Has Mixed Martial Arts influenced your trad MA ?

arybvtcw0eolkf

Chris89 wrote: »

Would love to see that all ireland comp though, although wouldn't the judo players advantage be completely neutralized by a simple guard pull?

Not really, because just like in MMA (slick back on topic) against a superior ground exponent I'd simply refuse to go there.

Although if you went on your back, I'd have probably put you there with my signature Osoto Gari, Uchimata or Harai Goshi

arybvtcw0eolkf

Barry.Oglesby wrote: »

I know it's all just phonetically interpreted but I always thought it was keza gatame?

Thats what I call it too.

Chris89

Evelyn Orange Lamb wrote: »

Not really, because just like in MMA (slick back on topic) against a superior ground exponent I'd simply refuse to go there.

Although if you went on your back, I'd have probably put you there with my signature Osoto Gari, Uchimata or Harai Goshi

Assuming a fair ruleset, you would have to engage, if the bjj player was advancing from their open guard, are you saying you would run off the mat??

I suppose thats the issue though, what would the rules be if ever a tournament was to arise.

Barry.Oglesby

Neither BJJ or Judo rules wouldn't be great for any open style comp imo.

Doug Cartel

Barry.Oglesby wrote: »

I know it's all just phonetically interpreted but I always thought it was keza gatame?

Meh, I usually end up calling it quesadilla, but then again I have taken a lot of falls on my head.

Barry.Oglesby

Oh I'd go a quesadilla right now.

Hanley

Barry.Oglesby wrote: »

Oh I'd go a quesadilla right now.

Taco Taco in the Epicurian Food Hall is the only place that matters.

Barry.Oglesby

I used to like the Alamo on Fleet Street but now it's full of poxy hen nights.

antybots

whadabouchasir wrote: »

Sorry!It's just that TKD bashing seems to be all the rage these days especially with MMA fans. I regularly hear crap such as "It's not practical" or "It would never work in MMA" or "It looks good but it would never work." If you're going to put down TKD or any martial art then at least train in it first to see what it's actually like.

I have a 3rd Dan in ITF TKD and my opinion is that as a system, it has everything you need for practical fighting but it also has a lot of sport and demo techniques too. The problem as I see it is that the vast majority of TKD schools concentrate on teaching the sport and demo stuff and not drilling the practical stuff. This produces TKD practitioners who can break 4 boards or can win a free spar in style, but have some serious gaps in knowledge when it comes to a knock down, drag-out fight. I think that the reason people say that it looks good but will not work comes from kids in particular who don't know the difference between sparring and fighting and they try to use point sparring techniques in schoolyard brawls and they end up on their arse.

I also train in Muay Thai and to be honest, nearly all of the MT techniques are in the TKD syllabus, but they're just not taught. In my first 3 months of Muay Thai training, I felt fitter and more effective as a fighter than 15 years of TKD training and competing. Again, this is not the fault of the TKD system, but the way it's taught. For example, I've never seen a TKD instructor teach effective use of knees and elbows although they are all there in the syllabus. Another issue is how easy it is to grade for belts in TKD. I think the McDojang phenomenon has crept into the art. Let's be honest, we all know TKD black blelts who couldn't fight their way out of a wet paper bag, or seriously unfit and overweight practitioners passing grades without being able to properly perform techniques.

I think these reasons are why TKD regularly gets a bashing and I honestly think a lot of it is justified. Rant over.

Sid_Justice

antybots wrote: »

IAgain, this is not the fault of the TKD system, but the way it's taught.

What matters is what's taught on a day-to-day basis, not what's in some encyclopedia or list of techniques. Training method is what defines a martial art not it's curriculum. Practically every type of kick, throw, and submission is probably in a traditional jujitsu curriculum but that's irrelevant. All that matters is what is taught, not what is in a theoretical curriculum.

People that tell me they don't need to do judo or bjj because all the techinques are already in Jujitsu are fooling themselves amd missing the point. All the guys that do judo and don't do bjj cause they say all the bjj techniques are already in judo are fooling themselves as well.

HellsAngel

Doug Cartel wrote: »

OK, you do realise BJJ is a traditional martial art right? It split form judo long before TKD split form karate.

Barry.Oglesby wrote: »

My traditional martial art IS BJJ so I suppose it's had an effect... on itself?

