Taekwondo Calstock

Taekwondo is typically a lot more demanding physically than for example Tai Chi, so unless you're pretty fit and agile you may prefer to partake in something a bit gentler to boost your fitness levels in Calstock. Children and younger people are certainly an ideal participants for Taekwondo classes in Calstock, with a lot of fast paced movements going on and plenty of high kicking.

Taekwondo is a martial art that mainly features high-kicking manoeuvres and moves, most notably rapid kicking techniques, jumping/turning kicks and head kicks. It started in Seoul, in southern Korea during the 1940's, when a number of martial arts enthusiasts established schools known as "kwans", which combined a number of martial arts techniques.

Taekwondo has grown to become extremely popular in Calstock and all around the world, with more than 60 million participants worldwide. Registering with a local Calstock Taekwondo class or club is a great way to become involved with this sport which has even been a part of the Olympic Games since the Sydney Games in 2000. While you may not aspire to Olympic competition, there's no reason why you shouldn't become a maestro of this remarkable martial art and have a bit of fun in the process.

People in Calstock learn Taekwondo for numerous purposes but it is the self-defence element that interests most. This is not hard to believe when you think about the elevated levels of violence experienced in town and city centres on a daily basis. The ability to defend yourself and at the same time respecting others and exercising self-restraint is one of the primary benefits of Taekwondo.

There is a fairly good likelihood that your newly mastered Taekwondo skills will never have to be used in your day to day life, but it will most certainly give you a secure feeling knowing that they are there should you ever need them.

Your First Calstock Taekwondo Class

If you have never tried Taekwondo before, you may be interested to know just what is going to take place on your first lesson. This may vary subject to which Calstock school you go to, but will normally include the following. A fifteen to twenty minute warm up, a bit of technical training comprising some hand attacks, kicks, blocks and stances, learning some forms (or Poomse), a few ideas on sparring including good timing, precise movement and the accurate targeting of attacks, and last but not least a warm down with muscle stretching and loosening up.

The body regulating Taekwondo in Britain is British Taekwondo and any individual wishing to join a Taekwondo class in Calstock must also become a member of British Taekwondo. You will be able to read about referees and coaching, beginning a new Taekwondo club, clubs and members, events, equality and safeguarding, health and safety, news, coaching courses, first aid, and more on the British Taekwondo website, or find the latest Taekwondo news stories on their Facebook or Twitter page.

Beginners Classes

Even the very best exponents of Taekwondo in Calstock began their journey as newbies, therefore it's no shame to be a complete beginner at Tae kwon do, or in fact any other activity. The aim of a Taekwondo beginner class is to provide a few of the basics, raise confidence and build a solid foundation for the future. Most importantly of all is that it needs to be enjoyable, students having a good time are going to learn faster and be better committed.

The Popular Taekwondo Kicks

In the realm of martial arts, Taekwondo stands apart as the one with the most kicking strategies. These are just some basic ones: Roundhouse Kick (Dollyo Chagi), Hook or Whip Kick (Huryeo Chagi), Push Kick (Meereo Chagi), Side Kick (Yeop Chagi), Crescent Kick (Bandal Chagi), Front Kick (Ap Chagi), Back Kick (Dwo Chagi), Axe Kick (Naeryeo Chagi). Taekwondo Blocks: Taekwondo "blocks", which are used to fend off the different attacks, are called Makgi. Held in diverse positions, they involve the hand and parts of the arm. Certain attacks require specified blocks, but "blocks" can also be changed into counter-attacks by combining reciprocal kicks or punches. The most important "blocks" include: Low Block, Double Knife Hand Block, Upper Block, Single Forearm Block, Nine Block, Rising Block, Knife Hand Block, Double Forearm Block and Palm Block.

The Many Benefits of Taekwondo

There are of course, lots of benefits to be gained from doing Taekwondo, and listed here are just a selection of the ones that could be interesting for you: Increase self-esteem by heightening your mental and physical fitness, Toughen up your mind and body thru improved physical coordination and mental discipline, Develop self-discipline by exhaustively schooling your mind and body in the doctrines and techniques of Taekwondo, Teach you self-defence by helping you to understand instances in which self-defence might be required, and allowing you to turn such situations in your favour, Grow in your confidence by inspiring you to succeed and to seize control of your life, Turbocharge agility, flexibility and stamina through intense cardiovascular effort, Reduced anxiety with controlled breathing.

Taekwondo Belts (Rank)

In the art of taekwondo there's really no form of uniformity in relation to belts and ranking. It is all dependent upon which style you are reviewing, as there are such a diversity of Taekwondo rules and styles. They are however, usually divided into two groupings "junior (colour) belts and "senior" (black) belts. The junior/colour ranks consist of white to red, with from 8 to 12 grades, while the senior/black belts generally have 9 rankings.

In the UK there are a set of ranks (belts) in Taekwondo that are generally known as "Kup". The lowest rank is 10th Kup and the highest is 1st Kup. If you are eager to know the Taekwondo belt order, it's as follows, and is portrayed by a range of different colours i.e. white, yellow, green, blue and red, with "in-between" 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. Beginners of Taekwondo in Calstock will begin with the White Belt (Tenth Kup), and progress through the various coloured belts until they reach the First Kup (Red Belt With a Black Stripe)

As soon as this training has been accomplished, Calstock Taekwondo students become "black belt candidates", and they must then earn an additional nine ranks if they are to become a Taekwondo "Black Belt", which is the supreme accolade in this sport. Therefore, Junior, Senior and Black Belt are the 3 main divisions in the Taekwondo belt order. The Junior division 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 demands many years of dedication and training.

Competitions and Tournaments

There are an array of competitions and tournaments in Taekwondo associated with all the various styles. They largely comprise sparring, breaking and patterns (forms) with not much hard contact. ITF tournaments don't permit excessive contact but may allow hand attacks to be aimed at the head. World Taekwondo and Olympic tournaments allow only sparring. Multi-style tournaments also take place.

Conclusion

So, what are you hoping to get from Taekwondo? Well, that's a great question, and the answer will be different for individual people. The majority of participants will just wish to gain more self-confidence, improve their fitness and meet new people. We're not all going to scale the heights of Jade Jones or Lutalo Muhammad, though maybe you will, who knows?