit a Korean TKD school to join, I would probably be asked to spar to prove my rank. I'd be put down in probably 10 seconds, stripped of my belt and maybe given a green belt ( half way to first black belt), if I was fortunate. I chose to find an instructor for pressure point training in fight situations. I found him. He took me in after an extensive interview. I am now ok with having to accept the fact that most of what I learned in the past was wrong and harmful to myself and could easily have set me up to be painfully defeated. During my first year with him I shut down my TKD school. Real fights are mostly faster and more consistent and way more varied than sport fighting,and real punches stop the mind from thinking fast enough to counter if you're not trained for it. Thanks again for this video.
At an early stage, TKD was truly what it was promoted as, "Korean Karate." I learned TKD/Chung Do Kwan back in the late 60's. In those days, TKD was basically Shotokan karate with high kicks. The Forms I was taught were JAPANESE forms: Taikyoku 1-3, Pinan 1-5 and Tekki 1-3. In those days, most of those who taught this style were current or former military so the training was tough. There were no children and very few women. Within a decade or so, all that changed. The Japanese elements were eliminated and the training was made less military and more "family friendly" therefore more financially profitable. I switched to Japanese Kempo and later American Kenpo.
We had two original Taekwon Do Chung Do Kwan schools that still practiced the Taikyoko, Pinan, and Tekki forms, then my dad put me in the Oh Do Kwan school and I have since practiced the Chung Hon (ITF patterns) forms, no Sine Wave bouncing, just straight hard stances.
I quit WTF TKD in my 40s as I got fed up with spending 30mins of class time stretching as I believed that most of your stretching should be done at home with 10 mins warm-up stretching enough for the 2-hour class we did. Also, I believe nowadays that grappling is important as many fights without rules end up on the floor! Anyway, Sensei, another great podcast. so grateful for the time you put in giving out common sense for martial artists. I am currently training in Shotokan in a traditional class where throws and trips and some groundwork are included in the syllabus
Well I love taekwondo because it is more than martial art for me it is first time I join something without asking my parents. I aslo remember how taekwondo make sport lover i remember before tkd i was lazy and I hate sport but after taekwondo I aslo being exited for other sport. I try other taekwondo schools and other martil art but i steal in love with taekwondo
What I finally discovered with TKD is that the high and flashy kicks are just not practical for a real fight. The distance required for kicking can dissipate pretty quickly. In my experience TKD needs to be blended with western boxing or even Muay Thai. With that said I have seen some pretty powerful kicks from TKD exponents. And TKD, specifically the WTF version is very different than what TKD was in the 70s. TKD back then was regurgitated Shotokan with more emphasis on kicks.
@Traditional Arts International Agreed. For myself though I would rather train in western boxing and Muay Thai. Emphasis on hands and fighting in close quarters. Boxing base with add ins from southeast Asian arts.
@@timlinator Agreed Bob. Always thought one of the more valuable kicks from traditional Karate was the front snap kick with shoes on. Thrown low has a lot of penetrating power.
@Traditional Arts International I would agree martial arts like TKD and Karate have more kicks in their arsenal and can be very effective. A number of Karate and TKD black belts have used them very effectively in MMA matches. I hold black belt rank in both Karate and TKD and have also trained in Muay Thai. Karate & TKD are very similar but TKD has more advanced kicks.
taekwon-do is a sport now, most of them are only taught to how to SCORE a point or how to do a COOL moves than hurt their opponent nowadays. but i heard the traditional martial arts "HAPKIDO" was pretty intense self preserve technique in the old days, they're pretty much an MMA with combination of punching, kicking, throwing, and weapon technique. although again, like others traditional martial arts, they are growing weaker now because of today's peaceful time, people spending most of their time training their forms rather than doing hard spar to experience the risk of real fights.
Wow, that takes a weight out of my back... For years I thought that my gripes for taekwondo were immature rants, since my teacher used to say "you can specialise in anything you want once you hit black belt", but the thing is that black belt did not seemed worth it because the art it self did not had a coherent structure for me to understand. Elbows, throws, sweep kicks, hammer fists where done in 3 & 1 step drills and forms but where forbidden in everything else so I couldn't learn to apply them in a fight nor how to fend off from those moves. And that was a very big problem because i did not enter a martial arts dojan to get a olimpic medal, I got there to have proper martial trainning... But One thing I gotta complimment tkd for is how great of a work out and the safe space of a dojan... people where WAY MORE responsable and respecting than most places I've been untill then.
It’s true that for character building, the curriculum isn’t as important- you can learn respect and perseverance doing anything. It’s also true that in the beginning, it’s fun to try lots of different things until you figure out what you want to specialize in. That’s why I say, it’s all good. Thanks for the comment!
In short: Taekwondo build suffers from slow exp gain and sluggish levelling. Skills from the Forms tree (like Head Kick and such) are visually pleasing, but extremely demanding stats-wise. The heavy attacks from the Protection tree are mostly banned in pvp, and in hardcore mode, they can cost you a character, unless you're overlevelled to the extreme, and they do not really synergize with the Sparring skills. The Strength And Prowess tree is mostly for show off. The build is unintuitive, and it also lacks in every aspect due to the low synergies. You'd get a weird mix of DPS, tank and rogue, but the character doesn't excel in either, and thus is pretty vulnerable in the early stages. And due to the inherent in-game rules, when highly developed chars are losing the stats as they are reaching the final levels, they are unable to use the painfully acquired skills anymore. The supporting NPCs can be obtuse and unhelpful, and you must take lots of useless sidequest. This affects gameplay, as it takes lots of levels until you start to feel the power of the build, but it's not even that much amazing in a current field; metagame data support the notion that the build's popularity is declining. So this build metagames poorly and has lots of abysmal matchups across the board, it progressively loses most of its appeal, it deducts hard points from Endurance pretty fast, and as noted, it doesn't really synergize well. I wouldn't recommend it unless you're a masochist and derive pleasure from repetetive uneventful gameplay with a tier 2,5 chars that take forever to level up and don't really excel in anything special.
I believe TKD is a great tool. If it's utilized properly. Today's TKD took the actual self defense out and started using more flexibility and flashy kicks. Military TKD is indeed very different. Some people have to make sure you know the type of school you're entering into .
I've been on a Martial Arts journey the last couple years. I've tried karate, Aikido, fitness boxing, and BJJ. Right now I'm working on BJJ, but the fitness boxing was my favorite. I think everyone has different needs. And not just different arts but different specific schools/gyms/dojos within those arts cater better to different people.
As a 3rd dan in TKD who competed internationally and, then transitioned to kick boxing and muay thai, I agree with everything said here. TKD is very hard on your body and I was forced to give it up at the age of 35 due to hip damage. When people ask my advice on which martial art they should train in, I always recommend they start with a traditional style (TKD or karate for 2-3 years) and then transition to a more basic and effective form self defense such as kickboxing or muay thai. The traditional styles provide a terrific grounding with your kicking and transitioning to muay thai or kickboxing teaches you how to punch and combine your hands with your feet. In addition your traditional training will provide you with a real advantage with your kicking.
I had to quit TKD a few years ago because I damaged my left hip from the intense stretching and various kicks, which unfortunately lead me to need a surgery to repair the damage, i havnt pursued any other marital art yet but i was thinking judo.
@@nutaman60 hey Lewis, sorry to hear about your hip. I wouldn't give up on striking just yet. Once you've got your hip sorted you should try some kickboxing. I was able to transition from TKD to kickboxing with serious hip issues. The kicking in kickboxing is far less demanding on your hips.
@@paulshearer9140 Hey thanks for the input, iv always been amazing by the kickboxing greats such as Benny Urquidez, Bill Wallace, and Joe Lewis so I imagine it would be an amazing martial art to get into.
I started off with tkd years ago, but stopped do to having a family. Recently I started doing muay thai and got back into tkd to help with kicks and will be having my first tkd tournament next month
In TKD, getting a black belt is starting a new beginning. There are black belt levels, "degrees" they say, and it's from 1st degree to 10, but to be called TKD master, you atleast have to be lvl 4. My instructor said it will take forever to get to 10th den.
The Spider Boy, pretty much everything is the same in BJJ, but you can’t get a black belt as a child. At the end of the day martial arts are fighting systems. A black belt in any martial art should be able to defend themselves against the untrained. I’m not sure that is the case for a 10 year old female TKD black belt.
@@matthewjones8322 well in the past, for little kids that were just getting to black belts lvl 1, they had junior black belts, where they were half red, half black. They don't do that no more at my TKD place.
I studied a few different styles over the years and where I found the most relevance wasn't in the style but in the instructors. The instructors I've found taught what I wanted most ( a selfdefence geared teaching ) were former military personal . Whether the system was traditional or a bit more " modern" the main idea behind the club was defending yourself when the need arises.
Heh... getting older... I trained splits for 6 months (routines of stretching and regeneration ect.) and I gained 1 cm (ONE CENTIMETER!) closer to floor, than from the day I started stretching. I tried various routines a couple of times and never went beyond that damn 1 cm. Great video, MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!
yeah at one time I could hit the floor both ways in splits, now at over 60 not even close. same with seiza. so I've decided to just do what I can. Same with lifting at one time I had a 500 lb deadlift. Now I'd be happy with a 300 lb deadlift Merry Christmas to you and everyone.
Hey I appreciated that advice , I tried Aikido for a few months , all the guys were great , respectful , focused but the teacher was more interested in showing off his stories of how many men he took down himself in one go and entering us for certificates we had to pay for wether we passed them or not before we were ready to even take them ! . I am drawn to Aikido for the spiritual aspect and I really wanted to become more than competent in a form of M.A that did not hurt others but focused more on aversion so any potential opponents would use more of their energy and did more harm to them selves than to me .
The problem with most (NOT All) studios is that they are just showing moves with no applications. It’s do this 23 moves and here is a new belt. Unfortunately this is a issue most commonly with Korean martial arts (I have a black belt in tae Kwon do and tang soo do) to me it’s not what you teach it’s how you teach.
I agree to disagree. I studied MooDukkwan, korean taekwondo, yudo, Hapkido martial arts. The emphasis was on self defense the year was 1965. Had fights against bat, ice picks, meat cleavers and multiple attackers. I changed from MooDukkwan because they flipped the style in mid 70's and I sought a close contact art (kungfu). But the foundation I received at the MooDukkwan HQ's was priceless. But I hear ya to each his own. Good luck.
I'm a big guy. I practiced TKD old school Chung Moo Kwan. We practice point sparring , full contact sparring , Self Defense AKA Hapkido and forms. I got my 1st Dan then moved to Shotokan and Japanese Jiu-Jitsu. Mean while I started Brazilian jiu-jitsu. I got my 2nd degree in Shotokan and Japanese Jiu-Jitsu. But like you, I'm 45 and I only practice Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Because I know I can do it , I hope, the rest of my life.
Thank you for posting. I studied Shotokan karate for 20 years. At first it was the best martial art ever. Then I matured and discovered that it wasn't perfect. No system is. After training in Judo, JKD, full contact karate and Keysi Fighting Method I still couldn't find what I was looking for. It took me 30 years later to finally realised that all systems are governed by their own set of rules and regulations. So I combined all that I know into my own personal method of self protection. Not a new system with a name, just a style suited to me alone. Like an item of clothing, what fits one perfectly won't fit or suit others. I'm reminded of something Bruce Lee said. "Take what is useful, reject what is useless and add what is specifically your own."
