Well my last post on the differences between Karate and Tae Kwon Do certainly got a quite a lot of discussion going (especially on the Facebook page). So I thought that I would look at the subject a bit further.
First of all though, after my last post it was commented by some Tae Kwon Do guys that I had mainly described Tae Kwon Do from a sports perspective. I totally accept that comment. But I will repeat what I said in the last posting:-
“Tae Kwon Do has been through a number of incarnations starting with a form that was quite close to Karate, through to a much more Olympic sport oriented version. Therefore we have to accept that not all of my observations will apply to every Karate/Tae Kwon Do style. These observation are intended to be of a general nature”.
I think it is fair to say that those who practice applied practical Tae Kwon Do will generally learn two approaches. For competition, they will use a stance and techniques as broadly described in my earlier posting, yet for practical applications they use more traditional stances as used in the patterns (which after all contain the more “street-wise” self defense moves).
There is also another quite pronounced difference in approach in some (but not all) versions of Tae Kwon Do and that is the inclusion of a sine-wave movement. This where the practitioner will raise their centre of gravity up as they approach the half way mark of the technique (usually seen as a chambering position) then sink down as the technique is executed. When executed with a step, the practitioner will move up and down in a sine-wave motion. The theory behind this is that the on impact the striking surface (lets say the fist) will have both a forward vector (from the step) and and downward vector (from lowering the body) applied to it, thereby increasing its impact.
Karate and older versions of Tae Kwon Do will remain at the same height throughout the step. This removes the downward vector of dropping the body weight, but makes more use of compressing the supporting leg half way through which is then released like a spring to increase the drive forward. I would like to emphasise that I’m not saying either method is better than the other, just that they are different.
You can clearly see the difference in these two video clips.
The first is Ed Newcomer, 6th Dan Internation Tae Kwon Do Federation and the second is Kanazawa, 10th Dan Shotokan Karate.
Sometimes in the Tae Kwon Do (with sine-wave) version, there appears to be a little pause half way through, or the first part of the movement seems to be slow then accelerate during the second half of the movement. In contrast, Karate and older versions of Tae Kwon Do accelerate from the very beginning of the movement.
I am going to take a guess here and suggest that for those that practice the sine-wave version, that this is seen as a training method rather than a practical way to step. After all, how often do you need to take a full step like that when sparring/fighting (and if you did, you wouldn’t start slowly).
If I’m wrong, then I’m quite happy to be corrected, it is just a guess!
The older version of Tae Kwon Do which is still very widely practiced does actually look a bit more like Karate than it does Tae Kwon Do with sine-wave (just my opinion). You can see and example below with former World Patterns Champion, Ray Smeathers.
Another difference between the more modern version of Tae Kwon Do and Karate is that the Tae Kwon Do exponents usually make a “ch” sound as they exhale with each technique. You will notice that this is missing from the Kanazawa’s kata and Smeather’s pattern. I have seen/heard this so many times that I know it is intentionally put in, though I don’t really know why.
As exhaling on completion of technique is practiced in Karate, Kung Fu and older versions of Tae Kwon Do, without the “ch” sound, it is clearly not required make exhalation happen. Again I can only guess, but it seems to be a way to let the instructor know that the student is exhaling at the right places. Maybe it is felt that the “ch” sound makes the exhalation happen more quickly (again a guess . . . . I don’t know).
I would appreciate any Tae Kwon Do exponents who practice with the “ch” sound, to please leave a comment below to let us know the true purpose of it.
Again I emphasise that this posting (as with the last one) is simply to look at the differences between Karate and Tae Kwon Do so as to help practitioners gain a better understanding and hopefully a better appreciation of the other style. It is not intended to be a one-up-manship for either style.
It was commented last time that I was “brave” as comparisons between styles often end up as a big slagging match. I would love for people to comment and fill in any gaps that I’ve let out, but I will delete any derogatory comments about any style or organisation. Keep it friendly.