Ok I can see yer point but if you want to be so pedantic lads, since MMA is over a decade old now maybe it's also a trad MA :rolleyes:

HellsAngel

Tim_Murphy wrote: »

MMA had an effect on how I train my TMA in that I no longer train in my TMA.

Very philosophical by Mr. Murphy I must say . Sort of thing Master would say to Grasshopper in the old Kung Fu tv series.

whadabouchasir

antybots wrote: »

This produces TKD practitioners who can break 4 boards or can win a free spar in style, but have some serious gaps in knowledge when it comes to a knock down, drag-out fight.

Ya I consider free sparring to be a complete waste of time,I don't think there's any substitute for proper continuous sparring.But I've seen plenty of TKD practitioners who enter kickboxing competitions and do very well,often as well as they do in TKD competitions. I think this proves that being good at TKD sparring gives you a good backround in striking and is very practical in other striking MAs.

antybots wrote: »

Another issue is how easy it is to grade for belts in TKD. I think the McDojang phenomenon has crept into the art. Let's be honest, we all know TKD black blelts who couldn't fight their way out of a wet paper bag, or seriously unfit and overweight practitioners passing grades without being able to properly perform techniques.

I completely agree with you there it's possible to get a TKD black belt without ever sparring competitively.I find this ridiculous,i think there should be some form of continuous sparring in all gradings from green belt onwards. I also think that fitness should be tested in gradings,because as you rightly pointed out not enough emphasis is placed on it atm. I do admit that TKD has it's flaws,but i do think that if you train in all of the areas of it as well as compete in sparring then it could be quite useful.

EDIT:my original gripe was about MMA practitioners who have never trained in a particular MA giving out about how crap and ineffective it is. I was merely using TKD as an example,Some interesting points raised though:D

cowzerp

TKD is not an effective fighting system , it can be transfered into 1 by changing lots of the moves but its a showy over fancy martial art that is not really about fighting. Thats why Anderson Silva does not train in it

whadabouchasir

cowzerp wrote: »

TKD is not an effective fighting system , it can be transfered into 1 by changing lots of the moves but its a showy over fancy martial art that is not really about fighting.

I'll admit there are a lot of just for show jumping and spinning kicks,this however does not make it ineffective though. Anyone who has actually fought competitively in tkd will tell you that jumping kicks are almost useless,I have never actually seen anyone score with one. Turning(roundhouse kicks),side kicks and front kicks are pretty much the only kicks used in tkd sparring,and allof these kicks are used in kickboxing Muay Thai and MMA. So the basics of TKD are also the basics of other striking MAs,antybots also mentioned this,the fact that most of The techniques used in Muay Thai are also used in tkd,yet Muay THai is seen as the ultimate striking art,especially by MMA practitioners.Tbh the idea that Tkd is not really fighting is just ridiculous.Come back with a proper argument when you've actually trained in it,then I will accept any criticisms you have as valid ones.

I'd like to end by showing you this MMa kick,which is actually one stolen from TKD and frequently used inTKD sparring
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSt3mMtabWo

Sid_Justice

that's a karate kick , tkd stole from karate.

Chris89

Ah, an MMA kick, of course.

cowzerp

I've trained with TKD lads in MMA and there techniques are innefectivel!!
untill you show them more effective techniques such as leg kicks, and Basic Boxing!! Then there flexibility is an advantage but there pretty much starting afresh, side kicks, front kicks etc are not common in MMA!!

There is a reason why TKD is not used as part of MMA training, do you think its that people have a vendetta against it?

I like most MMA people will practise anything that works in a real fight, with MMA been as real as you can legally get.

TKD my friend is not on anyones list, even TKD lads don't train TKD for MMA and move onto Thai and western Boxing.

PS, This is not to say any TKD lads cant fight, but i also know untrained lads who can fight so take from that what you will.

antybots

cowzerp wrote: »

even TKD lads don't train TKD for MMA and move onto Thai and western Boxing.

You are 100% right. I'm one of them. The only TKD training I've found that can even remotely compare with MT training is training with the National Sqaud. They have a pretty good training regime, but it's all to no avail if the guy you are fighting against has good leg kicks and is adept at catching a front or side kick, which most decent MT fighters I've trained with can. It's also too easy to turn a TKD fighter away from you by using good boxing. They either turn their back or just step outside the ring and wait for the ref to stop it when the going gets tough. The ITF have now even introduced a 2 punch limit (after 2 punches in succession, you must throw a kick) to stop fights becoming like kickboxing matches. In my opinion this makes TKD sparring even more useless. The only advantages I brought to MT training from TKD were

1) I can easily switch from orthodox to southpaw and fight as effectively.
2) My kicks in general are faster and more powerful than the MT fighters (the coaches told me that).
3) I get hit less as I move around the ring more rather than just standing there.