One thing I would say, you left taekwondo when your journey only just begun as a first Dan black belt this is where you learn the secrets of the art, this is where you become a dragon and not a tiger, oh well I'm happy you found an art that made you happy
Its not the art, its the artist. Any viable competitive martial art, if you do it seriously, teaches you the most important and fundamental skills in fighting. Not punching, kicking, or gripping techniques. But distance control, reactions, attack and defence timing etc. The guy who goes in a muai thai/kickboxing gym with the mentality that he'll turn into a ufc champion by attending, is no different than the 12 yo kid who goes in a karate/tkd gym thinking he'll turn into a power ranger.
There are definitely many important lessons you can learn in a sport style. Especially in the beginning, all Martial Arts will teach you some common lessons. After a while, though, specializing towards your goals is helpful. Thanks for the comment!
martial arts is also about personal health, not always does it have to do with winning every tournament, lessons should be absorbed rather then just "i gotta win i gotta win", no offense but most people that are used to tournament style fighting get their asses kicked when they get attacked on the street, there is also that to consider too, whether you do it for the art or do it to actually protect yourself in the street take into consideration every aspect
@P Melkin oh ok. Yeah, plus that sounds dangerous because it's easy to hyperextend your joints. In my dojo we're taught never to fully extend your punches so that your elbow is snapping out to the full extent, etc.
These are exactly the reasons I left TKD to study Hapkido. A small set of techniques, used against all different types of attacks. No forms, no board breaking, no hyper-athletic techniques. Just simple and effective self-defense techniques.
It's a shame tkd became a game, not martial arts. Focusing more for points and competitions, not self defense or martial arts. Most of real life techniques or combat moves have been removed from the public for safety reason. It's non sense.
This video is one of the most serious, tolerant, economical and wise martial arts comment that I read. If accompanied with some comment on applicability of a martial art in real situation, these two could serve as the practical intro into martial arts for most people, to help them choose, differentiate and compare martial arts.
YES! You described me all along. I'm Brazilian, love bjj but now i'm just doing MMA especifics. 30 years and 4 different martial arts, no black belt in neither. All I hate the most is all those bulshit of philosophy, breathing, Chakara, Chi, bla bla bla .... I want to learn the fucking shit necessery to deffend myself. DONT CARE who was "shifu" this, "master" that and bulshit katas, kangeikos, etc...
you learn breathing because in a real fight breathing is key to delivering full power and also if you get hit you are getting rid of the air in you body to not become winded, learning philosophy shows dedication to an art and also learning history of technique it is training for your mind because in martial arts not only are you training your body but you are training your mind as well in pushing your limits and in learning if you didn't want that you should've done something more like boxing great for working out and learning how to fight whilst you won't get anything on kicks or how to defend them you learn how to deliver swift hits with no philosophy. If you want techniques like in Taekwondo, Karate, etc. they are how to control yourself and to train the mind, not just the body specifically then philosophy is required to get the most out of those arts again this shows dedication to an art
I'm a Iaido/Iaijutsu practitioner, but one of my best friends since I was a child was a very good Tae Kwon Do practitioner and, believe me, your first reason is not silly. After 20 years of Tae Kwon Do my friend quit because his knees were totally destroyed, his back also suffered and his legs were hurting him. The TKD training simply bring him a lot of health problems instead, you know, better physical condition that leads to better health.
I've been practicing Muay Thai/KB since the 90s. I'm older now and my knees are getting weak from the shin kicks. I find Judo and BJJ suits me best now. It can be brutal as it is portrayed in MMA but also can be kind and gentle.
Some years ago, Steve Koepfer of USASambo was interviewed at his school in NY. He's showing the interviewer around the place, and of course, it's filled with people practicing Sambo and MMA. Koepfer gets asked, "So, do you teach self-defence?" He replies, "Sure. You're looking at it."
Unfortunately Tkd has been watered down over the years to get the hobbyists training and for the instructors to make money. The original tkd was a brutal form of self defence taught to the Korean army.
@@garydavison9590 Self defense against who? Against other train MA maybe but I would say it take 6 months to a year for it to be effective against average person. Just practice the front snap kick and side kick every day. Also, talking about ITF TKD, not WTF. WTF isn't real TKD to me lol.
Ando, a lot of good sense and advice that any over 35 should consider, especially the macho fanaticism inherent in many Tae Kwon DO exercises which when older as in my case has cause a lot pain. As an old timer, now 68, I started TKD in the RAF back in 1969 with the UKTA under Khee Hai Rhee and I have to say it changed my life by maturing me, giving me focus and dedication which led to a good career and helping many troubled teenagers as a teacher. Unfortunately one exercise to break wood was to achieve bent back toes for a strong foot pad behind the toes. This was done by kneeling on the floor with toes flat on the floor and with a partner pushing the weight of your body down to stretch so your toes were always bent back. Great for breaking wood and pleasing Mr Rhee who had fought in the Vietnam war and with a record number of silent kills, let loose RAF NCOs instructors who several were arrested and put in prison for sadist tendencies on us young RAF recruits. None the wiser at the time, being often choked out, kicked or punched in the stomached very hard for not having a good stance did after 5 years really did really toughen me up. Thanks to such five years facing tough inner city teenagers as a teacher was a breeze. Later middle age noticed my shoes always got creases just above the toe areas and then found I could not wear shoes leading to now constant pain and a form of numbness which really restricts being able to walk, if I do reach 75 I will be a cripple. As you so correctly state Ando, Yes there are those in their 70s still managing near vertical side kicks and have no problem with feet like mine and that is because they as my master did started such exercises as a child. Having seen many foot specialists have been told, that at 17 years old my feet had effectively stopped growing and carrying out such deforming exercises was beyond stupid and that there are 'many' cases of crippled ex martial artists, expensive operations, in pain and now handicapped of 'mainly' westerners carrying out such extreme stretching exercises (ie the splits). I also agree with you with the effectiveness of certain martial arts for street self defense when the one time getting into a street brawl it ended like two women having a handbag fight with me shocked and scared at the speed of what was going on and unable to truly use any techniques I backed off. I ended up with a broken knuckle requiring a lot of painful medical massage and he a broken jaw BUT all I can remember after five years of such training to become a Brown belt that it served me no use at all, plus how embarrassed and angry in believing I could defend my self in a REAL fight situation.
Forms and self defense should be connected. In Karate it's Bunkai (application ) that connects them. There is some connection between forms and sparring too except sparring has safety rules that don't allow some of the techniques in forms. Bag work also connects them and BTW Karate doesn't have all the advanced kicks of TKD just more basic kicks so easier to do as you age. What Karate is weak on is ground defense/fighting for that I also train in BJJ. Karate really has all the same techniques as Muay Thai which I also trained in and then some. My first martial art was Boxing in my teens. I also trained in Aikido and also have a black Belt in TKD and Karate. My style of TKD didn't have Bunkai or anything like it to connect forms to self defense and I don't consider advanced kicks effective for self defense. I like Muay Thai but went with Karate for striking because it has all the same techniques as Muay Thai and then some plus more techniques for self defense. I incorporate all that I have learned in my teaching so my Karate style is really a hybrid.
I got a 4th dan black belt in Tae Kwon Do, I am now 54 and can only use the hand techniques. Fortunately in my later 20's through my 30's I started doing more Hapkido, Jiujutsu, and boxing. When I got the 4th dan in my mid 30's I was using 60 percent hands and that really did not fit in with most tournament point counting so pretty much dropped out of tournaments at that time. I have a ruined left hip and need a hip replacement within the next 12-16 months.
I have been practicing Thai boxing and tae kwon do for 20 years now, the reason I have not fully left tae kwon do is because of all the wonderful people I've met in the industry, the care they have shown me is phenomenal and there's no way I can repay them in this lifetime.
@@AndoMierzwaThank you Seonsaeng, I'm only doing what I should do. You have also guided me in martial arts, I'm more open minded and my side kicking technique has improved 10 fold. I still believe that it is one of the most powerful kicks in martial arts, another reason I can't bring myself to leave.
Looking for a good ninjitsu school that teaches the forbidden arts of poison dust, walking silently on fallen leaves, and death touch. Preferably in the Spokane, WA area. Not looking to study, but to challenge the sensei.
There is a lot of balance and wisdom in Mr Mierzwa's comments. I am a 59 year old 3rd Dan ITF Black Belt and I ofte think that I am reaching the end of my TKD journey. I have more injuries than I care to enumerate and my body is testament to the fact that TKD is a hard martial art. Very few of us can maintain the intensity and standards which TKD demands especially as the body ages. The wise solution we are told is to substitute techniques, to do what you can, and to do it well, however a true martial artist will insist on being his rank and not just wearing it and it is easy to feel diminished as a senior black belt by admitting "I can't do that". I agree that with the many facets and disciplines within TKD it can often seem that we are covering everything but perfecting nothing, in this regard TKD is a martial art which requires so much commitment that it becomes a lifestyle and few of us can commit to that level for an indefinite period. I have to admit however that the failures and weaknesses are mine and that for better or worse at this point in my journey I'm very unlikely to switch.
First point about TKD was actually very astute and was inline with a revelation I had too. Basically many martial arts market themselves as "Anyone can do it". In reality, particular styles of martial arts can only be done _well_ by a person with certain physical attributes. Take TKD as a classic example. It requires a high amount of gymnastic ability to do properly. That quality actually diminishes with age for most of us, as Ando noted. For some of us, that attribute was never that high to begin with. Studies have shown that around 68%-72% of our flexibility potential is genetic. We can do as much TKD or Yoga as we want, we'll only ever develop a certain amount of flexibility. I always admired the book _The secrets of Eagle Claw Kung Fu_ by Leung Shum. The author states at the end of the book that Northern Eagle Claw requires a high amount of flexibility, and if you haven't started training by the time you are 13 you will never be flexible enough to get anywhere with it. I admired his candour. We need more of that in the martial arts community.
That’s true. Of course, I encourage anyone to pursue whichever art they wish, but there are definitely genetic makeups that favor certain styles. If knowing that saves some frustration on the way, great! Thank you for the comment!
I remember back in 2014 when it was another day of Tae Kwon Do training. I went to the dojo, waited for the kids to end their class for the grown up to start. What did we do? Nothing. The teacher told us to gather around him and he ran his mouth off for an hour while we were just sitting and listening. I could have used that 1 hour for something else...
I’ve been enrolled into Taekeondo for a month and I love it. I’m starting to get my technique down. My Taekeondo school also teaches some Judo and Aikido for self defense as well. I’m wanting to complete my technique. I’m thinking of combining punching, kicking, grappling, ground work, and redirection all into one. I’m basically wanting to make the Niko style from Kengan lol
Yes, do it, people will say that your copying Bruce lee and it's already done, don't listen to them make your own style, I am currently just teaching martial arts, I do not believe in style so the thing I am teaching doesn't have a name because it's just how to use the body. Do it my friend I believe in you!
