TKD Lesson

So a while ago, I promised I'd explain Tae Kwon Do a little more. I feel like making a TKD post today, so here you go.

TKD is a martial art that was developed in South Korean. Historically, It has very close ties to the Japanese martial art, Karate, and the two are often confused. They share most of the same moves, however Tae Kwon Do puts slightly more emphasis on kicking.

Within TKD, there are many branches. The two main branches are called World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) and International TKD Federation (ITF). I know, there's not much of a difference between the words "world" and "international" when used to refer to a sport. Originally, I studied under ITF and earned my black belt under ITF, but the program offered at my school is a WTF program. In order to become an instructor there, I had to completely learn the new style. It was actually pretty hard to do, because a lot of the differences are subtle (such as slightly different ways to perform certain techniques), and it was hard fighting muscle memory to do things their way. Besides the subtle differences, there are also some more noticable ones. One big difference is that they teach different sets of forms. If you don't know what forms are, read my post called "New Form." Another big difference is sparring. Sparring is where two fighters put on pads and fight each other for a set period of time. There's some variation between different schools under the same branch, but here are the basic differences:

WTF sparring: If you've ever watched TKD at the olympics, this is the style you saw. It's usually continuous sparring (meaning the match continues without stopping unless there's a foul during the match). Matches are full contact. You are not allowed to kick off of the same leg without setting your leg down, so you see a lot of alternating kicks. You're also not allowed to punch to the head. Fighters are also required to wear a Hogu, or chest protector. Fighters are allowed to kick to the back as long as the area is covered by the protector. Traditionally, every technique is worth one point, so you almost never see a kick to the head. They've changed it recently so that head techniques are worth more. These matches put emphasis mostly on speed and power, and you don't see much strategy or blocking.

ITF sparring: I prefer this style. Most matches are continuous sparring, but some schools still do point sparring (meaning the match stops every time someone scores a point). Matches are medium contact. Unlike WTF, you're allowed to kick with the same leg without putting it down, so you see a lot of single leg combos. Also, you are allowed to punch to the head. Hogus are not required and most fighters on't wear them (they kill your flexability). However, you're not allowed to kick to the back. Different techniques score different points. The point system varies, but generally, more difficult techniques score more points. In these matches focus much more on strategy and technique. You also see a lot more blocking

Anyway, I think that's enough for today's lesson. If you have any questions, let me know!

New Form

So in Tae Kwon Do, there are these things called "forms," or "patterns." These forms are basically a choreographed set of moves used to demonstrate different techniques. I decided recently that it would be fun to make up a form using bits and pieces of forms I already know. Here are the ones that I'm gonna use:

Choong Moo: this is a form learned by people who learn TKD from the International TaeKwonDo Federation (ITF). It's the form I learned as a red-belt/black-stripe (the rank right before black belt) This form is maybe my favorite one to perform
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivdVFnOXu3A

Kwang Gae: This is the first black belt form in ITF. It's actually really hard to do properly since those slow movements require a lot of control. (also, those low-high double side kicks are a bitch!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QcmRQWUxao&feature=related

Koryo: This is the first black belt form for students who are trained by the World TaeKwonDo Federation (WTF). This one isn't as hard as Kwang Gae, but again, those double side kicks are really hard to do.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTU0jnGs4G0

If you guys are confused by the whole ITF vs. WTF thing, don't worry, I'll explain what they are in greater detail in a later post

Attempt # 3

As the title says, this is my 3rd attempt at starting a blog.

First time: revealed too much info about myself and deleted the post.

Second time: Made shortly after deleting my first attempt. I made a few posts, but it seemed like no one read it, so i deleted it (i also didn't like how whiney my posts were). My apologies to steevo. i checked my email a week or so after i deleted my posts. apparently, he had been reading them and left a comment. I also apologize to anyone else who may had been reading them.

anyway, attempt #3:

Hey there. call me Robbie. That's not my real name, but i feel more comfortable using pseudonyms. Anyway, a little bit of info on myself. I'm a 19 year old college sophomore. I'm currently a Tae Kwon Do instructor at my school. I'm also openly gay. I came out in high school and had an extremely positive response, but I'll talk about that later.

If anyone reading this takes Tae Kwon Do, I earned my black belt in ITF prior to coming to college, however the curriculum taught at my school is WTF, so i've learned that material as well. For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, don't worry. I'll explain in a future post.

anyway, that's all I have to say for now.

later