Taekwondo Berkeley

Taekwondo is an ideal sport for children in Berkeley, because it teaches self-discipline and a respect for others. Its more physical aspects make it more suited to younger people. Unless they are particularly fit and active, older adults may find it too physically taxing. For those people who take up Taekwondo when they are younger, continuing the experience into adulthood should not be a problem. The less agile of you might consider something softer like Tai Chi.

With its beginnings in 1940's Korea, Taekwondo is obviously one of the more recently introduced of the martial arts and involves primarily kicking movements such as fast kicking methods, turning/jumping kicks and head-height kicks. It started when schools known as "kwans" were set up by a bunch of Korean martial artists in Seoul, South Korea.

Ever since the Sydney Olympic Games in the year 2000, Taekwondo has been a competitive Olympic sport. This has added to its popularity all over the world with some sixty million people or more regularly taking part in classes. And it's by enrolling in a Taekwondo club or class that you can commence your adventure of learning this unique art.

For many people in Berkeley, it is the self-defence aspect of Taekwondo that holds the most appeal. And in these times of increased violence, especially in city and town centres, it is little surprise that this aspect features high up on people's list of priorities. It is a key element of Taekwondo that you are able to gain more confidence in your ability to defend yourself and at the same time learn to respect other people and learn self-restraint.

Although it will instill you with self-confidence knowing that you have those self-defence skills tucked away inside you, the odds are that you will never be required to test them outside the regulated atmosphere of an organised Taekwondo class.

What to Expect From Your First Lesson

For those of you who have never done Taekwondo before, you will no doubt be interested to know what to expect from your first class. There may be variations to the following, depending on which Berkeley Taekwondo school you attend, but you can roughly expect; A fifteen to twenty minute warm up to loosen muscles and increase heart rate, a bit of technical training covering some stances, kicks, hand attacks and blocks, an introduction to some forms (Poomse), a look at sparring including movement, timing and attack targeting, and lastly a warm down to relax and stretch muscles.

Anyone who joins a Taekwondo class in Berkeley has to also become a member of British Taekwondo which is the official regulating body of the sport in the UK. By checking out British Taekwondo's website you will be able to discover info on members and clubs, safeguarding and equality, coaching courses, beginning a new club, referees and coaching, first aid, news, health and safety, events, and many more Taekwondo related issues.

Safety Equipment

Tournaments regulated by British Taekwondo policies require various items of protective gear to be worn, these include things like: blue/red body armour (hogu), forearm protectors, a groin protector, hand guards, a mouth protector, a red or blue head protector and shin protectors. This is vital owing to the formidable kicking actions being practiced.

Taekwondo Kicks

Taekwondo is renowned for its formidable kicks, here are the basic ones: Hook or Whip Kick (Huryeo Chagi), Crescent Kick (Bandal Chagi), Back Kick (Dwo Chagi), Front Kick (Ap Chagi), Push Kick (Meereo Chagi), Axe Kick (Naeryeo Chagi), Roundhouse Kick (Dollyo Chagi), Side Kick (Yeop Chagi). Taekwondo Blocks: Taekwondo "blocks", that are used to repulse the different attacks, are known as Makgi. Employing the hand and areas of the arm, they are held in particular positions. Certain attacks necessitate particular "blocks", but blocks can also be transformed into counter-attacking moves by linking reciprocal punches or kicks. The key blocks in Taekwondo include: Low Block, Double Knife Hand Block, Nine Block, Single Forearm Block, Upper Block, Rising Block, Knife Hand Block, Double Forearm Block and Palm Block.

Berkeley Taekwondo for Beginners

With any activity or sport we have to start somewhere, and Taekwondo is just the same. Even the uppermost Berkeley Taekwondo exponents were complete novices at one time. So, what should you be expecting as a complete novice at Taekwondo? Beginner classes should give their students sufficient training to teach them the basics and enable them to gain confidence as they move forward. A perfect beginners class must be enjoyable as well as educational, when folks are enjoying themselves they're much more engrossed and are going to learn much faster.

Taekwondo Competitions

There are an array of tournaments and competitions in Taekwondo associated with all the different styles. They mostly comprise sparring, patterns and breaking with little or no "hard contact". International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) tournaments don't allow disproportionate contact but sometimes allow hand attacks aimed at the head. World Taekwondo and Olympic competitions only allow sparring. Multi-style tournaments also take place.

In Summary

So, what are you hoping to get from doing Taekwondo? Well, that is an excellent question, and the answer will be different for individual people. The majority of participants will purely look to meet new people, improve their fitness levels and gain more confidence. We are not all going to reach the heights of Jade Jones or Lutalo Muhammad, although maybe you will, you never know? 👊