From experience I love Taekwondo. It was my first martial art. I do mma now. I’m super proud of my TKD. The flexibility that I achieved from training. Flexibility increases power aswell. What I love the most is when someone says TKD is no good at my Muay Thai gym. Taekwondo kicks you never see them coming. Like they say it not always the style it is the student. Other people’s TKD can be more powerful then others. I started at 11 years old and now 37. I have no back problems no, joint problems etc. I get better and better as I practice. If you are experiencing pain from Taekwondo is because it is being done incorrectly. 🙏
For most adults starting out . Here's the thing. Probably been in a few fights over time or even self taught so when ya start something like TkD doesn't mean forget about what ya know common sense wise if you getting into fight or even being picked on.. keep your knock out power but also use what ya learn in TkD . You'll be fine.. I never taken TkD but as a kid who was bullied . And couldn't afford classes to teach me I rented every book and watched every VHS tape there was in TkD ,Kempo , karate, wrestling, gymnastics and then my bro gave me The Jeet Kune Do book . I learnt everything I could to defend my self and it helped me alot .now as an adult I think of joining Tae Kwon Do cause it was the one I wanted as kid and would love to learn it and get my degree's . Just a goal to complete now that I can afford it . This is just one mans insight on things. Good luck ...
There were three reasons why I quit tae kwon do when I was ten (two years after I started). The first was the patronizing egos of everyone that from the instructors' assistants (her two sons) and the kids that were older or had been attending prior to my arrival. The second is that they were clearly holding most of us back intentionally in order to dedicate more time to the few who they were using to impress people into signing their kids up while milking their wallets for as long as they could. It showed when test for belt promotion time arrived. The only reason why my sister and weren't lame was because we also practiced on our own. The third was that they wasted most of our time on useless forms and other sequences and drills that were only meant to look good. It was almost all glorified choreography with a bit of occasional sparring. I know that they're operating a business that's supposed to generate profit, but most fail to deliver on any of what they advertise.
As a 60 year old judo instructor I agree with much of what you say, there is a saying in judo “After 10,000 repetitions the movement starts to feel natural.” Kano-sense trained in a number of jujitsu schools before he founded judo with techniques you can practice again and again without injuring yourself or your partner. But if judo is not for you, take what you have learnt and move on. Life is a journey but you have to find your own path.
I am now 43 of age, but I am still practicing TKD. In my opinion, people get hurt easily sometimes because they don't know how to relex. So I also learn Systema, it sounds like there's no relationship between them, but in fact, the way of breathing and relaxation does help a lot. I think with the combination of these two martial arts, I can be a better me in terms of both physical and psychological.
I'm 38 and started taekwondo a few years ago. I hope to get a black belt soon. For me, I believe that taekwondo will help me stay in shape and prevent injuries as I age. The fitness training, sparring , balance, etc are great for muscle retention and injury prevention
I think finding the right martial art for yourself and teachers of the art makes a big difference. I left Hapkido because I had a car accident then started having seizures, I went back long enough to get my BB but the throws and tosses were just too much rattling around for my brain. I decided to go back to martial arts but purposely chose TKD after researching what the schools around me taught and how. The BJJ and Judo club didn't even want me to take part in the free class, just watch because of the tossing/throws/chokes, the Muay Thai clubs all had full contact sparring most classes but the TKD club were more understanding and wanted to work with what I can and can't do. I decided to go with TKD because of my flexibility/kicking ability plus the Poomsae have started to give my mind something to focus on outside of training...as a result my seizures have eased...in the end it's all relative to you and learning any way to defend yourself is a great idea!
Thanks for sharing. Every martial art has something to offer and none of them are perfect, which is why a lot of people cross train. Take what is useful and discard the rest.
There is a lot of wisdom here. The internet is full of videos where the aim is to put various arts down and to promote others. Crucially, many of them fail to differentiate between Art, Sport and Combat. A person might study an Art because they seek perfection in form; a Sport because they like to compete and Combat because they want to fight. What's needed from all forms of Martial Arts and Combat Sports is simple honesty.
I’m an assistant Tae Kwon Do instructor in the class that I take. Our school is in a Rec center which causes a lot of limitations to arise in our class. We’re not always in the same location, the floors are hard and sometimes slippery, we’re small with a number of color belts and few that are able to teach. I’ll try to take the points you listed here in mind to see if we can offer more stability. I want the kids to enjoy the class without sacrificing the core fundamentals of the art.
I used to practice Kung Fu as a young kid. I never understood why my Sifu stressed so much on some things. We would practice the same things over and over again until we could master them. Now I realize why we were exceptional. Even now in my 50s when I don´t practice anything, I find myself moving, walking as if I still practice martial arts. I don´t regret practicing Kung Fu. It will be with me forever. Thank you for opening my eyes and making me understand this clearly.
It’s funny how our perspective changes over time, isn’t it? I remember calling my mother in my 20s to say thank you for being so strict when I was a kid! 😁
What you say proves once again that it's not so much about the style you train but about how that style is taught. I believe (or rather, hope) that even the more difficult and obscure moves in Kung Fu or Silat can be made functional with the right teacher and training method.
Love your no hate approach. You can very easily find “your thing” without bashing other people’s. Keep killing it Sensei! Awesome guidance
Always appreciate your good vibes as well, sir! Keep shining your light! 👊🏼🙏🏻
This is a rare but exemplary mindset which all people should learn. It doesn't work for you, doesn't mean it's bad. We all have different things that fit us.
Aren't you known for bashing TKD?
Nice one. Straight up.
Thought you hated safe space karate 😂
I think the biggest problem with Tae Kwon Do is that a lot of schools don’t teach the traditional version of Tae Kwon Do. My master was the 8th degree Kukkiwon certified, and 7-Time national champion grandmaster Yoo and he not only taught us about fighting, but also about spiritual calmness and inner peace and was taught the traditional ways of Tae Kwon Do. Problem is that many masters nowadays don’t seem to know what they are doing and are just in it for the $$$😕
Glad you had a good teacher.
I agree, the sport is so much better when the school takes the time to focus on the mental/spiritual aspect of tae kwon do. It is such a large part of the traditional art, and for a good reason !
I agree 100%! I had an amazing instrucor from 2000-2004, he would teach us Poomsae, Sparring, Basics (On spot or moving forwards), self defence and application of the Poomsae (Forms). Some days we would spend much longer on forms, other days we would spend longer on basics, stances and using basics on bags. Once a month a class would be all sparring and sparring techniques. I agree that TKD can be disjointed and have different skills, yet if they are taught well enough (Not in an ADHH way), then they can make sense. I would say sadly that 80% of TKD schools are sport and competition focused and have a McDojo element that is missing MuDo (Budo) and any etiquette, discipline and values are lost. This is why after getting my 2nd Dan, I might switch arts soon and am looking to try Japanese Goju Ryu soon. Seems more streamlined and also the issue about kicking mobility/flexibility. I am 34 and have hip pain and issues with this. I think TKD quality is up to the person and the teacher.
this comment is gold.
Very True!! Which is why I left it
“I’m gonna start with something a little silly.” *Proceeds to talk about existential dread*
HA! 😄
That question scene was hilarious 🤣🤣🤣
Great video btw, Ando!
Shane! Thanks for stopping by, sir! 🙏🏻
Both of you Shane and Ando are my martial arts idol and my go to guys! Keep it up Masters!
I was just wondering what if we stop by to make a decision while fighting...that wud be hilarious..ha ha ha
I'l recommended you the tekkyeon.
I left TKD for MMA because I wanted to learn how to fight but now I realized style doesn’t really matter at all, what matters is your goal. If you wanna train just for fun, any style is fine as long as you enjoy it and it matches your goal.
Agree 100%!
Martial arts is actually for health, self control and self discipline 😉 if you make it a competition, you actually already lost the goal of the art 😊 it was invented to keep your inner peace in focus, and protect against the wild animals in Korea. Never for a show, as it ended. Just like every martial art today.
@@bamsemh1 making martial arts a competition is pointless? Striving to improve and test your skill set against others is pointless? I think you are the one who has defeated the purpose of martial arts.
@@chasedreamsgetgains1825 especially when you get whole lotta bunch of points in TKD competitions 😃
Okay I see myself out 🤗
I found taekwondo is a good foundation it helps alot with footwork for when I box
I think Tae Kwon Do is a good Martial Arts to start. For developing basic fundamentals and agility. Then move on to the next like Bruce Lee said absorb what is useful and discard the useless
Exactly... I live by Bruce’s words ♠️👍🏾
Fair enough!
Indeed
Facts.
Bruce Lee full of shit!!!
He's so right. I quit TKD because of injuries and it wouldn't last until old age, it's so physically dynamic by the time i was 34 I had dislocated my shoulder (hapkido) , my knees were in agony all the time and my hip range was severely reduced. I had two 'real life' fights and TKD didn't even come into it, I beat both opponents down with boxing.
Sorry for your pain! Thank you for the comment!
I still do the katas of Shorin ryu and Uechi ryu as well as Aikido. I will be 80 this year.
Good man
Good man
Well done, sir! Keep up the great work!
Quitters never progress, I'd listen to an 80 year old man with mind over matter mastered over a middle aged quitter any day.
At age 63 I have trained shorin-Ruy ( 40 years), do all the katas. I also train Kung fu have spared with every type of artis over years. All have there place, but at 63 I can still perform the katas, spar younger guys. Kung- Fu allows me to perform very difficult body movements break falls, rolls and fighting technique and take downs with wrestlers.
I think I get where this guy is coming from! My first martial art was Aikido, stay with it for a few months and it wasn't for me! Went to Kempo karate a year later, stayed with that for 7 years, realized it wasn't for me, felt it was too Americanized, had nothing to do with any of the traditional okinawan/japanese styles (especially on the katas), that's when Kyokushin Karate caught my interest, so 4 years later I found a good Kyokushin Dojo, and I couldn't have been any happier training and learning real Karate!
Awesome. Let the journey continue!
“Why can’t i wear a red uniform” my favorite Line, the whole video.
Shy Khai 😃
HA! 😄 Thanks!
Only a special few can wear the red. Master Ken, for example, in his infinite wisdom has earned the right to wear the red uniform.
Exactly.. I just changed back to Kenpo from a Tae Kwon Do based system. It had kickboxing and Kali with it. Just turned 60 years old and the kicks were hurting me more than what I was getting out of it. The younger instructors just didn't get it. "Just stretch more, can you kick with your good leg?" Worse than breaking boards was holding them and getting your fingers kicked or your wrist sprained. Glad I know how to do the funky kicks, but don't want to have to do them. Now I have instructors in their 50's, one 67 and another 72..One of the Karv Maga instructors in 82.. They get it..
Thank you for this and have a marry Christmas Sir.
Sounds like we’ve solved the same puzzle! Thanks for confirming with your experiences. Happy holidays to you, my friend! 🙏🏻
Fighting for sport has ruined most martial arts systems, including TKD.
tkd nowadays is like glorified gymnastics
you're never going to do a 900 degree heel kick in an octagon or a ring
that's just impractical
but tkd masters are going to be like you need to showcase to get your 7th degree black belt like tf???
more like how about i just fight you in a ring and if i beat your bum with a regular 360 roundhouse you give me that belt already
It has definitely changed the focus of many arts.
