Taekwondo Maesteg

While not wanting to discourage any particular age group, it has to be said that Taekwondo is more suited to younger people in Maesteg, being quite physically demanding. Its teachings of self-discipline and respect for others make it especially appropriate for children. Older adults who are not all that fit and active might find it a tad too taxing. Carrying their Taekwondo experience through into older adulthood should not however be a problem for those who start when they are younger. If you are less agile you could always try something a bit softer such as Tai Chi or Yoga.

Taekwondo is one of the more recently developed of the martial arts, with its beginnings in Korea in 1945. Some new schools called "kwans" were established in Seoul by a group of Korean martial arts fanatics, combining a number of various martial arts techniques. Kicking manoeuvres, especially rapid kicking methods, head kicks and jumping/turning kicks are the main emphasis of Taekwondo, as it eventually became known.

Nowadays an Olympic sport, Taekwondo has more than 60 million enthusiasts all over the world, and even though you may not have any ambitions to be an Olympic Games medalist, you're still able to join a Taekwondo club or class to learn what will no doubt prove to be a fascinating and fulfilling pastime.

For many people in Maesteg, it is the self-defence element of Taekwondo that is the most appealing. And its no surprise that this is on people's list of priorities when you consider the ever rising incidence of violence seen these days in city and town centres throughout the United Kingdom. Actually one of the main principles of Taekwondo is learning to defend yourself whilst exercising self-restraint and a respect for others.

Such self-defence techniques may at some point prove useful in the outside world, although it is more likely that you will only be testing them within a regulated class environment. Yet it is an amazing feeling knowing the fact that you will always be able to successfully defend yourself when you have to.

What to Expect From Your First Class

If you have booked your first class but have never done Taekwondo before, you may be wondering what to expect. There may be variations to the following, depending on which Maesteg Taekwondo school you attend, but you can roughly expect; A warm up lasting fifteen to twenty minutes, some technical training including learning some kicks, hand attacks, blocks and stances, some work on forms or patterns, a look at sparring including timing, movement and the targeting of attacks, and lastly a warm down to relax and stretch muscles.

The official body regulating Taekwondo in the UK is British Taekwondo and anyone wanting to join a Taekwondo class in Maesteg has to also register with British Taekwondo. You will be able to learn about coaching courses, events, safe practices, news, members and clubs, first aid, starting a new club, coaches and competition referees, safeguarding and equality, and more on British Taekwondo's website, and find out the latest news reports on their Facebook or Twitter page.

Tournaments

Competitions are an important aspect of the Taekwondo legacy, and all the different styles all over the world hold contests where Taekwondo exponents gather together to battle it out. Hard contact is hardly ever permitted in any of these contests which primarily comprise sparring, patterns (forms) and breaking. Sparring only is permitted in Olympic and World Taekwondo tournaments, whilst specified hand attacks are tolerated in International Taekwon-Do Federation events.

Taekwondo Belts (Promotion)

In terms of belts, ranking and promotion there isn't actually any standardization in Taekwondo, as there are various styles of Taekwondo which each have their own specific system. There are however parallels and they usually comprise two groups of belts "seniors" and "juniors" represented by black and coloured belts respectively. The senior rankings usually have nine grades and the junior, between 8 and 12 ranks.

In the UK there are a set of ranks in Taekwondo that are called "Kup". The lowest (beginners) rank is Tenth Kup and the highest is First Kup. The Taekwondo belt order, similar to many of the martial arts is denoted by a range of different colours, these colours are white, yellow, green, blue and red, with intermediary belts with stripes, 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. Beginner students of Taekwondo in Maesteg will commence with the Tenth Kup (White Belt), and move up through the colours until they achieve the First Kup (Red With Black Stripe Belt)

Taekwondo students in Maesteg are considered to be "black belt candidates" once they've worked their way through these rankings, and they will then be faced with progressing through yet another nine ranks (or Dans) if they plan to achieve the ultimate distinction of "Black Belt" in Taekwondo. Hence, the Taekwondo belt order can be grouped into 3 divisions; Junior Belts, Senior Belts and Black Belts. The Junior Taekwondo Belts comprise; White (10th), White With Yellow Stripe (9th), Yellow (8th), and Yellow With Green Stripe (7th). The Senior Taekwondo Belts comprise; Green (6th), Green With Blue Stripe (5th), Blue (4th), Blue With Red Stripe (3rd), Red (2nd) and Red With Black Stripe (1st). The Black Taekwondo Belts go from 1st to 9th Dan which will take a number of years to successfully progress through.

Safety Gear

British Taekwondo contests call for certain safety gear to be worn to protect competitors from personal injury due to the forceful kicking that transpires. These safety items include: a blue or red head protector, a gum shield, forearm protectors, a groin guard, hand protectors, shin protectors and blue/red body armour (hogu).

Taekwondo for Beginners

Learners starting out on their Taekwondo experience in Maesteg will at first register for a beginners class. Beginners classes are excellent, since there are no serious demands and everything's done at a slow, relaxed pace. Having fun while learning is the primary aim at first and trainees who are having fun tend to learn much faster and absorb significantly more of what they are being told. Even Taekwondo masters started out as inexperienced novices, so take that very first step and who knows where you will end up!