Taekwondo Clydebank

Taekwondo is typically much more physically demanding than for example Tai Chi, so unless you are pretty fit and nimble you may prefer to find something a bit gentler to boost your fitness in Clydebank. Younger children are certainly an ideal participants for Taekwondo classes in Clydebank, with a lot of fast paced movements taking place and plenty of high kicking.

The sport was first practiced in Korea in around 1945, though the name Taekwondo was not coined until the 1950's. A group of Korean martial artists in Seoul established some new schools called "kwans", blending various martial arts techniques. This later became known as Taekwondo and the primary focus of the discipline was on kicking movements, in particular turning/jumping kicks, head-height kicks and fast kicking methods. Today Clydebank Taekwondo classes comply with this tradition.

Ever since the Sydney Olympic Games in the year 2000, Taekwondo has been an Olympic sport. This has added to its popularity throughout the world with some sixty million people regularly taking classes. And it's by joining a Taekwondo class or club that you are able to begin your journey of mastering this exciting martial art.

For the people of Clydebank who would like to learn a martial art, a top priority is the aspect of self-defence. Because this is a key concept of Taekwondo, it's not difficult to appreciate the attraction of this particular sport. With the added benefit of learning self-restraint and having a deep respect for those around you, registering for a local Clydebank Taekwondo class seems to be an easy decision.

Although it will give you peace of mind being aware that you have these self-defence skills tucked away inside you, the likelihood is that you'll never need to use them outside of a dedicated Taekwondo class.

Your First Lesson

For those of you who have never attempted Taekwondo before, you'll no doubt be intrigued to know just what to expect from your first class. This can vary subject to which Clydebank school you attend, but will generally involve the following. An initial warm up lasting fifteen to twenty minutes, a bit of technical training which will involve learning some hand attacks, stances, blocking techniques and kicks, learning some Poomse (or forms), some tips on sparring including movement, timing and attack targeting, and finally a warm down to relax and stretch muscles.

If you want to join a Taekwondo class in Clydebank, you will also have to become a member of the sport's regulating body, namely British Taekwondo. By exploring the official British Taekwondo website you'll be able to find information regarding referees and coaching, launching a new Taekwondo club, safe practices, safeguarding and equality, first aid, news, coaching courses, events, members and clubs, and lots more Taekwondo related facts.

The Many Benefits of Taekwondo

When you are enrolling in Taekwondo classes in Clydebank you'll be expecting to get a few benefits to make the whole undertaking worthwhile. And so we should investigate some of the benefits that you could get by practicing and learning Taekwondo. Teach you self-defence by helping you identify situations where self-defence might be necessary, and empowering you to control these kinds of situations in your favour, Reduces stress with controlled breathing, Increase self-esteem by maximizing your mental and physical powers, Increase flexibility, stamina and agility through intensive cardiovascular effort, Develop self-discipline by thoroughly training your body and mind in the techniques and concepts of Taekwondo, Toughen up your body and mind by means of improved mental discipline and physical co-ordination, Boost confidence by motivating you to seize control of your life and succeed.

Taekwondo Forms (Poomse)

Taekwondo forms (also referred to as Poomse or patterns) are categorized by certain elements like technique, direction and stance. From the outset you are going to learn some of the basic forms, and so as to move through the various levels (belts) you will need to learn some more complicated ones.

The Popular Taekwondo Kicks

Kicks play a major role in the art of Taekwondo, here are a small selection of the more basic ones: Front Kick, Side Kick, Back Kick, Crescent Kick, Hook or Whip Kick, Push Kick, Roundhouse Kick, Axe Kick. Blocks: To repulse the many hand attacks and kicks there are an equally diverse selection of "blocks". Engaging the hands and different parts of the arm, they are held in various positions. Each "block" can be coupled with a kick or punch to produce a counter-attacking manoeuvre, and each is appropriate for a certain type of attack. The most used blocks include: Rising Block, Single Forearm Block, Palm Block, Nine Block, Double Forearm Block, Knife Hand Block, Low Block, Double Knife Hand Block and Upper Block.

Taekwondo Belts

In Tae kwon do there is not really any standardization when it comes to ranking and belts. It is all determined by which style you're considering, as there are such a lot of Taekwondo styles and rules. However, they're normally divided into 2 groups "junior (colour) belts and "senior" (black) belts. The junior/colour ranks consist of white to red, with from eight to twelve rankings, whilst the senior/black belts generally have 9 grades.

Ranks in Taekwondo in the UK are represented by what are known as "Kup". The top rank is First Kup and the lowest rank (beginners) is Tenth Kup. As with most of the martial arts, the Taekwondo belt order is portrayed by a range of colours, so the ranks are 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. Beginners of Taekwondo in Clydebank will start out with the White Belt (10th Kup), and progress through the different coloured belts until they earn the Red With Black Stripe Belt (1st Kup).

When this training has been accomplished, Clydebank Taekwondo trainees become known as "black belt candidates", and they then have to progress through a further nine Dans (ranks) if they're to become a Taekwondo "Black Belt", which of course is the supreme distinction in this sport. So, Junior, Senior and Black Belt are the 3 principal groups in the Taekwondo belt order in the UK. The Junior Taekwondo Belts are; 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 a number of years to successfully progress through.

Clydebank Taekwondo for Beginners

As with any activity or sport we need to begin somewhere, and Taekwondo is no exception. Even the foremost Clydebank Taekwondo exponents were complete rookies at one point. So, what can you expect as a total novice at Taekwondo? A beginners class should give its enrollees enough coaching to teach them the basic principles and enable them to develop self-confidence as they move forward. The ideal beginners class needs to be enjoyable as well as instructional, when people are enjoying themselves they are far more engrossed and are going to learn much faster.

In Summary

So, what are you hoping to get from doing Taekwondo? Well, that's a good question, and the answer to that will be different for individual people. Most participants will just look to meet new people, gain more self-confidence and improve their fitness. We are not all going to reach the heights of Jade Jones or Lutalo Muhammad, although maybe you will, who knows? 👊