Taekwondo St Austell

Because Taekwondo has pretty high physical demands, it's possibly more suited to the younger people of St Austell. That is not to say that older individuals cannot be involved in this particular activity, but simply that there could be alternative martial arts which are more appropriate for the less agile among us. Tai Chi would be a perfect illustration.

The discipline was developed in Korea in 1945, though it was not given the name Taekwondo until the 1950's. 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. Taekwondo, which it eventually became known as, mostly involves kicking manoeuvres, especially head-height kicks, spinning/jumping kicks and rapid kicking techniques.

Taekwondo is popular with the people of St Austell and with over 60 million others worldwide. If you want to get involved in this activity, which is now an Olympic sport, joining a Taekwondo club or class in St Austell is a good place to start. There is no reason why you cannot become a master of this exciting martial art, even if you do not aspire to Olympic competition.

For many folks in St Austell, it is the self-defence aspect of Taekwondo which has the most appeal. And in these days of ever increasing violence, especially in city and town centres, it's no surprise that this aspect sits high on people's priority lists. It is a primary factor of Taekwondo that you are able to become more confident in your capability to defend yourself while at the same time learning to respect those around you and learn self-restraint.

While its nice to know that you can defend yourself when you need to, it is hoped that you never need to test this outside of your local Taekwondo club environment.

What to Expect From Your First Class

If you have never had a go at Taekwondo before, you could be a bit anxious as to what should be expected on your very first lesson. This may vary from school to school but will usually involve some or all of these. A fifteen to twenty minute warm up to increase heart rate and loosen muscles, some practical training involving learning some blocking techniques, kicks, stances and hand attacks, discovering some forms (or Poomse), an introduction to sparring including movement, timing and attack timing, and lastly a warm down to relax and stretch tired muscles.

Anyone wishing to join a Taekwondo club in St Austell has to also become a member of British Taekwondo which is the official governing body of the sport in the British Isles. By viewing British Taekwondo's website you'll be able to discover information on safe practices, coaching courses, first aid, beginning a new club, referees and coaching, events, clubs and members, news, equality and safeguarding, and a lot more Taekwondo related facts.

The Many Benefits of Taekwondo

When you're signing up for Taekwondo classes in St Austell you'll be expecting to get some benefits to make the entire undertaking worthwhile. And so let's consider some of the many benefits that you may gain from learning and practicing Taekwondo. Lessen stress by doing deep breathing exercises, Build your confidence by motivating you to seize control of your life and succeed, Improve flexibility, stamina and agility by means of intensive cardiovascular exertion, Enhance your self-esteem by maximizing both mental and physical fitness, Toughen up your mind and body by improved physical coordination and mental discipline, Teach you self-defence by showing you how to realize situations in which self-defence might be required, and allowing you to turn these types of circumstances to your advantage, Greater discipline and willpower by comprehensively training your body and mind in the principles and strategies of Taekwondo.

The Eight Basic Taekwondo Kicks

There are loads of different Taekwondo kicking movements, here are just a few of them: Axe Kick, Whip or Hook Kick, Side Kick, Front Kick, Push Kick, Roundhouse Kick, Crescent Kick, Back Kick. Blocks: Taekwondo "blocks", which are used to repulse the various attacking movements, are known as Makgi. They are held in specific positions and use the hands with different sections of the arm. Each and every "block" can be coordinated with a kick or punch to create a counter-attacking movement, and each one is meant for a particular attack. The most important blocks include: Palm Block, Nine Block, Low Block, Upper Block, Single Forearm Block, Double Forearm Block, Rising Block, Double Knife Hand Block and Knife Hand Block.

Taekwondo Tournaments

A regular Taekwondo tournament incorporates sparring, patterns (forms) and breaking, as far as the Olympics is concerned only sparring is included. With that being said there may also be some unique events in specific competitions such as self-defence and team demonstrations. World Taekwondo competitions are strictly soft-contact affairs, whilst International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) tournaments permit some hand attacks towards the head. There are in addition a number of multi-discipline tournaments.

Taekwondo Safety Equipment

British Taekwondo controlled competitions call for specific safety equipment to be worn to safeguard contenders from being injured as a result of the vigorous kicking that takes place. This safety gear includes: a gum shield, a blue/red trunk protector (hogu), shin pads, a groin protector, a blue or red head guard, hand guards and forearm guards.