It’s fine if the ruleset is actually somewhat like a real fight.
@@JourneyToTheCage closest thing I can think of is UFC and in there it is about 80% dominated by grapplers. You just don't have the space.
The host may have quitted Taekwondo but the elasticity, speed and reaction time gained during his practice, remains ingrained in him and will always be.
That’s why I say I have no regrets! I built some very good habits in Taekwondo. Thanks for the comment!
At 63, I am far too afraid to routinely practise any kick higher than the potential opponent's waist level, and I'm certainly not even happy to practise at/to that height. Why? Herniation absolutely anywhere is one of the risks! Hip injury that might not heal is one of the risks! Lower spine injury is another of the risks!
Not practising such kicks feels truly ROTTEN, because kicks are my very best moves. I really love them - but, I won't risk the safety of my body in order to increase safety against something that might never happen. You were absolutely spot-on when you chose your body health and integrity, in later years, than flashy and showy kicks that were likely, sooner or later, to put you on a stick or in a hospital. You were not just thinking about your body...you were thinking about family, friends and future students, also. Please, accept my empathy and congratulations on a very wise choice!
Thanks for all the kind words and wisdom, sir! I hope your training is happy! 🙏🏻
Hi I am really happy to find an active practitioner of your age. What martial art do you learn? Can you tell me how you practice and increased your strength to avoid possible injuries? Also how you're dealing with drills and aspects that require kicks? My mum is learning karate and she is 60. I feel like with more practice her form will get better ofc but the kicks are something she struggles with. How can she gain more flexibility and add more strength to her kicks without getting hurt? I know she gets upset and I get worried that she might get hurt/topple over if she overdoes it :/
@@samchau3476 There's no name for what I practise, Sam. I took a little of this, a little of that and lots of littles of plenty of others and put them all together, once I identified that they suited my body height, limbs lengths and what I observed as being natural weapons...which used to be my feet. I had many, many sparring partners, starting from when I was a teenager and lots of equipment was built/adapted by us all, really.
For general strength, I weight train at home and use fixed weight dumbbells in most other rooms in that home. I use a punching bag in another room, with plenty of grappler gloves used (unless I'm attempting to strengthen skin/bone in my fists, at which point, the gloves come off and a carpet tile/square on a house brick is next in line for hammering, while I watch TV, sometimes, too). I include front crown head butts, every type of punch, forearm strikes, elbow blows, knee blows and even shoulder charges (the door opening kind).
I've also always practised what I call "The Clay Shoot", where an incoming fist is punched by my outgoing fist. It's one of the risky practices, a sacrifice measure, really, because you have to remember that it might be your own fist that gets hurt more.
I started with punching gently thrown cricket balls out of the air. There is no completely safe way of practising that, though...please, note.
The key to doing it without injury, I think, is repeating a move as many times as you can when injury is highly unlikely, but you still get in plenty of hard work and a great feeling from that hard work. However, if ANY of the above is tried without LOTS of loosening, stretching, generally limbering up...you're heading for trouble.
I hope that that was, in some way, helpful. Please, remember...I am not a professional anything and what I have to recommend is mine and mine alone, to describe. Nobody but me is responsible should somebody decide to borrow anything I've mentioned above. Everything I do is already professionally covered by the owner of the channel. One might say that I, "Do lots of somethings...with quite a few somethings!"
@P Melkin That's a good idea. Thanks, PM. I would've thought, however (and, I think you'll've already wondered about this, yourself) that when a kick is targeted higher than waist level, it's actually partly stabilised by an entire planet, so it's hard to imagine it weakening your energy. The ultra slow kicking sounds to be as good as you say. That, to me, is still effective practise for when FAST is needed, later. I think the brain is ingenius at knowing when to move slow practise into becoming rapid reality, later. I've found that with the Escrima/Kali stick drills, also. Thanks for that, PM!
4:40 what you described is what makes you a blackbelt. When you can see the flaws in an art, it shows how much you've grown. That's when you have wings to fly on your own and find your own path. You can begin to discard what doesn't work and perfect what does, thus breaking away from tradition.
I see flaws in All martial arts that I have practiced. I started in karate Shotokan reaching blue belt, then switched to karate Contact for 3 years, then did self defence for 4 years, and now i do BJJ, kick boxing and MMA. But as I said, I see flaws in every art that I practiced and I am not a black Belt in any of the arts that I practiced. But I can tell all of them have something to teach you. At the end it is all about the fighter and not the art.
Karate will teach you timing, goin in and out, and will teach you to minimize you strikes (fewer atacks like mc gregor) but in short range you will get punched in the face or get submitted
BJJ will teach you how to fight in close range and on the ground, but will not work against more than one opponent and the last place you want to be in a street fight is on the ground unless you are sure that none else is joining the fight. So BJJ, that I love, is only effective in controlled situations.
Yes, they all have something to teach! Thanks for the comment!
Well said. Thank you very much!
I did WTF Tae Kwon Do throughout the 80s into early 90s (Glory Days) I enjoyed it as a kid.
I quit TKD to do wrestling in Highschool. Then got a job.
I took a 20 year break.
At 34yrs old I restarted at a very traditional (General Choi Military influence) Tae Kwon Do school. I'm very satisfied with this school and it's teaching. (10years attending).
I also train GoJu Karate, (8yrs attending). At 45 years old, I've learned to listen to my body and let myself rest and recover after training. We do all the different things you mention including sparing. I love it all and don't have any conflict with the different aspects. I do have challenges but I love and welcome the challenges that each class brings. As far as self defense goes..... I hope I never have to use my training in a real life situation; However I will be ready to do what needs to be done, if I ever have to.
An excellent example of adapting and modifying your martial arts training. Keep it going! 👍🏼
It doesn't matter what style you are learning. If you are not fighting, you are not training. Fighting allows you to truly apply techniques under real pressure and will filter out the nonsense quickly. Great video.
Where do you want to go prison?
@@joekestel909 I beg your pardon?
Martial arts is for self defense only.
If you're statement isn't right. You go to jail. Then 2-? For how bad you beat an unsupecting fool.
Maybe you didn't need arts maybe a guns more your cup of. Yes.
When an instructor had me show skills 2 years after his instructions.
I should. Him y iron hand on a huge. Sandbag he.supportted with his palm. I hurrt is hand really good.
So he took me to the gun store that's how overdoon my conditioing was.
@@joekestel909 Ah, my apologies, Joe. When I said one needs to fight to train correctly, I did not mean one needs to get into street brawls or attack unsuspecting victims. I mean full contact sparring with willing and competent opponents.
If your goal is Self-Defense, then I agree that sparring is important. And the more it ties into everything else you are doing, the better. Thanks for the comment!
This guy should do kid's show. He speaks very well. Kids would love.
I do teach kids, so that’s where it comes from! Thank you!
@@AndoMierzwa I'm glad you do brother. Much from south Africa
@@bonginkosikhohliso8204 High-five from the USA!
I sneezed today and hurt my back. I'm only 39. Longevity in a martial art is a huge factor for me too.
Red uniforms are the most important factor is this. Just look at Master Ken. If you aren't wearing red are you even doing martial arts?
This is the only problem where I'm at now. We don't have red uniforms. In fact, we don't have uniforms at all.
Ha Ha , you gotta fix that, Red Uniforms improve performance by over 28%. Its well documented.
HA! 😄 You don’t need a red uniform… just red underwear! Thanks for the comment!
Excellent video. I’m an older student (50s). Started with Kenpo when I was 17, moved to a short period of TKD when I was in the Army then stopped for years. At 46, I came back to TKD. I (either white or yellow belt at the time) was free sparring with a 1st Black Belt when I accurately delivered a spinning back fist to the side of her head. I was wearing pads, she wasn’t. I rang her bell. Sparring stopped so instructor could explain why “we don’t do that move in TKD” (because it’s blind). My argument was the landed punch. It’s one of my favorites and, apparently unlike most, I was looking directly at her when I landed the punch. Didn’t matter. Illegal technique. Okay. Move on. As a green belt, instructor heard me coaching an yellow belt about focus while punching. In Kenpo, we were taught to punch through your opponents face (because you were focusing on the back of their head, not their face). I tell student to punch through opponents face and instructor pulls me aside and says “We don’t punch through faces, we strike targets”. I knew then my time in TKD would be short.
Hope you found someplace that works for you!
You sound like a very humble and well rounded martial artist
I’m trying my best! Thank you!
Very Wise Man. I agree wholeheartedly. Most Excellent Commentary.
Much appreciated, sir!
I began my Tae Kwon Do journey in the 70’s. It was a different animal then. I continue to practice today in my late fifties , but with a different approach over the last few decades for sure. No kicking the air with snap , no lock outs on any techniques. I was lucky in that my joints up to this point are pretty robust, even with several knee and arm surgeries. Unfortunately I must agree with your fears about TKD. Most of my peers , including one hall of famer in his sixties are not in great shape. Arthritis, hip replacements, etc. I love Tae Kwon Do, but boxing and now BJJ have become more important to me as I get older. I still train the kicks and certain kicking excersises I find are very beneficial to this day with no ill effects. Almost all martial arts have to be modified as one ages, but by the time most practitioners learn what they must do, they are damaged.
Pretty similar to my story, George! I started in the late 60s and still train today, but like you, I've modified my training, fortunately before I had any serious injuries that needed surgery. Almost all of my contemporaries are unable to train anymore. Best!
Glad you’re still on the path, sir! It’s definitely up to us older practitioners to guide the younger generation to a healthier future! Thank you for the comment!👍🏼
I m a traditional boxer and I love boxing but I respect all martial arts cause it depends about the fighter himself and about how hard he train
Boxing actually works and its a hard skill set to acquire. I have a lot of respect for boxers.
Absolutely.
when I began to train boxing i thought that I m the most important person in life
and I was a proud boxer till one day I wach a bjj class for young children and it was unbelievable then one day I spare whit an muy thai player and I was so confident till he began to throw low kicks that makes me suffer soI realized that every martial art is great and it s very important to be humble and my advice is
spare all the time to test your self and improve your abilities
Every martial art has it's pros and cons. That is why Bruce Lee said to take what is good for you for that very moment. TKD, Aikido, Kung Fu, MMA, Karate all have good points but not one is the answer to everything. Many have limitations. In the real fight you can poke the eyes, kick the groin and punch the throat. None of these sport marital arts allows that. Therefore, use what is useful and create your own style.
Fair enough!
I'm a boxer, or at least a former one (in my 50s), and I considered it great for conditioning and self-defense. Muy Thai is also one of the most effective. Do like ju jitsu, but only as a supplement to the other two. I don't think it's practical to take things to the floor in a real fight especially in an uncontrolled environment. I think the rule is: the floor is the last place you would want to be. Street fights don't last but seconds. The problem I have with MMA is that, and I can only speak about boxing, but I feel it might apply to other areas, it's more of a ground fighting game. If you take the best MMA fighter today and I am certain they are not the best in Muy Thai or Ju Jitsu, certainly not even close in boxing.
Thank you for the comment, sir!
So true. I had a student who was from Puerto Rico. He was also in the military, but had trained with one of the Gracie's in Brazilian Jujitsu. He was an Aikido student with me, so I asked why instead of more BJJ. He said in streets of PR you don't get attacked by just one, but by multiple attackers, so the last place you want to be is on the ground. In my experience, that is most certainly true.
