Taekwondo Livingston

While not intending to be in any way ageist, Taekwondo can be fairly physical and is generally more suited to younger people in Livingston, it's particularly good for children who will learn to be self-disciplined and respecting of others. Older adults trying Taekwondo for the first time often find it too taxing, unless they've continually kept themselves active. However those in Livingston who get involved in Taekwondo at a young age, will find that continuing into older adulthood is not a problem. Something a bit less strenuous like Tai Chi might be more suitable for the less agile of you.

The name Taekwondo has only been used since the 1950's, although the discipline started life in Korea in 1945. In Seoul, a group of Korean martial arts fanatics established some new schools which they named "kwans", practicing a combination of martial arts techniques. Taekwondo, which it eventually became known as, mostly involves kicking manoeuvres, especially spinning/jumping kicks, fast kicking strategies and head-height kicks.Today Livingston Taekwondo classes follow this tradition.

These days an Olympic sport, Taekwondo has more than 60 million enthusiasts all around the world, and whilst you may not aspire to be an Olympic Games sportsman, you're still able to enroll in a Taekwondo class or club to learn what will undoubtedly turn out to be a fascinating and worthwhile activity.

For a lot of people in Livingston, it's the self-defence element of Taekwondo that holds the most appeal. And in these times of increasing violence, especially in town and city centres, it really is no surprise that this sits high on people's priority lists. It is a key element of Taekwondo that you are able to become more confident in your capacity to defend yourself while at the same time learning to respect others and learn self-restraint.

There is a pretty decent chance that your eagerly learned Taekwondo skills will never have to be proven in your everyday life, but it will unquestionably give you a secure feeling knowing that they are there should you ever need them.

Your First Taekwondo Lesson

If you have booked your first class but have never done Taekwondo before, you may be wondering what to expect. This will vary from school to school but will usually involve some or all of the following. A warm up of fifteen to twenty minutes to increase your heart rate and reduce stiffness in the muscles, a bit of technical training covering some kicks, hand attacks, blocking techniques and stances, an introduction to some forms (Poomse), a look at sparring including movement, timing and the targeting of attacks, and lastly a warm down to prevent muscle spasms and cramping.

Taekwondo also of course has its own governing body, and in Britain it is British Taekwondo. Everybody wishing to join a Taekwondo club in Livingston must become registered members of this organisation. You will be able to get loads of information about members and clubs, beginning a new Taekwondo club, events, coaches and referees, safe practices, safeguarding and equality, coaching courses, first aid, news, and more, by visiting British Taekwondo's official website.

The Benefits of Taekwondo

When you're signing up for Taekwondo classes in Livingston you'll be aiming to get some benefits to make the entire thing worth the effort. And so let's consider some of the many benefits that you might gain by learning and doing Taekwondo. Strengthen your mind and body through enhanced mental discipline and physical co-ordination, More discipline by comprehensively educating your body and mind in the principles and tactics of Taekwondo, Increase self-esteem by maximizing both mental and physical health, Teach self-defence by helping you realize scenarios in which self-defence could be needed, and allowing you to control these types of scenarios to your advantage, Augment stamina, agility and flexibility through extreme cardiovascular exertion, Reduce stress using advanced breath control, Beef up confidence by motivating you to take control of your life and succeed.

Some Taekwondo Kicks

Taekwondo is famous for its powerful kicking manoeuvres, the following are the standard ones: Crescent Kick (Bandal Chagi), Back Kick (Dwo Chagi), Roundhouse Kick (Dollyo Chagi), Push Kick (Meereo Chagi), Hook or Whip Kick (Huryeo Chagi), Front Kick (Ap Chagi), Axe Kick (Naeryeo Chagi), Side Kick (Yeop Chagi). Taekwondo Blocks: To repulse the many kicks and hand attacks there are an equally diverse array of blocks (Makgi). Held in particular positions, they engage the hands and sections of the arm. Certain attacks necessitate specified blocks, but blocks can also be changed into counter-attacking movements by the combination of retaliatory punches or kicks. The main blocks include: Nine Block, Double Knife Hand Block, Palm Block, Upper Block, Low Block, Rising Block, Single Forearm Block, Knife Hand Block and Double Forearm Block.

Taekwondo Forms (Poomse)

Forms are a pivotal element of Taekwondo and are important if you are to master this intriguing activity. A few basic forms need to be grasped from the outset and more challenging forms have to be mastered in order to move through the various levels. A Taekwondo form is characterised by various points such as technique, stance and direction.

Taekwondo Belts (Promotion)

Because there are various different kinds of Taekwondo there's never really been any uniform system for allocating belts (ranks). What exists is however quite similar and comprises 2 belt groups "junior" and "senior" ("colour" and "black"), each of these groupings is divided into grades, eight to twelve colours for juniors and nine for seniors.

Taekwondo Tournaments

Taekwondo tournaments and competitions are staged all over the world in all the various styles. There's usually not much hard contact but sparring, patterns (forms) and breaking. Olympic and WT (World Taekwondo) contests only consist of sparring, in International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) competitions specific hand attacks are permitted to the head. Other organisations stage multi-discipline events.