Taekwondo Hayle

It has to be asserted that Taekwondo can be very physically demanding, which can discourage the less agile and more elderly people in Hayle from becoming involved. To be fair, the most frequent participants of Taekwondo classes are kids and the younger generation, but obviously older individuals who're in good physical health can easily participate and benefit considerably from this sport.

Taekwondo is a martial art that primarily features kicking moves and manoeuvres, most notably rapid kicking strategies, head kicks and jumping/spinning kicks. It began in Seoul, in southern Korea during the 1940's, when a number of martial arts enthusiasts established schools called "kwans", which mixed together a number of martial arts techniques.

Taekwondo is popular with the people of Hayle and with over 60 million others worldwide. Ever since the Sydney Games (2000) Taekwondo has been an Olympic sport and if you want to give it a try, joining a local Hayle Taekwondo club or class is an easy way to get involved. There's no reason why you cannot reach a high standard in this thrilling sport, even if you've got no desire to take part in the Olympics.

For many people in Hayle, it is the self-defence aspect of Taekwondo that has the most appeal. And its not surprising that this is on people's list of priorities when you consider the rising levels of violence seen these days in town and city centres throught the United Kingdom. In fact one of the key principles of Taekwondo is learning to defend yourself whilst exercising self-restraint and a respect for others.

While its great to know that you can defend yourself when you need to, you should be hoping that you never need to do this outside of your local Taekwondo club environment.

Your First Taekwondo Class

If you have decided to learn Taekwondo and are preparing for your first class, you'll be curious as to what will happen. The following will give you an overview, but this could vary from school to school. A 15-20 minute warm up to increase heart rate and loosen your muscles, a bit of technical training covering some blocks, stances, kicks and hand attacks, learning some forms (or Poomse), a look at sparring including good timing, precise movement and the accurate targeting of attacks, and finally a warm down to relax and stretch muscles.

Taekwondo of course also has its own regulating body, and in Great Britain it is British Taekwondo. Anyone wishing to join a Taekwondo club in Hayle has to become a member of this organisation. You will be able to read about coaches and competition referees, safe practices, coaching courses, first aid, safeguarding and equality, news, establishing a new Taekwondo club, events, members and clubs, and more on British Taekwondo's official website, and find the latest news stories on their Twitter or Facebook page.

Hayle Taekwondo for Beginners

Even the top exponents of Taekwondo in Hayle began their journey as newbies, so it is no shame to be a total beginner at this sport, or for that matter any other activity. The objective of a Taekwondo beginners class is to teach a few of the basics, raise confidence and develop a firm foundation moving forward. Most important of all is that it must be enjoyable, students having fun will learn quicker and be more invested.

Taekwondo Patterns (Forms)

Beginners in Taekwondo do not have to fret too much about forms (patterns, Poomse) initially, however they'll have to get to grips with some basic ones to begin with and move on to more elaborate forms as they progress up the various belts (grades/dans). A form is signified by certain areas of Taekwondo including direction, stance and technique. Getting to grips with such techniques is a key part of perfecting Taekwondo.

Tournaments and Competitions

There are a multitude of contests in Taekwondo associated with all the different styles. They mainly include breaking, patterns and sparring with almost no "hard contact". ITF contests do not allow too much contact but do permit hand attacks aimed at the head. World Taekwondo and Olympic competitions only allow sparring. Multi-style contests also take place.

The Many Benefits of Taekwondo

There are of course, a lot of benefits to be gained from participating in Taekwondo, and listed here are just a selection of the ones that could be of interest to you: Learn self-defence techniques by helping you to identify instances in which self-defence could be required, and enabling you to turn these situations in your favour, Grow in your confidence by pushing you to seize control of your life and succeed, Enhance concentration and self-esteem by sharpening both physical and mental fitness, Lessen anxiety using advanced breath control, Increase flexibility, stamina and agility through intense cardiovascular effort, Empower your body and mind via accelerated mental discipline and physical co-ordination, More discipline and willpower by exhaustively educating your body and mind in the strategies and doctrines of Taekwondo.

The Taekwondo Kicks

One of the main elements of Taekwondo is kicking, here is a small selection of the basic kicks: Axe Kick (Naeryeo Chagi), Crescent Kick (Bandal Chagi), Side Kick (Yeop Chagi), Whip or Hook Kick (Huryeo Chagi), Back Kick (Dwo Chagi), Front Kick (Ap Chagi), Roundhouse Kick (Dollyo Chagi), Push Kick (Meereo Chagi). Blocks: To stop and defend against an incoming Taekwondo attack, blocks (known as Makgi) are used. Held in diverse positions, they involve the hands and areas of the arm. Every "block" can be merged with a kick or punch to establish a counter-attacking movement, and each one is appropriate for a specific attack. The primary "blocks" include: Rising Block, Single Forearm Block, Palm Block, Knife Hand Block, Double Knife Hand Block, Nine Block, Upper Block, Low Block and Double Forearm Block.

Taekwondo Safety Gear

Tournaments governed by British Taekwondo policies require various pieces of protective gear to be worn, these include: forearm protectors, a gum shield, hand guards, a blue/red trunk guard (hogu), shin guards, a blue/red head guard and a groin guard. This is a must owing to the forceful kicking movements being practiced.