Many interesting comments.
I was taught that if go to war that you should not be effective or efficient in one weapon(style of art foam). If you are familiar with different types of arsenals then the probability is higher to win your battle. All material arts are good to increase your survival. It’s the same Bruce Lee theme or concept. That’s why it’s art. The beauty of it is what one can do with it when it is necessary. Facts. Sorry for being philosophical.
Philosophy and action… they should go together! Thank you for the comment!
Thank you for your insight teacher.
Wow! You just made me realise why my TKD training worked. While we was taught form, most of our training was self defense. We were taught knife defense and then our teacher had a student be a knife wielding attacker to teach us that what we learn in class will be effective on the street, but won't look as pretty. We learned choke escapes from standing and the ground, taught how to try and survive active shooters and he would have us spar in the dark to simulate attacks on the street. Every technique in class was challenged by a student being an agressive attacker who was trying to kill us. Everything had that main focus of "you learned the technique, now time to test it and fight dirty to save your life." All these other schools are too focused on the Art and not enough on the Martial
Por que no los dos?
Awesome! Glad you’re training was useful
That is true. Taekwondo (in my opinion) is the best Martial Arts for (Personal Self Defense) if taught correctly. It's a very deadly style of striking if mastered. (But I even agree, it's not best for UFC ect. Because you can't use most of it in that kind of sport for obvious reasons. It's not a death sport. Lol)
But yea, it depends on how it's taught, and what you want to learn. I've been fortune to have a excellent master who is truly on the best Martial artist I ever seen. And knows how to teach his students to be masters of defense above all else, which will lead to your offense. (I would know because I put in situation where I had to defend myself from an attacker. And I was able to end it quickly.
@@master7604 Appreciate you sharing your point of view! Happy training!
Some of most sane, reasonable, balanced comments I've heard about the points related to picking and staying with, or leaving, particular martial arts. Thank you.
My four kids are training Tae Kwon do, I'm really listening and will re-listen again.
I hope they’re having a great time and building strong characters. Good for you for getting them involved!👍🏼
I started ITF TKD 11 years ago at the age of 39. I'm about to grade for my 3rd Dan. I have to agree with you however. Your old school sounds exactly like mine. For me, this has been the art. One of my gripes has always been the lack of sparing. Instructors are too scared to do too much sparing, for students get injured and miss classes. That reduces income...business is business after all.
@cristian ruberti I guess it comes down to the Master and the school. My "grand" master is the highest ranked member in ITF in Australia. GM Low Ming Tuck. He's very traditional and experienced and has Chinese decent and originally from Malaysia. I respect him very much, I just wish there were more opportunities to practice sparing in class, or even have sparing based seminars. Patterns (forms) are fundamental in TKD, but in the real world they is not very practical. Nothing prepares you more for a fight, than a fight.
I guess there are always pros and cons to any system, but congratulations for sticking with it and moving forward!
@@AndoMierzwa Thank you kindly Sir !
This is one if not the best testimony and analysis of a martial artist journey I have heard; truthful, respectful, humble and realistic.
I myself have been involved in Taekwon-Do and Taekwondo both (you Sir will understand the difference) since 1974. I quickly noticed the same things as you did; but I had the chance to train under a true, thoughtful master who put human beings before his beloved art. Our teaching and training were thus done accordingly.
The result? I'm 62 years old, in perfect health and still able to perform split kicks and multiple aerial strikes, to spar and break boards. A few months back I even had to defend myself and did so successfully. Yet, I never was a remarkable athlete and I am now definitely much less proficient than in my youth. But because I trained intelligently, I can still today be active and most importantly help others also reach their own goals.
Like you, I try to be honest; every art has something to offer. But every art is not for everyone or for every goal. I have no qualms sending people away from TKD and to other schools when what someone wants is not what TKD offers; and I strive to be clear about what they're gonna get in TKD.
Everyone has to find one's own way.
Respecting others, respecting the arts and respecting oneself all go hand in hand. And you Sir are an excellent example of this. Kudos to you.
What an inspiring example of a martial artist you are! I love the fact that you are willing to recommend other arts despite the fact that TKD works so well for you. May your journey continue happily!👊🏼🙏🏻
@@AndoMierzwa more you than I Sir. I would do my art a disservice with false advertizing... and myself by lying to people or not trying my best to help them find their own way. This is true with martial arts as much as with music, books or food. You Sir reach out to many more people by taking time and effort to make your video. That, is inspiring. Please continue to do so.
@@odojang Let's both walk our paths! Peace!
Thank you for this video, Sensei Ando. I've been training at a good, traditional TKD school, and I love the school and the people there, but the longer I go, the more I am having doubts about the program at our school. You put almost all my concerns into words, and what you said has been very helpful. Thank you again.
There’s no shame in reevaluating your goals and your training from time to time. If you end up staying, it will only make your beliefs stronger. Thank you for the comment!
I started studying Shotokan Karate in 1976 when I was 17 yrs old. During that time I saw an 85 year old Aikido master do some amazing stuff. I remember thinking, "I want to be like that at his age." In 1976, I began studying Cabales Serrada Eskrima under Mike Inay. During my first month, had the opportunity to spar his teacher, Angel Cabales, who was 62 years old at the time. Over the next ten years, I had the opportunity to meet and learn from others such as Dan Inosanto and Leo Giron when they were in their 60s. In 1990, I participated in a demo in San Francisco with Angel who was 76 at the time. He moved just as well then as he did the first time I met him. I am now 63 years and I am moving faster, hitting harder, and am becoming a better Eskrimador every year.
FMAs are definitely not as popular as they should be! Thank you for contributing here!
You are awesome
Am a 2nd degree black belt in tkd and boy oh boy I so agree with you. It's like you scanned my brain. Unbelievable. Your first point is so not silly by the way. No one ever talks about it. Thank you a lot.
Glad we agree! Hope your training continues happily!
@@AndoMierzwa Thanks it is but I am exploring other martial arts now. Your vid reinforced my concerns. 👍
@@francoisona Well, take the good with you. Happy hunting!
I am so glad I viewed this video as a Tae Kwon Do school owner, very valid points here. The great news is that our curriculum does overlap into each other, we totally do forms segments and practice techniques in our self defense directly from the form, that way repetition is fun and not boring.
I am 53, 5th degree black belt and yes Tae Kwon Do can be hard on the body, my secret is very consistent yoga training, it keeps me going!!
Excellent. I think connecting forms to actual self-defense techniques is the way it should be. Best wishes for your school, sir! 🙏🏻
#1 Fear : That's not silly its perfect sense. I used to have a decent roundhouse kick but having just clocked 50 something wouldn't even attempt one now.
Happy Xmass to you and yours, have a great one.
You probably stopped practicing it haven't you? A roundhouse is perfectly doable at your age for someone who stayed in shape
Happy holidays to you and yours as well, sir! 🙏🏻
It would be interesting to see what styles you chose?
If your 40's+ and think about training seriously in BJJ, boxing, MuayThai then you will break just as well.
Especially, if you got high mileage (old injuries) on your aging combat chassis.
There are many old warriors with jacked up spinal cords, and dilapidated shoulders, hips and knees.
You are right in that you have to ask yourself some serious practical questions concerning your training but you need to be realistic about aging and physical limitations and train accordingly.
Aging beats everybody for sure! I’m currently still in Kung Fu, BJJ, and take private lessons in a couple others. Lots of good out there!
I gave up TKD years ago, took up JKF Wado Kai 6 years ago and gained my 1st Dan at the age of 60, it is much easier for the older person than doing loads of stretches and high kicks, and let's face it, a high kick is useless in a confined space !
So glad you found another way to keep training!
I practice the martial art of "Curl Up Into A Ball and Cry For My Mom." I am the best at it in my class, thanks for respecting my art. If my art could just find the right practitioner we could have the greatest fighter in the world (at least according to the internet's logic of "it's the fighter not the art"). I haven't been able to successfully defend myself with this art but if I keep practicing, it should work right? Because every martial art has moves that work, right?
It’s cool being the best at something!😄
I obtained my first degree black belt in Judo at age 16 but after entering college I didn't practice much except to teach a Saturday class at the local YMCA. Fast forward to age 29, out of a whim, I took up tae kwon do and got my first degree black belt 3 yrs later; almost simultaneously also a brown belt in hapkido. Not satisfied at the showy skills more akin to tournament sparring and to me at least not street practical, I picked up arnis and was attracted to its submission and stick-fighting techniques. All was good until I came across combat hapkido. All this time though I kept advancing in tae kwon do to 4th degree black belt. I guess I still needed to connect to some routine training and body conditioning... Into my mid-40's, I didn't pursue any other art except to teach the various skill sets to my students. I quit my active involvement in martial arts and taught my last black belt class at age 59. In a few months, I will be 70 years old. Looking back, I don't regret the journey and while my body is no longer the youth it used to be, I have learned from one principle --- the indomitable spirit. With it, I can apply to daily life and tell myself that nothing is impossible. The hurdles thrown at me learning all those arts, very difficult at times what with all my own schedules and injuries, have taught me that as long as I persevere, I will succeed once I have set a reasonable goal. Many of my former students, now instructors in their respective martial arts, are also telling their students the same. Yes, the one positive thing that comes out of all these martial arts is not whether one can fight on the street, but a philosophy of life --- the indomitable spirit.
@Leandro Aude Thanks, Leandro. By the way, I am a man but judging from the handle of my YT channel, I am often mistaken as a woman. The picture you see is my idol Teresa Teng.
Kudos 🙏🙏🙏
Indomitable spirit, indeed. Thanks for bringing a tear to my eyes. Happy life to you!🙏🏻
I did tkd as a teenager and, since we trained on a hard gymnasium floor with no mats, we never did any "proper" takedowns nor ground defences, it was like we were only pretending, so I was never really interested. I only did it because my parents made me do it in response to being picked on. After five years I felt like I didn't learn a thing, so as soon as I turned 18, I quit. Now in my 30's I have found a local school and have started again and am enjoying it because I feel I am learning "properly." I think the school makes a difference.
Absolutely. School over style! Thanks for the comment!
I'm a black belt in Karate but wanted to try another art. 4yrs later I chose Taekwondo. I just received my orange belt. We do stretch a lot, but I need that. I'm nearing 50 and my hamstrings and glutes aren't getting any younger. The most challenging part for me is learning it all in Korean.
Great to hear you keep challenging yourself. Keep it up!
There's an orange belt in taekwondo?
@@calebwalker7619 Yepp, Wht, yellow, purple, orange, green, blue, brown, red, black
@@onewardog1169 thats weird I haven't seen it in our class we have white, white yellow stripe, yellow, yellow green stripe, and so on.
@@calebwalker7619 It's not necessarily weird. Every dojo is somewhat different.
Your individual story was very well explained whilst upholding nothing but respect for all martial arts styles. I can relate as I have my own individual story. Keep true to yourself. Well done. Thanks.
I appreciate the kind words. Happy training to you!
