Hapkido

Being in Asia for as long as I have and not experiencing martial arts in some fashion is of course blasphemy. I did not was to be walking slander, so I got some help from a friend and found a Hapkido dojang 10 minutes walking distance from my house. Lucky me!

The dojang is called Heuk Choo Gwan, or Black Eagle Club. The two masters who run the dojang are brothers and are really kind and good people. I really feel like I will be able to enjoy myself here.

I am a terrible exerciser. I really don't enjoy doing things like gym workouts or personal training. I am much better being told what I have to do. Self-discipline is much easier when I don't have to think about my workout schedule. Just show up to class and do what the sabunim says. Also, I'm able to go every day of the week.

I specifically chose Hapkido over Taekwondo for a couple reasons. One is that Hapkido is a powerful martial art that is similar to Aikido. They both are grappling arts and allow me to learn ways to use my opponent's momentum and power against him. I learn many take-downs and pressure point holds. I do not have to be particularly strong to be able to defend myself. Taekwondo is more of a sport than Hapkido. As well, Hapkido focuses on harnessing qi power, which is of interest to me.

A minor drawback is that they can't speak English. I mean, there's an amount of monkey-see, monkey-do involved anyways. It will be a good motivator to learn some more Korean :P

Waaaaa! I'm such a dork in this picture.