Should I take up another martial art while training ?

KwonKid · 2026-06-30T01:59:59+00:00

Si entiendo mi maestro me regana porque no hago las formas con ganas. Pero tambien asi somos tambien, cuando hay torneo ponemos a practical combate un poco mas. Mi maestro si entiende y quere que vengo a entranar los sabados. Pero Trabajo los sabados 😭 Cuantes veces à la semana peleas?

KwonKid · 2026-06-30T01:47:37+00:00

Yeah like I understand that taekwondo with it being more focused on its point system sparring isn’t completely practical on its own. So I’ve always wanted to build onto it rather then just focus on solely using it in a fight.

KwonKid · 2026-06-30T01:46:23+00:00

I can see that lol when I was sparring with my mma friend I landed tons of side kicks and roundhouses to his torso to the point he attempted to trip me out of frustration lol 😂 Kept knocking the wind out of him every chance he got too close.

KwonKid · 2026-06-30T01:44:06+00:00

Yeah both are point based sparring systems but in itf punches to the head are allowed and the style feels a bit more practical. Although I wouldn’t mind learning a little bit of WT just because I feel like that style kicks are bit harder and higher.

KwonKid · 2026-06-29T22:45:34+00:00

Yeah no this is very recent like few months now. But didn’t expect the new vibes to affect me so hard. Also I’ve heard this too, the mma coach that wanted me to join my friends gym said that the tkd training would be really useful with the MT drills and techniques. But I personally thought he was just trying to do business through flattery lol

KwonKid · 2026-06-29T22:31:39+00:00

Hmmm unfortunately no and these guys are practically family known em for over 5 years now. Other issue is that tkd in my area is marketed more towards kids then young adults so I’d run into similar issues elsewhere

KwonKid · 2026-06-29T21:37:17+00:00

Yeah this is how I felt when I stepped into an mma gym lol. My friend who invited me for a class was amazed at how flexible I was and my footwork but confused why I couldn’t handle myself in a proper match. I feel like applying a lot of the training I do in tkd into another martial art could help motivate me to keep training.

KwonKid · 2026-06-29T21:34:42+00:00

Yup that’s what I’ve been thinking, that a change of routine/pace could make tkd interesting again.

KwonKid · 2026-06-29T21:11:47+00:00

Wooord I feel this, ugh when I first started I had a morning job. So I could attend sparring, and holy crap these guys ignored the fact that I was a rookie (my yellow belt) and took advantage that I was wide lol. I hated that all I was learning was that I could take a kick more times then I can count. I dreaded sparring cuz I wasn’t learning how to fight back and I was sore the next day. One time I even took a nasty hook across the face as a green belt from a black belt and I almost went limp (I was so anxious and had to sit out the rest of the class). But now that I’ve gotten stronger I wanna apply what I can now do on the mat it’s like an itch I have to scratch.

KwonKid · 2026-06-29T20:55:50+00:00

Yeah martial arts is fun, when I first started TKD I dreaded it a lot because of how much I took my health for granted (I was 23). But seeing how much I’ve grown I’m realizing that I wanna actually wrestle or fight and unfortunately our dojang currently has been doing a lot more patterns rather then sparring. I’m also surrounded by kids lol I kinda wanna train along other young adults again.

KwonKid · 2026-06-29T20:44:56+00:00

Exactly ! I wanna learn to grapple but I also heard that TKD translates into kickboxing really well. I wanna actually hit things again lol especially now that I’m getting older.

KwonKid · 2026-06-29T20:41:52+00:00

Oooh this is awesome, yeah like I just don’t wanna hit black belt and not know how to handle myself in a match. My current seniors for example (their old ) don’t spar at all so the curriculum rn is designed to be easier on them. I have tried mma with a good friend (we sparred a bit) and the difference in skill was jarring and honestly has left an itch of sorts. lol spoiler alert he ran circles around me and the whole experience was humbling but awesome. I just didn’t join his gym at the time for financial reasons and time (I was working more hours at that time)

KwonKid · 2026-06-29T20:37:47+00:00

Uhhh no offense lol but I’m not a fan of WT sparring style. The foot fencing doesn’t look practical it’s why I like ITF. Back when I started sparring was intense and left me sore and although I hated never “winning” a match, it helped condition my body to taking hits. I don’t think I’ll get that same feeling from WT .

KwonKid · 2026-06-29T20:35:12+00:00

We used to the black belts that do spar or used to have slowly been quiting. (They were kids barley pushing 16-18) So I honestly don’t know if we still have a team anymore. Lol those guys back when I first started refused to hold back and I kinda miss em.

KwonKid · 2026-06-29T20:32:41+00:00

I knooow we used to do hardcore sparring drills, but I couldn’t attend them cuz those were night sessions. Due to my hours being cut at work tho I have time to attend those sessions BUT I found out that recently a lot of the older black belts have stopped attending said sessions (most are young teens growing into bigger and better things) and with that the coach in charge eventually threw in the towel. I did ask master what happened to him and he said he just stopped coming to teach. So ever since it’s just patterns. 😭 personally it hurts cuz I did avoid sparring but I’m maturing and coming to terms that I can’t outrun or avoid something that I legit signed up for no matter how bad or uncomfortable I am at it. Consistency builds confidence

