Taekwondo Crook

It has to be asserted that Taekwondo can be very demanding physically, which could intimidate the older and less agile folks in Crook from becoming involved. To be truthful, the most frequent people participating in Taekwondo classes are children and the younger generation, but unquestionably older individuals who're in good physical condition can easily participate and benefit considerably from this activity.

Based mainly around kicking moves and manoeuvres like rapid kicking strategies, head-height kicks and jumping/spinning kicks, Taekwondo was created from the practices of different martial arts, by a group of Seoul martial arts experts in new schools known as "Kwans" during the 1940's and 1950's. These "Kwans" had the names Jido Kwan, Songmu Kwan, Mooduk Kwan, Chungdo Kwan and Changmu Kwan.

Taekwondo has grown to become very popular in Crook and all across the globe, with more than sixty million participants worldwide. Joining a local Crook Taekwondo class or club is an excellent way to get involved in this sporting activity which has even featured in the Olympic Games ever since the Sydney Games of 2000. Whilst you may not have any goals to get involved in Olympic competition, there's certainly no reason why you shouldn't become a maestro of this enjoyable martial art and have a bit of fun in the process.

People in Crook take up Taekwondo for many reasons but it is the self-defence aspect that appeals to most. This is not surprising when you consider the rising levels of violence seen in town and city centres these days. The ability to defend yourself and at the same time exercising self-restraint and a respect for others is one of the key benefits of Taekwondo.

There's a very good likelihood that your eagerly mastered Taekwondo skills will never see the light of day in your day to day life, but it will most certainly give you reassurance knowing that they are sitting in the background should you need them.

Your First Crook Taekwondo Class

If you elect to register for Taekwondo training in Crook, the first thing you'll need to know is what will happen on the first lesson and precisely what will the trainer expect to see from you. Different Taekwondo masters in the Crook area will develop differing routines for this first introductory lesson but you should be expecting to do a 15 minute warm-up to loosen your muscles and get the blood circulating, learn several forms (Poomse), go through some practical training (blocks, kicks, hand attacks and stances), do some sparring, and last but not least, warm-down.

The UK's official governing body of the sport is British Taekwondo and if you wish to sign up with a Taekwondo class in Crook, you will also be required to become a member of this respected organization. You can get loads of details about safe practices, launching a new Taekwondo club, first aid, coaching courses, coaches and referees, safeguarding and equality, news, events, members and clubs, and more, by checking out British Taekwondo's website.

Taekwondo Belts (Rank)

When it comes to belts, promotion and ranking there isn't actually any standardization in Taekwondo, since there are various styles of Taekwondo each of which has their own unique system. There are however parallels and they generally consist of two groupings of belts "seniors" and "juniors" represented by black and coloured belts respectively. The senior ranks normally have nine levels and the junior, 8 to 12 grades.

Rankings in Taekwondo in the UK are represented by what are called "Kup". The highest rank is First Kup and the lowest rank (beginners) is Tenth Kup. As with many of the martial arts, the Taekwondo belt order is indicated by a number of different colours, so the ranks are easily identified. These colours are white, yellow, green, blue and red, with transitional belts with stripes in-between, 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. Beginners of Taekwondo in Crook will commence with the 10th Kup (White Belt), and move up through the colours until they earn the Red With Black Stripe Belt (1st Kup).

When this training regime has been successfully completed, Crook Taekwondo trainees advance to "black belt candidates", and they must then earn an additional nine Dans or ranks if they're to become a Taekwondo "Black Belt", which is the supreme distinction. So, Junior Belt, Senior Belt and Black Belt are the three main divisions in the Taekwondo belt order in the UK. The Junior group of Taekwondo Belts comprise; White (Tenth), White With a Yellow Stripe (Ninth), Yellow (Eighth), and Yellow With a Green Stripe (Seventh). The Senior group of Taekwondo Belts are; Green (Sixth), Green With a Blue Stripe (Fifth), Blue (Fourth), Blue With a Red Stripe (Third), Red (Second), and Red With a Black Stripe (First). The Black division of Taekwondo Belts comprise First to Ninth Dan rankings, and will involve many years of training and dedication. (Tags: Taekwondo Belts Crook, Taekwondo Black Belts, Taekwondo Belt Order, Taekwondo Promotion Crook).

Taekwondo Safety Equipment

British Taekwondo matches require specific safety equipment to be worn to protect contenders from being injured due to the forceful kicking that occurs. This safety gear includes: forearm guards, a mouth guard, a groin protector, hand protectors, blue or red body armour, a red/blue head protector and shin guards.

Taekwondo Forms (Poomse)

Taekwondo forms (also known as Poomse or patterns) are identified by specific facets like stance, direction and technique. From the start you will get to grips with some of the standard forms, and so as to advance through the various levels (belts) you'll need to learn some more complex ones.

Taekwondo Competitions

Taekwondo tournaments are held across the globe in all of the diverse styles. There is usually not a lot of hard contact but breaking, sparring and patterns (forms). Olympic and WT (World Taekwondo) tournaments consist only of sparring, in International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) tournaments certain hand attacks are permitted to the head. Other associations stage multi-discipline contests.