I came to a conclusion several years ago that there were many changes that I needed to make in my program. While I have always been a traditional Taekwondo school I knew that there was something missing. My sign says Karate and the schools patch reads Martial Arts. What I realized was that although we were teaching a very good traditional Taekwondo program with its many physical benefits and disciplines, we were missing the more practical side of self-defense that comes with learning martial arts. Taekwondo in general is a great physical workout. It’s a great sport (its in the Olympics) and we host a number of tournaments a year. Although it’s considered a devastating kicking art, it’s not complete. There are many aspects of Taekwondo that leave training scars and that are not at all practical on the street in real life self defense. Doing all the high kicks with its many spins and aerials in sparring are not practical in self-defense. The controlled environment of free sparring with its many rules and illegal target areas, as well as the padding used, leave training scars do to the way the training is conducted. This in part is due to safety issues, as nobody wants to get hit with bare knuckles and feet.

Due to this I decided some time back to incorporate other systems into the program that were more conducive to the self defense that so many of the students are here to learn. The traditions and discipline in the Taekwondo class remain. The sparring, forms, board breaks, the many kicking routines are all part of the basic Taekwondo structure. The basic western boxing and basic Taekwondo kicks play well with the other systems introduced into the classroom. Many of the juniors, teens and adults are learning defensive moves that are not part of traditional Taekwondo. These moves are practical and they work. These complex arts introduced over the last couple of years include Muay Thai, Jun Fan Kung Fu, Silat, Rapos De Prada (Submission grappling), Lacoste Kali and Inayan Eskrima with their many sub-systems. These styles are more combative in nature. They are practical to street fighting. They are not governed by tradition and or fixed movements. They may be more complex and challenging than the simple moves of an easier to learn Taekwondo system. However paired with the discipline of Taekwondo kicking these arts together can be a devastating tool in real practical defense.

Most of people are familiar with Taekwondo in movies and on the TV. Chuck Norris (Walker Texas Ranger) and Power Rangers are prime examples of these Taekwondo skills. Kali, Eskrima and JKD are what most of you have seen in the Bruce Lee, Bourne Identity and John Wick films. These arts are closer, tighter, and very real. Their culture incorporates the use of improvised weapons and stick and blade, as well as the use of flexible and fixed weapons, beyond the use of a Bo, Nunchacku or kama. They are more brutal and use targets that are not allowed in the Taekwondo sparring and are very practical in their nature. Over the last several years as I have continued my training in these variety of arts, I have taken every step necessary to introduce them to my program here. True the time it takes to learn them is longer and more demanding but the rewards of knowing them far outweigh the demands of learning them. The fact that I have been able to learn and teach them as practical defense in my program is beyond satisfying. We are now truly teaching something more than just a sport or a tradition. We are teaching students how to defend themselves in real time with real life practical defense. Like I said the sign says Karate and our patch Martial Arts. This is beyond rewarding as an instructor.