taekwondo or karate, which one should i choose?

[hilman]

i already make a research about this. i know many would say that it depends on the fighter and the teacher. but how about the art itself? im 17 and want to take martial art and i still cant decide which one to choose. my goal is for fitness and self defense. its either WTF taekwondo or karate. i know many would say go for ITF but i cant found any ITF class around me. and WTF is not bad, it also got punches... and it can really give me benefits in fitness and flexibility. i live in malaysia and generally, many take the taekwondo class. taekwondo will benefits me more in fitness, flexibility and leg strength while karate will benefits me more in strength especially upper body strength. actually, i want to take martial arts class for fitness more than self defense but self defense also important which means karate is more suitable. actually, through out 17 years of my life, i never involved in fighting. so, learning self defense is also crucial for me coz anything can happen to me. my friends that took taekwondo said taekwondo is fun and from watching it on youtube, taekwondo do look funnier and more interesting compared to karate which a little bit boring. but i do admit karate is more practical in street fight. since there are more people learning taekwondo in malaysia, learning karate will be more 'Wow' here coz there is less karate people than taekwond people here. im really confused which one to learn... i hope someone that really has experienced in learning both arts can give me some info and help me..

 

[BUSHIDO]

karate.

 

[ColetDeathMetalRockst]

OK idiots time for your martial arts lesson

WTF taekwondo means: world taekwondo federation (olympic sparring style no face punches) and is also a runnof of ITF

ITF taekwon-do is: international taekwondo federation and is the traditional taekwondo style created by general choi. (sparring includes light pads and face punches like other martial arts)

and when you spar in WTF you look like the michelin man and its difficult to move, just saying.


TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION: it is not a matter of witch martial art its a matter of witch has the best instructor. and if taekwondo seems funny to you then you obviously shouldnt take it if you are not going to take it seriously

 

[devon]

I prefer Karate

 

[Victoria]

Sorry I didn't read any of it but do craw mcraw!

 

[Jonathen]

i would personally pick karate because while tae kwon do has some good things its primarily using the feet and barely use any other part of the body. while karate is an overall martial art using both the hands and the feet and especially if your learning for self defense tae kwon do isnt the most practical self defense to use unless your at a high level. so again karate is the best one as far as self defense is concerned but they but are equally great for fitness infact tae kwon do probablly uses more core muscles because you use alot more of your core to kick than to punch.

 

[Sev]

There are WTF schools that teach self-defense as the primary focus of its curriculum too. I know of at least two posters on this site that are a part or own a WTF school of some sorts. It just so happens that there are more schools, from my experience, that teach the sport variation of Taekwondo associated with the WTF than the ITF. My school was one of those (once upon a time) an exception.

WTF stands for World Taekwondo Federation. It's not so much a style as it is an organization. ITF stands for International Taekwondo Federation which is ALSO a style.

Karate and Taekwondo are equally practical for self-defense. It just depends on the person which I aim for your first question: It's not the style, it's the person. Many on here will back me up on that.

It would seem that you've mentioned what you need to know to make a decision. Both will benefit you. It all comes down to who is teaching you. If a Taekwondo school has a bad teacher, I'd choose the Karate dojo. If the dojo has a bad teacher, I'd go for the Taekwondo school. The point is, find a good teacher. Doesn't matter the style.

Good luck

 

[Kemjiu®]

Style must not be the basis if what to choose, every art has an edge, advantage and disadvantage if we compare them, things here is about an efficient skills and knowledge that only legit Instructor can give, he can explain about some important details, and can give an accurate and efficient kind of ability that can help you just in case time dictate that you need to use it.

Besides, this is the kind of question that you itself must answer, because aside from us, you are the one who knows your capability especially on handling some physical and mental kind of activities.

It is better if you visit some Martial Arts training place (dojo / dojang) and you must ask some important question on the assigned Instructor, maybe through that effort, you can decide what's better for you and not.


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[Jago]

um...al i can say is choose the one you like the most from the research. and wtf is WTF TKD???

sorry i dont know what WTF tkd means, jesus, dont bite my fu!cking head off. im only concerned about knowing all i can from muay thai, i dont research other arts much. jeez