Taekwondo Minster-on-Sea

Images of young children doing energetic kicks and rapid punching manoeuvres, are what come to mind at the mere mention of Taekwondo. While the physical demands of Taekwondo may make it more suitable for the younger generation, it can also be practiced by people of any age. You will however get much more enjoyment out of Taekwondo if you are fairly agile and fit.

Based primarily around high-kicking manoeuvres like head kicks, jumping/turning kicks and rapid kicking techniques, Taekwondo was devised from the practices of different martial arts, by a group of Seoul martial arts experts in new schools called "Kwans" during the nineteen forties and fifties. These "Kwans" had the names Mooduk Kwan, Chungdo Kwan, Jido Kwan, Songmu Kwan and Changmu Kwan.

With over 60 million students all over the world and quite a few in Minster-on-Sea, Taekwondo has become really popular. Heading along to your local Minster-on-Sea Taekwondo club or class is a great way to get involved in this sport which has even featured in the Olympic Games since the Sydney Games of 2000. While reaching Olympic standard may be beyond you, there isn't any reason why you can't still become a Taekwondo master.

For the people of Minster-on-Sea who want to learn a martial art, a top priority is the aspect of self-defence. Since this is a pivotal concept of Taekwondo, it isn't difficult to see the appeal of this specific sport. With the additional benefit of developing self-restraint and having a deep-rooted respect for others, getting involved in a local Minster-on-Sea Taekwondo class seems to be a no brainer.

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

What to Expect From Your First Lesson

If you've never tried Taekwondo previously, you might be somewhat apprehensive as to what you can expect on your first lesson. This may vary from school to school but will normally involve some or all of these. A fifteen to twenty minute warm up to increase heart rate and loosen up muscles, a little technical training including learning some kicks, hand attacks, blocking techniques and stances, learning some forms (or Poomse), a quick introduction to sparring including movement, timing and attack timing, and finally a warm down to relax and stretch tired muscles.

The official body regulating Taekwondo in the British Isles is British Taekwondo and anyone wanting to join a Taekwondo club in Minster-on-Sea has to also register with British Taekwondo. You can find a lot of info regarding clubs and members, first aid, equality and safeguarding, launching a new club, coaching courses, news, coaches and competition referees, safe practices, events, and more, by heading to British Taekwondo's official website.

The Main Taekwondo Kicks

Some of the most widely used Taekwondo kicking manoeuvres that you will learn initially include: Back Kick (Dwo Chagi), Whip or Hook Kick (Huryeo Chagi), Roundhouse Kick (Dollyo Chagi), Push Kick (Meereo Chagi), Axe Kick (Naeryeo Chagi), Crescent Kick (Bandal Chagi), Side Kick (Yeop Chagi), Front Kick (Ap Chagi). Blocks: To defend against the numerous hand attacks and kicks there are a similarly diverse array of blocks. Held in particular positions, they use the hand and sections of the arm. Each form of attack calls for a particular style of block, counter-attacks can be produced by combining a block with another punch or kick. The key "blocks" (makgi) include: Upper Block, Single Forearm Block, Knife Hand Block, Rising Block, Double Forearm Block, Palm Block, Nine Block, Low Block and Double Knife Hand Block.

Taekwondo Belts

The belt and ranking structure can get rather confusing in Taekwondo as there's no standardized system across the various Taekwondo styles. Parallels can be found however, and usually there are two distinct belt groups, signified as "juniors" (colours) and "seniors" (black dans). The number of levels in the junior section varies over the styles but is commonly between eight and twelve belts, while the senior group commonly has 9 belts or dans.

In the UK there are a sequence of ranks in Taekwondo which are called "Kup". The lowest (beginners) rank is Tenth Kup and the highest rank is First Kup. The Taekwondo belt order, much like many of the martial arts is portrayed by a range of colours, these colours are white, yellow, green, blue and red, with intermediate belts with stripes, specifically 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 Minster-on-Sea will start out with the 10th Kup (White Belt), and proceed through the various colours until they earn the Red Belt With a Black Stripe (1st Kup).

Taekwondo trainees in Minster-on-Sea are considered to be "black belt candidates" once they've successfully completed this process, and they will then need to proceed through a further nine ranks (called Dans) if they aspire to achieve the supreme distinction of "Black Belt" in Taekwondo. Hence, the Taekwondo belt order can be grouped into 3 sections; Junior Belt, Senior Belt and Black Belt. 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 will take many years to successfully progress through.

Taekwondo Forms (Poomse)

Mastering the art of Taekwondo will involve learning a number of disciplines and one of the key aspects of Taekwondo is its forms (also known as Poomse or patterns). These are sequences of direction, technique and stance which must be memorized in order for participants to progress through the different dans (grades/belts).