koreantiger81

do you think a person who is good at only using the front leg be able to succussfully go against a W.T.F stylist that likes to use the quick "switch round house technique"?

I come from a style discouraging the use of the back leg because it opens your vital target areas. We mainly use our front leg and front hand as our initial form of defense and attack. The back leg is only used to counter with a reverse back leg or a reverse back hook kick. Since we mainly like to use the front leg and front punch, our stance is "heel to heel". We expose less surface area to our opponents.This provides a very good way of protecting your target areas. Anyway, I want to learn how to effectively use my back leg so I can become a more versatile fighter. Should I alter my stance?(Perhaps fighting with my heels an inch or two apart so the kick is less telegraphic?) Should I stay in a low stance? HOw do you effectively do the quick back leg right and left round house kick combo that W.T.F stylists do so well?

1. Heel to heel-your front and back leg are aligned in a straight line. The advantages of a heel to heel sparring stance includes: good protection of your stomach area exposing minimal surface target area, quick front leg and front punch attack. Since your body is aligned in a perfect line, it allows for quick attacks. "The quickest way to get from A to B is a straight line. The disadvantage is you totally telegraph your back leg kicks. 2. Heels two to three inches apart-This allows for quick back leg attacks, but exposes a greater surface area... I always thought a heel to heel sparring stance was the only way to go, until my W.T.F master point out otherwise. I"m unsure now of the best sparring stance...What do you think?

yes, i'm lucky but it costs almost a grand to get your black-belt.

molson...Which do jang do you come from? DT Lims? Kee's Tae kwon do? Open-style sparring club? The one at Douglas College?? I'm very familiar with do jangs in Vancouver, cause I used to be a former Vancouverite. Anyway, welcome aboard. (han gook bune ee sae yo?)

well, my mom won't teach me 'cause she says, "ggot choo dduh ruh jo"..(Korean inside joke..It sounds better in korean.)"guys don't make kimchi"

I love KIMCHI. how do you make it

yes, unfortunately it seems unrealistic to copy-right a form. I'm just displeased that the integrity of a form/pattern is lost when "just anyone" tries to teach the form/pattern. Some movements may be altered because of misinterpretation of the form/pattern, which causes discrepancies betweem do-jos.. I'm sure General Choi had a purpose for each move. By altering even one movement, it changes the meaning of the form/pattern.

http://www.thefactsaboutfitness.com/research/stretchingresearch.htm http://my.webmd.com/content/article/1676.56282

My kinesiology professor/doctor says: "Empirical evidence would seem to support flexibility development as a means to reducing injuries and improving performance. However, there is very little in the way of hard, scientific evidence to support the aforementioned contention. " Why is there no hard evidence? "It is extremely difficult to control all factors that affect injuries. It is possible that other causes of injury is responsible, such as poor strength development around a joint. " In addition, "there is no hard evidence that stretching after exercise will reduce secondary soreness..." Do you guys notice a decrease in secondary soreness if you stretch during your cool-down period? Anyways, I'm promoting not to stretch. Personally, I would continue to stretch, unless there is the discovering of concrete evidence against stretching... I just thought this was interesting.. (By the way this thread only concentrates on stretching and not warming up to raise your core body temperature.)

Bon... I don't ban cross-training..Each martial arts has its own limitations....I also believe you have to be careful on which two styles you cross-train in..If the rules are completely different in the two styles you choose to cross-train in SIMULTANEOUSLY, your rthyum, speed, timing, and reaction, may be affected... Like you said, you can learn how to box best by taking boxing...YOu can learn how to kick best, by taking tae kwon do...However, the story changes when you try to link boxing and kicking in a fight... YOu have to learn how to kick and transfer your weight into a punch.. Furthermore, boxers fight with one side with more of their body facing their opponent..tae kwon doist will change sides and less of their bodies face their opponents...Which stance will BizMarkie choose? How will he link hands with his kicks? Sure the punches in I.T.F and Muay Thai may not be better than the punches in boxing, but the I.T.F, Muay Thai and other kicking and fighting styles, are styles which effectively link punches with kicks...

