TKD can be very effective if used properly as with all martial arts.The problems with TKD is that in a real life situation there is so much which limits your ability and opportunity use TKD. Imagine your walking down the street wearing heavy work boots and a pair of jeans (just for example) and you get attacked from behind,now first of all those jeans are going to restrict your ability to kick which is what TKD specializes in so there wont be any effective kicking happening there.also the work boots,because of their weight although it may add to the power and damage of the kick it is going to limit your TKD footwork/mobility and it will make your kicks much slower.Another thing people dont consider is that in a real life situation you may be standing on a slippery surface or an un even ground so standing on one leg is not the best idea which im sure is self explanitory.Although TKD has alot of problems when it comes to real life situations that doesnt mean its a waste of time learning it,many people train in TKD around the world and it would be stupid not to learn how to defend against them,and what better than to learn TKD.If you learn TKD you will understand the style and will be able to defend against the techniques they use.Another good thing if you learn TKD is that in a street fight not many people are going to expect to get kicked in the head and knocked out,most people will think your going to punch, then bamn a ko head kick they never saw coming.Not many people on the street know how to defend kicks properly so kicks can be very effective because of this. TKD practitioners often make the mistake of just standing on the spot with one leg in the air doing crazy kicking combinations. This will not work in real life i repeat this will not work in real life. TKD works well if you utilize the quick footwork and keep the kicks simple,none of those 5 kicks combinations all while standing on one leg.

My advice will be to go find a school and train with an open mind. You will not need conditioning for a long time, and much of what we do does not require much other than endurance - particularly the sport-oriented schools.

For these schools, it is typical to spar a lot, do high fancy jump kicks, break boards, and compete. Here, strength, endurance, flexibility, and conditioning will occur naturally throughout your progress.

For other schools, strength and flexibility is less important, and they focus on hard-core self-defense reguarless of your physique.

Every school is different. A good instructor will explain everything to you and allow you to train at your own progress and as well as encourage you to try harder. That, mixed with some reasonable practice at home, is all you need. Whether taekwondo, mma, or anything else.

Just... find a good instructor. That is key above all else.

If you are serous about training for Taekwondo, you may find the conditioning different. First to increase your flexibility you will be doing stretches. To increase your flexibility, you need to stretch both outside and inside of class as well. Cardio can be improved any way you want to( running, swiming, jogging, etc.) Your strength can be improved the same way.





I will say this, if you take traditional Taekwondo, you will spend allot of time working on your technique. Technique is vital. Technique teaches how to use your body for maximum damage.

You will be what you train to be. Simply all training is task specific. For hardening the forearms we do blocking drills at increasing force over time to develop them to be able to block without much pain or bruising. The same with shins and thighs. Light sparring without gear except of course head, mouth, and jaw protection. This will develop your midsection. I emphasize light sparring! don't injure yourself as this only sets you back. A good instructor with experience can lead you through this process. It takes time and lots of practice. Flexibility from stretching. Use static and balistic. Otherwise strength training is the same for everyone even martial artist. LOL Please get help with this from a pro.

Body conditioning, flexibility, speed, strength, etc... All due to training efforts. Pain tolerance came from adrenaline and endurance training (punched on belly during sit ups, etc.). Some said it's because of your muscle mass. But of course you'll get more pain tolerance after some fights. It'll improve itself.

I was practicing TKD until I get bored and KO-ed by a MuayThai fighter. Then I chose MuayThai and some other martial arts just for experience. So I think I don't wanna suggest you to do TKD unless you wanna use it only for body fitness and flexibility training. But not for fighting. Sorry.

My first question involves a long, convoluted story about me previously hating Taekwondo and now wanting to try it. Any advice on starting TKD/training it in general? My second and more important question is, how do you guys condition your bodies? How do you build pain tolerance in the stomach and facial area (aside from the obvious, sparring)? How do you improve your strength, speed, and cardio? What about flexibility?