Taekwondo Sandwich

As a result of its rather more physical attributes, Taekwondo is perhaps more suitable for the younger person in Sandwich and is particularly suited to kids because it is great for developing self-discipline and respect for other people. Older adults might find it a bit too demanding unless they're particularly active and fit. Even so, those who persue Taekwondo in Sandwich from a young age will find that they can easily carry it on when they are older. The less nimble of you could consider something softer like Tai Chi.

Taekwondo is a martial art that mostly features kicking manoeuvres and moves, most notably fast kicking methods, turning/jumping kicks and head-height kicks. It began in Seoul, in southern Korea during the 1940's, when a number of martial arts specialists founded schools called "kwans", which blended a variety of martial arts practices.

These days an Olympic sport, Taekwondo has over sixty million enthusiasts worldwide, and while you may not have any ambitions to be an Olympic Games medalist, you are still able to enroll in a Taekwondo club or class to master what will no doubt turn out to be a fascinating and rewarding pastime.

For the people of Sandwich who like the idea of learning a martial art, a top priority is the aspect of self-defence. Considering that this is a central principle of Taekwondo, it's not difficult to appreciate the appeal of this specific sport. With the added bonus of developing self-restraint and having a degree of respect for those around you, signing up for a local Sandwich Taekwondo class would seem to be an easy decision.

Whilst it will give you peace of mind knowing that you have those self-defence skills tucked away inside you, the odds are that you'll never have to test them outside of an organized Taekwondo class.

Your First Lesson

If you've booked your first class but have not done Taekwondo before, you might be wondering what to prepare for. This could vary from class to class but will normally include some or all of the following. A warm up of 15-20 minutes to increase your heart rate and reduce stiffness in your muscles, a bit of technical training covering some stances, kicks, hand attacks and blocks, learning some Poomse (or forms), a few tips on sparring including good timing, movement and targeting attacks, and lastly a warm down to prevent cramping and muscle spasms.

Any person wanting to join a Taekwondo club in Sandwich must also become a member of British Taekwondo which is the official governing body of the sport in the United Kingdom. By visiting British Taekwondo's official website you will be able to find facts about events, first aid, coaching courses, news, safeguarding and equality, beginning a new club, coaches and referees, health and safety, members and clubs, and many more Taekwondo related issues.

Taekwondo Belts

The ranking and belt structure can get quite complicated in Taekwondo because there's no standard arrangement throughout the diverse Taekwondo disciplines. Similarities can be found though, and normally there are 2 separate belt groups, denoted as "seniors" (black belts) and "juniors" (coloured belts). The number of ranks in the junior groupings varies across the disciplines but is usually between eight and twelve belts, while the senior's groupings commonly has nine dans or belts.

In the UK there are a series of ranks (belts) in Taekwondo which are known as "Kup". The lowest (beginners) rank is 10th Kup and the highest is 1st Kup. As is the case with many of the martial arts, the Taekwondo belt order is indicated by a range of different colours, so the ranks can be easily recognised. These colours are white, yellow, green, blue and red, with transitional belts with stripes in-between, 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. Beginners in Sandwich starting out in Taekwondo will begin with the White Belt (10th Kup), and progress through the coloured belts until they achieve the 1st Kup (Red With Black Stripe Belt).

After this training regime has been accomplished, Sandwich Taekwondo trainees are referred to as "black belt candidates", and they then have to earn an additional nine ranks if they are to achieve the Taekwondo "Black Belt", which is the supreme distinction in this sport. Therefore, Junior Belt, Senior Belt and Black Belt are the three principal sections in the Taekwondo belt order. The Junior group of Taekwondo Belts are; White (Tenth), White With a Yellow Stripe (Ninth), Yellow (Eighth), and Yellow With a Green Stripe (Seventh). The Senior division 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 group of Taekwondo Belts comprise First to Ninth Dan rankings, and will involve many years of training and dedication.

Safety Gear

Safety equipment like blue or red trunk armour (hogu), shin protectors, a red/blue head protector, forearm protectors, hand protectors, a mouth protector and a groin protector are used in all tournaments overseen by British Taekwondo. Protection from injury is important thanks to the forceful kicks that are part and parcel of this sport.

The 8 Basic Taekwondo Kicks

Kicks play a key role in Taekwondo, here are a selection of the more basic ones: Roundhouse Kick (Dollyo Chagi), Push Kick (Meereo Chagi), Crescent Kick (Bandal Chagi), Back Kick (Dwo Chagi), Whip or Hook Kick (Huryeo Chagi), Front Kick (Ap Chagi), Side Kick (Yeop Chagi), Axe Kick (Naeryeo Chagi). Blocks: Taekwondo "blocks", that are used to repulse the various attacking movements, are called Makgi. Held in various positions, they engage the hand and different areas of the arm. Certain attacks require particular "blocks", but "blocks" can also be changed into counter-attacking manoeuvres by linking retaliatory kicks or punches. The most used "blocks" (makgi) include: Upper Block, Nine Block, Double Forearm Block, Single Forearm Block, Double Knife Hand Block, Low Block, Palm Block, Knife Hand Block and Rising Block.

Tournaments

Taekwondo competitions are held all over the world in all of the diverse styles. There is normally not a lot of hard contact but breaking, sparring and patterns (forms). Olympic and WT competitions comprise only sparring, in International Taekwon-Do Federation tournaments certain hand attacks are allowed to the head. Some other associations stage multi-discipline events.