The advantages the MT guys had over my TKD were
1) Boxing
2) Cardio (3x2 or 5x2 min rounds instead of the 2x2 in TKD)
3) Trapping kicks
4) Elbows
5) Clinch
6) Knees
7) Leg kicks (especially the leg kicks)
8) Ropes on the rings so the other guy can't step outside for a breather.

The list goes on. Sorry TKD fans, but MT is more useful, plain and simple.

I still like TKD though. Tournaments are fun and there are loads of fellow practitioners but I wouldn't count on it to save my life is all.

whadabouchasir

cowzerp wrote: »

I've trained with TKD lads in MMA and there techniques are innefectivel!!
untill you show them more effective techniques such as leg kicks, and Basic Boxing!! Then there flexibility is an advantage but there pretty much starting afresh, side kicks, front kicks etc are not common in MMA!!

I'll admit that training in traditional tkd would be about as much use to you in MMA as Irish dancing but as I've already mentioned most kicking techniques are used in TKD,except for leg kicks,which is just a turning kick but to the legs instead if torso,TKD ,muay Thai, Karate and kickboxing all share pretty much the same techniques,minus knees and elbows,so you can't really say that one is effective but the others aren't,THEY'RE THE SAME TECHNIQUES! I guaratee you that you have used at least one TKD technique in either training or competitions. As for the bit about boxing well I'll give you that one they do have a major advantage if they get in close!I remeber the last time I got into a ring With A TKD fighter who was also a decent boxer I had trouble hearing in my right ear for a few days afterwards!

IMO the reason why TKD is considered useless is because some of the more complex techniques,I will admit are,but the basics of TKD are the basics of any striking MA.
EDIT:Just saw antybots post,I'd agree with most of that TKd isn't complete and definitly has it's weaknesses but I do think that it would be wrong to dismiss it as completely ineffective.

Doug Cartel

whadabouchasir wrote: »

As I've already mentioned most kicking techniques are used in TKD,except for leg kicks,which is just a turning kick but to the legs instead if torso,TKD ,muay Thai, Karate and kickboxing all share pretty much the same techniques,minus knees and elbows,so you can't really say that one is effective but the others aren't,THEY'RE THE SAME TECHNIQUES!

A Muay Thai roundhouse is fairly different from a TKD one, at least the way I was taught them it required a lot of re-learning.

As to leg kicks, it's not simply a case of doing a roundhouse and aiming it lower - leg kicks fundamentally change the way you fight. Your stance and footwork have to be different in order to effectively defend leg kicks. Side kicks become a lot less useful for one thing.

antybots

MT and TKD kicks are not exactly the same techniques. The major difference between them is that MT kicks are done with the shin while TKD kicks are done with the foot. Kicking with the foot is problematic as there are a lot of small bones to break if you hit with the wrong part. Also, if you have shoes on and you kick with the foot, you can end up kicking with the toes or the instep, which lessens the impact. Kicking with the shin is easier and can be devastating.

yomchi

antybots wrote: »

I have a 3rd Dan in ITF TKD and my opinion is that as a system, it has everything you need for practical fighting but it also has a lot of sport and demo techniques too. The problem as I see it is that the vast majority of TKD schools concentrate on teaching the sport and demo stuff and not drilling the practical stuff. This produces TKD practitioners who can break 4 boards or can win a free spar in style, but have some serious gaps in knowledge when it comes to a knock down, drag-out fight. I think that the reason people say that it looks good but will not work comes from kids in particular who don't know the difference between sparring and fighting and they try to use point sparring techniques in schoolyard brawls and they end up on their arse.

I also train in Muay Thai and to be honest, nearly all of the MT techniques are in the TKD syllabus, but they're just not taught. In my first 3 months of Muay Thai training, I felt fitter and more effective as a fighter than 15 years of TKD training and competing. Again, this is not the fault of the TKD system, but the way it's taught. For example, I've never seen a TKD instructor teach effective use of knees and elbows although they are all there in the syllabus. Another issue is how easy it is to grade for belts in TKD. I think the McDojang phenomenon has crept into the art. Let's be honest, we all know TKD black blelts who couldn't fight their way out of a wet paper bag, or seriously unfit and overweight practitioners passing grades without being able to properly perform techniques.

