Hapkido

[JUDO Novice]

What do you guys think about this art. My friend does it and brags about all the arm twisting, throws, and boxing style punches. Have any of you guys done it? Do you think all that twisting is useful in a fight?

[StraightBlaster]

Hapkido has some good stuff in it. But allot of crap. Its a fun art, but if you want to be able to stand up to trained fighters you probally want to look else where. Of course hapkido will swear that there art is great against trained fighters but no one has ever seen a hapkido guy tear apart boxers, wrestlers, mma guys and such. Just hasn't happend. they will say it has, but won't be able to prove it

[MrPoopy]

Am I right when I say that most of the throwing done in hapkido is done with wristlocks?

[ceasarx]

I have seen two kinds of Hapkido and one seems to work well but the other seemed to be lacking. The one system I seen uses wrist throws joint locks low kicks and good strikes that aimed for nerves and vitals. the other looked like TKD with a few traps. I would be carefull before joining and make sure you know wich one they are useing. If the instructor tells you that Hapkido is a variation or is derived from Aikijujitsu then he or she is probably for real but look before you leap.

[MrPoopy]

ceasarx, you know anything about akijujitsu? My instructor has a couple of akijujitsu training vidoes. I thought about borowing them from him but I'm not sure what aikijujitsu is.

[ceasarx]

I know a little bit about aikijujitsu. But I dont think training with video's Aikijujitsu is a system based on movement and blending with your opponents energy so you can redirect it. Its combat effectiveness is not real good at first but if studied and practiced it becomes very lethal.

[pattrikbateman]

From what i know, hapkido is basically a combined/mixed art. It incorporates the twisting/spinning and circular from other korean arts(which goes back to chinese arts), and also the straight line/angles and grappling from japanese arts (again going back to china originally).

Kind of like learning some taekyon/taekwondo/hwarangdo and alo some judo/aikido/jujutsu combined together.

However I dont beleive that its structure and depth is as comprehensive and as well rounded and formatted as some of these other arts.

But at the end of it all, its good for something, and the whole concept of "this art" vs "that art" is becoming increasingly redundant in this MMA day and age we live in.

Go and train in it then you can say "I did hapkido for so and so years ..." then go and do something else.... then make up your own mind.