how thinks tae kwon do is hard?
399654
My mom has a black belt in Tae Kwon Do.  It is a hard martial art to master.  Some of the katas are really complicated.  She's broken ribs and toes during sparring.
353897
Kyokushin is tough stuff.  I like the speed, and reality of the fight.  Kickboxing is good too, but you train within a much smaller rule book.  \n\nAlso, Kyokushin fighters take better care of one another, in general.  You also see this with Koshiki, and other Karate full contacts.  \n\nTry both, if its affordable to do so.  But, I beleive your heart will be in Kyokushin after the experiment.  \n\nTSDofLA\nhttp://www.tsdofla.com
427281
Wow, you just opened a can of worms with that question. There's always a big debate about "which is the best style?" and "is there such a thing as a best style?"\n\nI am of the opinion that there is no best style, but some styles are better for certain goals than others. Tae Kwon Do is good for those who want to take up martial arts purely for sport and competition. But I wouldn't pick up TKD if self-defence is your main goal. \nAnd just a note, usually, how you get along with the instructor is much more important than the style. If you plan on taking up any martial art, see what you think of the instructor, and then move on to the following steps (choosing a style, etc.)\n\nEvery style has its benefits, so why not tell us what your goal is, and we could help you out.
774796
Check out Amazon.com...you might also wanna look for it under the alternate title "Tae Kwon Do Boys". \n   MakyShark...you've obviously never fought someone who was any good with that technique...\n   Hope this helps...
934165
There are several different approaches to martial arts. One way to look at the martial arts is whether the art is "hard" or "soft." "Hard" means that the art is more focused on the offensive. You would learn strikes that disable or kill right away. Examples of "hard" martial arts include karate and taekwondo. "Soft" means that the art uses the attacker's momentum against them. You would learn techniques that tie up the opponent; if they resist, they are inflicting pain on themselves. Which do you think you'd be most comfortable learning?\n\nAnother way to look at the martial arts is to decide whether you are interested in grappling, ground fighting, throws and joint locks (try jujitsu or aikido); in strikes that mainly use the hands and feet (karate, TKD, kung fu); or in something that allows you to focus on staying fit and active (cardio kickboxing, tai chi). Pretty much any martial art will help you stay in shape, though. And some martial arts are comprehensive--they'll teach you all of those areas. Hapkido is a good example.\n\nI'd suggest that you check out some books from the library on the various martial arts. Do some research online as well. Look up local listings for martial arts schools in your area, call a few, and ask if you can come in for a tour. I think most schools don't mind if you just show up and watch a class, but if you call ahead you know that an instructor will be expecting you and may be able to give you some of his/her time to explain what the art is about. You may even get to join a class.\n\nI advise you to be careful about karate and taekwondo schools in particular. Ask them, "Do you teach sport taekwondo?" Sport schools focus on trophies, tournaments, and sparring--as someone else said, they are "McDojos," just focused on getting as many students as possible and not really teaching them how to defend themselves. If you can find a traditional TKD school or a Shotokan karate studio, those are good solid arts. \n\nDon't let yourself be suckered into signing up right away, and especially don't sign a contract that guarantees you'll get your red belt or something. Most schools will have a beginner's deal--one month for $50 with a free uniform. After observing several schools, pick one and try it out. Just remember, the school you start with and the art you start with don't define your martial arts career. You can always switch to studying another art to give yourself a more well-rounded experience.
257937
I'm only an 8th Kup but I've seen other students practice Joon-gun and I know the move you're talking about, they bring the hands up slow with a loud drawn out exhale don't they? I can't remember anyone ever asking but remember that all Tul represent something as well as incorporate moves, and i know talking to the 2nd Kup students that i've seen practice it that when they are graded the instructors look for your control, switching speed ect. You have to really know the routine, at the lower levels you can memorise a routine and go through it without thinking, but when you have to slow down your stance is very visible, and if it's not good it notices. So all before the change in speed your stances need to be correct and you have to know what you're doing. That however is a practical consequence, instructors take advantage of it to look for things, i don't think it's the real reason. You can ask your instructor about it and see what he says.
