Taekwondo Southwater

If you were to ask people in Southwater what their views were on Taekwondo, nearly all would say it is a sport for young kids. Keeping up with the physical demands of the sport may be easier for the younger generation, but this doesn't mean that people of every age can take part in, and enjoy the many benefits of this activity. It does however help if you are relatively agile to fully enjoy all the intricacies of Taekwondo.

Taekwondo is one of the more recently introduced of the martial arts, with its early beginnings in Korea, South-East Asia in 1945. A number of Korean martial artists in Seoul founded some schools known as "kwans", combining many different martial arts techniques. Taekwondo, which was ultimately called, largely consists of kicking manoeuvres, particularly rapid kicking styles, head kicks and jumping/turning kicks.

The number of Taekwondo students worldwide, now exceeds 60 million. Heading along to a local Southwater Taekwondo class or club is a good way to get involved in this sport which has even been included in the Olympic Games since the Sydney Games of 2000. There isn't any reason why you cannot become a master of this exhilarating martial art, even if you don't aspire to Olympic competition.

For the people of Southwater who are keen on the idea of learning a martial art, a major priority is the aspect of self-defence. Because this is a pivotal principle of Taekwondo, it isn't difficult to appreciate the attraction of this particular sport. With the extra benefit of learning self-restraint and having a degree of respect for other people, registering for a local Southwater Taekwondo class seems to be a no brainer.

Although it will give you peace of mind being aware that you have such self-defence skills tucked away inside you, the odds are you'll never need to use them outside the controlled environment of an actual Taekwondo class.

Your First Taekwondo Lesson

Different Taekwondo schools in the Southwater area will have different guidelines for what students should cover on their very first lesson, but to give you an idea of what you can expect most first Taekwondo lessons will incorporate a warm-up, some sparring, learning simple patterns (Poomse), a quick introduction to kicks, hand attacks, stances and blocks (practical training) and a final warm-down to relax weary muscles and get the body back to a state of balance.

Everybody who is a registered member of a Taekwondo class in Southwater or any place else in the UK, is also required to join British Taekwondo, which is the official governing body of the sport. By going to British Taekwondo's website you can read details on coaching courses, equality and safeguarding, coaches and tournament referees, starting a new club, news, first aid, clubs and members, health and safety, events, and many more Taekwondo related issues.

The Taekwondo Kicks

Among the basic Taekwondo kicks that you'll master initially include: Push Kick, Hook or Whip Kick, Side Kick, Front Kick, Axe Kick, Crescent Kick, Back Kick, Roundhouse Kick. Taekwondo Blocks: To divert and stop an inbound attack, "blocks" (called Makgi) are implemented. They're held in particular positions and employ the hand with parts of the arm. Each type of attack necessitates a particular kind of block, counter-attacking manoeuvres can be created by integrating a block with a retaliatory kick or punch. The most important blocks (makgi) in Taekwondo include: Double Forearm Block, Palm Block, Rising Block, Low Block, Double Knife Hand Block, Single Forearm Block, Nine Block, Knife Hand Block and Upper Block.

Southwater Taekwondo for Beginners

As with any activity or sport we need to begin someplace, and Taekwondo is just the same. Even the elite Southwater Taekwondo exponents were complete rookies at one point. So, what should you expect as a total beginner at Taekwondo? A beginners class should give its students sufficient coaching to teach them the basic principles and enable them to gain self-confidence as they move forward. A perfect beginners class must be fun as well as educational, when people are having fun they're more invested and will learn faster.