Taekwondo Harrow

It needs to be asserted that Taekwondo can be pretty physically challenging, which could discourage the less agile and more elderly folks in Harrow from taking this up. To be completely truthful, the most common participants of Taekwondo classes are children and the younger generation, but obviously older individuals who are in excellent physical health can easily participate and benefit from this sport.

With its root beginnings in 1940's Korea, Taekwondo is certainly one of the more recently introduced of the martial arts and entails primarily kicking movements such as jumping/spinning kicks, head-height kicks and rapid kicking strategies. It began when schools known as "kwans" were set up by a bunch of Korean martial artists in Seoul, South Korea.

Ever since the Sydney Olympic Games in the year 2000, Taekwondo has been a competitive Olympic sport. This has made it even more popular throughout the world with some 60 million people actively taking classes. And it's by signing up to a Taekwondo class or club that you are able to begin your journey of learning this fascinating activity.

For the men, women and children of Harrow who are keen on the idea of learning a martial art, a top priority is the element of self-defence. Considering that this is a key principle of Taekwondo, it's not difficult to appreciate the attraction of this unique sport. With the extra bonus of developing self-restraint and having a deep respect for other people, getting involved in a local Harrow Taekwondo class would seem to be an easy decision.

There's a very good likelihood that your newly learned Taekwondo skills will never have to be proven in your day to day life, but it will most certainly give you reassurance knowing that they are there should you ever need them.

Your First Harrow Taekwondo Class

If you decide to register for a Taekwondo club in Harrow, the very first thing you'll be thinking about is what is going to occur on the initial class and precisely what will the trainer expect to see from you. Different Taekwondo masters in Harrow will put together differing routines for this first lesson but you can expect to do a fifteen to twenty minute warm-up to get the blood circulating and loosen your muscles, learn a couple of Poomse (forms, go through some technical training (kicks, blocking techniques, stances and hand attacks), do a bit of sparring, and last but not least, a warm-down.

The United Kingdom governing body of the sport is British Taekwondo and if you wish to sign up with a Taekwondo club in Harrow, you will also be required to become a member of this respected organization. You will be able to find plenty of information regarding events, establishing a new club, news, members and clubs, equality and safeguarding, safe practices, coaching courses, first aid, coaches and tournament referees, and more, by exploring the British Taekwondo website.

Taekwondo for Beginners

It doesn't matter who you are or what you're ranking is in Taekwondo, at some point you were a total novice, fearing failure and knowing nothing. We have all started out like this and can only develop and learn with practice. Beginner Taekwondo classes in Harrow are the right place get started on that learning process and to pick up the fundamentals so that you can gain confidence and move forward in your exciting Taekwondo experience. Nearly all beginner classes are set up to be friendly and fun, offering a gradual introduction to the basic Taekwondo principles and building a solid foundation moving forward.

Taekwondo Belts (Rank)

When it comes to belts, promotion and ranking there's not actually any real uniformity in Taekwondo, as there are various styles of Taekwondo each of which has their own unique arrangement. There are however parallels and they typically consist of 2 groups of belts "seniors" and "juniors" symbolized by black and coloured belts respectively. The senior ranks typically have nine ranks and the junior, eight to twelve ranks.

Rankings in Taekwondo in the UK are represented by what are referred to as "Kup". The top rank is 1st Kup and the lowest rank (beginners) is 10th Kup. As with many of the martial arts, the Taekwondo belt order is indicated by a number of different colours, so that 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 Harrow getting started in Taekwondo will begin with the White Belt (10th Kup), and proceed through the coloured belts until they earn the 1st Kup (Red Belt With a Black Stripe).

After succeeding with this challenge, Taekwondo students in Harrow are considered to be "black belt candidates" which sees them proceeding through yet another 9 ranks (Dans) right up until they eventually achieve the accolade of "Black Belt". So, Junior Belt, Senior Belt and Black Belt are the 3 main groups in the Taekwondo belt order. The Taekwondo Belts in the Junior division are; 10th (White), 9th (White With Yellow Stripe), 8th (Yellow), and 7th (Yellow With Green Stripe). The Taekwondo Belts in the Senior group are; 6th (Green), 5th (Green With Blue Stripe), 4th (Blue), 3rd ( Blue With Red Stripe), 2nd (Red), and 1st (Red With Black Stripe). The Taekwondo Belts in the Black group go from 1st to 9th Dan, a process which takes a considerable number of years. (Tags: Taekwondo Belt Order, Taekwondo Rankings Harrow, Taekwondo Belts Harrow, Order of Belts in Taekwondo).

The Main Taekwondo Kicks

Taekwondo is famous for its vast array of kicking manoeuvres, over and above any other recognized martial art. Listed here are just a few: Axe Kick (Naeryeo Chagi), Side Kick (Yeop Chagi), Back Kick (Dwo Chagi), Hook or Whip Kick (Huryeo Chagi), Roundhouse Kick (Dollyo Chagi), Push Kick (Meereo Chagi), Crescent Kick (Bandal Chagi), Front Kick (Ap Chagi). Blocks: Taekwondo "blocks", which are used to defend against the various attacking moves, are called Makgi. They're held in various positions and employ the hand with different sections of the arm. Each "block" can be coordinated with a kick or punch to produce a counter-attack, and each block is suitable for a particular attack. The key "blocks" in Taekwondo include: Double Knife Hand Block, Upper Block, Palm Block, Nine Block, Double Forearm Block, Single Forearm Block, Rising Block, Low Block and Knife Hand Block.

Taekwondo Tournaments and Competitions

Taekwondo competitions and tournaments are staged internationally in all of the various styles. There's usually not a whole lot of hard contact but breaking, sparring and patterns. Olympic and World Taekwondo tournaments only consist of sparring, in ITF competitions specific hand attacks are allowed to the head. Various other organizations stage multi-discipline tournaments.

Taekwondo - The Benefits

You'll undoubtedly be fascinated to understand precisely what kind of benefits might be gained by attending Harrow Taekwondo instruction and partaking 100% in its practices. You may expect to: Better discipline and willpower by exhaustively educating your body and mind in the concepts and techniques of Taekwondo, Improve flexibility, stamina and agility by way of intense cardiovascular exertion, Improve concentration and self-esteem by maximizing both mental and physical powers, Grow in your confidence by motivating you to seize control of your life and succeed, Toughen up your body and mind by way of enhanced physical coordination and mental discipline, Help with self-defence by showing you how to understand situations where self-defence may be required, and allowing you to turn these kinds of scenarios to your advantage, Lower stress and anxiety using advanced breath control.

Final Thoughts

So, what do you want from Taekwondo? Well, that's an excellent question, and the answer to that will be different for individual people. Most participants will simply wish to meet new people, improve their fitness and gain more self-confidence. We are certainly not all going to scale the heights of Jade Jones or Lutalo Muhammad, though perhaps you will, you never know?