tae kwon do?

Question

i have been studying tae kwon do for about 5 years iam a 1st dan black belt i have been self taught and my friend who is a 3rd degree black belt helps me out also i sparr with him all the time and i want to maybe compete in some tae kwon do tournaments theres one comming up in 8 months and they said iif i want to join i would have to buy a 1st dan black belt rank certificate for $100 and i might have to show them what i know witch is know problem to me i already have a uniform and black belt with a yellow strip i want to know what your opinions are on this topic i am confident

the yellow strip is a yellow bar for 1st dan black blelt i taek tae kwon do seriously and i love it i have many books , videos on it witch helps me alot plus my friend who is a 3rd degree black belt hes my training buddy

i know about i do many forms , kicks , blocks , self defense techniques stances

even breaking boards and bricks

i dident rush threw this it took 5 years for my first dan black belt my buddy helped me alot the one whos a 3rd degree black belt he trained at 2 differant martial arts schools

plus some martial arts schools charge alot of money and iam still looking for a job iam only 17 i train like everyday iam not saying iam the best cause iam not i iam pretty good sparring with a 3rd degree i just would like to see how i would do in a tournament like someone said i have nothing to lose

and yes what iam talking about is the yellow strip around the end of the belt

and i even looked up belt testing requirements and matched up my level to theres i did this so many times

and some martial arts school are just into it for the money one of my friends was screwed in one martial arts place he wasent getting ahead at all

Answer 1

If there's a chance to test your skills out, I don't see why not. Though this is the first time i heard of ppl getting a first dan by self taught.

Sparring isn't as simple as just fighting one person. You need to fight more ppl cuz different ppl has different styles in fighting, be it offensive or defensive, long range or short, emphasize on footwork or more on techniques. It is always better to join a class where you can get more sparring session to gain more experience.

You can just get a black belt and get a gold bar sewn on for a small amt of money. But it is wat in you that matters. I stopped going for grading once i got my first dan. Cuz that's the minimum that i can get access to tournaments so that i can fight ppl all over the country.

I used to train with at least 6 different instructors eight times a week, 3 hrs per session. I was luck to get free lesson because of my 7th dan instructor's influence. I'm happy to be able to fight ppl from different weight cats and style.

I believe you should get in a class and start sparring with more ppl other then your fren. Train Hard! Hopes this helps.

Answer 2

I'm a little confused as to how you have graded if you have self taught the levels. who has graded you. Generally when you grade you pay the grading fee which includes your belt and certificates.

Is it ITF style taekwondo you have been doing? I am not really aware of a yellow strip on the belt representing 1st dan. we have a black belt with a stripe around the end of the belt. also plane black belt with no markings for sparring competitions.

My suggestion is to go to a taekwondo school and ask them their official ruling on entering competitions as well as if they can assist you on getting the full skills and certifications required.

If it was as easy as purchasing a belt and certificate for $100 then you would think that no one would bother doing the classes, they would save time and money by purchasing it, and not having the full skills required.

It is one thing to know some forms, kicks, blocks etc, but it is another to actually be able to use them effectively, and competitions are a lot different to simply sparring with a friend. these people would have had official training for years and will possibly have more skills than what you have taught yourself.

people can learn things from books, the internet and videos quite easily, and just as easily go to a shop and purchase a uniform, but it is all in the training, dicipline and time that you can truly master the art.

Answer 3

There are so many answers to this question. I started in Tae Kwon Do and it is my base art and I love it even though I no longer practice it. But even I have some qualms with how it is taught for the most part now. I think one of the hugest problems people see with it is the hands are always down. I was taught from a young age and even in TKD to always keep my hands up. They wear a lot of pads. Look at the Kyokoshin fighting. They have practically the same rule set yet the Kyokoshin use no pad, at all. This can lead people to think it is a "weaker" art.It is littered with McDojo's. I live in a small town with very little martial arts being taught. There are five TKD dojangs and three of them are bad. This is not a good way to show the public what a great art TKD is. I think the over all practicality of what is seen in the Olympics is quite poor for actual self defense and has lead people to believe that that is what TKD is all about. Which is not the case. There is not two reasons TKD has gotten its bad rap but rather a plethora of them that could take pages up on pages to write. It is still a great art and I believe will find favor in the eyes of the public again one day

Answer 4

You do know that you are going to mcdojang right. It takes more than 5 years to get a black belt in traditional tae kwon do. I have been doing it for 10 years and it will take me 5 more before I get my black belt, so I will be around 19 when I get it. IN addition, you can not be self taught.

Answer 5

As long as they take you all the way through: I think that is fine. I just think your test should be just as tuff (If not tougher) as it would be for anyone else, and that maybe you should take the tests over periods, or just one big test where you show that you've learned everything.
It is also, however, difficult to determine how much memory you have of everything. Sure you can do a techniques, but what about when you are under the pressure?

Answer 6

If there allowing you to compete you should. I take it your not from England? cos u used the $ sign anyway, in England ther strict on competitions so if i was u i would take any oppurtunity. Also if ur confident then you shud definately comptete.

Answer 7

Take the test. From what I can understand, you've got nothing to lose.
Good luck.