Taekwondo Hawkwell

Since Taekwondo has quite high physical demands, it's perhaps more suited to the younger generation in Hawkwell. That is not to say that older individuals cannot get involved in this kind of activity, but just that there could be alternative martial arts which are more suited to the less agile of us. Tai Chi would be a perfect illustration.

The name Taekwondo has only been used since the 1950's, although the martial art began life in Korea in 1945. Some new schools called "kwans" were established in Seoul by a group of Korean martial arts enthusiasts, mixing a number of various martial arts techniques. The main emphasis of the discipline was on kicking manoeuvres, in particular rapid kicking methods, head-height kicks and turning/jumping kicks, and it was later given the name; Taekwondo, roughly meaning "the way of the foot and fist". Nowadays Hawkwell Taekwondo classes comply with this tradition.

Taekwondo is popular with the people of Hawkwell and with more than sixty million others around the globe. This sport has even been included in the Olympic Games since 2000, and if you want to get involved, joining your local Hawkwell Taekwondo club or class is an excellent starting point. Whilst the likelihood of you getting to Olympic standard are quite slim, there's no reason at all why you cannot master this exciting martial art.

In these modern times of escalating violence, it is little surprise that folks in areas like Hawkwell are taking up self-defence classes such as Taekwondo to enable them to feel safer and more secure in their everyday life. The self-defence element is one of the primary factors of Taekwondo but it also teaches self-restraint and a deep respect for other folks, which are traits that are often absent in this modern age.

Your newly mastered Taekwondo skills will likely never have to be put to the test outside of an organised Taekwondo class, however being aware that you have them will instill you with self-confidence.

Your First Lesson

If you've never done Taekwondo previously, you might be somewhat anxious as to what you can expect on your very first lesson. This will vary from school to school but will usually comprise all or some of the following. A 15-20 minute warm up to loosen muscles and increase your heart rate, some technical training involving learning some hand attacks, stances, blocks and kicks, learning some forms, a quick introduction to sparring including timing, movement and the timing of attacks, and finally a warm down to stretch and relax tired muscles.

British Taekwondo is the official governing body of the sport within the United Kingdom, and membership of this organisation is mandatory if you would like to join any Taekwondo club in Hawkwell or nearby. You'll be able to find out about safe practices, members and clubs, coaching courses, coaches and tournament referees, first aid, events, safeguarding and equality, news, launching a new club, and more on British Taekwondo's official website, or find the latest news stories on their Twitter or Facebook page.

Hawkwell Taekwondo for Beginners

With any sport or activity we have to begin somewhere, and Taekwondo's exactly the same. Even the elite Hawkwell Taekwondo masters were total beginners at one time. So, what should you be expecting as a complete novice at Taekwondo? Beginner classes should give their pupils sufficient instruction to teach them the basic principles and enable them to build self-confidence as they progress. An ideal beginners class ought to be enjoyable as well as educational, when folks are enjoying themselves they're much more engaged and are going to learn faster.

Taekwondo Belts (Rank)

In Tae kwon do there's not really any kind of standardization in regards to belts and ranking. It all depends on what style you are looking at, since there are such a lot of Taekwondo styles and rules. However, they are usually divided into 2 groups "junior" or "colour" belts and "senior" or "black" belts. The junior/colour ranks range from white to red, with from 8 to 12 grades, while the black/senior belts normally have 9 grades.

Rankings in Taekwondo in the UK are symbolized by what are called "Kup". The top rank is 1st Kup and the lowest rank (beginners) is 10th Kup. The Taekwondo belt order, much like many of the martial arts is portrayed by a number of different colours, these colours are white, yellow, green, blue and red, with intermediary belts with stripes, 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. The White Belt (10th Kup) is what Taekwondo newbies in Hawkwell will start out with, they'll then move up through the different colours, eventually attaining the Red With Black Stripe Belt (1st Kup), after about 3-4 years of dedication.

After successfully completing this challenge, Taekwondo students in Hawkwell are known as "black belt candidates" which entails them progressing through a further nine ranks (Dans) up until they achieve the ultimate accolade of "Black Belt". Hence, the Taekwondo belt order can be grouped into three sections; Junior, Senior and Black Belts. 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 division comprise; 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 range from 1st to 9th Dan, a qualification process that will take a considerable number of years. (Tags: Taekwondo Belts Hawkwell, Taekwondo Belt Order, Order of Belts in Taekwondo, Taekwondo Rankings Hawkwell).

The Benefits of Taekwondo

There are needless to say, a lot of benefits to be had from doing Taekwondo, and the following are just some which may be interesting for you: Toughen up your mind and body by way of accelerated physical coordination and mental discipline, Improve agility, flexibility and stamina through intensive cardiovascular effort, Better discipline and willpower by extensively training your body and mind in the strategies and concepts of Taekwondo, Reduce anxiety using advanced breath control, Teach self-defence techniques by helping you to recognise situations where self-defence might be needed, and allowing you to manipulate these kinds of circumstances in your favour, Increase concentration and self-esteem by raising your mental and physical fitness, Beef up your confidence by helping you to seize control of your life and succeed.

Taekwondo Competitions

Tournaments are an important aspect of the overall Taekwondo experience, and all of the various styles across the globe stage tournaments where Taekwondo exponents come together to compete. Hard contact is hardly ever permitted in any of these tournaments which mainly incorporate sparring, patterns (forms) and breaking. Sparring only is permitted in Olympic and World Taekwondo tournaments, while specified hand attacks are permitted in International Taekwon-Do Federation events.

Conclusion

So, what do you want from doing Taekwondo? Well, that's a great question, and the answer to that will vary for different people. The majority of participants will just look to meet new people, gain more self-confidence and improve their fitness levels. We're certainly not all going to scale the heights of Jade Jones or Lutalo Muhammad, although maybe you will, who knows? 👊