I think these reasons are why TKD regularly gets a bashing and I honestly think a lot of it is justified. Rant over.

You need to come and train with me dude

In essence you are correct, it is the way TKD is taught. I prefer the sport element, as a system it is not combative at all. The use of knees are fine but the amount of blocking involved is horse sh1te.

yomchi

Doug Cartel wrote: »

A Muay Thai roundhouse is fairly different from a TKD one, at least the way I was taught them it required a lot of re-learning.

That is true, the objective in MT and the objective in sport Taekwon-Do is different. Not to say that you don't get hit hard in TKD, you do ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evoKK8NVw9c ), but in MT the objective is to chop the opponent down into little pieces as opposed to scoring points. I've trained both and there is a big difference mostly governed by rules and the size of the ring (there are no ropes in a TKD ring)

Chris89

Are you not allowed to punch in TKD?

Sid_Justice

in WTF TKD (the olympic one) i don't think you can score points with punches so no one does it. The man there just said the ITF TKD (the more common one in ireland that's semi-contact kickboxing) you're only allowed punch twice before having to throw a kick.

in the forms and patterns and the construction and all that jazz they do punches.

Doug Cartel

yomchi wrote: »

That is true, the objective in MT and the objective in sport Taekwon-Do is different. Not to say that you don't get hit hard in TKD, you do ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evoKK8NVw9c ), but in MT the objective is to chop the opponent down into little pieces as opposed to scoring points. I've trained both and there is a big difference mostly governed by rules and the size of the ring (there are no ropes in a TKD ring)

I know they each have their own reasons for doing things the way they do. My last post kind of reads like I'm saying that TKD kicks are wrong, which isn't really what I was trying to say. My point was supposed to be that even though things look superficially similar, they're actually more different than you might think if you hadn't done both styles.

Doug Cartel

Sid_Justice wrote: »

in WTF TKD (the olympic one) i don't think you can score points with punches so no one does it.

What I heard is that you can score points from punches, but they have to visibility knock your opponent back, which is difficult through the armour.

whadabouchasir

Sid_Justice wrote: »

in WTF TKD (the olympic one) i don't think you can score points with punches so no one does it. The man there just said the ITF TKD (the more common one in ireland that's semi-contact kickboxing) you're only allowed punch twice before having to throw a kick.

In WTF only punches to the body score so nobody ever throws punches,In ITF which would be more similar to Light contact kickboxing,since they're both continuous,punches to the head do score.I must admit though I've never heard of this 2 punch rule.It must either be very new or nobody is enforcing it.Backfists are also allowed in ITF as long as they're not spinning backfists.

Sid_Justice

sorry i always forget semi-contact is points. isn't there some rule in some itf orgs that you can't 'hook' punch?

Doug Cartel

Sid_Justice wrote: »

sorry i always forget semi-contact is points. isn't there some rule in some itf orgs that you can't 'hook' punch?

Those were the rules when I was in. Basically just jab, cross and backfist were allowed.

whadabouchasir

Sid_Justice wrote: »

sorry i always forget semi-contact is points. isn't there some rule in some itf orgs that you can't 'hook' punch?

It's supposed to be light contact so as long as it looks controlled as opposed to just a wild swing then you'd get away with it.I'll put it this way,I've never seen someone get a warning for throwing one.

Doug Cartel

I was cautioned for throwing a heymaker and another time for a hook. The heymaker was obviously out of control, but the hook was pretty clean.

whadabouchasir

Doug Cartel wrote: »

I was cautioned for throwing a heymaker and another time for a hook. The heymaker was obviously out of control, but the hook was pretty clean.

IT seems to depend on the ref or organisation a lot of the time.Some just allow a greater level of contact than others. I've heard that ridgehands are allowed in some organisations,don't know if this is true though.

antybots

The rules change all the time. The current rules (from the Chang Ung ITF) are that you must throw a kick after every 2 punches. Hooking punches are not allowed. All punches must be straight and fully extended to score. Spinning backfists are allowed but you must bring your head around with the fist for it to be legal.

Yomchi, I would love to train with you, but I don't live in Dublin:(

whadabouchasir

antybots wrote: »

Spinning backfists are allowed but you must bring your head around with the fist for it to be legal.

