Taekwondo Harworth

Whilst people of any age in Harworth can of course participate in Taekwondo, it is particularly suited to the younger generation as it can be quite physically demanding, children can especially benefit from its teachings of self-discipline and the respect of others. Seniors could find it somewhat too tough unless they are particularly active and fit. For those folks who take up Taekwondo at a younger age, continuing the experience into adulthood shouldn't be an issue. The less nimble of you might consider something softer like Tai Chi.

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

These days an Olympic sport, Taekwondo has more than 60 million practitioners all around the world, and though you may not have any aspirations to be an Olympic Games athlete, you are still able to join a Taekwondo club or class to learn what will undoubtedly turn out to be a fascinating and rewarding activity.

Though there's a lot to be gained by doing Taekwondo, it's the self-defence aspect that most Harworth people find appealing. This is no real surprise when you take into account the rising levels of violence seen in city centres nowadays. Actually one of the main benefits of Taekwondo is learning to defend yourself whilst exercising a degree of self-restraint and having respect for others.

These self-defence techniques may at some time prove to be useful in your day to day life, although it is more likely that you will solely be using them within a regulated class environment. Nevertheless it is a nice feeling knowing that you will always be able to defend yourself when you need to.

What to Expect From Your First Class

If you make your mind up to register for Taekwondo training in Harworth, the very first thing you'll want to know is what is going to occur on the very first lesson and what exactly will the tutor expect to see from you. Different Taekwondo masters in the Harworth area will put together differing routines for this first introductory lesson but you can count on doing a 15 minute warm-up to loosen your muscles and get the blood pumping, learn several Poomse (forms, go through some technical training (kicks, hand attacks, blocking techniques and stances), do a certain amount of sparring, and last of all, a warm-down.

Anyone wishing to join a Taekwondo class in Harworth must also register with British Taekwondo which is the regulating body of the sport in Great Britain. You will be able to find a lot of info on coaches and tournament referees, clubs and members, coaching courses, events, starting a new Taekwondo club, news, first aid, health and safety, safeguarding and equality, and more, by popping along to the British Taekwondo website.

Safety Gear

Safety gear such as hand guards, a mouth guard, a groin guard, forearm protectors, a blue/red head guard, shin guards and a blue or red body protector (hogu) are worn in all contests regulated by British Taekwondo. Protection from injury is vital thanks to the powerful kicking which is an integral part of this activity.

Taekwondo Belts (Ranking)

The ranking and belt structure can get quite confusing in Taekwondo as there's no uniform arrangement throughout the diverse Taekwondo styles. Parallels do exist however, and usually there are 2 separate belt groupings, denoted as "juniors" (colours) and "seniors" (black dans). The number of rankings in the junior group varies across the disciplines but is usually somewhere between 8 and 12 belts, whilst the senior section usually has nine dans or belts.

In the UK Taekwondo has a series 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 portrayed by a range of colours, so the ranks can be easily recognised. 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 Harworth will commence with the White Belt (Tenth Kup), and proceed through the different coloured belts until they earn the Red With Black Stripe Belt (First Kup)

After this training regime has been accomplished, Harworth Taekwondo students become "black belt candidates", and they must then progress through an additional nine Dans (ranks) if they are to become a Taekwondo "Black Belt", which is the consummate accolade. Therefore, the bottom line is, there are three principal groups in the Taekwondo belt order, that is Junior, Senior and Black Belt. The Junior Taekwondo Belts are; White (10th), White With Yellow Stripe (9th), Yellow (8th), and Yellow With Green Stripe (7th). The Senior Taekwondo Belts are; 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 considerable number of years to successfully progress through. (Tags: Taekwondo Belts Harworth, Taekwondo Belt Order, Belt Order Taekwondo, Taekwondo Rankings Harworth).

Taekwondo Kicks

Taekwondo is perhaps best known for its acrobatic kicking, here are a handful of the standard kicks you'll learn as a beginner: Crescent Kick, Front Kick, Back Kick, Roundhouse Kick, Push Kick, Axe Kick, Whip or Hook Kick, Side Kick. Blocks: To fend off the many kicks and hand attacks there are an equally diverse array of "blocks". Engaging the hand and areas of the arm, they are held in particular positions. Each form of attack necessitates a particular style of block, counter-attacks can be created by integrating a block with another punch or kick. The principal blocks (makgi) include: Low Block, Double Knife Hand Block, Palm Block, Rising Block, Single Forearm Block, Knife Hand Block, Upper Block, Nine Block and Double Forearm Block.

Taekwondo Competitions

Taekwondo competitions are held internationally in all of the diverse styles. There is usually not a lot of hard contact but sparring, patterns and breaking. Olympic and World Taekwondo (WT) competitions only consist of sparring, in ITF tournaments certain hand attacks are allowed to the head. Some other organizations hold multi-discipline contests.