it sounds good, but I don't think it's a good idea....i believe if you want a balance of kicking and punching you should do muay thai, instead of taking two different fighting styles simultaneously...When you box, you have to discipline yourself not to kick...Likewise, when you kick, you have to discipline yourself not to punch to the head...This may cause discrupt your rhythm and fluidity in sparring...Your reaction speed may also be altered.. YOu may encounter a problem of trying to link your kicks with your punches, when fighting on the street. Keep in mind Tae kwon do can limit punches by quickly closing the gap, so you can't punch...You will develop this habit of closing the gap, thus limiting your ability to punch...(it therefore has the potential of becoming a grappling match on the street.) I sense you want to take boxing and tae kwon do for practical fighting for the street...Remember, that some kicks in tae kwon do are not practical for the street.... My advice is, if you're so keen on having a balance of kicking and punching, try tae kwon do first..AFter you are proficient in Tae kwon do, move on to boxing...OR take boxing with an I.T.F style of tae kwon do, where they DO actively incorporate punches, including punching to the head...(Remember, the W.T.F style of tae kwon do is commonly referred to as the "KIcking art..There are different styles of tae kwon do which stress punching..") Finally, as i mentioned earlier, you may resort to Muay Thai... Taking two vast different styles with different rules simultaneously, will confuse your ability to fight in a fluid matter.

I'm currently doing W.t.f style figthing...I'm used to the fighting done in the N.B.L or NASKA circuit.(I.T.F style sparring)...Anyway, I've been working very hard on getting my rhythm in W.T.f sparring. I never thought I would lose my rhythm by doing w.t.f.....I can't explain why I can't get it back....I have good rhythm in I.T.f sparring, but in W.T.f sparring, I have a huge mental block..At first I thought it was because of the difference in contact levels between the two styles; however, my W.T.f school practices moderate contact sparring...Could it be because I"m restricted on the number of techniques I can use? (PUnches, backfist, blitz's to the head, are my favorite techniques..) I do feel like I'm restricted on the techniques I can use...anyway, help me! Any suggestions? Why do I have my rhythm when doing I.t.f sparring, but lose my rhythm when doing W.t.f sparring? It doesn't make sense to me..

belts are ok...If a martial arts system has many belts to get to black-belt, then I say it's a scam...I've seen systems with 17 belts...

stunts are unrealistic????? He's using wire-fu!?? I guess his age is catching up to him.... I like his movies because they are realistic.....

to do a right side shoulder roll.. 1)Position your right leg ahead of your left leg. 2)Position your right arm into an arch, a half a meter ahead or your lead foot...(Make sure your palm is facing the ground.) 3)Most importantly, turn your head to the left..(duck a little) By turning your head to the left, you will naturallly go into a shoulder roll..(Just make sure you go in a straight line.) Stay loose too...REmember, your palm first touches, then your forearm, then triceps, then your right shoulder and so on..

If the instructor picks on you, he believes you're competent..Think of it as a compliment...If you have a problem with being picked, just kindly talk to your instructor..

on the street?? Most likely you'll get attacked against your will, by someone on the street or someone at a bar/club. Also, most likely you won't be wearing your "do bok" on the street, when you do get attacked...On a causal day, guys may wear jeans and their heavy Doc Martens. Women may wear skirts with their high heels.... I can do the splits in my do bok, but jeans limit the range of motion i can make with my legs......Also, I feel like i'll twist my ankle if I attempt to do a kick...(These Doc martens that I wear, don't allow my foot to pivot well, when doing a side-kick.) It's true, I could keep my kicks low, but my mobility and range of motion is still limited by my jeans and my shoes..To me, the techniques of Tae kwon do are meaningless on the street..(it's true that studying Tae kwon do will give you an understanding of timing, reaction, and distance, but that's about it..).I believe resorting to punches may be my best option...I believe Tae kwon do was useful when the Hwa rang warriors united the 3 Koreas. I"m sure they didn't wear jeans or bulky shoes...However, our dress code today limits the potential of using Tae kwon do on the street.... Anyway, how do you feel about using your Tae kwon do skills on the street?

