Chapter 2

Introduction To Taekwondo

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of the chapter, the students should be able to:

1. Demonstrate basic movements of taekwondo

2. Execute chief movements of taekwondo

As with any sport, getting started in taekwondo may seem daunting to the
beginner, particularly if you are a newcomer to the world of martial arts.
However, finding a taekwondo club and getting involved in it is not a difficult
task.
Many people decide to take along a friend when they start out so they don’t feel
too uncomfortable initially, and this is a good way to overcome any fears you
have about getting involved in taekwondo. Even if you go alone, though, you
will quickly be paired up with a sparring partner who will normally be a good
help through the early stages and beyond.

I. HISTORY

The history of taekwondo dates back over 2,000 years, but the sport is in its
infancy in Olympic terms, as it only made its full debut at Sydney in 2000
(although it was a demonstration sport in the 1988 and 1992 Olympics).

Taekwondo, which translates as 'the ways of hands and feet', consists of a

number of ancient martial arts unified into one sport. It came to the fore in the
1950s when Korean martial arts leaders decided it should be promoted
internationally, although the first world championships were not held until
1973. Since then, the popularity of taekwondo has been on a rapid increase
and the sport has been confirmed for the Olympic Games programme to be
held in London in 2012.

Fitness and other Benefits of Taekwondo

Taekwondo is a combative contact sport and so the competitors wear body,

head and shin protectors, as well as mouth guards, gloves and a groin guard,
to protect themselves from injury. Yet this doesn’t mean the sport is an
undisciplined free-for-all. The participants need to be highly disciplined and
prepared to develop both their bodies and their minds.
The sport is for everyone and is a great way to gain self-confidence and
strength. It can help you to develop discipline and leadership, improve your
self-confidence and self-esteem, enhance your flexibility, and develop quick
reflexes and agility.
As with all martial arts, taekwondo also provides an excellent workout. Anyone
taking part will be punching and kicking with both arms and feet, not to
mention continually bouncing on their toes during practice. These activities
can lead to improved muscle tone and appearance, and increased strength and
stamina. As well as the psychological benefits such as weight loss, improved
circulation and heart rate, a desire for a healthy and active lifestyle, discipline
and values - both of which are applicable to any area of life.

6 LEADERSHIP SKILLS DEVELOPED THROUGH TAEKWONDO

Students who participate in martial arts classes have the opportunity to learn
self-defense skills. At the same time, students learn valuable life skills that
they can then use in other aspects of life. These life skills include skills that
can assist students in becoming exceptional leaders.

Here are six leadership skills developed through Taekwondo:

1. FOCUS
Martial arts helps students develop the ability to pay attention to what is
relevant and ignore distractions.

2. DISCIPLINE
Students learn the value of doing what is right, even when no one is watching.
A disciplined student is willing to put in the effort and train through repetition
to improve or accomplish a goal.

3. RESPECT
Students are expected to demonstrate respect to their instructors and fellow
students. They learn to honor and show kindness to others in all situations.

4. CONFIDENCE
Martial arts helps students develop a belief in their abilities. Students learn
that their individual ability comes from hard work, patience, and dedication. A
student who has confidence in him or herself is more likely to become a
successful leader.

5. HONESTY
Martial arts students learn to value truthfulness. Telling the truth helps create
trust between two people, making it an essential leadership skill.
6. COMMUNICATION
Communication is a social skill that students develop in the group
environment of martial arts classes. Even those students who are shy can be
brought out of their shells and become more willing to interact with others.

The 14 Basic Movements of Taekwondo

Learning Taekwondo and accelerating your journey to black belt is a lot

simpler than thought. In fact, the text book of the World Taekwondo
Headquarters in Korea says just 14 moves are the foundation of Taekwondo.
Even better, most of these moves are simple to learn!

And I’m going to making it EVEN SIMPLER. Some of the 14 movements are
repeats. So I’m going to cut down these moves to just 10 techniques. The
simpler the better, right?

So if you want to learn Taekwondo AND get good at it faster — put special
emphasis on these techniques in your practice.

(PSSST — Mastering movement #7 will make you the envy of ALL your peers.)

14 10 Basic Taekwondo Movements

Group 1
 Straight Punch. The fist starts from a chamber on the hip, and is then
thrust straight forward. Impact is made on the two big knuckles.
According to the 14 basics, it should be performed from the horse stance
and front stance. (All of these punch combinations make up 3 of the
original 14 movements.)