791946
Any traditional martial art (ie 1 that emphasizes forms, respect & discipline) will be very good for you. It should definitely help.\n\nI started Tae Kwon Do at age 44.\n\nNot dangerous if you are in a good school. The worst injuries I have had in my school have been bruises.\n\nBTW I'm impressed that you know the meaning of penultimate. Very few people your age do. In fact very few people ANY age do.
1042668
whoa! that was wierd and a bit stinky. but seriously, tai ju kwon is one of the 7 schools of tae kwon do that were started after WWII. before WWII japan had taken over korea and killed all of its master after rapping the style Tae kwan (one of the main styles in korea at that time) and calling it karate. after training the koreans in this flawed style to fight in their WWII the few korean masters in japan returned home to rebuild thier lost style. many dissagreed with the countries ideals of what taekwondo should be. because of this the masters went off and started their own schools (all of them i can't remeber but some are tai ju kwon, chi gong kwon, moo duk kwon, and sum jul kwon [kwon means school bye the bye]). it wasn't till the 70's did korea unify these styles into taekwondo under four federations. kta(korean taekwando asso.) wtf (world taekwando fed.) ata (american taekwando asso.) Ita (international taekwando asso.). but many still reconize the original schools like the one you mentioned.
597179
Put in lots of time and effort!\nI've learned that tap dance tends to be the most strenuous.
481013
Maybe if u practice hard u may make it to pro lvl but it's real hard
208910
IT VERY HARD, SO ITS HARDNESS
38548
Hopefully you'll find someone more knowledgeable than myself, but in case you don't:  Kung-fu is the most varied and most difficult style to learn, and probably the most successful from an offensive point of view.\n\nAikido is a martial art that relies on flips and twists and might be considered the most successful from a defensive point of view.\n\nTae Kwan Do is basically glorified kick-boxing.  Not very advanced, but a good way to exercise.\n\nThis is the extent of my foolish knowledge.  The ancient masters are probably crying in despair now.
721526
Tae Kwon Do  \n\nIf you train hard enough and are flexible the kicking Tae Kwon Do offers is what your looking for. Koreans are world renowned for their kicking both in Tae Kwon Do and Hap Ki Do\nTae Kwon Do has fast kicks made for striking and point sparring don't get me wrong kicks in Tae Kwon Do have power but are designed for speed and Hap Ki Do has kicks made for power and but also has speed and are devastating
1107688
Tae Kwon Do\nHwa-Rang and Choong-Moo
933491
Taekwondo is a martial art because it is an art of fighting. The same as boxing and fencing are considered martial arts. And yes it is flashy...\n\nNow to put a few other posts straight i.e Hood_12 the moron...\n\nTaekwondo is not meant to 'train in reality'. Generally Taekwondo is to show off and be flashy. That is why it has been a demonstration ONLY in the Olympic games until just a few years ago.\n\nDon't even try to say that doing Ju Jitsu is any different when it comes to a compliant opponent. If anything, Ju Jitsu is worse. Ever tried to throw someone while they are resisting? Much harder than you know. Same goes for Judo and Aikido. When you train with a partner, you are training together, not against each other trying to be a tough guy.\n\nNot all schools have a contract that needs to be signed. I've been practicing and teaching martial arts for quite a while and I have NEVER had to sign a contract.\n\nSchedule for black belt? Rubbish! It should take a minimum of five years to attain your 1st degree black belt. There are very strict rules in most Taekwondo schools. I suggest you get your facts straight before posting this crap all over the place. Just because you studied under a bad instructor/school, it doesn't mean Taekwondo is worthless.\n\nI have seen hundreds of students fail gradings. I guess your instructor was just after your money and didn't really care what his/her students got out of the class (if anything).\n\nSparring is usually semi contact in Taekwondo. It requires greater control than full contact. FOR COMPETITIONS you practice to score points, the same in all competitive sports including Ju Jitsu, Judo etc etc. \n\nWarm ups for 30 minutes sounds about right. You MUST stretch and warm up properly before attempting high kicks. I seen people CRIPPLED because they didn't warm up properly. The hamstrings are usually the first to go. As competitive Taekwondo is for points, you need to be fast. That’s why you do speed drills etc. READ CAREFULLY - YOU NEED TO BE FAST!!