I find that if instructors have a degree related to fitness or education, it will dramatically improve how your students learn. At one time, I was lucky to train under a very educated master....I can say he was probably the most well-rounded and best martial arts master, i've trained under..(he was also the most expensive).. Throughout his life, he was a doctor, biology professor, and a coach. (Sounds too good to be true, but his reputation is well known in my area.) Because of his education, he understood kinetic anatomy of the body, psychology, and how to teach which greatly helped his students effectively learn martial arts....I know there are a lot of good masters out there, who don't even have an education. Most traditional masters who immigrated to North America, didn't actually go to post-secondary education,but they are still good at what they do...Anyway, the whole point of this thread was to ask, "Do you think instructors should also have some academic credentials?""

back leg roundhouse or turning kick? Picture this first. 1. Left hand sparring stance.(left hand and leg is in front.) 2. Back leg roundhouse/turning kick..therefore, your right leg is doing the kick.. Now where do you put your hands? In the above sparring position, Muay Thai stylists extend their right arm past their leg and position their left hand on the right side of their cheek, to protect their face. I believe extending the right arm past your leg serves as a good counter-balance and generates lots of power, but it'll take more time to follow up with that right hand with a punch, since it's extended far past your leg.... Other upright stylists, just keep their hands up right in front of them so it's easy to follow up the hands and protect your face. Which is more effective? Where should your hands be to generate the most power? Where should your hands be for speed and protection? How do you do it?

If you work at any retail outlet or any company, usually there are perks for their employees. Unfortunately, I paid regular tuition while instructed at one school. A discount on tuition would of helped, since it was extremely expensive. Half of my earnings went to my tuition..

ARe kata's useful? I believe some people link sparring with katas, thus coming to the conclusion, that katas are useless. Yes, kata's will teach you balance, coordination, and proper form which may help develop your sparring abilities. However, to effectively an efficiently learn how to spar, you must actually engage in the activity of sparring...As Bruce Lee says, "I think the highest state of martial art, in application, must have no absolute form. And, to tackle pattern A with pattern B may not be absolutely correct. " I believe katas are useless if you link it to improving your sparring; however, that doesn't mean katas should be removed from martial arts. You have to keep in mind that martial arts is not just about sparring. I believe this era views martial arts as a sport or a fighting activity. The tradition and the true meaning of martial arts has been forgotten as people emphasize the sparring aspect of martial arts. Thus topics such as this thread is constantly debated among so called "martial artists"...I believe that martial arts is not just about fighting. It's not just about self-defense. Practicing katas, may not efficiently improve your sparring, but they are not useless. Katas are an integral part of martial arts, because doing katas requires discipline and your only opponent is yourself. (It requires discipline to position yourself in low stances and do unfamiliar movements, but once you master it you gain satisfication and confidence in your abilities.) It's a martial ballet. If you want to consider yourself a martial artist, you must be educated in the area of martial philosophy, sparring, katas, culture, and history of your martial art...As Jhoon Rhee says, "Without philosophy, it's a sport." By just emphasizing sparring, you are only practicing a sport like boxing...It becomes a martial sport.

I was hired at a school and at the same time I trained at this school. I still had to pay regular tuition fees to train. Do you still pay for tuition, if you're an instructor and a student at your do jang?

As a fake, sometimes I like to cross my legs and then execute the "Blitz". The Blitz is disguised because my opponent thinks that I will kick him.

Bouncing can be benificial if used properly...You should bounce in a relaxed manner. Some people bounce too aggresively....Bouncing shouldn't always be done in a constant rthyum. If you bounce in a constant rthyum, your opponent will figure out your reaction timing....Try and bounce in a irregular fashion. When i spar, I bounce and not bounce. To the observer it literally looks like i'm dancing. I like to vary the rythum so my opponent cannot predict my timing...