Kung Fu comared to TKD (not a whose better thread!)

[tkdcanada]

I'd rather hear from someone who isn't trying to sell me something. I am only familiar with TKD. Got into that three years ago, loved it and that's that. Now, my daughter wants to try Kung Fu. I can go and check out the school, but I'd rather be informed by a neutral party who isn't trying to bring in students. Can someone give me some quick comparisons as to what Kung Fu is all about?

[sean_stonehart]

I'd rather hear from someone who isn't trying to sell me something. I am only familiar with TKD. Got into that three years ago, loved it and that's that. Now, my daughter wants to try Kung Fu. I can go and check out the school, but I'd rather be informed by a neutral party who isn't trying to bring in students. Can someone give me some quick comparisons as to what Kung Fu is all about?

Micheline... it depends. Truly it does...

Give me a website of the school (if there's one) & I'll give you my feedback. I'm a CMA practitioner, but I started with TKD (MDK TKD) so I can understand where you may be coming from.

[tkdcanada]

Thanks Sean. Here is the link for the school we have in our town:

http://www.fangshendo.com/index.html

Please let me know what you think.

[sean_stonehart]

I'll PM you what I found when I get a chance...

Also if you would PM me a little more geographic info about your area... it'll help.

[Mandeigh Wells]

hmmm Sean are you thinking what I am thinking? a little Mc Dojo like or the Kung Fu equivilant.....a Mc Kwoon....if they exsist...

[kodanjaclay]

Well... have you ever seen Samurai swords on the wall of a Kung Fu school? My Sifu has a rack of traditional Chinese weapons, and then there's "bertha"... the heaviest broadsword I have ever seen. Samurai swords are not even mildly good replacements for the jian.

Mandeigh, would you like a side of fries with that sash and qigong?

[nythius]

As aforementioned teh quality of instruction can greatly vary from school to school, but to try and compare TKD to Kung Fu iwould be difficult at the best of times simply because as far as striking goes, tehy're at opposite ends of the spectrum.

[sean_stonehart]

hmmm Sean are you thinking what I am thinking? a little Mc Dojo like or the Kung Fu equivilant.....a Mc Kwoon....if they exsist...

Oh.... they exist....

And.... maybe we think a little alike...

[yamatodamashii]

Actually, while I consider myself the scourge of McDojo's everywhere, the video clip available on the site does show some good technique. It's in short flashes, so it's hard to tell, but if I lived near this school, I would stop in. It is definitely an *eclectic* style, however, and not a pure Chinese system--some of the rattan stick techniques I know come straight out of kali.

[Sinawali_C]

..... Can someone give me some quick comparisons as to what Kung Fu is all about?

I've studied TDK and also different Kung Fu styles for years now. The only thing a could tell you definitly is that it depends on the style. There are some "hard" styles which are not too far away from TKD or Karate. Direct punches and kicks, hard blocks with a little different footwork and handstrikes ( tigerclaw etc.). But there are also some "softer" styles with fluid motions best known example maybe Tai Chi but also Wing Tsung is a soft Style. Numberless animal styles with and without weapon usage....

If you got the time just join same classes with your daughter and you will know !!

[jakmak52]

Oh.... they exist....

And.... maybe we think a little alike...

Big Mac w/Cheese

[Spartan]

I can't help but noticing your incredible sense of humor as reflected in quite a few of your posts.

[Kyuusaku]

What is "kung fu", exactly? I would say that Kung Fu schools have a lot of variance - in other words, you might find schools far worse than the typical TKD school, about the same, and much better. Some schools will be very traditional and combat-oriented, while others will be more commercial.

The school you are looking at appears to be quite commercial, at least. "Fang Shen Do" is also not a traditional Chinese kung fu style, so the material is taken from this and that, I guess. Of course, the 'sijo' may be a good fighter, anyway. It may help to compare with what other kung fu schools are in your area to make a better decision.

There are many other places you can check out in Ontario:

You could also try:

www.bajimen.com (Bajiquan, Piguaquan, Baguazhang, and other styles)
www.wustyle.com (Wu style Taijiquan)
www.grandmasterpan.com (Qinna, other styles)

Good luck! Think carefully, and then make a decision!

Sincerely,
Edward Cha

[John Lucas]

Kung-fu is a very broad term, Translated literally, it means "Hard work and acheivement."

As to whether your daughter should go to Kung-fu or TKD depends entirely upon what her goals are, and the quality of schools around you, personally I would not reccomend the aforementioned school, it looks very commercialized as other have already said.