Oh ya I forgot about that little loophole for throwing a spinning backfist:DI don't understand how that could be legal and a hook not be though.You could really do some damage with a spinning backfist.

antybots

whadabouchasir wrote: »

I don't understand how that could be legal and a hook not be though.You could really do some damage with a spinning backfist.

It's because hooking punches are not part of the TKD sparring syllabus.

HellsAngel

yomchi wrote: »

That is true, the objective in MT and the objective in sport Taekwon-Do is different. Not to say that you don't get hit hard in TKD, you do ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evoKK8NVw9c ), but in MT the objective is to chop the opponent down into little pieces as opposed to scoring points. I've trained both and there is a big difference mostly governed by rules and the size of the ring (there are no ropes in a TKD ring)

Excellent yomchi, excellent

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evoKK8NVw9c

HellsAngel

Doug Cartel wrote: »

What I heard is that you can score points from punches, but they have to visibility knock your opponent back, which is difficult through the armour.

That must be WTF TKD ?

Doug Cartel wrote: »

Those were the rules when I was in. Basically just jab, cross and backfist were allowed.

I'm doing TKD 13 years plus, never heard of that. As whadabouchasir says, these days it seems to depend on the ref or organisation

HellsAngel

antybots wrote: »

The rules change all the time. The current rules (from the Chang Ung ITF) are that you must throw a kick after every 2 punches. Hooking punches are not allowed. All punches must be straight and fully extended to score. Spinning backfists are allowed but you must bring your head around with the fist for it to be legal.

Yomchi, I would love to train with you, but I don't live in Dublin:(

whadabouchasir wrote: »

Oh ya I forgot about that little loophole for throwing a spinning backfist:DI don't understand how that could be legal and a hook not be though.You could really do some damage with a spinning backfist.

antybots wrote: »

It's because hooking punches are not part of the TKD sparring syllabus.

Well it's a few years since I competed and it was just the plane old ITF back then before all the splits, but their was no restriction on whether a punch was a hook or a straight jab or cross etc. As for spinning backfists, they weren't allowed back then as too often the other person was caught with the boone of the forearm and not the glove covering the fist.

Doug Cartel

HellsAngel wrote: »

That must be WTF TKD ?

Yes. Sid asked about WTF, I've never done it but that's what I heard. I just looked it up in the official rules and that seems to be the case

Powerfully:
a.
Trunk protector not equipped with electronic sensor: Sufficient power is demonstrated as the opponent‟s body is abruptly
displaced by the impact of the strike.
b.
In the use of PSS: Force of impact is measured by the PSS with the level of force by which points are scored varying by
weight division and sex.

I'm doing TKD 13 years plus, never heard of that. As whadabouchasir says, these days it seems to depend on the ref or organisation

Dom Dalton's organisation around 2004/2005

Nice edit, BTW.

SBG Ireland

well u see its all about training methods....oh never mind

Sid_Justice

any judo greenbelts on this thread?

arybvtcw0eolkf

Sid_Justice wrote: »

any judo greenbelts on this thread?

Brown here, hopefully black before I'm fifty

lukeyjudo

Has MMA influenced my traditional Martial Art? Hells yeah, insofar as I no longer really do it. I keep the hand in the Judo and still train once a week in my Dad's Japanese Jiu Jitsu club out of loyalty for two of the three coaches I have in my martial arts life, and will only ever have.

Then on the other hand training MMA also made me think how can I influence my MMA techniques with my judo,japanese jiu jitsu, sambo and bjj moves?

The more I trained in SBG the more I stopped caring about labels and just focused on becoming a better fighter. Training in MMA affected me, because it made me fall in love with Martial Arts all over again.

lukeyjudo

Doug Cartel wrote: »

On the other hand, I think even a small bit of BJJ is going to help with your newazza. Not in a competitive situation, but in training when you're wrestling from the knees.

Wrestling on the knees along with uchikomi are the single biggest waste of any judoka's time.

Doug Cartel wrote: »

Judo guys are typically good at holding pins, escaping, and attacking the turtle.

Absolutely, attacking the turtle is a great use of any judoka's time and should be the basis of any newaza specialists offensive strategy.

