Taekwondo 태권도Taekwondo Preschool

Promotion from one geup to the next can proceed rapidly in some schools, since schools often allow geup promotions every two, three, or four months. Students of geup rank learn the most basic techniques first, and then move on to more advanced techniques as they approach first dan. Many of the older and more traditional schools often take longer to allow students to test for higher ranks than newer, more contemporary schools, as they may not have the required testing intervals. View Taekwondo belt levels »

Inward Knife Hand Block

( 손날 안막기 sonnal-an-makgi )

Difficulty Level: Intermediate Technique: Blocks ( 막기 makgi )

For the Inward Knife Hand Block ( 손날 안막기 sonnal-an-makgi ), the practitioner blocks ( 막기 makgi ) the same way as the Middle Block ( 몸통막기 momtong makgi ) but the hand is kept in a knife hand ( 손날 sonnal ) posture to block ( 막기 makgi ) the incoming attacks instead. The block ( 막기 makgi ) deflects a strike away from the defender and away from the attacker.

The blocking hand would swing from the outside toward the inside area of the body. During the swing movement the blocking hand would form the knife hand ( 손날 sonnal ) posture while the blocking arm is angled 90-120 degrees. The knife hand ( 손날 sonnal ) is as high as the shoulder.

It is important that the blocking arm is not delivered with a straight arm swinging from the side and that the fingers are not spread wide open during the knife hand ( 손날 sonnal ) posture. If done improperly, the practitioner may well break their hand, wrist or fingers.

The idea would be to rotate the upper body and block ( 막기 makgi ) at the same time. Relaxation enables the block ( 막기 makgi ) to achieve the greatest possible velocity during travel, while rigidity at impact allows the maximum transfer of force.

Experienced practitioners learn through repetition and muscle memory when (not just how) to launch particular blocks ( 막기 makgi ), based on the circumstances they are facing. Fights and fighters may have ebbs and flows in momentum and action that become predictable. Disrupting this flow may give the blocker an advantage.

* Please see a certified Master Instructor ( 사범님 sabeomnim ) for training. Proper guidance and instructions are needed to ensure safe training.

Knife Hand Inward Block ( 손날 안막기 sonnal anmakgi )

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Taekwondo Mental Toughness

Mental toughness is very hard to explain through words and can truly be understood when put to the test in an intense situation where you feel like you are at a breaking point, and find an inner will within you to push forward and overcome the situation. There are those who face stressful situations and back down and let them trample them, these people crumble during life. Then there are those who when faced with stressful, energy draining situations take them by the horns and conquer them, and it fills you with such a great energy and confidence, that helps you with every obstacle that you have from there on. For more information View Mental Toughness »

Indomitable spirit ( 백절불굴 baekjul-boolgool ): To have indomitable spirit means to have the courage to stand up for what you believe in, no matter what odds you are up against, and to always give 100% effort in whatever you do.

Self-control ( 극기 geuk-gi ): This means to not only have control over one's physical acts, but also their mental thoughts and actions.

Perseverance ( 인내 in-nae ): One will persevere time and time again until they have achieved a result which is adequate towards what one was trying to achieve.

RESOURCES
This article uses material from the Wikipedia articles "Mental Toughness" and "International Taekwondo Federation Philosophy" which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.

Quiz

Question. In what year was the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) officially established?

The World Taekwondo Federation is the International Federation [IF] governing the sport of Taekwondo and is a member of the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations [ASOIF]. The WTF was established at its inaugural meeting held at the Kukkiwon ( 국기원 ) with participation of 35 representatives from the world and until this day there is a total of 205 Member Nations. The World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) has renamed itself to World Taekwondo (WT) in 2017.

Question. What is the name of Taegeuk #3 in Korean?

Taegeuk 태극 (in World Taekwondo (WT)) refers to a set of poomse 품새 used to create a foundation for the teaching of taekwondo. A poomse or form is a detailed pattern of defense-and-attack motions and techniques used in traditional martial arts. Each taegeuk form symbolizes a specific state thought to be indicative of the belt the student currently holds, and is represented in World Taekwondo (WT) by trigrams similar to those found in the four corners of the South Korean flag.

Question. What is the korean terminology for Front Stance?

Front Stance is a precursor of the fighting stance ( 겨루기준비 gyeorugi-junbi ) according to some martial arts authors. Body should be relaxed in this stance ( 서기 sogi ) when performed in patterns ( 품새 poomse ) and self-defense ( 호신술 hosinsool ). Although the specifics of the stance vary by style, overall it is visually similar to a lunge, with the forward leg bent at the knee, and the rear leg straight, while the hips and shoulders remain squarely facing forward.

There are five tenets defined in the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) and several more in World Taekwondo (WT).

Perseverance ( In Nae / 인내 ): "One will persevere time and time again until they have achieved a result which is adequate towards what one was trying to achieve." View Taekwondo Tenets »

RESOURCES
This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "List of Taekwondo Techniques", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.