Taikwondo or Karate??

Question

heya I am 16 years old. Just wondering...am i too old for these? if not which is better? Taikwondo or Karate?

Answer 1

You are never to old to begin training. Just ask my two 70 year olds.

Tae Kwon Do is a sport and quite often their students at black belt level have little ability outside of the ring or dojo. They do not learn the physics, musclular movement and tactical parts of martial arts.

Karate is far better than TKD. I trained in TKD and Goju Ryu for years and always found that my Goju was stronger, faster and better for real self defense if I needed it...but I did enjoy the jump kicks from TKD.

I would recommend Karate, at a traditional school under a "real" Sensei over TKD anyday.

Answer 2

Karate. I'm learning it, and it IS good.

Answer 3

Tae Kwon Do is better.

Answer 4

Definitely you are not old at all.

Both are great disciplines, but there are always bad and even very bad coaches. You have to experiment and find out what suits you better.  

Answer 5

You're never too old to learn a martial art. Either one is fine, but I would go with TKD(which is the art I train in).

Answer 6

any art is good .sandman

Answer 7

No, you're not too old.

As for which is better... its all about choice.

If you're taking martial art for the self defense and are interested in Tae Kwon Do, i would make sure the school is ITF-International TKD federation.

ITF schools-Self defense

WTF schools-sport oriented

Answer 8

do you watch MMA?http://www.oddsmaker.com/refer.php?ID=dr... both are in great display there but i go with karate  

Answer 9

TKD came from karate.  

Answer 10

Your definetly not too old. Karate uses about 60% arms and 40% legs, and taekwondo 40% arms and 60% legs. I've done both prefer taekwondo, cuz I think it is much more practical. I found that the stances and everything seem, to me, a lot more resonable in a real fight, but that's just my opinion. They're both pretty similar.

Answer 11

Taekwondo is popular for its use of kicking techniques, which distinguishes it from karate. The theory behind this is that the leg is the longest and strongest weapon a martial artist has, and kicks thus have the greatest potential to execute powerful strikes without successful retaliation. Physically, taekwondo develops strength, speed, balance, flexibility, and stamina.

The breaking of boards requires both physical mastery of the technique and the concentration to focus one's strength. It symbolizes the union of one’s mental and physical discipline. A taekwondo student typically wears a uniform with a belt according to their rank, tied around the waist.

A focus on mental and ethical discipline, justice, etiquette, respect, and self-confidence is one of the major parts of this form of martial art. The phrase, "Respect Senior or older, love Junior or younger," is used in Taekwondo training.

Karate is popularly known as a striking art, featuring punching, kicking, knee/elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques, although grappling, joint manipulations, locks, restraints/traps, throws, and vital point striking are taught with equal emphasis. Karate allows the practitioner to defeat an opponent by the use of striking and kicking. The practitioner practices hard physical training to develop fighting skills that requires strenuous physical and mental discipline.

Ideally, Karate should help to develop a strong character and build a feeling of respect toward the fellow man. In karate, the principles taught to the students can be summarized as: Character, Sincerity, Effort, Etiquette and Self-control.

Answer 12

You're definitely not too old. I used to take tae kwon do when I was like 11 and I really enjoyed it. At the place I went to, there were people from age 5-70, so don't worry about age, there is most likely going to be someone there your age if it is a larger school (just maybe not at the same belt level).