\n\nPersonally I don't think anyone under 16 should have a black belt. This is only my opinion tho. I don't know what kind of Mickey Mouse school you went to but I've NEVER seen an 8 year old black belt.\n\nYou want to see reality? Look at REAL KNIFE DEFENCE and see what it leads to. I have known EXPERT martial artists who have lost their life to people with knives. No amount of training can prepare you for what is on the street. Violence is real ugly.\n\nYou sound like the kind of guy who trained for ages and never achieved anything, probably got your ass kicked by the 8 year old black belt.\n\nSee this video for something that you might class as REAL. \n\nWARNING - VIDEO FOR ADULTS ONLY\nhttp://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8884586003342147853&q=martial+arts\nWARNING - VIDEO FOR ADULTS ONLY
269098
I am a first degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do, but it is not with that association.\n\nI can say, however,that it is the thing I am most proud of doing in my life, up to this day. I'm 17, and i took me about 4 years to recieve my belt. I worked very hard, and what makes it so rewarding is that its worth it!
489518
There is a very old and very true saying... \n\n"The Jack of all trades is a master of none."\n\nI believe it is a good thing to learn multiple martial arts. The issue is that many martial arts are fundamentally so different that it is hard to learn them together.  Arts like Tae Kwon Do and Aikido are so different from one another that learning them together is not a problem. Other martial arts such as many forms of Kung-fu are do conceptually different from Tae Kwon do that learning the art will be very difficult, if not virtually impossible. \n\nFor instance. Aikido uses circle to enter into your opponent and bring him down with any number of throws, pins or locks. Tae Kwon Do uses strait lines to enter into an opponent and then either attack with a strike (Kick or punch) or block their strike and then counter strike. Many forms of Chinese Martial arts don’t block, but rather parry attacks. They also use circular or more common angular movements to enter into an opponent and prefer multiple rapid attacks using chi as power rather then the one or three step sparing drills used in Tae Kwon Do.  Furthermore, many forms of Chinese martial arts are as much mental (philosophical/strategical)  as they are physical. It will be hard to do one thing one way in one class and another way in another class. Also, traditional Kung-fu instructors will not train a person who is studying another martial art. Not because they think there are is the best or some such nonsense as that, but because they are afraid that if you divide your thoughts and energies between their art and the other art(s) then you will not be able to give 100% of your time to their art. \n\nRemember, many Martial Arts, (Unlike Tae Kwon Do) take many, many years to become even the least bit proficient in. Learning forms is not the only goal. In a traditional Chinese Martial Arts school it often takes several moths to learn a single form and then a year or more to get to a level of proficiency that the Sifu thinks you are ready to learn another form. I've known more then my share of people that have dropped out of Chinese martial arts schools because they felt they weren’t learning anything new after working on the same form for six months. \n\nThe problem you will face is that Tea Kwon Do is linear and hard. Most of your forms are Move, then strike. Step left into a front stance, then perform a down block, followed by an upper block, step right into a right front stance and then do an eyelevel front punch. Chinese martial arts forms are different. As you step into a stance you are striking and before you settle into the position, you are already moving again. It is much more fluid. Everything flown one into the next. TKD is more Choppy. In fact, if the forms are not performed in a Step by step fashion, you aren't doing them right. (I have a 2nd Dan and use to judge at tournaments) \n\nAll I am saying is that is would be hard to master an art that requires your undivided attention if you are not giving your undivided attention. It's something to think about.