Thank you for this. I earned a 2nd Dan in TKD. I taught a class of my own for 3 years to young people ages 7 to 14 on the average. I also gave free women's self defense classes for 1 1/2 years. I came to understand in that time that if I were to visit a Korean TKD school to join, I would probably be asked to spar to prove my rank. I'd be put down in probably 10 seconds, stripped of my belt and maybe given a green belt ( half way to first black belt), if I was fortunate. I chose to find an instructor for pressure point training in fight situations. I found him. He took me in after an extensive interview. I am now ok with having to accept the fact that most of what I learned in the past was wrong and harmful to myself and could easily have set me up to be painfully defeated. During my first year with him I shut down my TKD school. Real fights are mostly faster and more consistent and way more varied than sport fighting,and real punches stop the mind from thinking fast enough to counter if you're not trained for it. Thanks again for this video.
Sounds like you’re asking some serious questions and finding some good answers! Keep it up! 👍🏼
At an early stage, TKD was truly what it was promoted as, "Korean Karate." I learned TKD/Chung Do Kwan back in the late 60's. In those days, TKD was basically Shotokan karate with high kicks. The Forms I was taught were JAPANESE forms: Taikyoku 1-3, Pinan 1-5 and Tekki 1-3. In those days, most of those who taught this style were current or former military so the training was tough. There were no children and very few women. Within a decade or so, all that changed. The Japanese elements were eliminated and the training was made less military and more "family friendly" therefore more financially profitable. I switched to Japanese Kempo and later American Kenpo.
Thanks for the history, sir!
We had two original Taekwon Do Chung Do Kwan schools that still practiced the Taikyoko, Pinan, and Tekki forms, then my dad put me in the Oh Do Kwan school and I have since practiced the Chung Hon (ITF patterns) forms, no Sine Wave bouncing, just straight hard stances.
I quit WTF TKD in my 40s as I got fed up with spending 30mins of class time stretching as I believed that most of your stretching should be done at home with 10 mins warm-up stretching enough for the 2-hour class we did. Also, I believe nowadays that grappling is important as many fights without rules end up on the floor! Anyway, Sensei, another great podcast. so grateful for the time you put in giving out common sense for martial artists. I am currently training in Shotokan in a traditional class where throws and trips and some groundwork are included in the syllabus
Glad you’ve got a full picture of possible self-defense scenarios. Keep up the good work! 👍🏼
Well I love taekwondo because it is more than martial art for me it is first time I join something without asking my parents.
I aslo remember how taekwondo make sport lover i remember before tkd i was lazy and I hate sport but after taekwondo I aslo being exited for other sport.
I try other taekwondo schools and other martil art but i steal in love with taekwondo
Awesome! Keep going!
"You don't have to hate where you are, to be excited about where you're going"
Great quote!
Thank you, sir!
What I finally discovered with TKD is that the high and flashy kicks are just not practical for a real fight. The distance required for kicking can dissipate pretty quickly. In my experience TKD needs to be blended with western boxing or even Muay Thai. With that said I have seen some pretty powerful kicks from TKD exponents. And TKD, specifically the WTF version is very different than what TKD was in the 70s. TKD back then was regurgitated Shotokan with more emphasis on kicks.
@Traditional Arts International Agreed. For myself though I would rather train in western boxing and Muay Thai. Emphasis on hands and fighting in close quarters. Boxing base with add ins from southeast Asian arts.
Karate doesn't have fancy kicks just more basic kicks and what works in a real fight are low kicks to the knee, thigh, groin, etc.
@@timlinator Agreed Bob. Always thought one of the more valuable kicks from traditional Karate was the front snap kick with shoes on. Thrown low has a lot of penetrating power.
@@elindioedwards1048 Snap kick to the groin is very effective.
@Traditional Arts International I would agree martial arts like TKD and Karate have more kicks in their arsenal and can be very effective. A number of Karate and TKD black belts have used them very effectively in MMA matches. I hold black belt rank in both Karate and TKD and have also trained in Muay Thai. Karate & TKD are very similar but TKD has more advanced kicks.
taekwon-do is a sport now, most of them are only taught to how to SCORE a point or how to do a COOL moves than hurt their opponent nowadays.
but i heard the traditional martial arts "HAPKIDO" was pretty intense self preserve technique in the old days, they're pretty much an MMA with combination of punching, kicking, throwing, and weapon technique.
although again, like others traditional martial arts, they are growing weaker now because of today's peaceful time, people spending most of their time training their forms rather than doing hard spar to experience the risk of real fights.
I'm currently practicing Taekwondo and Korean Kickboxing, Thoroughly loving both
Awesome. Keep going!
Wow, that takes a weight out of my back...
For years I thought that my gripes for taekwondo were immature rants, since my teacher used to say "you can specialise in anything you want once you hit black belt", but the thing is that black belt did not seemed worth it because the art it self did not had a coherent structure for me to understand. Elbows, throws, sweep kicks, hammer fists where done in 3 & 1 step drills and forms but where forbidden in everything else so I couldn't learn to apply them in a fight nor how to fend off from those moves. And that was a very big problem because i did not enter a martial arts dojan to get a olimpic medal, I got there to have proper martial trainning... But One thing I gotta complimment tkd for is how great of a work out and the safe space of a dojan... people where WAY MORE responsable and respecting than most places I've been untill then.
It’s true that for character building, the curriculum isn’t as important- you can learn respect and perseverance doing anything. It’s also true that in the beginning, it’s fun to try lots of different things until you figure out what you want to specialize in. That’s why I say, it’s all good. Thanks for the comment!
In short:
Taekwondo build suffers from slow exp gain and sluggish levelling. Skills from the Forms tree (like Head Kick and such) are visually pleasing, but extremely demanding stats-wise. The heavy attacks from the Protection tree are mostly banned in pvp, and in hardcore mode, they can cost you a character, unless you're overlevelled to the extreme, and they do not really synergize with the Sparring skills. The Strength And Prowess tree is mostly for show off.
The build is unintuitive, and it also lacks in every aspect due to the low synergies. You'd get a weird mix of DPS, tank and rogue, but the character doesn't excel in either, and thus is pretty vulnerable in the early stages. And due to the inherent in-game rules, when highly developed chars are losing the stats as they are reaching the final levels, they are unable to use the painfully acquired skills anymore.
The supporting NPCs can be obtuse and unhelpful, and you must take lots of useless sidequest. This affects gameplay, as it takes lots of levels until you start to feel the power of the build, but it's not even that much amazing in a current field; metagame data support the notion that the build's popularity is declining.
So this build metagames poorly and has lots of abysmal matchups across the board, it progressively loses most of its appeal, it deducts hard points from Endurance pretty fast, and as noted, it doesn't really synergize well. I wouldn't recommend it unless you're a masochist and derive pleasure from repetetive uneventful gameplay with a tier 2,5 chars that take forever to level up and don't really excel in anything special.
Are you Tierzoo but martial arts
Are you okay my guy?
@@E1zzzZ hes fine hes just trying to be TierZoo
@@Kettvnen :-D Yeah!
I believe TKD is a great tool. If it's utilized properly. Today's TKD took the actual self defense out and started using more flexibility and flashy kicks. Military TKD is indeed very different. Some people have to make sure you know the type of school you're entering into .
that's true. I was trained for sport...not self defense!!
I've been on a Martial Arts journey the last couple years. I've tried karate, Aikido, fitness boxing, and BJJ. Right now I'm working on BJJ, but the fitness boxing was my favorite. I think everyone has different needs. And not just different arts but different specific schools/gyms/dojos within those arts cater better to different people.
Keep going with bjj! Boxing is also very good
Absolutely! We all want different things... and those things can change! We just have to keep trying to find what works for us. 👍🏼
You tried BJJ and ot wasn't your favorite? Communist! LOL
Thanks Ando. I’m 1st dan in ITF and I keep telling myself, TKD should not be the only martial arts that make you complete.
It’s all up to you and how you train, right? Just keep learning however you can!
I love this statement of wisdom:
you don't have to hate where you are to be excited about where you going, Everything worth something!
Very nice!
I appreciate that. Thank you! 🙏🏻
As a 3rd dan in TKD who competed internationally and, then transitioned to kick boxing and muay thai, I agree with everything said here. TKD is very hard on your body and I was forced to give it up at the age of 35 due to hip damage. When people ask my advice on which martial art they should train in, I always recommend they start with a traditional style (TKD or karate for 2-3 years) and then transition to a more basic and effective form self defense such as kickboxing or muay thai. The traditional styles provide a terrific grounding with your kicking and transitioning to muay thai or kickboxing teaches you how to punch and combine your hands with your feet. In addition your traditional training will provide you with a real advantage with your kicking.
I had to quit TKD a few years ago because I damaged my left hip from the intense stretching and various kicks, which unfortunately lead me to need a surgery to repair the damage, i havnt pursued any other marital art yet but i was thinking judo.
@@nutaman60 hey Lewis, sorry to hear about your hip. I wouldn't give up on striking just yet. Once you've got your hip sorted you should try some kickboxing. I was able to transition from TKD to kickboxing with serious hip issues. The kicking in kickboxing is far less demanding on your hips.
@@paulshearer9140 Hey thanks for the input, iv always been amazing by the kickboxing greats such as Benny Urquidez, Bill Wallace, and Joe Lewis so I imagine it would be an amazing martial art to get into.
Same
I started off with tkd years ago, but stopped do to having a family. Recently I started doing muay thai and got back into tkd to help with kicks and will be having my first tkd tournament next month
I agree that all martial arts are good. I get worried about any martial art that awards a black belt to a child. Business is business.
In TKD, getting a black belt is starting a new beginning. There are black belt levels, "degrees" they say, and it's from 1st degree to 10, but to be called TKD master, you atleast have to be lvl 4. My instructor said it will take forever to get to 10th den.
Just a step on the path. Thanks for the comment!
The Spider Boy, pretty much everything is the same in BJJ, but you can’t get a black belt as a child. At the end of the day martial arts are fighting systems. A black belt in any martial art should be able to defend themselves against the untrained. I’m not sure that is the case for a 10 year old female TKD black belt.
@@matthewjones8322 well in the past, for little kids that were just getting to black belts lvl 1, they had junior black belts, where they were half red, half black. They don't do that no more at my TKD place.
I studied a few different styles over the years and where I found the most relevance wasn't in the style but in the instructors. The instructors I've found taught what I wanted most ( a selfdefence geared teaching ) were former military personal . Whether the system was traditional or a bit more " modern" the main idea behind the club was defending yourself when the need arises.
sparky elven agreed. It’s the instructor.
Absolutely right. Instructor first, style second. 👍🏼
Heh... getting older... I trained splits for 6 months (routines of stretching and regeneration ect.) and I gained 1 cm (ONE CENTIMETER!) closer to floor, than from the day I started stretching. I tried various routines a couple of times and never went beyond that damn 1 cm. Great video, MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!
Merry Christmas to you, sir! Keep stretching! 😄🙌🏼
yeah at one time I could hit the floor both ways in splits, now at over 60 not even close. same with seiza. so I've decided to just do what I can. Same with lifting at one time I had a 500 lb deadlift. Now I'd be happy with a 300 lb deadlift Merry Christmas to you and everyone.
