Tae Kwon Do or Aikido?

[Headdrivehardscrew]

With 8 years of training, I strongly suggest you go check out the folks at both/all camps and just see what suits your fancy. If you're switching anyway, I think what really matters is that you can identify with the art and everything it offers. I think it's a bit of a shame to abandon Karate, but if you only have the two options you mentioned, I think Aikido would be a more natural "expansion" to your - presumed - skillset.

I'm a great fan of Pencak Silat. If you don't mind the cheesiness of non-destructive dance routines, I do suggest you check out "The Raid: Redemption", as it blew me away with its action. The story is... well, pretty much standard fare if you've been watching that sort of movie for a decade or two or three, but the fighting techniques and aesthetics shown are, if nothing else, entertaining and inspiring.

I'm a bad example myself, as I will probably never get above and beyond including everything into Krav Maga. I'm limited like that.

 

[Bung Toher]

Go with aikido, for basically all the reasons you mentioned. Tae kwon do seems to have become really tournament focused.

Hi. May I introduce my self. I'm domilition in Indonesia. i have practised gojuryu karatedo (when elementary school), Taekwondo, wtf rule (first senior high school), wushu (senior high school), Aikido and Pencak Silat since college has been now. And now i decided focus to Pencak Silat and have new hobby to analyzing about martial arts and sometime write about martial arts.

I don't want to compare about what the best martial arts, i just wanna to give you some inputs to conside about what you want to learn it because you wrote that you had interested with it (pencak silat). ok, these two martial arts that i want to introduce you:

1. Pencak Silat. Actually, Pencak Silat have a same concept with Chinesse Martial Arts, there are don't have standaritation about it, different with korean or japanesse martial arts concept. in Chinesse concept almost all of martial art call wushu or kungfu, so does Pencak Silat. almost all of martial arts as long as under silat organisation in Nusantara (Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore and several southeast asian) call it Pencak Silat or just Silat.
Pencak Silat have 300 more variations of style and thousand of paguron and every style have their own diferent uniques movement and phylosophies each others. if you asking to me what the difference about each style of Pencak Silat that same as like you asking me about what difference about Karate, Taekwondo, Muaythai, Aikido, etc. somewhere not all of silat style are really practice and effectife, and so if you have hear that Pencak Silat just only like a dance...that was a big mistake! they just follow the silat organisation rules to show the arts side of silat not the truly self deffense, much styles's movements of them really...really...absolutely deadly. these link for examples
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vi3gZH-VA-k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUuTjD2XtbM&feature=related
and this video for the arts but still deadly in a real world (one of them is Yayan Ruhiyan who played as Mad Dog in The Raid Redemption)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PRK9Pfhfa8&playnext=1&list=PL10967F5DF8B98F32&feature=results_main
I see you are looking for a practise and effective style of martial arts. so these several of paguron or style of silat that you can found outside indonesia country that i have known like Persaudaraan Setia Hati Terate (one of video that i shown to you is Terate style), Silat Harimau Minangkabau style (tiger style), Panglipur, Mande Muda (cimande style) etc. you can find by yourself. oh, and myself i learn Silat Merpati Putih (white dove style)which one with breathing techniques specialitation. this style is standarization of Kopassus(Indonesian Special Force)'s silat.

2. Tarung Derajat. sound unfamilliar, isn't? so do for Indonesian people. this is a practised martial art come from Drajat the people who created this martial art in 1970. this martial art came from his experience in his street fighting a whole of his life. this martial art full body contact and need hard discipline to do that. you can check this out
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIwYDnFHnhY&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCj9S_kRDi4&feature=related
well, i'm not the practisioner of Tarung Derajat but just wanna introducing and giving you as an alternative martial art that i believe rarely people hear that

That was my opinion maybe could be a usefull as input for your consideration. sorry if i have wrong pronoun. my silat's teacher said to me "if you looking for the best martial arts that suit for you, why not you asking by yourself what are you seeking for in martial art" for me, that question usefull enought to changes my view and purpose about martial art.

Best Regard

 

[Jonluw]

Yeah, I'd go with aikido.
It seems like it has more 'art' than 'sport' to it, as opposed to tae kwon do.
Plus, I did tae kwon do for a bit as a kid, and I remember it as being some of the most dreary, boring stuff I ever did. Ugh, the katas.

Personally, I'd tell you to check out Ju jitsu, but that's only because I'm a biased bastard.
I liked the art a lot though, and it might be pretty compatible with your karate training, although softer.

 

[William Tarlton]

Choosing between aikido or taekwondo eh? Maybe try hapkido, kuk sool won, or hwarangdo. Each is similar to both.

 

[William Tarlton]

I have recently been introduced to pencak silat. I was amazed when I saw it, and have been practicing with a a neighbor who is proficient in seni gayong style of malaysian silat. Been a year now, and I am satisfied with it. The training is tough and it has been almost a year long challenge for me. Definately an art that I would not reccommend to those that don't want to work hard for it. But, if you want to learn some devastating moves, increase physical capacity for fights, and challenge yourself, then learn a traditional silat style. You will not be disappointed.