Taekwondo Carnoustie

As Taekwondo has pretty high physical requirements, it's possibly more suitable for the younger generation in Carnoustie. That isn't to say that older individuals can't take part in this popular activity, but simply that there might be other martial arts that are more suited to the less agile of us. Tai Chi would be the perfect example.

Based primarily around high-kicking manoeuvres and moves like spinning/jumping kicks, head-height kicks and fast kicking styles, Taekwondo was formulated from the techniques of various martial arts, by a group of Seoul martial arts experts in new schools called "Kwans" in the 1940's and 1950's. These "Kwans" were given the names Mooduk Kwan, Chungdo Kwan, Jido Kwan, Songmu Kwan and Changmu Kwan.

Taekwondo has become really popular in Carnoustie and all across the globe, with over sixty million practitioners worldwide. Getting started with a local Carnoustie Taekwondo class or club is a great way to get involved in this sporting activity which has even featured in the Olympic Games since the Sydney Games of 2000. Although you might not have any goals to get involved in Olympic competition, there's certainly no reason why you cannot become a maestro of this enjoyable martial art and have a bit of fun in the process.

It seems that the most appealing aspect of Taekwondo is self-defence. This is not surprising when you consider the rising levels of violence seen in town and city centres these days. 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.

With a bit of luck you'll never be required to use your newly acquired Taekwondo skills for defending yourself outside of your local club environment, but it's good to know they are there if you need them.

Your First Carnoustie Taekwondo Class

If you have just booked your very first Taekwondo lesson, you will be wondering what to expect. The following will give you an idea, but this may vary from school to school. A warm up of fifteen to twenty minutes to increase heart rate and loosen your muscles, a bit of technical training such as learning some hand attacks, blocks, kicks and stances, learning some Poomse (or forms), a look at sparring including good movement, timing and attack targeting, and lastly a warm down with muscle stretching and relaxing.

British Taekwondo is the regulating body of the sport within Great Britain, and membership of this organization is mandatory if you wish to join any Taekwondo club in Carnoustie or nearby. You'll be able to find out about events, coaches and tournament referees, first aid, health and safety, safeguarding and equality, coaching courses, launching a new Taekwondo club, clubs and members, news, and more on British Taekwondo's official website, or find out the latest Taekwondo news reports on their Facebook or Twitter page.

Taekwondo Competitions and Tournaments

There are a multitude of tournaments and competitions in Taekwondo associated with all the different styles. They mostly include patterns (forms), sparring and breaking with little or no "hard contact". ITF (International Taekwon-Do Federation) competitions don't allow substantial contact but sometimes allow hand attacks towards the head. World Taekwondo and Olympic contests only allow sparring. Multi-style competitions are also held.

Taekwondo Belts (Rank)

In Tae kwon do there is really no standardisation with regards to ranking and belts. It is all depending on what style you're looking at, since there are so many different Taekwondo styles. However, they're generally divided into 2 groups "junior (colour) belts and "senior" (black) belts. The colour/junior ranks consist of white to red, with from 8 to 12 grades, whilst the senior/black belts commonly have 9 grades.

Rankings in Taekwondo in the UK are represented by what are called "Kup". The highest rank is First Kup and the lowest (beginners) is Tenth Kup. As with many of the martial arts, the Taekwondo belt order is denoted by a number of colours, so that 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 Carnoustie will start out with the White Belt (10th Kup), and advance through the various colours until they reach the Red Belt With a Black Stripe (1st Kup).

Taekwondo trainees in Carnoustie are considered as "black belt candidates" once they have successfully completed this process, and they will then be faced with progressing through yet another 9 ranks (Dans) if they aim to achieve the ultimate accolade Taekwondo Black Belt. Hence, the Taekwondo belt order can be grouped into 3 sections; Junior, Senior 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 are; 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 takes many years to progress through.

Benefits to be Gained From Taekwondo

There are of course, a number of benefits to be gained from participating in Taekwondo, and the following are just some which might be attractive to you: Increase flexibility, stamina and agility through intensive cardiovascular exertion, Reduce anxiety and stress using advanced breath control, Greater discipline and willpower by methodically schooling your body and mind in the principles and strategies of Taekwondo, Empower your body and mind via increased physical coordination and mental discipline, Learn self-defence tactics by helping you recognise instances where self-defence could be necessary, and empowering you to turn these kinds of situations to your advantage, Boost your confidence by motivating you to seize control of your life and succeed, Improve self-esteem and concentration by heightening your physical and mental powers.

Taekwondo Patterns (Forms)

Folks just starting their journey in Taekwondo don't have to worry too much about forms (patterns, Poomse) initially, but they will have to familiarise themselves with some important ones to begin with and progress to more intricate forms as they move through the various belts (grades/dans). A "form" is denoted by particular elements of Taekwondo including direction, stance and technique. Getting to grips with such sequences is a crucial part of mastering Taekwondo.

Summary

We can practically guarantee that if you participate in Taekwondo you'll improve your fitness, gain more confidence and make new friends. If that is all you take away from it, then all well and good, and you can call it an achievement! We're not all looking to be Jade Jones's or Lutalo Muhammad's, but those of you that are, still need to start with the first step. Good luck on your journey! 👊