Hey I appreciated that advice , I tried Aikido for a few months , all the guys were great , respectful , focused but the teacher was more interested in showing off his stories of how many men he took down himself in one go and entering us for certificates we had to pay for wether we passed them or not before we were ready to even take them ! . I am drawn to Aikido for the spiritual aspect and I really wanted to become more than competent in a form of M.A that did not hurt others but focused more on aversion so any potential opponents would use more of their energy and did more harm to them selves than to me .
Strange Teacher. Try someone else
It’s good to have choices. Thanks for the comments!🙏🏻
The problem with most (NOT All) studios is that they are just showing moves with no applications. It’s do this 23 moves and here is a new belt. Unfortunately this is a issue most commonly with Korean martial arts (I have a black belt in tae Kwon do and tang soo do) to me it’s not what you teach it’s how you teach.
Agreed! How you teach and how hard you work are the secrets to everything. Thank you for the comment!
I agree to disagree. I studied MooDukkwan, korean taekwondo, yudo, Hapkido martial arts. The emphasis was on self defense the year was 1965. Had fights against bat, ice picks, meat cleavers and multiple attackers. I changed from MooDukkwan because they flipped the style in mid 70's and I sought a close contact art (kungfu). But the foundation I received at the MooDukkwan HQ's was priceless. But I hear ya to each his own. Good luck.
Awesome I can agree having trained in the 70s as a youth things were much different and people still knew there was more than one Kwan for Taekwondo
Thanks for the fair-minded comment, sir!
I'm a big guy. I practiced TKD old school Chung Moo Kwan. We practice point sparring , full contact sparring , Self Defense AKA Hapkido and forms. I got my 1st Dan then moved to Shotokan and Japanese Jiu-Jitsu. Mean while I started Brazilian jiu-jitsu. I got my 2nd degree in Shotokan and Japanese Jiu-Jitsu. But like you, I'm 45 and I only practice Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Because I know I can do it , I hope, the rest of my life.
It’s a crazy journey, isn’t it? Glad you settled into something for the long-haul. Happy training to you!
Thank you for posting. I studied Shotokan karate for 20 years. At first it was the best martial art ever. Then I matured and discovered that it wasn't perfect. No system is. After training in Judo, JKD, full contact karate and Keysi Fighting Method I still couldn't find what I was looking for. It took me 30 years later to finally realised that all systems are governed by their own set of rules and regulations. So I combined all that I know into my own personal method of self protection. Not a new system with a name, just a style suited to me alone. Like an item of clothing, what fits one perfectly won't fit or suit others. I'm reminded of something Bruce Lee said. "Take what is useful, reject what is useless and add what is specifically your own."
Perfect! Keep it up!
One thing I would say, you left taekwondo when your journey only just begun as a first Dan black belt this is where you learn the secrets of the art, this is where you become a dragon and not a tiger, oh well I'm happy you found an art that made you happy
There is definitely always more to learn. Thanks for your positive attitude!
@@AndoMierzwa no problem! 😌
Its not the art, its the artist. Any viable competitive martial art, if you do it seriously, teaches you the most important and fundamental skills in fighting. Not punching, kicking, or gripping techniques. But distance control, reactions, attack and defence timing etc. The guy who goes in a muai thai/kickboxing gym with the mentality that he'll turn into a ufc champion by attending, is no different than the 12 yo kid who goes in a karate/tkd gym thinking he'll turn into a power ranger.
There are definitely many important lessons you can learn in a sport style. Especially in the beginning, all Martial Arts will teach you some common lessons. After a while, though, specializing towards your goals is helpful. Thanks for the comment!
@@AndoMierzwa Thank you for posting great content!
@@savage7882 Happy new year!
Sifu, you only gave more reasons to stay with my practice in TKD Songahm, with my teacher and with my school yet very valuable advice, thank you sir!
Awesome! If your goals are being met, then keep going!👍🏼
"Use only that which works, and take it from any place you can find it."
-Bruce Lee - Founder of Jeet Kune Do (JKD)
My cousin is a Tae Kwon Do Champion - she's in her 40's and her knees are ruined and already needed multiple surgeries.
Injuries add up-- and surgeries get expensive. Get old, go slow.
martial arts is also about personal health, not always does it have to do with winning every tournament, lessons should be absorbed rather then just "i gotta win i gotta win", no offense but most people that are used to tournament style fighting get their asses kicked when they get attacked on the street, there is also that to consider too, whether you do it for the art or do it to actually protect yourself in the street take into consideration every aspect
Very sorry to hear that!
@P Melkin What is air breaking?
@P Melkin oh ok. Yeah, plus that sounds dangerous because it's easy to hyperextend your joints. In my dojo we're taught never to fully extend your punches so that your elbow is snapping out to the full extent, etc.
These are exactly the reasons I left TKD to study Hapkido. A small set of techniques, used against all different types of attacks. No forms, no board breaking, no hyper-athletic techniques. Just simple and effective self-defense techniques.
Glad you found something that works for you! Keep it up!
I just search "Hapkido" and I see forms, board breaking, somersault, 540', 720' kick, etc.
I guess it's different from school to school ?
It's a shame tkd became a game, not martial arts. Focusing more for points and competitions, not self defense or martial arts. Most of real life techniques or combat moves have been removed from the public for safety reason. It's non sense.
I’m a bigger fan of self-defense as well. But glad people train in something instead of nothing. Thank you for the comment, sir!
This video is one of the most serious, tolerant, economical and wise martial arts comment that I read. If accompanied with some comment on applicability of a martial art in real situation, these two could serve as the practical intro into martial arts for most people, to help them choose, differentiate and compare martial arts.
Thank you for the kind words! 🙏🏻
YES! You described me all along. I'm Brazilian, love bjj but now i'm just doing MMA especifics. 30 years and 4 different martial arts, no black belt in neither. All I hate the most is all those bulshit of philosophy, breathing, Chakara, Chi, bla bla bla .... I want to learn the fucking shit necessery to deffend myself. DONT CARE who was "shifu" this, "master" that and bulshit katas, kangeikos, etc...
you learn breathing because in a real fight breathing is key to delivering full power and also if you get hit you are getting rid of the air in you body to not become winded, learning philosophy shows dedication to an art and also learning history of technique it is training for your mind because in martial arts not only are you training your body but you are training your mind as well in pushing your limits and in learning if you didn't want that you should've done something more like boxing great for working out and learning how to fight whilst you won't get anything on kicks or how to defend them you learn how to deliver swift hits with no philosophy. If you want techniques like in Taekwondo, Karate, etc. they are how to control yourself and to train the mind, not just the body specifically then philosophy is required to get the most out of those arts again this shows dedication to an art
@@bobhob2566 bullshit, pure and simply.
If you’re happy, I’m happy!
I'm a Iaido/Iaijutsu practitioner, but one of my best friends since I was a child was a very good Tae Kwon Do practitioner and, believe me, your first reason is not silly. After 20 years of Tae Kwon Do my friend quit because his knees were totally destroyed, his back also suffered and his legs were hurting him. The TKD training simply bring him a lot of health problems instead, you know, better physical condition that leads to better health.
Sorry to hear about your friend. But glad you’re still on the path! Keep going! 👍🏼
I've been practicing Muay Thai/KB since the 90s. I'm older now and my knees are getting weak from the shin kicks. I find Judo and BJJ suits me best now. It can be brutal as it is portrayed in MMA but also can be kind and gentle.
@jayjay D Same here. I moved to BJJ as The recovery from Muay Thai fights got longer and harder in for me in my late 30’s
How old are you my friend?
I practice Sanda, and belive me that the throwing make remember next day that you practice that moves.
@@vscanal8578 Well into my 40's pare.
Good for you for finding new ways to develop!
Some years ago, Steve Koepfer of USASambo was interviewed at his school in NY. He's showing the interviewer around the place, and of course, it's filled with people practicing Sambo and MMA. Koepfer gets asked, "So, do you teach self-defence?" He replies, "Sure. You're looking at it."
Nice. 👍🏼
Unfortunately Tkd has been watered down over the years to get the hobbyists training and for the instructors to make money. The original tkd was a brutal form of self defence taught to the Korean army.
Different strokes for different folks!
I hold the exact same opinion as you gs. True taekwondo takes decades not year to be able to use effectively in real self defense
with that folks. Train thoroughly.
@@AndoMierzwa totally agree
@@garydavison9590 Self defense against who? Against other train MA maybe but I would say it take 6 months to a year for it to be effective against average person. Just practice the front snap kick and side kick every day. Also, talking about ITF TKD, not WTF. WTF isn't real TKD to me lol.
Ando, a lot of good sense and advice that any over 35 should consider, especially the macho fanaticism inherent in many Tae Kwon DO exercises which when older as in my case has cause a lot pain. As an old timer, now 68, I started TKD in the RAF back in 1969 with the UKTA under Khee Hai Rhee and I have to say it changed my life by maturing me, giving me focus and dedication which led to a good career and helping many troubled teenagers as a teacher. Unfortunately one exercise to break wood was to achieve bent back toes for a strong foot pad behind the toes. This was done by kneeling on the floor with toes flat on the floor and with a partner pushing the weight of your body down to stretch so your toes were always bent back. Great for breaking wood and pleasing Mr Rhee who had fought in the Vietnam war and with a record number of silent kills, let loose RAF NCOs instructors who several were arrested and put in prison for sadist tendencies on us young RAF recruits. None the wiser at the time, being often choked out, kicked or punched in the stomached very hard for not having a good stance did after 5 years really did really toughen me up. Thanks to such five years facing tough inner city teenagers as a teacher was a breeze. Later middle age noticed my shoes always got creases just above the toe areas and then found I could not wear shoes leading to now constant pain and a form of numbness which really restricts being able to walk, if I do reach 75 I will be a cripple. As you so correctly state Ando, Yes there are those in their 70s still managing near vertical side kicks and have no problem with feet like mine and that is because they as my master did started such exercises as a child. Having seen many foot specialists have been told, that at 17 years old my feet had effectively stopped growing and carrying out such deforming exercises was beyond stupid and that there are 'many' cases of crippled ex martial artists, expensive operations, in pain and now handicapped of 'mainly' westerners carrying out such extreme stretching exercises (ie the splits). I also agree with you with the effectiveness of certain martial arts for street self defense when the one time getting into a street brawl it ended like two women having a handbag fight with me shocked and scared at the speed of what was going on and unable to truly use any techniques I backed off. I ended up with a broken knuckle requiring a lot of painful medical massage and he a broken jaw BUT all I can remember after five years of such training to become a Brown belt that it served me no use at all, plus how embarrassed and angry in believing I could defend my self in a REAL fight situation.
Forms and self defense should be connected. In Karate it's Bunkai (application ) that connects them. There is some connection between forms and sparring too except sparring has safety rules that don't allow some of the techniques in forms. Bag work also connects them and BTW Karate doesn't have all the advanced kicks of TKD just more basic kicks so easier to do as you age. What Karate is weak on is ground defense/fighting for that I also train in BJJ. Karate really has all the same techniques as Muay Thai which I also trained in and then some. My first martial art was Boxing in my teens. I also trained in Aikido and also have a black Belt in TKD and Karate. My style of TKD didn't have Bunkai or anything like it to connect forms to self defense and I don't consider advanced kicks effective for self defense. I like Muay Thai but went with Karate for striking because it has all the same techniques as Muay Thai and then some plus more techniques for self defense. I incorporate all that I have learned in my teaching so my Karate style is really a hybrid.