 Low block. This is the first block you learn in Taekwondo. Put your fist to
your opposite shoulder, then sweep it downward in front of the pelvis,
stopping on or just bast the same-side leg of the blocking arm.

 Front Kick. The front kick is the foundation of every kick in Taekwondo.
Just about every kick begins with the front kick chamber. All the major
kicking principles are learned here. (Also, don’t discount it as an effective
self-defense tool!)

Group 2
  Knife Hand Strike. Yep, this is the karate chop. It can be down towards
the outside, with the palm facing down. Or it can be done towards the
inside, with the palm facing up. You make impact on the “meat” or
“knife” of the hand. Usually targets the trachea, side of the neck, or
temple.

 Back Fist Strike. Bruce Lee loved it. It’s quick and it works. It can be an
outward movement to the head, or flipping movement to the philtrum
beneath the nose.

 Inside block. An inward sweeping motion to protect the body by hitting

attacks off to the side.

 Side Kick. The staple of Taekwondo. People will judge your overall ability
in Taekwondo based on this ONE kick. Performed off the back leg, as a
“simple” forward kick, the side kick requires you to bring the leg all the
way to your side, then to thrust it straight forward. (While most of the
other moves are easy, this one can be a challenge!)

Group 3
 Hand-blade / Double Forearm Block. An iceberg of a technique, and
quite often misunderstood. One hand blocks while the other is ready —
actually, in transition — for a follow-up strike. It can be used as a
fighting guard as well as a block.

 Face Block. Shoot your arm up at and angle, stopping it just over your
brow. It should look like a roof or a church steeple. This makes strikes
glance off and protects your head. Good for weapon defense.

 Round Kick. Arguably the most popular kick of all martial arts. Very
quick and super useful in sparring. Taekwondo has a unique method of
executing the round kick.

Boiled Down:

Learning and mastering Taekwondo is way simpler than you might think.
Emphasize these 14 moves while you practice, and you’ll reach your black belt
in no time. Even better, you’ll get good at Taekwondo FAST. To review, these
are the moves you need to focus on:
1. Straight Punch
2. Low Block
3. Front Kick
4. Knife Hand Strikes
5. Back Fists
 6. Inside Block
7. Side Kick
8. Double Forearm Block
9. Face Block
10.Round Kick

Reminder:

Taekwondo Kicks & Other Basic Skills of Dos Taekwondo

Learning Dos Taekwondo is an exciting moment for every student. In Dos

Taekwondo, we really commit to give lessons that will forever impact the life of
our students. We know that the taekwondo kicks and basic techniques and
skills play crucial start points of every student.

Learning Dos Taekwondo also entails learning and understanding the

significance of the sports. We value how a student understands and values
every skill they learn with us. We want them to fully understand the exact way
where every high level skill is a simple variation of the taekwondo kicks and
basic skills. Also, basic skills can turn into a brilliant taekwondo move.

Taekwondo techniques vary between most schools and level and not all
techniques are included. As taekwondo developed, the importance of
taekwondo kicks remained vital to the art, right through to the modern age.
The taekwondo kicks and basic taekwondo moves are the hardest, most boring
and trivial to learn. However, we always ensure that our students will have a
great and exciting time to learn everything.

The following are some examples of taekwondo kicks and basic skills that we
teach in Dos Taekwondo:

1. Base
The stance is your base on the ground. Your ground is where you connect with
the earth and it is your grounding. We teach our students to skillfully connect
with their base.
We teach hot to make stances strong and solid. In this way, our student’s
moves will come from a stable base.

2. Taekwondo Block
Taekwondo blocks are strong moves which are designed to halt attacks like
punches or kicks. This basic move protects the body or head from being hit.
You should be alert, strong, and fast to be able to block your opponents.
Dos Taekwondo teaches the use of a blocking arm and a chambering arm.
These two arms produce action and reaction. Also, they counter each other.
Using these techniques effectively gives the body strength to block punches
and kicks.
Learning how to twist at the end of each block is also necessary because this
gives more power to perform.

3. Taekwondo Strikes
Taekwondo involves the combination of the hand and foot in order to fight
effectively. Hand strikes are equally important in these sports.
Kicking at a correct distance is great but when your opponent is at close range,
then you have to maximize the use of your hands

Learning how to punch with a great and powerful impact is a great taekwondo
move. Other movements included in this skill were the knife-hands, back-fists,
and ridge-hand strikes.

