The martial arts provide encouragement for children in every aspect of their lives. Tae Kwon Do helps children develop and maintain great physical fitness, no matter where they are when they first sign up. We cultivate dedication and hard work, and students are not allowed to advance in our academy if they are not doing well in school. Children who are martial artists learn discipline and respect in a friendly environment, and they develop confidence and self-esteem from their successes in the academy.

Tae Kwon Do encompasses a wide range of activities, each of which has benefits for women. The actual training itself is great for building strength and flexibility, and the workouts are different every day. Sparring and self-defense classes give women both the confidence and the knowledge necessary to feel safe in any situation. The martial arts are one place where women can succeed just as easily as men, and coming to class can be a great way to relieve stress and improve your health at the same time.

Stress and stress-related health problems are a major concern for many men, and the martial arts provide a great outlet for pent-up tension and an easy way to stay in good shape. An academy can be better than a gym, because it provides a much more focused atmosphere in which to work out, with detailed instruction along the way from qualified instructors. And of course, the martial arts build strength, endurance, coordination, and self-confidence just as well for men as for everyone else, with many different ways for people to play to their personal interests.

The martial arts provide wonderful opportunities for families. There are many different aspects to the training, meaning that there will be something for everyone, whether it’s forms, sparring, self-defense, or kicking (or, to think of it another way, whether you’re looking for discipline, confidence, fitness, strength, or simply a new challenge). Taking classes together is a great way to spend time with your spouse and children, and families have an advantage in that they can practice together outside the academy. It’s a great way to bond, and the love and trust you get from helping each other along the way makes the journey all the more memorable.

Tae Kwon Do is a great way for older people to either stay in shape, or get back into it. Our instructors know how to customize their teaching for all levels of fitness and confidence, so that everyone can be challenged without being pushed to try things that make them uncomfortable. Every bit of our training is step-by-step with explanations and personal attention, so no matter where your body is, you can develop it. And because so much of Tae Kwon Do focuses on breathing, flexibility, balance, and body awareness, it makes for a great way to take care of your body as a whole.

The forms are the best way to work on the power and the precision of your techniques in combinations, without having to worry about whether or not you are hurting a partner. When doing forms, students learn practical sequences of moves and can build their reflexes and their body awareness as though they were doing self-defense against invisible attackers. They also get more and more complex as a student moves up through the ranks, so they make a great way to stay goal-oriented as you improve your skills.

Sparring is the only time when students get to practice their techniques without having to follow a preset pattern. By sparring students of greater skill, you can improve your reflexes and defensive skills; by sparring students who are not as good as you, you can improve your control and your accuracy. Sparring builds stamina, balance, and agility, and gives students a safe way to grow accustomed to dealing with real blows being thrown at them one after another. Since strikes may usually only land on the chest, which is padded, there is little risk of head or joint injury.

When students practice board breaking, they learn to focus all of their power at a single point. Board breaking teaches correct technique, since a sloppy kick will almost never make it through the board, and as students learn harder and harder kicks, they can gradually become better and better with their concentration and determination.

The belt tests are the system for keeping track of a student’s progress in the martial arts. Each belt has its own requirements, and the belts are always ordered so that each new set of techniques adds on to the foundation learned in the earlier ranks. Preparing for a belt test gives a student specific, concrete goals to work towards and passing is a major success and a way to measure your progress towards black belt. The belts also provide a way of organizing an academy, so that instructors and students know where each member is in terms of experience, and can call on them to help out accordingly.

These moves are the basics of martial arts, the building blocks of self-defense training. Every kick or strike has qualities that are useful in one situation or another, and practicing them builds strength, accuracy, and speed. Blocks and rolls are the best methods for defending against attacks and avoiding injury in a fight, and practicing them builds agility and improves reflexes. Punches are, of course, the simplest form of a strike, and are an important part of every martial art.

Weapons are taught for many different reasons. Though less often these days, weapons are first and foremost taught as aids to self-defense, tools to use against an attacker. Practicing weapons also provides a focus for students to “extend” their senses beyond their own bodies. The use of weapons increases hand-eye coordination, dexterity, precision, reflexes, and fluidity of motion. Finally, weapons can be exciting and fun, and often are taught to more advanced ranks as a sign of their expertise and to provide an additional element to demonstration.

Tournaments provide an opportunity for students from different schools to form connections and exchange knowledge. While getting ready for a tournament, students improve their technique in almost every area, and in competition they learn how to handle stress, unexpected surprises, and opponents of various skill levels, while at the same time gaining feedback from judges whose training might have been very different from their own.

Since the core of martial arts is combat, training with practical techniques against real opponents in controlled circumstances is critical for confidence, speed, and power. Most academies use mats, choreography, and gentle contact to ensure safety, but even so, going through the motions with a partner teaches students balance, strength, and coordination. Self-defense practice shows students which techniques work, and places them in situations where they must learn to adapt.

Yelling serves three major purposes in the martial arts. First, a strong yell will often startle or frighten a halfhearted attacker, and it may attract attention if you are attacked while you are alone. Secondly, a strong yell can act as an energizing force, allowing you to bring up more strength than you knew you had in you. Finally, yelling provides focus, bringing all of your strength and attention to bear at a single moment. Like any other technique, a yell is something that must be practiced before it will come naturally and correctly, so many academies encourage students to yell with most of their techniques.

The martial arts are grounded in respect of all forms: respect for your society, for your family, for your teachers, for your body, and for all life. Bowing is the clearest way to demonstrate your respect for an instructor or a fellow student, and it is something very specific that students can be taught, instead of just being told “Be respectful!” The very act of bowing, practicing it over and over as a student trains for years, ingrains in them a sense of self-control and humility.

Every last one of the Asian martial arts has a tradition that is deeply affected by the history of its parent nation. Learning the terminology associated with a particular martial art gives students a stronger sense of connection with the “ancestry” of the skills they are practicing. Some concepts do not translate very easily, and students who have learned the original names for moves can gain a clearer understanding of critical details. Finally, the martial arts are part of a culture that is simply very different from our own. Learning the foreign language makes the cultural experience of learning a martial art more enjoyable and interesting.