[someguy6565]

I have been doing TKD for about a year, but decided to stop because it was not so effective in real life. Then I moved on to Karate. The result was amazing. Karate is has wayy more defensive moves (katas) unlike "fancy" TaeKwondo.

The main thing that pisses me off is that TKD instructors don't really train in defensive close range combat (with hands), while Karate does both long range (with legs) and close range (with hands).

Karate uses more power and even a single blow can be fatal. No Karate move cannot be practiced well without using full power. This makes Karate more "accurate" than Taekwondo.

Taekwondo is a watered down version of taekkyon (which even Koreans themselves think is a better martial art)

I have observed many TKD schools are only after your money and some TKD school hand out belts as if it was free! ------ I feel like they are not training them well enough to get a belt upgrade lol!

and finally, Karate in in cooler to pronounce Ka-ra-te, unlike Tae-kwon-do.

[ChrisC]

Its not that people hate it, it is just as you say not so effective in real life situations. Look at the traditional styles of martial arts in MMA combat. Muay thai, Jiu jitsu, kick-boxing, boxing and wrestling will all be much more effective in a real fight then TKD or Karate.

[JeiJ]

actually, kata has nothing to do with real life fighting.... Both karate and tae kwon do are watered down martial arts with little real life application. I really doubt that a hurricane kick to an open target is not as strong as a "karate punch" even though all punches are basically the same.

[chuck5101]

why ask a ?, and hate on it.. i am a (former) TKD guy... I went to a very bad Shotokan Karate school, and handled everyone there.. with ease, and i was out of shape... i dont hate the style of Shotokan Karate (in fact appreciate the differences in style), but the school was a poor representation of that style... and i chose not to spend my money there... that doesnt mean i wouldnt study the style from a well qualified instructor if given the opportunity.... you need to grow up and accept the fact that there are some things to be learned from everyone... even if the lesson learned is what not to do... good luck man

[justahint]

Take a look at that

http://youtube.com/watch?v=O7_dzu4TQDs

[KKoh]

Not many people actually hate it. I understand stuff like it's watered down, too fancy, and not good in a real life situation, but it is still very common or popular. However, because it is so popular, some schools are just in it for money and will just be crappy. This denotes the TaeKwonDo that was popular in the first place. Like Karate in america, there are a lot of fake schools and cheap imitations that actually lower the image of karate in most people's minds. Part of all this martial arts degrading is the media with like all these joking or cheap imitations of real martial arts on a tv series or a cheap martial arts flick. Still, I get the point and even for me, after a few years of taekwondo I am starting to avoid it and trying to take something more practical, like hapkido, yet still korean based (korean pride =]) However, I feel like having a change and I'm trying choy li fut. I would recomend stuff like combat hapkido, hwa rang do, or kuk sool won if you want something like tae kwan do but actually more practical. Also, I believe you're just looking at only the bad aspects of TaeKwonDo and not the better aspects.

[drew0155]

someguy=troll


far worse than TKD practioners in my book

[TempestSteel]

So why are you asking this question when you just make a statement on how you don't like Tae Kwon Do and how much cooler Karate is. As for you hating TKD is just sounds like you went to a bad school and are using it as a comparison for every school or class the trains TKD. I am glad that you like doing Katate but just because you do not like what you did in you TKD school does not mean that it is a bad Martial Art style.

People think that TKD has no street fight value going for it but how many people have been in a street fight say that. Not many. Your heart is racing, adrenalin is burning through your system and you are wondering if you are going to live through this. People who have MA training are thankful that they have the training to protect them does not matter if it is TKD, Katate, Muay Thai or BBJ.

So instead of bemoaning TKD and how ineffective it is on the street and how much cooler Karate is, be grateful that you have not had to fight and use your skills, instead concentrate on becoming more humble and insightful on Martial Arts and what you have learnt. Also think that it is the teacher and to a lesser degree the student which make a style what it is.

[ScottG]

How old are you? You sound like you take lessons so you can go out and pick fights to see if a martial art works. You are clearly training for the wrong reasons. I have studied a total of 17 years in 9 different styles, 2 of them different schools of classical Tae Kwon Do.
First of all, yes, Tae Kwon Do is a style that adheres to linear and long movements that showcase many areal and oter flashy techniques. Although viewed chiefly as a sport, do not underestimate a well placed TKD kick. I've seen knockouts (and even made a couple happen myself) come from a single well placed and well executed kick. Tell me again how that isn't effective. No matter what style you study, a block is a block, a kick a kick, and a punch a punch. It's how those things are put together that determines how effective it is.
You moved onto karate....... Care to tell me what style?
So far as your instructors not training in close quarters.... You clearly weren't going to a good school or you missed all the 1 and 3 step classes. You want good self defense? Take kempo. "Karate" doesn't use any more power than any other style martial art. Every style has some number of powerful strikes of some sort or another. I learned an elbow strike to the solar plexus that will send pain bouncing up and down your spine and bounce from kidney to kidney. Where did I learn that? Tae Kwon Do. As far as your statement about karate being more "accurate" than Tae Kwon Do, define for me the term 'accurate'. I'm betting if I landed an axe kick on the bridge of your nose or a turning (spinning) side kick on your chin, the result would be the exact same if I were to land a Kempo elbow to your jaw or a capoeira Au Batido to the bridge of your nose.
How many Koreans have you spoken to in reference to Taekkyon versus TKD? After almost 2 decades of training in several martial arts, there is no one style that is superior to any other style, they're all just different.
I won't argue that the majority of schools market their belts by both adding stripes between belts or adding colors to the already lengthy belt line you must go through to achieve Black Belt. If a school doesn't make you sign a contract, they have to have some way or another to ensure you stay at the school for a long period of time and by not being allowed to test more frequently than once every 2 or 3 months between 'stripes' and belts is a sure fire way to keep you roped in.
I also agree that too many schools just hand out belts to students that don't deserve them. Welcome to the age of 'there are no losers, everyone's a winner'. For the money parents shell out for TKD lessons, they expect results, whether that means that their kid actually earned their belt or they went throught he motions, took their test and the school doesn't have the courage to tell a kid that they're performance just wasn't up to par enough to advance.
Finally, as you so eloquently put it, why on EARTH does the 'coolness' of pronunciation matter to you? Does it help you train better? With the exception of the two points you made about some TKD schools, you have completely offended me as a martial artist and it is my belief that you don't deserve to wear a belt of any rank until you can display a lot more respect for other arts.

[StevenB]

Weird post, but i'm gonna answer the actual topic title question:

TKD, not everyone hates it, i enjoy watching the competitions and it is somewhat humorous to watch guys throwing a thousand kicks and having no effect.
I wouldn't personally like to learn TKD but it has its place.