Taekwondo Telscombe

Taekwondo is generally far more physically demanding than for example Tai Chi, so unless you are pretty fit and nimble you might prefer to partake in something a little bit gentler to boost your fitness levels in Telscombe. Children and younger people are clearly an ideal participants for Taekwondo classes in Telscombe, with lots of fast paced movements taking place and a great deal of high kicking.

With its origins in 1940's Korea, Taekwondo is obviously one of the more recently developed of the martial arts and involves mainly high-kicking movements such as rapid kicking techniques, turning/jumping kicks and head kicks. It began when schools known as "kwans" were established by a group of Korean martial arts specialists in Seoul, South Korea.

Popular all over the world Taekwondo now has more than 60 million enthusiasts. Signing up for a local Taekwondo club or class in Telscombe is a good way to get involved with this activity which is now an Olympic sport. Whilst reaching Olympic standard may be beyond your capabilities, there is no reason why you cannot become a Taekwondo master.

A key aspect of Taekwondo is self-defence, and naturally this is one of the primary reasons that people in Telscombe get involved in classes and take up the sport. There's been a troubling escalation of violent behaviour over the last few years and this is particularly common in city and town centres around East Sussex and the country as a whole. The good thing about Taekwondo though, is that it also encourages self-discipline and respect for others, not such familiar qualities in Telscombe nowadays.

There is a fairly decent likelihood that your newly mastered Taekwondo skills will never need to be tested in your everyday life, but it will undoubtedly give you peace of mind knowing that they are there should you need them.

Your First Taekwondo Lesson

If Taekwondo is not an activity that you've ever had a go at before, you'll doubtless be wondering what to expect from your very first class if you make your mind up to sign up. Different Taekwondo schools in Telscombe have different ideas about this but roughly; you will take part in a fifteen to twenty minute warm-up, you will do some technical training, you'll learn some patterns (forms), you'll practice sparring tactics and finally you will warm-down to get your body back into a state of relaxation once again.

The body governing Taekwondo in the British Isles is British Taekwondo and any individual wishing to join a Taekwondo class in Telscombe must also become a member of British Taekwondo. You will be able to get plenty of info on safeguarding and equality, first aid, coaching courses, health and safety, beginning a new club, referees and coaching, events, news, clubs and members, and more, by visiting British Taekwondo's website.

Taekwondo Kicks

As martial arts go, Taekwondo stands out as the one with the most kicking techniques. These are just some fundamental ones: Roundhouse Kick (Dollyo Chagi), Side Kick (Yeop Chagi), Push Kick (Meereo Chagi), Axe Kick (Naeryeo Chagi), Hook or Whip Kick (Huryeo Chagi), Crescent Kick (Bandal Chagi), Back Kick (Dwo Chagi), Front Kick (Ap Chagi). Blocks: To stop and deflect an incoming attack, "blocks" (called Makgi) are employed. Using the hand and areas of the arm, they are held in diverse positions. Each type of attack calls for a specific type of block, counter-attacking movements can be created by combining a block with a retaliatory punch or kick. The most important blocks include: Low Block, Double Knife Hand Block, Double Forearm Block, Single Forearm Block, Nine Block, Knife Hand Block, Palm Block, Rising Block and Upper Block.

Safety Gear

British Taekwondo tournaments call for specific safety gear to be worn to protect competitors from injury due to the forceful kicking that transpires. These safety solutions include: a mouth protector, shin guards, a groin guard, a red or blue head protector, blue/red trunk armour (hogu), hand protectors and forearm protectors.

Taekwondo Belts (Promotion)

The belt and ranking structure can get pretty complicated in Taekwondo because there isn't any recognised structure throughout the diverse Taekwondo styles. Parallels do exist though, and normally there are two distinct belt groupings, signified as "seniors" (black dans) and "juniors" (colours). The number of grades in the junior section varies across the disciplines but is usually between 8 and 12 belts, whilst the senior section typically has nine belts or dans.

In the UK Taekwondo has a set of ranks (belts) that are referred to as "Kup", these ranks go from Tenth (lowest) to First (highest). As with many of the martial arts, the Taekwondo belt order is denoted by a range of different colours, so the ranks are easily recognised. These colours are white, yellow, green, blue and red, with transitional belts with stripes in-between, 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. Beginners of Taekwondo in Telscombe will begin with the White Belt (10th Kup), and progress through the different coloured belts until they attain the Red With Black Stripe Belt (1st Kup).

Once this training regime has been accomplished, Telscombe Taekwondo trainees advance to "black belt candidates", and they then need to earn an additional nine ranks or Dans if they're to achieve the title of Taekwondo "Black Belt", which is the ultimate accolade. Therefore, Junior, Senior and Black Belts are the three principal divisions in the Taekwondo belt order in the UK. The Taekwondo Belts in the Junior division are; 10th (White), 9th (White With Yellow Stripe), 8th (Yellow), and 7th (Yellow With Green Stripe). The Taekwondo Belts in the Senior division 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 process which takes many years. (Tags: Taekwondo Belt Order, Taekwondo Belts Telscombe, Taekwondo Black Belts, Taekwondo Ranks Telscombe).

Taekwondo Forms

Beginners in Taekwondo don't need to stress excessively about forms (Poomse, patterns) in the early days, but they will get to grips with some basic ones for starters and move on to more complicated "forms" as they move up the belts (grades/dans). A form is signified by specific areas of Taekwondo including technique, direction and stance. Learning these sequences is a key part of mastering Taekwondo.

The Many Benefits of Taekwondo

There are of course, many benefits to be gained from participating in Taekwondo, and the following are just some which could be tempting for you: Turbocharge agility, stamina and flexibility by means of strenuous cardiovascular effort, Toughen up your body and mind thru increased mental discipline and physical co-ordination, Learn self-defence by showing you how to identify circumstances where self-defence may be needed, and empowering you to manipulate these kinds of situations to your advantage, Greater discipline by methodically schooling your body and mind in the tactics and concepts of Taekwondo, Build your confidence by helping you to succeed and to seize control of your life, Enhance your self-esteem by heightening both physical and mental fitness, Lower stress and anxiety with controlled breathing.

Telscombe Taekwondo for Beginners

Even the finest exponents of Taekwondo in Telscombe began their journey as newbies, therefore there is no disgrace in being a beginner at Taekwondo, or for that matter any other activity. The objective of a Taekwondo beginners class is to provide a few basics, raise self-confidence and develop a solid base for the future. Most important of all is that it needs to be fun, students having a great time will learn faster and be better invested.

Taekwondo Tournaments

Competitions are a significant aspect of the overall Taekwondo legacy, and all the diverse styles across the world stage competitions where Taekwondo exponents come together to battle it out. Hard contact is rarely permitted in any of these competitions which mainly incorporate breaking, patterns and sparring. Sparring only is permitted in Olympic and WT (World Taekwondo) tournaments, whilst some hand attacks are permitted in International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) events.