Taekwondo Southampton

Owing to its more physical attributes, Taekwondo is perhaps more suited to the younger person in Southampton and is especially suited to kids because it is great for developing respect for others and self-discipline. More elderly individuals may find it somewhat too demanding unless they're especially fit and active. Even so, those folks who persue Taekwondo in Southampton from a young age will discover they can easily continue with it when they're older. The less agile of you could consider participating in something gentler like Tai Chi.

Taekwondo is a martial art that mostly consists of kicking manoeuvres, most notably rapid kicking strategies, head kicks and turning/jumping kicks. It started in Seoul, in southern Korea during the 1940's, when a number of martial arts specialists established schools called "kwans", which blended a number of martial arts techniques.

Ever since the Sydney Olympic Games in the year 2000, Taekwondo has been a competitive Olympic sport. This has made it even more popular all over the world with some 60 million people regularly taking part in classes. And it's by enrolling in a Taekwondo club or class that you are able to start your adventure of learning this fascinating martial art.

For a lot of people in Southampton, it's the self-defence element of Taekwondo that has the most appeal. And in these times of increasing violence, particularly in city and town centres, it's little surprise that this sits high on people's list of priorities. It is a primary element of Taekwondo that you can become confident in your capacity to defend yourself and at the same time learn to respect those around you and practice self-restraint.

These self-defence techniques may sooner or later come in handy in the outside world, though it's much more likely that you will solely be using them within a controlled class setting. Yet it is a reassuring feeling knowing the fact that you'll always be in a position to defend yourself when you need to.

Your First Taekwondo Lesson

If you haven't tried Taekwondo before, you may be intrigued to know just what is going to take place on your first lesson. The following will give you an overview, but this could vary from school to school. A warm up of fifteen to twenty minutes to increase your heart rate and reduce any stiffness in your muscles, a little technical training comprising some hand attacks, stances, blocking techniques and kicks, some work on patterns or forms (Poomse in Korean), a few ideas on sparring including good timing, precise movement and the accurate targeting of attacks, and last but not least a warm down to loosen up and stretch tired muscles.

If you would like to join a Taekwondo class in Southampton, you'll also have to become a member of the sport's regulating body, namely British Taekwondo. You will be able to get a lot of details about news, events, equality and safeguarding, coaches and referees, clubs and members, coaching courses, safe practices, establishing a new Taekwondo club, first aid, and more, by viewing British Taekwondo's official website.

Benefits to be Gained From Taekwondo

You'll probably be intrigued to find out about exactly what kind of benefits might be obtained by attending Southampton Taekwondo sessions and partaking fully in its activities. You could expect that you will: Enhance your self-esteem by raising your physical and mental fitness, Toughen up your body and mind by enhanced physical coordination and mental discipline, Develop discipline and willpower by methodically schooling your mind and body in the concepts and strategies of Taekwondo, Beef up your confidence by encouraging you to succeed and to seize control of your life, Turbocharge agility, flexibility and stamina through extreme cardiovascular exertion, Teach you self-defence techniques by helping you to realize circumstances where self-defence could be required, and allowing you to manipulate such situations to your advantage, Reduces stress using advanced breath control.

The Main Taekwondo Kicks

Kicking movements serve a significant role in Taekwondo, here are a list of the more basic ones: Front Kick (Ap Chagi), Back Kick (Dwo Chagi), Whip or Hook Kick (Huryeo Chagi), Roundhouse Kick (Dollyo Chagi), Push Kick (Meereo Chagi), Side Kick (Yeop Chagi), Crescent Kick (Bandal Chagi), Axe Kick (Naeryeo Chagi). Blocks: To defend against and stop an inbound Taekwondo attack, blocks (called Makgi) are employed. Employing the hand and areas of the arm, they're held in diverse positions. Every block can be coupled with a punch or kick to produce a counter-attacking movement, and each one is suitable for a particular attack. The most used "blocks" (makgi) include: Upper Block, Double Forearm Block, Low Block, Palm Block, Nine Block, Single Forearm Block, Knife Hand Block, Rising Block and Double Knife Hand Block.

Taekwondo Belts

In relation to belts, promotion and ranking there isn't actually any standardization in Taekwondo, as there are various styles of Taekwondo which each have their own unique arrangement. There are however parallels and they usually comprise two groupings of belts "seniors" and "juniors" symbolized by black and coloured belts respectively, . The senior rankings typically have 9 ranks and the junior, 8 to 12 levels.

Taekwondo Safety Equipment

British Taekwondo contests require certain safety gear to be worn to protect contenders from getting injured as a result of the potent kicks that are used. This safety equipment includes: forearm protectors, hand guards, a red/blue body guard (hogu), a gum shield, a groin guard, a blue or red head protector and shin guards.

In Conclusion

We can more or less guarantee that if you participate in Taekwondo you'll improve your wellbeing, gain self-confidence and make more friends. If that is all you get out of it, then all well and good, you can call it a success! We aren't all vying to be Jade Jones's or Lutalo Muhammad's, but those of you that are, still have to begin with that first step. Good luck on your adventure!