Taekwondo Northwich

It must be said that Taekwondo can be very physically challenging, which could put off the older and less agile folks in Northwich from getting involved. To be fair, the most common participants of Taekwondo classes are kids and younger people, but certainly older individuals who're in decent physical condition can easily get involved and benefit considerably from this sport.

Taekwondo is one of the more recently developed of the martial arts, with its beginnings in Korea in 1945. A group of Korean martial arts specialists in Seoul established some schools known as "kwans", combining a variety of martial arts techniques. Taekwondo, which it eventually became known as, largely consists of high-kicking manoeuvres, particularly head-height kicks, turning/jumping kicks and fast kicking strategies.

Ever since the Sydney Olympic Games in the year 2000, Taekwondo has been an Olympic sport. This has added to its popularity all over the world with some 60 million people or more routinely participating in classes. And it is by signing up to a Taekwondo class or club that you can begin your adventure of learning this thrilling martial art.

In these times of increasing violence, it is hardly surprising that people in places like Northwich are attending self-defence classes like Taekwondo to help them to feel safer in their local environment. The self-defence aspect is one of the key factors of Taekwondo but it also teaches self-restraint and a deep respect for other people, which are characteristics that are largely missing in this modern age.

Whilst it will give you peace of mind being aware that you have such self-defence skills tucked away inside you, the likelihood is that you'll never be required to use them outside of an actual Taekwondo class.

Your First Taekwondo Class

If you come to a decision to register for Taekwondo training in Northwich, the first thing you'll be wondering is what will happen on the first class and what exactly will the coach expect to see from you. Different Taekwondo masters in the Northwich area will develop diverse routines for this initial lesson but you can anticipate doing a fifteen to twenty minute warm-up to get the blood circulating and loosen your muscles, learn a couple of forms (Poomse), go through some practical training (hand attacks, kicks, blocks and stances), do a small amount of sparring, and last but not least, warm-down.

British Taekwondo is the official regulating body of the sport within Britain, and membership of this organisation is mandatory should you wish to sign up with any Taekwondo club in Northwich or nearby. By going to British Taekwondo's official website you can obtain details of equality and safeguarding, news, first aid, health and safety, coaching courses, events, clubs and members, establishing a new club, coaches and competition referees, and many more Taekwondo related facts.

The Benefits of Taekwondo

There are of course, many benefits to be gained from participating in Taekwondo, and here are just a few that might be of interest to you: Help with self-defence by helping you to understand circumstances in which self-defence could be necessary, and enabling you to manipulate these types of circumstances in your favour, Boost confidence by encouraging you to seize control of your life and succeed, Empower your mind and body through improved mental discipline and physical co-ordination, Lower stress using advanced breath control, Improve concentration and self-esteem by maximizing both physical and mental fitness, Supercharge flexibility, stamina and agility by means of extreme cardiovascular work-outs, Better discipline by comprehensively educating your mind and body in the strategies and doctrines of Taekwondo.

The Popular Taekwondo Kicks

There are a lot of different kicking manoeuvres that are used in Taekwondo. Listed here are a selection of the most widely used: Back Kick, Push Kick, Front Kick, Crescent Kick, Axe Kick, Roundhouse Kick, Side Kick, Hook or Whip Kick. Blocks: To fend off the numerous hand attacks and kicks there are an equally diverse range of "blocks". They are held in various positions and employ the hands with areas of the arm. Each "block" can be combined with a punch or kick to produce a counter-attacking move, and each block is meant for a certain type of attack. The primary blocks include: Palm Block, Double Knife Hand Block, Upper Block, Low Block, Nine Block, Double Forearm Block, Single Forearm Block, Rising Block and Knife Hand Block.

Taekwondo Forms (Poomse)

Taekwondo forms (also known as patterns or Poomse) are distinguished by particular facets like direction, stance and technique. From the start you'll get to grips with some of the basic forms, and in order to advance through the rankings (belts) you will have to learn some more complex ones.

Taekwondo Tournaments

Taekwondo tournaments are staged around the world in all the different styles. There is normally not a lot of hard contact but breaking, sparring and patterns (forms). Olympic and WT tournaments comprise only sparring, in ITF competitions certain hand attacks are permitted to the head. Various other bodies hold multi-discipline events.

Summary

So, what do you want from Taekwondo? Well, that's a great question, and the answer to that will be different for individual people. The majority of participants will just wish to gain more confidence, improve their fitness and meet new people. We're definitely not all going to reach the dizzy heights of Jade Jones or Lutalo Muhammad, although maybe you will, you never know? 👊