Doug Cartel wrote: »

I've found judo groundwork is typically all about finishing someone off after a bad throw, either as a follow up or a counter. Your opponent is down on a knee and hand, or whatever, so you roll him into a pin/sub quick as a flash. The referee won't let you play an extended game on the ground. No setting things up, no waiting for your opponent to make a mistake. A huge amount of what you would be doing in BJJ just isn't going to transfer over to competitive judo, just because of the way the rules are set up.

It could just be that by BJJ skills aren't high enough to make it work, but for the amount of time invested, I don't think my BJJ training has made a big difference to my competition style newaza.

The referee will keep the action going on the ground as long as you are active and moving your opponent into a pin, armbar or choke. Jimmy Pedro, Katsuhiko Kashiwazaki, Neil Adams are all examples of judoka who are as good standing as they are on the ground. A good grappler should aim to be dangerous on his feet or on the ground.

A fantastic example of a master of BJJ and Judo is indeed Flavio Canto. And also very little BJJ training (one class a week out of the 16 times he trains a week) has helped my brother immensely in his competitive judo career so far. Hell if I only could have done BJJ once a week when I was younger I would have. I could definitely apply bjj to competitive judo to great effect and vice versa.

Anyway, they're two sides of the same coin. Grappling rules. I freaking love it.

Evelyn Orange Lamb wrote: »

In that regard, and its just my own opinion, I think Judo is a more complete style as it cover's both sides of the same coin.
.

Martin, this is where I would disagree with you. You can potentially build a much better grappler through the martial art of BJJ than you can through judo. BJJ allows more submissions than judo and also, people don't realise BJJ allows more throwing techniques than judo does.

In coolmine bjj we spend as much time doing standing randori as we do doing rolls. I also know that most if not all the bjj competitors and fight team in SBG are as good in randori/takedown sparring as they are on the ground.

You can definitely build a complete grappler through BJJ (depending on the clubs training methods) moreso than you can in judo!

You should pop out to us sometime I know you'll love it! You've been threatening to do it for ages!

arybvtcw0eolkf

lukeyjudo wrote: »

You can definitely build a complete grappler through BJJ Judo (depending on the clubs training methods) moreso than you can in judo BJJ!

See what I done there!.. Depending on the club and coaches the same can be said of BJJ and Judo.

Take Portmarnock JC as an example, Ray Stears in a BJJ purple belt with a strong interest in ground work.. But since the club is a competitive Judo club he has to concentrate more of his efforts (in the time allowed) to Judo than BJJ.

lukeyjudo wrote: »

You should pop out to us sometime I know you'll love it! You've been threatening to do it for ages!

Luke, I'd love to visit every club and I'm very greatful for the invite's from you all of course because I believe I can learn something from you all.

You mentioned Katsuhiko Kashiwazaki, I was going to mention him earlier in the thread - around the time when someone posted that refs don't allow enough ground work or something, Doug you should google/Y.T. Kashiwazaki, you'll be in for a treat.

arybvtcw0eolkf

I'll do a Jerry Springer and leave with a final thought from me.

To me at least, it doesn't matter what style you choose, Judo, BJJ, Sambo, Sub Wrestling etc.. Keep it honest and true to yourself and its all good.

Most of us here will never be anything better than half decent club players, happy enough with 50/50 results from the majority of our competitions.

Personally I love Judo, I don't pretend its anything (for me) other than a middle aged man bouncing around in pyjama's and having a ball.

I like BJJ, but more importantly I love the lads/coaches I train with.. I rarely leave a training session without something which I can take to my Judo and improve myself there.

MMA - lets call a spade a spade here, I'm too damned old for it to influence me in anything. I wouldn't train in it because I could never hope to be even half competitive, and thats me keeping it honest!.

Goodnight.

cowzerp

Evelyn Orange Lamb wrote: »

MMA - lets call a spade a spade here, I'm too damned old for it to influence me in anything. I wouldn't train in it because I could never hope to be even half competitive, and thats me keeping it honest!.

I think whether MMA influences your Martial arts is dependent on why you do it, People who do Judo for example in most cases are not looking for the ultimate self defense or fighting system and the self defense is just an added bonus to there sport, So from there point of view MMA is just another sport irrelevant to Judo.

People who are doing TKD (only using TKD for example) because they think it will make them the best fighters or best at defending themselves will be influenced-once there not blinded by bias, the influence in most cases will be to simply move to MMA

The ones who do it for the fun/sport of it wont as the skills they practise are already the best for there chosen sport, rule-set and scoring system.