However, you need to consider what your daughter is going to get out of this. Most TKD is a sport, and while it will provide your daughter with excellent conditioning and self-confidence, the value it will provide an an actual altercation on the street is pretty doubtful. Not to trash TKD as there are many traditional schools of TKD which teach actual effective defense, but if someone doesnt no better and tries to throw one of those high-point flying spinning jump-kicks in real life than they are likely going to hit the pavement as hard as they left the ground. I personally have experienced this, My girlfriends Ex-boyfriend is a "blackbelt" from a TKD mcdojo. He has quite a jealousy problem and has threatened me as well as my girlfriend on more than one occasion. Once we met downtown, luckily, My girlfriend was not with me. I tried my best to avoid him, and ignore his insults and threats, but when he aimed a round-house at my head, I quickly took action and threw him to the ground, and went down on top of him planting his knee to his chest. Needless to say he changed his attitude pretty quickly at that point. I would like to re-iterate that I mean no offense to Tae Kwan Do or any of its practicioners, as what he trained was obviously sport, and any school that rewards a black belt to someone as rash as him as quickly as they did should be seriously questioned.

[JessePasley]

Thank you for your anecdotal evidence as to why somebody shouldn't train in taekwondo and other 'sports.'

[tkdcanada]

Kung-fu is a very broad term, Translated literally, it means "Hard work and acheivement."

As to whether your daughter should go to Kung-fu or TKD depends entirely upon what her goals are, and the quality of schools around you, personally I would not reccomend the aforementioned school, it looks very commercialized as other have already said.

However, you need to consider what your daughter is going to get out of this. Most TKD is a sport, and while it will provide your daughter with excellent conditioning and self-confidence, the value it will provide an an actual altercation on the street is pretty doubtful. Not to trash TKD as there are many traditional schools of TKD which teach actual effective defense, but if someone doesnt no better and tries to throw one of those high-point flying spinning jump-kicks in real life than they are likely going to hit the pavement as hard as they left the ground. I personally have experienced this, My girlfriends Ex-boyfriend is a "blackbelt" from a TKD mcdojo. He has quite a jealousy problem and has threatened me as well as my girlfriend on more than one occasion. Once we met downtown, luckily, My girlfriend was not with me. I tried my best to avoid him, and ignore his insults and threats, but when he aimed a round-house at my head, I quickly took action and threw him to the ground, and went down on top of him planting his knee to his chest. Needless to say he changed his attitude pretty quickly at that point. I would like to re-iterate that I mean no offense to Tae Kwan Do or any of its practicioners, as what he trained was obviously sport, and any school that rewards a black belt to someone as rash as him as quickly as they did should be seriously questioned.

Thanks for your reply, Dave. A few points about where I come from. There is only ONE Kung Fu school, ONE Taekwondo school, ONE karate school, ONE judo school...you get my point. Not a whole lot of choice. So basically, I've made my decision on the Kung Fu school based on what my hunches were and the fact that pretty much everyone here reinforced those hunches. My daughter recently mentioned wanting to go back to TKD, so we'll probably do that this spring/summer. I'm not concerned with getting skills that are adequate for street altercations for myself or my daughter because it just isn't a concern here. I'm well aware of the differences between sport fighting and street fighting - I'm good with the sport. Our purposes are more for sport sparring and for all around personal development. I may look for kickboxing for myself, but I don't think there is a school for that here (I've been asking around).

[John Lucas]

I see, I had not paid attention to the fact that you live in a friendlier place than me. TKD definitely has value as a sport, especially in the fact that it provides you with confidence and a good workout. I would suggest that if your daughter says thats what she wants to do, and it is purely out of the fun of it that you should probably let her decide what she wants to do. She would be more likely to show dedication to and enjoy it if its where she wants to be.

[tkdcanada]

I totally agree with letting her decide what she wants to do; but if she wants to try something at a school that turns out to be more profit focused than student focused, I don't even want to open that can of worms, hence my looking into this Kung Fu school before deciding whether to even let her try it. As for the TKD school, we have already trained there for three years and so I know it has some good merit (although it also has its problems). Training TKD was losing its appeal for a while and I think she just needed to step back from it in order to appreciate it again. However, the ball is definitely in her court, whatever she does, it needs to be for her own intrinsic reasons to be of any value, otherwise, it's not worth doing.

[kodanjaclay]

Dave,

As someone who has done both, I have found that depending on the style of Kung Fu, it can help a young lady be artistically expressive at the same time that she learns fighting. My wife studied a Long Fist/Eagle Claw mix after having done TKD and the difference in her performance in the two was profound. Especially if she is like my wife and has long limbs. Not to mention that the weaponry tends to act like resistence training.

Now as to effectiveness, I think we both know that is dependent on the effort placed rather than the art.

[kwan kune]

i wouldn't toutch these guys
you will have beter luck with a specific kind of kung fu
shen lung chaun
seven star mantis
hua
fe fu
lo han
and the like it is hard to find one that does all styles that isn't a $$$ vortex but theyre out there