Learning Dos Taekwondo Kicks with our passionate and committed instructors
will surely motivate and encourage you to do your best. We assure you that we
will help you to progress quickly and easily towards your personal goals. We
are proud of our great teachers who taught thousands of taekwondo students
who turned out to be champions in this sports. Our students are also
encouraged to show sportsmanship to their fellow athletes at all times.

al arts, perfecting taekwondo moves requires determination and hard work. The basic moves are
relatively easier to learn, but one must perform them with conviction and confidence.
Home / Uncategorized / Basic Moves That Every Student of Taekwondo Should Know

Like all other martial arts, perfecting taekwondo moves requires determination
and hard work. The basic moves are relatively easier to learn, but one must
perform them with conviction and confidence.

Out of the many different martial arts, taekwondo is perhaps one of the most
popular. Taekwondo moves require immense agility and fitness levels, as a lot
of the basic moves involve the movement of legs extensively, and also require
an individual to raise their legs above the head of an opponent.
In recent years, the importance and popularity of martial arts as a form of self-
defense has greatly increased, and several people are now trying their hand at
newer forms of martial arts. At the fore of this new wave of self defense martial
arts is the art of taekwondo, which satisfies the need for a method of self
defense, along with keeping an individual physically and mentally fit.
Taekwondo techniques are not that hard to learn, and with some practice and
dedication, one can master them with relative ease.
 Chief Taekwondo Moves
1. The Stance

Stance, which refers to the way in which you stand, is the most important
thing that comes into play when a person is attempting to learn this martial
art. The stance is the most elemental factor to take into consideration, and
all future lessons depend on how correct your stance is. Holding the right
stance also gives you more freedom of movement as far as throwing
punches and kicks are concerned. The following are the basic stances that
every student must be aware of:
 Walking stance
 Horse riding stance
 Back stance
 Tiger stance or Cat stance
 Front stance or long-forward stance

If a person has learned how to hold these stances correctly, it becomes much
simpler to learn and perform all the moves.

2. Blocks

The most basic moves are the blocks, which are specially designed to help
you avoid receiving a blow by your opponent. You can use pretty much any
part of your body to block an impending blow, and then get an opportunity
to strike a blow yourself, soon after that. Blocks are required to be fast and
strong in order to thwart an attack on yourself, and these are given great
importance when a person is being taught the art of taekwondo. Each of the
different kinds of blocks requires a twist at the end of the move in order to
combat the oncoming blow effectively. The techniques for blocking can only
be picked up with a lot of practice. Examples of some of the blocks are the
low block, the middle block, the high block, the outer forearm block, and the
knife block.

3. Attacks

Taekwondo originated with the use of the legs purely, but over the years, it
has evolved to include strikes and blows by the arms as well. You cannot
learn how to attack unless you know how to defend though. So, the moves
for attack will be taught to you by your teacher much later. The punch has
now become a primary weapon in these moves, and mastering a punch is
given great importance. Here are some basic punching and kicking moves
that you need to know when you start learning taekwondo. These include:
 Punching hand twists
 Back-fist strike
  Double knife-hand strike
 Front kick
 Roundhouse kick
 Back kick
 Axe kick
 Side-kick
Apart from these attacking moves, there are many more moves that can be
utilized. Learning the aforementioned moves, and the variations of these moves
will open up the doors to other more advanced moves and techniques.
The key to learning taekwondo is confidence. One must have the confidence,
composure, the ability to block the attack, and the ability to deliver blows with
conviction. If one doesn’t have the confidence, one cannot be good at this sport,
no matter how many taekwondo moves he/she might have picked up. Over
time, it becomes apparent that learning taekwondo is more a state of mind
than anything else.

ACTIVITY 3:

TAEKWONDO FUNDAMENTAL SKILLS

Name: _______________ Group No.: _______________

Time/Day: ___________ Course: ________________

Note: The student will execute the fundamental skills in Taekwondo. Scores
below 5 need to retake the practical test. (3 points each)
INDIVIDUAL PRESENTATION
[ü] CORRECT [×] INCORRECT
A. 10 Basic Taekwondo Movements

1. Straight Punch [ ]
2. Low Block [ ]
3. Front Kick [ ]
4. Knife Hand Strikes [ ]
5. Back Fists [ ]
6. Inside Block [ ]
7. Side Kick [ ]
8. Double Forearm Block [ ]
9. Face Block [ ]
 10. Round Kick [ ]
_______________________

Total Scores

Evaluated and Checked by: _______________

PE Instructor