Taekwondo Wishaw

Taekwondo is typically a lot more demanding physically than for instance Tai Chi, so unless you're pretty agile and fit you might prefer to find something a little gentler to improve your fitness levels in Wishaw. Children are certainly an ideal participants for Taekwondo classes in Wishaw, with a lot of fast movements going on and plenty of high kicking.

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", combining various martial arts techniques were established in Seoul by a group of Korean martial arts fanatics. Kicking manoeuvres, especially head-height kicks, turning/jumping kicks and fast kicking strategies are the main emphasis of Taekwondo, as it eventually became known.Today Wishaw Taekwondo classes follow this tradition.

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 sixty million people regularly attending classes. And it's by joining a Taekwondo club or class that you can begin your adventure of learning this exciting art.

The thing about Taekwondo that seems to most appeal to people in Wishaw is the self-defence aspect of it. This is not hard to believe when you take into account the high levels of violence experienced in town and city centres on a daily basis. Being able to defend yourself is a key factor of Taekwondo, but this is tempered by learning self-restraint and a respect for others.

Your newly learned Taekwondo skills will most likely never need to be tested outside of an organized Taekwondo class, however knowing that you have them will instill you with confidence.

Your First Wishaw Taekwondo Class

If you've never done Taekwondo previously, you might be a bit apprehensive as to what you can expect on your first lesson. This will be different from club to club but will usually involve some or all of the following. A 15-20 minute warm up to loosen up muscles and increase your heart rate, a bit of practical training involving learning some kicks, stances, blocking techniques and hand attacks, discovering some Poomse (forms), an overview of sparring including movement, timing and attack timing, and finally a warm down to relax and stretch weary muscles.

The official body regulating Taekwondo in the UK is British Taekwondo and anybody wishing to join a Taekwondo class in Wishaw must also register with British Taekwondo. You'll be able to read about news, coaching courses, first aid, equality and safeguarding, clubs and members, events, starting a new Taekwondo club, health and safety, coaches and referees, and more on British Taekwondo's website, and find out the latest news reports on their Twitter or Facebook page.

Taekwondo Belts (Ranking)

The belt and ranking system can get a bit complicated in Taekwondo as there isn't any standardized system across the different Taekwondo styles. Analogies can be found however, and generally there are two separate belt groups, denoted as "juniors" (colours) and "seniors" (black dans). The number of levels in the junior group varies across the styles but is usually somewhere between eight and twelve belts, while the senior's groupings generally has 9 belts or dans.

In the UK there are a set of ranks (belts) in Taekwondo that are referred to as "Kup". The lowest is 10th Kup and the highest is 1st Kup. The Taekwondo belt order, just like most of the martial arts is indicated by a range of different colours, these colours are white, yellow, green, blue and red, with intermediate belts with stripes, namely 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. Beginners of Taekwondo in Wishaw will begin with the White Belt (Tenth Kup), and progress through the various colours until they earn the First Kup (Red Belt With Black Stripe)

After succeeding with this challenge, Taekwondo trainees in Wishaw are known as "black belt candidates" which involves them moving through an additional 9 ranks (Dans) until they eventually achieve the accolade of "Black Belt". Therefore, Junior, Senior and Black Belt are the three main groupings in the Taekwondo belt order. The Taekwondo Belts in the Junior division comprise; 10th (White), 9th (White With Yellow Stripe), 8th (Yellow), and 7th (Yellow With Green Stripe). The Taekwondo Belts in the Senior division are; 6th (Green), 5th (Green With Blue Stripe), 4th (Blue), 3rd ( Blue With Red Stripe), 2nd (Red), and 1st (Red With Black Stripe). The Taekwondo Belts in the Black group go from 1st to 9th Dan, a process that will take many years.

Wishaw Taekwondo for Beginners

Even the very best exponents of Taekwondo in Wishaw had to start as novices, therefore it is no shame to be a complete beginner at Tae kwon do, or for that matter any other activity. The purpose of a Taekwondo beginners class is to provide a few of the basics, raise self-confidence and develop a solid foundation for the future. Most importantly of all is that it must be fun, trainees having a great time are going to learn faster and be better committed.

Taekwondo Forms

Newcomers just beginning their journey in Taekwondo do not have to fret too much about forms (patterns, Poomse) initially, however they'll learn some standard ones to begin with and move on to more complex forms as they progress through the various belts (dans/grades). A form is signified by certain areas of Taekwondo including technique, direction and stance. Getting to grips with such sequences is a key part of mastering Taekwondo.

The Many Benefits of Taekwondo

You will probably be intrigued to find out about exactly what type of benefits may be gained by taking part in Wishaw Taekwondo sessions and partaking fully in its activities. You could expect that you will: Reduces stress and anxiety by doing deep breathing exercises, Teach self-defence tactics by helping you recognise occasions where self-defence might be necessary, and allowing you to turn these types of scenarios in your favour, Grow in your confidence by inspiring you to take control of your life and succeed, Toughen up your body and mind by increased physical coordination and mental discipline, Increase self-esteem and concentration by elevating your mental and physical powers, Develop discipline and willpower by exhaustively schooling your body and mind in the strategies and principles of Taekwondo, Supercharge stamina, agility and flexibility through intense cardiovascular exertion.