WTF how does ATA get so many students when theyre bull?

Question

I do BJJ, another Ju-jitsu and Aikido at a school near an ATA and i walked by the ATA one day and saw them witrh nearly 50 students. and half of them were BB. And none of them were any good literally i could have took the sensei out in less than 2 min.. so im wondering how can a BS school get so many students

heres view on this if you want to get in shape join a gym. if you want to learn morals go to a (church, mosque or wherever you worship) but if you want to learn how to fight and defend yourself that way you dont have to worry about being attacked so much go to a martial arts class. Now im sure Tae Kwon Do is a great art but the watered down version isnt. IDK maybe im being a lil to judgemental about it but thats my view if a guy whose only been doing MA for 3 years can beat one of there supposed masters somethings wrong. Like i said before Tae kwon do is a great art when used properky but there all flash no power

Answer 1

Certain tae kwon do schools, as well as other martial art styles appeal to the "hey, lets be friends" or "I'm Ok, your OK" groups. Unfortunately the promise of something structured and "nice" appeals to many parents. They don't want junior to get hurt, they just want him to have fun and stay fit doing it. If he thinks he'll be the next Chuck Norris, all the better because he'll stick with it, and maybe he'll even learn some martial arts. Oh, and lets not forget the "competitors" these are the sporty, I want to win trophies, martial artists. They can't fight very well, but boy can they point spar and do forms.
I might seem to be coming down hard on these types of schools, and perhaps I am, because I teach a self defense class, not an exercise program. I do think they serve a few purposes however. Number one, they do provide kids with something to do other then being punks. Number two, some students may actually gain enough martial knowledge to move on to better schools and do well. Number three, it keeps the whiners out of my school !!!

Answer 2

Here's my 2 cents worth on this, the guy above me is right, not all people who take up martial arts do so to beat other people in one on one matches. It's their money, so if it makes them feel good about themselves to pretend to be like their martial arts movie idols and do fancy kicks, no harm done. The fact that some people pander to this by setting up McDojos is regrettable but part of reality, there will always be someone who wants to make a buck out of other people's delusions, although I'm not saying all of those dojos are McDojos. And if you think about it, there are far a lot more out of shape guys out there who can't take the pain and hardship of so called "reality" training than guys with the right dedication to actually devote a great amount of their time exclusively to their training and endure pain to earn their stripes. If you are one of the few, then my kudos, but the majority who don't have the time or inclination to put in the hard work or tolerate the pain would rather settle for what's easy, hence the more number of students for the dojos you mention.

Answer 3

The intention on many students is not to become a fighter, but an athlete. If you look at martial arts as a way to become a great athlete , well ATA is very successful at this task.
BJJ is awesome as are the 5 fighting arts of MMA, but not all Martial Arts have the same goal.
If I was overweight, and wanted friends as I become better tuned to my mind and body, ATA is great again. The discipline taught helps build good character.
Many lessons to win a street fight against a trained fighter are not in ATA, but many students in todays martial arts classes never fought or want to. They are all still capable of leading a Martial life based in the way as they ar taught by their sifu/sensi.
Beating a Sensi in a fight is not a great value if his life is much better than yours due to better values he was taught. This only makes you a problem not an answer.

Answer 4

Smart marketing. Why do you care, anyway? Some of the students will realize that ATA taekwondo is crap and move on to other arts. Others will open McDojo's and make a lot of money. Either way they aren't bothering us.

Answer 5

im an ATA student. the reason they get so many students is becaus ethere are so many dojos and its easy. is appeals alot to kids and stuff, but it really depends on the school and teacher. i agree that is doesnt teach anything but how to spar in ATA and compete in ATA competitions, thats why im getting into muay thai and BJJ as well.

Answer 6

And your message exhibits a black belt attitude how?