Taekwondo Codsall

Taekwondo is typically a lot more demanding physically than for example Tai Chi, so unless you're pretty nimble and fit you might prefer to partake in something a little bit gentler to boost your fitness in Codsall. Younger children are certainly the perfect participants for Taekwondo classes in Codsall, with lots of fast paced movements taking place and a great deal of high kicking.

Taekwondo is one of the more recently created of the martial arts, with its root beginnings in Korea, South-East Asia in 1945. A group of Korean martial arts specialists in Seoul founded some schools which they called "kwans", incorporating a variety of martial arts practices. Taekwondo, which was eventually called, primarily entails high-kicking manoeuvres, particularly head-height kicks, jumping/spinning kicks and fast kicking methods.

With over 60 million individuals engaged in Taekwondo classes all over the world, this has unquestionably become an extremely popular and beneficial activity, and if you become really good at the martial art you may possibly one day be eligible for the Olympic Games, of which it's been a part since the Sydney Games in the year 2000.

For the men, women and children of Codsall who are keen on the idea of learning a martial art, a big priority is the aspect of self-defence. As this is a pivotal principle of Taekwondo, it isn't difficult to see the attraction of this particular sport. With the added benefit of learning self-restraint and having a deep respect for other people, signing up for a local Codsall Taekwondo class seems to be a no brainer.

Your newly mastered Taekwondo skills will more than likely never need to be tested outside the monitored setting of an organized Taekwondo class, however being aware that you have them will give you peace of mind.

Your First Lesson

If Taekwondo is not a sport that you have ever tried before, you will doubtless be wondering what to expect from your very first lesson if you make your mind up to sign up. Different Taekwondo schools in Codsall have different ideas about this but roughly; you will take part in a fifteen to twenty minute warm-up, you will do a certain amount of technical training, you'll learn some patterns (forms), you are going to practice sparring methods and finally you will warm-down to help your body get back into a state of relaxation once more.

The UK's official regulating body of the sport is British Taekwondo and if you wish to join a Taekwondo class in Codsall, you'll also be required to register with this organization. You will be able to find plenty of information about news, safeguarding and equality, coaching courses, launching a new club, safe practices, referees and coaching, first aid, events, members and clubs, and more, by viewing the official British Taekwondo website.

The 8 Basic Taekwondo Kicks

One of the principal features of Taekwondo is kicking, here is a handful of the basic kicking techniques: Axe Kick (Naeryeo Chagi), Hook or Whip Kick (Huryeo Chagi), Crescent Kick (Bandal Chagi), Back Kick (Dwo Chagi), Side Kick (Yeop Chagi), Front Kick (Ap Chagi), Push Kick (Meereo Chagi), Roundhouse Kick (Dollyo Chagi). Blocks: To defend against the many kicks and hand attacks there are an equally diverse range of blocks. Using the hand and parts of the arm, they're held in diverse positions. Each kind of attack calls for a specific sort of block, counter-attacking manoeuvres can be created by combining a block with a retaliatory punch or kick. The principal blocks (makgi) in Taekwondo include: Single Forearm Block, Nine Block, Double Forearm Block, Double Knife Hand Block, Knife Hand Block, Low Block, Rising Block, Upper Block and Palm Block.

Taekwondo Patterns (Forms)

Beginners in Taekwondo do not have to worry too much about forms (Poomse, patterns) initially, however they will get to grips with some important ones for starters and advance to more intricate "forms" as they move through the various belts (dans/grades). A "form" is signified by specified elements of Taekwondo including direction, technique and stance. Learning these techniques is an important part of perfecting Taekwondo.

Competitions and Tournaments

There are a wide variety of tournaments in Taekwondo associated with all the different styles. They mainly include sparring, patterns and breaking with almost no hard contact. International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) competitions don't allow excessive contact but do allow hand attacks towards the head. World Taekwondo and Olympic competitions allow only sparring. Multi-style tournaments also take place.

Taekwondo Belts (Rank)

Since there are various different kinds of Taekwondo there's never been any recognised arrangement for allocating belts (ranks). What exists is however pretty similar and comprises 2 belt groupings "senior" and "junior" (black and colour), each of these groups is split into levels, 8 to 12 colours for juniors and nine "blacks" for seniors.

In the UK Taekwondo has a series of ranks (belts) that are generally known as "Kup", these ranks range from Tenth (lowest) to First (highest). The Taekwondo belt order, similar to many of the martial arts is denoted by a number of different colours, these colours are white, yellow, green, blue and red, with intermediary belts with stripes, namely 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 rookies in Codsall will start off with, they can then proceed through the different colours, eventually reaching the Red With Black Stripe Belt (1st Kup), which will probably take around three to four years of dedicated training.

Taekwondo trainees in Codsall are considered as "black belt candidates" after they have worked their way through these rankings, and they will then be faced with progressing through yet another 9 ranks (or Dans) if they want to achieve the supreme accolade Taekwondo Black Belt. So, Junior, Senior and Black Belt are the three main divisions in the Taekwondo belt order. The Junior Taekwondo Belts comprise; White (10th), White With Yellow Stripe (9th), Yellow (8th), and Yellow With Green Stripe (7th). The Senior Taekwondo Belts comprise; Green (6th), Green With Blue Stripe (5th), Blue (4th), Blue With Red Stripe (3rd), Red (2nd) and Red With Black Stripe (1st). The Black Taekwondo Belts go from 1st to 9th Dan which takes a number of years to progress through.

Final Thoughts

We can't all be like Jade Jones or Lutalo Muhammad, and I guess we wouldn't all want to be. Taekwondo is not solely about Olympic titles and National Championships. The majority of of us are happy to meet different people, make new friends and improve our levels of fitness, and that's precisely how it should be. However, as with most matters in life, what you get out of it will hinge on what you invest in it. Good luck and enjoy!