Taekwondo Ossett

Taekwondo is typically far more demanding physically than for instance Tai Chi, so unless you're pretty nimble and fit you may prefer to find something a little gentler to improve your fitness levels in Ossett. Children are clearly the perfect participants for Taekwondo classes in Ossett, with lots of fast paced movements going on and plenty of high kicking.

Taekwondo was only developed fairly recently in Korea (1945). This combination of various martial arts techniques were practiced in some new schools in Seoul called "kwans", founded by a group of Korean martial artists. The emphasis of the discipline was on kicking manoeuvres, especially fast kicking strategies, turning/jumping kicks and head-height kicks, and it was later given the name; Taekwondo, meaning "the way of the foot and fist".

Ever since the Sydney Olympic Games in the year 2000, Taekwondo has been a competitive Olympic sport. This has added to its popularity around the world with some sixty million people regularly participating in classes. And it's by signing up to a Taekwondo class or club that you are able to start your quest of mastering this remarkable activity.

Of all the numerous benefits of learning this sport, it is the self-defence element of Taekwondo that the people of Ossett find most alluring. And its no surprise that this features highly on people's list of priorities when you consider the ever increasing incidence of violence seen these days in city centres throughout Britain. Learning to defend yourself whilst applying self-restraint and a respect for others is a key principle of Taekwondo.

While it is great to practice and master these self-defence skills in the protected environment of your local Ossett Taekwondo club, with luck you will not ever be required to use them in the outside world.

Your First Class

If you haven't done Taekwondo before you might be a little anxious as to what you should expect on your first lesson. This may vary subject to which Ossett school you go to, but will generally involve the following. An initial warm up lasting fifteen to twenty minutes, a bit of technical training which will involve learning some stances, hand attacks, blocking techniques and kicks, learning the first patterns or forms, some ideas on sparring including movement, timing and attack targeting, and last but not least a warm down to stretch weary muscles and loosen up.

The UK official regulating body of the sport is British Taekwondo and if you want to sign up to Taekwondo class in Ossett, you'll also be required to become a member of this organization. You will be able to find plenty of details on clubs and members, first aid, coaching courses, equality and safeguarding, establishing a new Taekwondo club, news, events, health and safety, coaches and referees, and more, by dropping by at British Taekwondo's website.

The Many Benefits of Taekwondo

There are needless to say, a lot of benefits to be had from practicing Taekwondo, and the following are just a few which may be appealing to you: Augment flexibility, stamina and agility by way of intensive cardiovascular work-outs, Help with self-defence strategies by helping you to recognize occasions in which self-defence could be necessary, and allowing you to turn these types of scenarios to your advantage, Increase feelings of self-esteem by elevating both physical and mental fitness, Beef up confidence by encouraging you to seize control of your life and succeed, Strengthen your body and mind by means of increased physical coordination and mental discipline, Lower anxiety by doing deep breathing exercises, Better self-discipline by extensively educating your body and mind in the techniques and principles of Taekwondo.

Taekwondo Kicks

Kicks play a key role in the art of Taekwondo, here are a small selection of the more basic ones: Side Kick, Push Kick, Hook or Whip Kick, Back Kick, Crescent Kick, Axe Kick, Front Kick, Roundhouse Kick. Blocks: Taekwondo "blocks", which are used to repulse the various attacks, are known as Makgi. Held in diverse positions, they use the hand and areas of the arm. Specific attacks require particular "blocks", but blocks can also be transformed into counter-attacking moves by combining retaliatory punches or kicks. The key Taekwondo "blocks" include: Double Forearm Block, Palm Block, Knife Hand Block, Low Block, Double Knife Hand Block, Single Forearm Block, Nine Block, Upper Block and Rising Block.

Safety Gear

In all matches, events and tournaments taking place under the patronage of British Taekwondo, safety equipment like a mouth protector, forearm protectors, shin protectors, a blue or red trunk protector (hogu), a groin guard, hand guards and a blue/red head guard is obligatory. The kicking manoeuvres employed in Taekwondo could cause injury and this all helps make this sport much safer for its competitors.