Taekwondo Ebbw Vale

As Taekwondo has quite high physical requirements, it's perhaps more suited to the younger generation in Ebbw Vale. That's not to say that the older generation cannot get involved in this popular activity, but just that there could be alternative martial arts which are more suited to the less agile among us. Tai Chi is the perfect illustration.

Taekwondo is one of the more recently developed of the martial arts, with its early beginnings in Korea, South-East Asia in 1945. A number of Korean martial artists in Seoul founded some new schools which they called "kwans", combining a variety of martial arts techniques. Taekwondo, which it ultimately became known as, mainly entails high-kicking manoeuvres, especially fast kicking methods, jumping/spinning kicks and head-height kicks.

Taekwondo is popular with the people of Ebbw Vale and with over 60 million others worldwide. If you want to get involved in this activity, which is now an Olympic sport, joining a Taekwondo club or class in Ebbw Vale is a good place to start. While the chances of you getting to Olympic standard are pretty slim, there is no reason at all why you cannot master this thrilling martial art.

For the men, women and children of Ebbw Vale who like the idea of learning a martial art, a big priority is the element of self-defence. As this is a pivotal concept of Taekwondo, it's not difficult to appreciate the attraction of this unique sport. With the added reward of learning self-restraint and having a deep-rooted respect for other people, getting involved in a local Ebbw Vale Taekwondo class seems to be an easy decision.

With luck you won't ever have the need to use your newly learned Taekwondo skills for defending yourself outside of your local club environment, but it's good to know they are there if you need them.

What to Expect From Your First Lesson

If you decide to register for a Taekwondo club in Ebbw Vale, the very first thing you will need to know is what will transpire on the first lesson and what will the tutor expect to see from you. Different Taekwondo masters in the Ebbw Vale area will put together differing routines for this first introductory lesson but you can count on performing a 15-20 minute warm-up to get the blood circulating and loosen your muscles, learn several forms (Poomse), go through some practical training (hand attacks, blocks, kicks and stances), do a bit of sparring, and finally, warm-down.

Taekwondo of course also has its own official governing body, and in Great Britain it is British Taekwondo. Every person wishing enroll with a Taekwondo club in Ebbw Vale have to become members of this organisation. By checking out British Taekwondo's official website you will be able to find facts about referees and coaching, members and clubs, establishing a new Taekwondo club, news, coaching courses, safeguarding and equality, first aid, events, safe practices, and a lot more Taekwondo related issues.

Competitions and Tournaments

A typical Taekwondo competition incorporates sparring, breaking and patterns, as far as the Olympics is concerned only sparring is involved. That said there can also be some special events in certain tournaments such as self-defence and team demonstrations. World Taekwondo competitions are purely soft-contact events, while ITF contests allow some hand attacks towards the head. There are additionally a number of multi-discipline competitions.

Taekwondo - The Benefits

There are of course, quite a few benefits to be gained from taking part in Taekwondo, and listed here are just a hint of the ones that may be appealing to you: Teach you self-defence strategies by coaching you to recognize scenarios where self-defence may be required, and allowing you to control such circumstances in your favour, Build confidence by inspiring you to take control of your life and succeed, Improve stamina, agility and flexibility through intensive cardiovascular exertion, Toughen up your body and mind via increased mental discipline and physical co-ordination, Improve your self-esteem by raising your physical and mental fitness, Reduce anxiety with controlled breathing, Better self-discipline by extensively training your body and mind in the techniques and doctrines of Taekwondo.

Taekwondo Belts

In the art of taekwondo there is not really any kind of standardisation in relation to belts and grades. It all hinges on which style you are reviewing, as there are such a diversity of Taekwondo rules and styles. They are however, generally split into two groupings "junior" or "colour" belts and "senior" or "black" belts. The junior/colour ranks range from white to red, with from 8 to 12 grades, while the black/senior belts normally have nine rankings.

Ranks in Taekwondo in the UK are represented by what generally known as "Kup". The top rank is 1st Kup and the lowest rank (beginners) is 10th Kup. If you're curious about the Taekwondo belt order, it is as follows, and is indicated by a range of colours i.e. white, yellow, green, blue and red, with "in-between" belts with stripes, specifically white with a yellow stripe, yellow with a green stripe, green with a blue stripe, blue with a red stripe and red with a black stripe. The 10th Kup (White Belt) is what Taekwondo novices in Ebbw Vale will start out with, they'll then advance through the different colours, eventually reaching the Red Belt With a Black Stripe (1st Kup), which will probably take about 3-4 years of lessons and training.

Taekwondo trainees in Ebbw Vale become "black belt candidates" once they have successfully completed this process, and they'll then have to move through another nine ranks (or Dans) if they aspire to achieve the supreme accolade Taekwondo Black Belt. Therefore, the bottom line is, there are three main groupings in the Taekwondo belt order, namely Junior Belts, Senior Belts and Black Belts. The Taekwondo Belts in the Junior group comprise; 10th (White), 9th (White With Yellow Stripe), 8th (Yellow), and 7th (Yellow With Green Stripe). The Taekwondo Belts in the Senior group are; 6th (Green), 5th (Green With Blue Stripe), 4th (Blue), 3rd ( Blue With Red Stripe), 2nd (Red), and 1st (Red With Black Stripe). The Taekwondo Belts in the Black group range from 1st to 9th Dan, a qualification process which will take a considerable number of years. (Tags: Taekwondo Belts Ebbw Vale, Order of Belts in Taekwondo, Taekwondo Promotion Ebbw Vale, Taekwondo Belt Order).