Taekwondo Iver

When many people in Iver think about Taekwondo, they picture young kids performing energetic kicking and punching manoeuvres. There is no doubt that the younger and fitter generation are more equipped to contend with the physical demands of this high energy sport, but this isn't to say that people of all ages can't get involved. It should however be said that if you're relatively fit and agile you'll definately get more enjoyment out of Taekwondo.

Taekwondo was only developed fairly recently in Korea (1945). A group of Korean martial artists in Seoul established some new schools known as "kwans", combining various martial arts techniques. The emphasis of Taekwondo, as it eventually became known, is on kicking manoeuvres, especially head-height kicks, jumping/turning kicks and rapid kicking methods.Today Iver Taekwondo classes follow this tradition.

Taekwondo is popular with the people of Iver and with more than 60 million others all over the world. Joining your local Taekwondo class or club in Iver is an easy way to get involved with this activity which is now an Olympic sport. While noone would expect you to get to Olympic standard, you can certainly be one of the best Taekwondo exponents in Iver.

The thing about Taekwondo that seems to most appeal to people in Iver is the self-defence aspect of it. This is not hard to believe when you take into account the high levels of violence experienced in town and city centres on a daily basis. It is a key factor of Taekwondo that you can become confident in your ability to defend yourself and at the same time learn to respect others and learn self-restraint.

Such self-defence techniques may at some point prove to be useful in your day to day life, though it is far more likely you will only be putting them to the test within a monitored class environment. Yet it is a reassuring feeling knowing that you will always be able to defend yourself when you need to.

Your First Iver Taekwondo Lesson

If you haven't tried Taekwondo before you will be a bit concerned as to what to expect on your first lesson. The following will give you an idea, but this may vary from school to school. 15-20 minutes of warm up exercises to increase heart rate and loosen stiff muscles, a little technical training such as learning some hand attacks, stances, blocking techniques and kicks, learning some forms (or Poomse), some ideas on sparring including good movement, timing and attack targeting, and finally a warm down to stretch weary muscles and loosen up.

Any individual wishing to join a Taekwondo club in Iver must also become a member of British Taekwondo which is the regulating body of the sport in the United Kingdom. By heading to British Taekwondo's website you can obtain information regarding events, equality and safeguarding, coaching courses, beginning a new club, safe practices, first aid, members and clubs, coaches and referees, news, and lots more Taekwondo related issues.

Taekwondo Tournaments

Contests are a significant element of the Taekwondo experience, and all of the different styles all over the world hold contests where Taekwondo masters band together to compete. Hard contact is hardly ever allowed in any of these contests which mainly comprise breaking, sparring and patterns (forms). Sparring only is permitted in Olympic and WT tournaments, while specified hand attacks are tolerated in International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) events.

Benefits to be Gained From Taekwondo

You'll no doubt be fascinated to understand precisely what kind of benefits could be gained by attending Iver Taekwondo instruction and engaging 100% in its practices. You may expect that you will: Increase agility, flexibility and stamina by means of intensive cardiovascular exertion, Grow in confidence by encouraging you to seize control of your life and succeed, Toughen up your mind and body thru enhanced physical coordination and mental discipline, Increase concentration and self-esteem by maximizing your mental and physical health, Greater discipline by comprehensively training your body and mind in the concepts and techniques of Taekwondo, Lessen anxiety and stress by doing deep breathing exercises, Teach you self-defence by helping you understand instances in which self-defence might be needed, and allowing you to turn such situations to your advantage.

Taekwondo Belts (Rank)

In the art of taekwondo there's really no form of standardization when it comes to belts and ranking. It all depends upon which style you happen to be looking at, since there are so many different Taekwondo styles. They are however, commonly divided into two groupings "junior" or "colour" belts and "senior" or "black" belts. The junior/colour rankings range from white to red, with anything from eight to twelve levels, while the senior/black belts usually have 9 rankings.

Ranks (belts) in Taekwondo in the UK are represented by what generally known as "Kup". The top rank is 1st Kup and the lowest rank (beginners) is 10th Kup. As is the case with most of the martial arts, the Taekwondo belt order is portrayed by a range of different colours, so the ranks can be 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. Beginner students of Taekwondo in Iver will begin with the White Belt (Tenth Kup), and advance through the different colours until they accomplish the First Kup (Red With Black Stripe Belt)

Taekwondo students in Iver are known as "black belt candidates" once they've successfully completed this process, and they will then be faced with proceeding through yet another 9 ranks (called Dans) if they aspire to achieve the consummate distinction Taekwondo Black Belt. So, Junior Belts, Senior Belts and Black Belts are the three primary groupings in the Taekwondo belt order in the UK. The Junior division 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 demands many years of dedication and training. (Tags: Taekwondo Rankings Iver, Taekwondo Belt Order, Order of Belts in Taekwondo, Taekwondo Belts Iver).

To Summarize

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