Taekwondo London

While people of any age in London can obviously participate in Taekwondo, it is particularly suited to the younger generation as it can be rather demanding physically, children can especially benefit from its teachings of self-discipline and the respect of others. Unless they are particularly active and fit, seniors could find it too physically taxing. Quite a lot of the older adults who do Taekwondo in London, started their adventure when they were younger. If you consider yourself amongst the less nimble, you could try something like Tai Chi which is much less strenuous.

The discipline was developed in Korea in 1945, though it was not named Taekwondo until the 1950's. This blend of various martial arts techniques were practiced in some exciting new schools in Seoul called "kwans", founded by a group of Korean martial artists. The focus of Taekwondo, as it ultimately became known, is on kicking movements, especially head-height kicks, rapid kicking styles and spinning/jumping kicks. Nowadays London Taekwondo classes adhere to this tradition.

Taekwondo has become very popular in London and all around the world, with over 60 million practitioners worldwide. If you want to get involved in this activity, which is now an Olympic sport, joining a Taekwondo club or class in London is a good place to start. There is no reason why you cannot reach a high standard in this thrilling sport, even if you have no desire to compete in the Olympics.

For the people of London who wish to learn a martial art, a top priority is the aspect of self-defence. Since this is a key principle of Taekwondo, it is easy to see the appeal of this particular sport. With the added bonus of learning self-restraint and having a deep respect for others, signing up for a local London Taekwondo class seems to be a no brainer.

Your First Lesson: If you have booked your first lesson but have never done Taekwondo before, you may be wondering what to expect. The following will give you an example, but this will vary depending on which London school you attend. A fifteen to twenty minute warm up, a bit of technical training such as learning some kicks, hand attacks, stances and blocks, some work on forms or patterns, some tips on sparring including movement, timing and the targeting of attacks, and lastly a warm down with muscle stretching and relaxing.

Taekwondo Forms: Mastering Taekwondo will involve learning many disciplines and one of the key parts of Taekwondo is its forms (also called Poomse or patterns). These are sequences of stance, direction and technique which need to be memorized in order for pupils to progress through the various dans (belts/grades).

Taekwondo Belts: The belt and ranking system can get rather confusing in Taekwondo because there is no standard system throughout the various Taekwondo styles. Similarities do exist though and typically there are two distinct belt groupings, signified as "juniors" (colours) and "seniors" (black dans). The number of rankings in the junior group varies across the styles but is commonly between 8 and 12 belts, while the senior group normally has 9 belts or dans.

Taekwondo Competitions and Tournaments: Taekwondo competitions are held all over the world in all of the various styles. There is generally not much hard contact but patterns, breaking and sparring. Olympic and WT (World Taekwondo) tournaments consist only of sparring, in ITF (International Taekwon-Do Federation) tournaments certain hand attacks are allowed to the head. Other organizations hold multi-discipline tournaments.

Taekwondo Safety Equipment: In all matches, events and competitions being staged under the auspices of British Taekwondo, safety gear such as forearm protectors, a blue or red head protector, a groin guard, a red or blue trunk protector (hogu), a mouth guard, shin guards and hand protectors is mandatory. The kicking tactics used in Taekwondo can cause injury and this all helps to make the sport safer for its competitors.

London Taekwondo lessons can normally offer you Taekwondo for self-defence, Taekwondo etiquette, Taekwondo patterns, Taekwondo for beginners, Taekwondo for the elderly, Taekwondo training, Taekwondo stances, Taekwondo forms, Taekwondo for fitness, Taekwondo for kids and other martial arts stuff in London, Greater London.

Also find: Barnet Taekwondo, Bexley Taekwondo, Haringey Taekwondo, Southwark Taekwondo, Greenwich Taekwondo, Islington Taekwondo, Brent Taekwondo, Havering Taekwondo, Croydon Taekwondo, Waltham Forest Taekwondo, Camden Taekwondo, Hackney Taekwondo, Bromley Taekwondo, Hounslow Taekwondo, Kingston upon Thames Taekwondo and more Taekwondo in Greater London.

Taekwondo near SW1 area.