Taekwondo Felixstowe

Taekwondo is generally far more physically demanding than for instance Tai Chi, so unless you're pretty nimble and fit you might prefer to partake in something a bit gentler to improve your fitness in Felixstowe. Children are definitely an ideal participants for Taekwondo classes in Felixstowe, with a lot of fast paced movements taking place and a great deal of high kicking.

The sport was first practiced in Korea in about 1945, though the name Taekwondo was not coined until the 1950's. A group of Korean martial artists in Seoul established some new schools known as "kwans", mixing various martial arts techniques. The main emphasis of the discipline was on kicking movements, especially fast kicking techniques, head kicks and jumping/spinning kicks, and it was later given the name; Taekwondo, meaning "the way of the foot and fist". Nowadays Felixstowe Taekwondo classes stick to this tradition.

With more than 60 million students around the globe and a fair few in Felixstowe, Taekwondo has become really popular. This sport has even been included in the Olympic Games since 2000, and if you would like to get involved, signing up for your local Felixstowe Taekwondo class or club is a great starting point. While the odds of you getting to Olympic standard are rather slim, there isn't any reason at all why you can't master this fascinating martial art.

For the men, women and children of Felixstowe who would like to learn a martial art, a top priority is the element of self-defence. Because this is a key concept of Taekwondo, it isn't difficult to appreciate the appeal of this particular sport. With the extra reward of developing self-restraint and having a deep-rooted respect for other people, getting involved in a local Felixstowe Taekwondo class would seem to be a no brainer.

Although you'll spend a lot of time learning these vital self-defence skills, with a bit of luck you won't ever need to implement them apart from within your local Taekwondo club environment.

Your First Class

If Taekwondo is not a sport that you have ever done before, you'll doubtless be wondering what you should be expecting from your very first class if you decide to join. Different Taekwondo schools in Felixstowe have different ideas about this but in brief; you'll participate in a fifteen to twenty minute warm-up, you'll do a bit of technical training, you'll learn some forms (patterns), you'll practice sparring strategies and finally you will warm-down to get your body back into a relaxed state once more.

British Taekwondo is the official regulating body of the sport within Great Britain, and membership of this organisation is mandatory if you would like to join any Taekwondo class in Felixstowe or nearby. You will be able to find loads of details about news, safe practices, beginning a new club, safeguarding and equality, members and clubs, first aid, referees and coaching, coaching courses, events, and more, by popping along to British Taekwondo's official website.

Taekwondo Kicks

Taekwondo is recognized for its powerful kicks, listed here are the important ones: Back Kick (Dwo Chagi), Axe Kick (Naeryeo Chagi), Push Kick (Meereo Chagi), Front Kick (Ap Chagi), Roundhouse Kick (Dollyo Chagi), Crescent Kick (Bandal Chagi), Side Kick (Yeop Chagi), Hook or Whip Kick (Huryeo Chagi). Blocks: Taekwondo "blocks", which are used to defend against the various attacking moves, are known as Makgi. Held in various positions, they use the hands and sections of the arm. Certain attacks necessitate particular "blocks", but "blocks" can also be changed into counter-attacking manoeuvres by the combination of reciprocal punches or kicks. The most important blocks used in Taekwondo include: Double Forearm Block, Palm Block, Single Forearm Block, Knife Hand Block, Upper Block, Nine Block, Low Block, Double Knife Hand Block and Rising Block.

Taekwondo Forms

Taekwondo forms (also known as Poomse or patterns) are characterised by specific elements like direction, technique and stance. From the start you are going to be taught some of the basic forms, and so as to progress through the various rankings (belts) you will have to master some more technical ones.

Competitions and Tournaments

A standard Taekwondo competition incorporates breaking, sparring and patterns (forms), in the Olympics only sparring is involved. Having said that there can also be some unique events in certain competitions such as self-defence and team demonstrations. WT (World Taekwondo) contests are strictly soft-contact events, while ITF tournaments allow some hand attacks towards the head. There are in addition some multi-discipline tournaments.