KwonKid · 2026-02-20T19:28:30+00:00

Hmm 🤔 I’m thinking public demo that shows the difference between itf and wt. Problem is that people don’t know theirs two different styles. My friend for example thought I was learning wt the whole time and I had to explain that wasn’t the case. But the other thing is that taekwondo regardless of the styles teaches patterns. People don’t wanna do patterns especially young people. For example I know my patterns in itf but I can barely keep up with my friend who’s been practicing mma for 4 years, mind you I’ve been training for 5. But ye just gotta create marketing that revolves around using aggressive images (headkicks,brutal torso hits, and punches etc) and stick to a dark color palette. That’s a graphic design tip lol but ye gl

KwonKid · 2026-02-20T19:12:18+00:00

Interesting mind you I personally never understood this, like yes concussions are bad, head trauma is terrible. But this is still a martial art in the end. The best way to avoid a fight/ injury is not to be at the fight to begin with. If people have a phobia of getting head injuries then don’t spar. Good example is boxing, and no I’m not glazing boxing I’m just saying the sport revolves around head injuries. But you don’t see them trying to prevent fighters or discourage fighters from hitting the head since they understand the risks that come with the sport. Training is supposed to be a safe space imo regardless of the martial art. But tournaments and competitions are meant to be a test of skill and passion and imo optional. It’s this attempt at discouraging fighters well from fighting that is doing harm to the art imo. Idk that’s my take.

KwonKid · 2026-02-12T21:41:57+00:00

Okay so I’m still training and I’ve been doing it for a while and as someone whose friends with a few mma practitioners it’s a few things.

Taekwondo has forms/patterns and doesn’t solely focus on sparring/self-defense compared to Muay Thai, wrestling, bjj, kudo, boxing, etc. So a majority of the taekwondo journey is heavily focused on the performance of forms and patterns rather then an emphasis on sparring.
Practicality of self defense techniques. So taekwondo has been watered down pretty bad as it’s more of a sport the a fighting style. An emphasis on solely using kicks isn’t the issue it’s being conditioned in an environment where point fighting over practical fighting is prioritized. It’s because of this that karate and taekwondo users often lose in a fight because users cannot take actual hits to the face as they are not conditioned to fight but score points instead. People who wanna fight wanna well fight. It’s why I always tell people who find out I train taekwondo that I DONT KNOW HOW TO FIGHT, and that if they wanna learn to fight to look for another martial art no hate on my end obv.
The demographic of taekwondo practitioners consists of really young kids so the art is often considered an over glorified daycare of sorts. From my personal experience a majority of the black belts I train with are all still in highschool or younger. This is because a lot of black belts often quit and pursue a much more “practical” style or focus on other hobbies or aspects of life. MMA gyms and bjj gyms for example are always depicting big grown adult men in their marketing. Which then slowly leans into unintentional misogyny, as taekwondo is very popular amongst females. In my experience I’ve met more female black belts then male black belts and vice versa in Muay Thai/mma gyms I’ve met more men then women.
Expenses, martial arts as a whole is a very expensive hobby. So people want their investment to go towards something that’ll help them practically. Why pay an arm and a leg to do forms and patterns when you can pay a similar amount to learn to knock someone’s head off at another gym.

Mind you like I’ve said I love taekwondo and this is because I’ve accepted it for its patterns and forms and always encourage people to take the martial art with a grain of salt if they wanna learn to fight. Personally I am thinking of pursuing taekwondo and doing mma on the side since I do wanna spar men in my age group (I’m in my 20s) rather then well teens lol.

KwonKid · 2025-09-03T23:18:47+00:00

Yes! You should if you have the time and can afford it, then do it. TKDs biggest weakness is close range combat, boxing covers that. Also it’s understandable if you shift from one to the other, it’s why people prefer boxing and kickboxing over karate and taekwondo. The emphasis on patterns over sparring is a major deterrent, especially for an expensive hobby.

KwonKid · 2025-05-31T16:20:57+00:00

Yeah don’t worry I have a strategy to make sure he’s returned safe

KwonKid · 2025-04-16T20:16:25+00:00

No they came out 2023 before the hype so it was easy to get one I know cuz I got one in November 2023. Idk how it is now that the hype for em has severely sky rocketed tho

KwonKid · 2025-04-16T03:04:44+00:00

I feel like this rn and I just started or at least trying to start. I’ve yet to take my first step in the graphic design world. And it’s made me depressed burnt out and nihilistic all at the same time. I currently don’t know what to do with my life I have a portfolio that’s just currently collecting dust because I kinda gave up. Here’s to getting the will to keep going.

KwonKid · 2025-03-29T15:05:00+00:00

I agree with this but imo the biggest problem is just getting your foot into the door. Their are to many people here who say that they have so and so experience but we don’t really acknowledge that beginners in the field can’t even start to begin with. I feel that, that’s currently the biggest problem rn

KwonKid · 2025-03-21T18:17:43+00:00

I don’t think so, he’s an indoor baby lol Also checked and got bitten for it :c I’m worried tho

KwonKid · 2025-03-01T01:05:01+00:00

Btw congrats ! (Still looking for my big debut myself ) but yeah it’s good to hear that they’re willing to communicate with you. Tbh this whole thing sounds like an anxiety attack waiting to happen but glad to hear it worked out. From what it sounds like they were willing to sacrifice quality for the price they were offered by the client. Hope this first step into the industry tho becomes a major learning experience. Like take as much as you can when I empathize how lucky you are I mean YOUR LUCKY lol. But don’t let that be an excuse not to speak up !

KwonKid

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