Yes, sir- I think it should all be connected as well. Glad you found ways to pull in all your experiences. Keep up the great work!👍🏼
I got a 4th dan black belt in Tae Kwon Do, I am now 54 and can only use the hand techniques. Fortunately in my later 20's through my 30's I started doing more Hapkido, Jiujutsu, and boxing. When I got the 4th dan in my mid 30's I was using 60 percent hands and that really did not fit in with most tournament point counting so pretty much dropped out of tournaments at that time. I have a ruined left hip and need a hip replacement within the next 12-16 months.
Glad you found a way to keep going. Best wishes on any future procedures. 🙏🏻
I have been practicing Thai boxing and tae kwon do for 20 years now, the reason I have not fully left tae kwon do is because of all the wonderful people I've met in the industry, the care they have shown me is phenomenal and there's no way I can repay them in this lifetime.
I love your gratitude and respect! Carry on!
@@AndoMierzwaThank you Seonsaeng, I'm only doing what I should do. You have also guided me in martial arts, I'm more open minded and my side kicking technique has improved 10 fold. I still believe that it is one of the most powerful kicks in martial arts, another reason I can't bring myself to leave.
@@muddyfarmeroscuras4445 Then stay and make the most of it!
I have a sedentary day job. I need Taekwondo to keep my body mobile. Yes, sitting too much is a danger to your health too!
Keep moving!
Looking for a good ninjitsu school that teaches the forbidden arts of poison dust, walking silently on fallen leaves, and death touch. Preferably in the Spokane, WA area. Not looking to study, but to challenge the sensei.
Or you could just go grab a hamburger.
There is a lot of balance and wisdom in Mr Mierzwa's comments. I am a 59 year old 3rd Dan ITF Black Belt and I ofte think that I am reaching the end of my TKD journey. I have more injuries than I care to enumerate and my body is testament to the fact that TKD is a hard martial art. Very few of us can maintain the intensity and standards which TKD demands especially as the body ages. The wise solution we are told is to substitute techniques, to do what you can, and to do it well, however a true martial artist will insist on being his rank and not just wearing it and it is easy to feel diminished as a senior black belt by admitting "I can't do that". I agree that with the many facets and disciplines within TKD it can often seem that we are covering everything but perfecting nothing, in this regard TKD is a martial art which requires so much commitment that it becomes a lifestyle and few of us can commit to that level for an indefinite period. I have to admit however that the failures and weaknesses are mine and that for better or worse at this point in my journey I'm very unlikely to switch.
A very honest and humble analysis. Thank you for sharing it, sir. 🙏🏻 It sounds like you’ll find a way to keep moving. Keep fighting! 👊🏼
First point about TKD was actually very astute and was inline with a revelation I had too. Basically many martial arts market themselves as "Anyone can do it". In reality, particular styles of martial arts can only be done _well_ by a person with certain physical attributes. Take TKD as a classic example. It requires a high amount of gymnastic ability to do properly. That quality actually diminishes with age for most of us, as Ando noted. For some of us, that attribute was never that high to begin with. Studies have shown that around 68%-72% of our flexibility potential is genetic. We can do as much TKD or Yoga as we want, we'll only ever develop a certain amount of flexibility.
I always admired the book _The secrets of Eagle Claw Kung Fu_ by Leung Shum. The author states at the end of the book that Northern Eagle Claw requires a high amount of flexibility, and if you haven't started training by the time you are 13 you will never be flexible enough to get anywhere with it. I admired his candour. We need more of that in the martial arts community.
That’s true. Of course, I encourage anyone to pursue whichever art they wish, but there are definitely genetic makeups that favor certain styles. If knowing that saves some frustration on the way, great! Thank you for the comment!
I remember back in 2014 when it was another day of Tae Kwon Do training. I went to the dojo, waited for the kids to end their class for the grown up to start. What did we do? Nothing. The teacher told us to gather around him and he ran his mouth off for an hour while we were just sitting and listening. I could have used that 1 hour for something else...
We’ve all been there! And sometimes it’s me running his mouth. 😄
I went to a kenpo karate school that was like that. For every minute the teacher spent training the teacher spent talking.
I’ve been enrolled into Taekeondo for a month and I love it. I’m starting to get my technique down. My Taekeondo school also teaches some Judo and Aikido for self defense as well. I’m wanting to complete my technique. I’m thinking of combining punching, kicking, grappling, ground work, and redirection all into one. I’m basically wanting to make the Niko style from Kengan lol
Yes, do it, people will say that your copying Bruce lee and it's already done, don't listen to them make your own style, I am currently just teaching martial arts, I do not believe in style so the thing I am teaching doesn't have a name because it's just how to use the body. Do it my friend I believe in you!
@@ГенриПолухин
Thanks for supporting me
From experience I love Taekwondo. It was my first martial art. I do mma now. I’m super proud of my TKD. The flexibility that I achieved from training. Flexibility increases power aswell. What I love the most is when someone says TKD is no good at my Muay Thai gym. Taekwondo kicks you never see them coming. Like they say it not always the style it is the student. Other people’s TKD can be more powerful then others. I started at 11 years old and now 37. I have no back problems no, joint problems etc. I get better and better as I practice. If you are experiencing pain from Taekwondo is because it is being done incorrectly. 🙏
@@furyano1251
I’m glad that I’m naturally pretty flexible. Can’t wait to keep going
You’re smart for seeing the value in different styles. Just make sure you dig deep into what you’re doing now, so you will get the most out of it.👍🏼
For most adults starting out . Here's the thing. Probably been in a few fights over time or even self taught so when ya start something like TkD doesn't mean forget about what ya know common sense wise if you getting into fight or even being picked on.. keep your knock out power but also use what ya learn in TkD . You'll be fine.. I never taken TkD but as a kid who was bullied . And couldn't afford classes to teach me I rented every book and watched every VHS tape there was in TkD ,Kempo , karate, wrestling, gymnastics and then my bro gave me The Jeet Kune Do book . I learnt everything I could to defend my self and it helped me alot .now as an adult I think of joining Tae Kwon Do cause it was the one I wanted as kid and would love to learn it and get my degree's . Just a goal to complete now that I can afford it . This is just one mans insight on things. Good luck ...
Thanks for sharing your insights, sir! That would be cool to give TKD a try after all these years! Happy training!
@@AndoMierzwa Thanks
There were three reasons why I quit tae kwon do when I was ten (two years after I started). The first was the patronizing egos of everyone that from the instructors' assistants (her two sons) and the kids that were older or had been attending prior to my arrival. The second is that they were clearly holding most of us back intentionally in order to dedicate more time to the few who they were using to impress people into signing their kids up while milking their wallets for as long as they could. It showed when test for belt promotion time arrived. The only reason why my sister and weren't lame was because we also practiced on our own. The third was that they wasted most of our time on useless forms and other sequences and drills that were only meant to look good. It was almost all glorified choreography with a bit of occasional sparring. I know that they're operating a business that's supposed to generate profit, but most fail to deliver on any of what they advertise.
You had a lot of thoughts at 10! 😄
As a 60 year old judo instructor I agree with much of what you say, there is a saying in judo “After 10,000 repetitions the movement starts to feel natural.” Kano-sense trained in a number of jujitsu schools before he founded judo with techniques you can practice again and again without injuring yourself or your partner. But if judo is not for you, take what you have learnt and move on.
Life is a journey but you have to find your own path.
Yes, sir. Find your own path. Thanks for the comment!
Yes sir. Practice until the technique becomes a natural reflex.
I am now 43 of age, but I am still practicing TKD. In my opinion, people get hurt easily sometimes because they don't know how to relex. So I also learn Systema, it sounds like there's no relationship between them, but in fact, the way of breathing and relaxation does help a lot. I think with the combination of these two martial arts, I can be a better me in terms of both physical and psychological.
It sounds like you’ve prescribed yourself some good medicine. Happy training!👍🏼
I'm 38 and started taekwondo a few years ago. I hope to get a black belt soon. For me, I believe that taekwondo will help me stay in shape and prevent injuries as I age. The fitness training, sparring , balance, etc are great for muscle retention and injury prevention
I will say Systema + anything is a great combo because the breathing system alone is unique in Systea and a huge value add to any martial artist.
I think finding the right martial art for yourself and teachers of the art makes a big difference. I left Hapkido because I had a car accident then started having seizures, I went back long enough to get my BB but the throws and tosses were just too much rattling around for my brain. I decided to go back to martial arts but purposely chose TKD after researching what the schools around me taught and how. The BJJ and Judo club didn't even want me to take part in the free class, just watch because of the tossing/throws/chokes, the Muay Thai clubs all had full contact sparring most classes but the TKD club were more understanding and wanted to work with what I can and can't do. I decided to go with TKD because of my flexibility/kicking ability plus the Poomsae have started to give my mind something to focus on outside of training...as a result my seizures have eased...in the end it's all relative to you and learning any way to defend yourself is a great idea!
It sounds like you’ve made some wise choices, Chris. 👍🏼 Clearly, your fighting spirit is strong! Keep up the great work!
Thanks for sharing. Every martial art has something to offer and none of them are perfect, which is why a lot of people cross train. Take what is useful and discard the rest.
There is a lot of wisdom here. The internet is full of videos where the aim is to put various arts down and to promote others. Crucially, many of them fail to differentiate between Art, Sport and Combat. A person might study an Art because they seek perfection in form; a Sport because they like to compete and Combat because they want to fight. What's needed from all forms of Martial Arts and Combat Sports is simple honesty.
Great comment! The martial arts should cut to the heart of every matter. Honesty, yes!
I’m an assistant Tae Kwon Do instructor in the class that I take. Our school is in a Rec center which causes a lot of limitations to arise in our class. We’re not always in the same location, the floors are hard and sometimes slippery, we’re small with a number of color belts and few that are able to teach. I’ll try to take the points you listed here in mind to see if we can offer more stability. I want the kids to enjoy the class without sacrificing the core fundamentals of the art.
I applaud you for keeping an open mind and taking a new look at how you teach your students! I’m sure you can guide them to greatness!
I used to practice Kung Fu as a young kid. I never understood why my Sifu stressed so much on some things. We would practice the same things over and over again until we could master them. Now I realize why we were exceptional. Even now in my 50s when I don´t practice anything, I find myself moving, walking as if I still practice martial arts. I don´t regret practicing Kung Fu. It will be with me forever. Thank you for opening my eyes and making me understand this clearly.
It’s funny how our perspective changes over time, isn’t it? I remember calling my mother in my 20s to say thank you for being so strict when I was a kid! 😁
@@AndoMierzwa Yes, indeed. Our perspectives have changed a lot.Your video was an eye opening for me.
@@melwinseaman1737 Thanks for letting me know!
What you say proves once again that it's not so much about the style you train but about how that style is taught.
I believe (or rather, hope) that even the more difficult and obscure moves in Kung Fu or Silat can be made functional with the right teacher and training method.
Agreed. Thank you for the comment, sir!
I like this guy. I hope to be as chilled and positive as him when I get to his age. Seems like a really good teacher and role model.
Much appreciated, J.C.! Rock on!