Taekwondo - FreeTrainers.com Forums

Group: General Fitness & Exercise

General Fitness & Exercise

Created: 2011/12/31, Members: 383, Messages: 54581

Various general exercise related discussions. Find out what it takes to reach your fitness goals through daily effective exercise. With so many options we try to find out what works best.

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Taekwondo

sunshine_melody Posts: 16 Joined: 2002/07/12	2002/08/01, 08:11 PM I am taking taekwondo and absolutely love it! I am actually not that far along. I am a white belt with my second stripe, but I am going to be a black belt someday. (wish me luck!) Is anyone else out there taking martial arts? What level are you at? What kind of drills can I do to improve speed, stamina and my preformance in general? thx

rpacheco Posts: 3,770 Joined: 2001/12/13	2002/08/01, 11:06 PM I've studied Kenpo karate, Kung Fu and Hapkido. When I was training, I incorporated a lot of stretching, bag work and weight training. If you stick with it, it could be a new way of life for you...the black belt will just be a reminder of how you got there! Good luck and I have no doubts you will reach your goal! -------------- _Robert_ Pain is temporary; glory is forever!
sunshine_melody Posts: 16 Joined: 2002/07/12	2002/08/02, 12:51 AM Thank you very much! That is great motivation. The black belt is a great thing!
Firehawk734 Posts: 295 Joined: 2002/07/31	2002/08/02, 10:49 AM Hey kiddo... I am a second degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do Style Han moo kwan. I do get a good workout when I go through all the forms I have learned. I do them as intensely as I can with as much power and focus as I can. If you do that you will get a good workout. As far as speed...remember speed is not everything. YOu need to have good focus and concentration. Without those your speed is useless. Always keep eye contact..ALWAYS. Its really amazing, but when I was just a gup as they call it hehe , white, yellow belt...my master instructed me to always keep eye contact..and I found even with the little karate I knew at that time, I could react much quicker to opponents.
sunshine_melody Posts: 16 Joined: 2002/07/12	2002/08/02, 11:10 AM I think Taekwondo is an excellent workout...although I'm not sure whether it is more of the cardiovascular or strength area...? But I sweat like a mad woman. Thanks for the tip firehawk!
Boddhisattvha Posts: 1,226 Joined: 2002/03/07	2002/08/02, 11:42 AM Southern Style Gung fu.. -------------- Practice does NOT make perfect. Perfect practice does.
Sempai Posts: 447 Joined: 2002/06/06	2002/08/02, 01:36 PM I study Shotokan Karate, Jujitsu, weapons (Bo & Sai) looking at Sword. Also Presure points and internal energy. As mentioned I find focus to be a critical point of your speed. When you start training things are new, you have to develop muscle memory, once you have that and when you can react with out thinking about your technique you will have speed. Be patient train hard and you will reach your goals. Good luck to you in reaching them. -------------- Never be afraid to try something new. Remember the ark was built by amateurs, The Titanic was built by professionals.
wolfegirl Posts: 10 Joined: 2002/07/31	2002/08/02, 01:58 PM Hi, I study Hapkido, and occasionally TKD to get in some of that coveted extra kicking practice. I second Sempai and Firehawk - focus is key, and maintaining "soft eye" contact - meaning this is not a staring contest for badasses, you focus softly on your sparring partner's face and eyes, which increases your peripheral vision and reaction time (this is especially apparent when you are using weapons). Muscle memory occurs over time and if you practice diligently your speed will increase over time. When practicing any martial art you are increasing strength - cardiovascular as well as muscular. Good luck, keep practicing! -------------- from the lair of the Wolfe...
tt_rocker Posts: 389 Joined: 2001/01/25	2002/08/02, 06:07 PM Hi, Taekwondo is great.. it's supposed to be a modern style of the traditional karate from what I've learned. I've been involved in both the world & international federations which vary a bit from 1 another.. the cardio & stretching in this sport is way cool... you get the cardio and flexibility u need, learn to defend your self, and best of all throw all that stress away.. -------------- keep rockin'
Firehawk734 Posts: 295 Joined: 2002/07/31	2002/08/05, 08:58 AM Man I would love to study Jujitsu. Those techniques are sooo smooth its unbelievable. Unfortunatelly there is no schoool near me to take that. I have strong background in nunchuckas and sais. Never learned the sword really.