Originally Posted by bodhisattva

Anyone can practice MMA style sparring safely and effectively.

A martial arts school should be EDUCATING these people about that fact. If they come in to the school thinking "Well, I don't want to get hurt, so I don't want to spar" then the teacher should DO HIS JOB and TEACH the guy that he doesn't need to get hurt while sparring.

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The average TKD blackbelt needn't go look for a muay thai, bjj, or MMA guy to have his ass handed to him in a blanket. The average TKD black belt can't even take on the local rugby hero.

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Even if people DO practice fighting in their TKD classes, they still don't get better at fighting. Why? Because the practices are all backwards.


If I teach you to do a jump shot in basket ball with your ankles crossed - you won't get much better at your jump shot whether you actually PLAY GAMES against other teams OR NOT.

Because the method I showed you was all jacked-up.

So whether a TKD guy fights, or not, doesn't much matter. If his hand is on his hip when he throws a punch - he's getting knocked-the-f-out.

If he defends his groin with his hands, he's getting knocked out.

If he stands in a wide stance, I'm sweeping him, throwing him, or simply knocking him out.

If he shouts "Kiai!" when he punches me..well..he might win then - because I'll start laughing and he actually might land one of those silly reverse punches on me..but ONLY if he makes me start laughing.

It's just fradulent. It is a game (and a fun one) but NOT a martial art.