How to Do Kim Tae Kwon Do

Literally translated, Tae means the art of breaking with the foot, Kwon means the art of breaking with the hand and Do means way or method. Taken together, Tae Kwon Do is a martial arts form that focuses on kicking and punching, a style dominated by straight, powerful movements and high kicks. Today, Tae Kwon Do is the most popular martial art form. Kim Tae Kwon Do is named for Grandmaster K. H. Kim who studied in Korea's most honored martial arts school, the Chung Do Kwan. Grandmaster Kim is a 9th degree black belt, the highest awarded rank.

Things You'll Need

  • Enrollment in Kim's Tae Kwon Do School
  • Tae Kwon Do Gi, or uniform
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Instructions

  1. Tenets and Concepts

    • 1

      Practice courtesy. Students should always be polite, kind, fair and empathetic to others, whether inside the classroom or in the world at large.

    • 2

      Have integrity. Students should be trustworthy and develop a strong moral code which guides them into making proper choices between right and wrong. For example, a student should be willing to admit a mistake and follow through on commitments made to himself or herself and to others.

    • 3

      Embrace perseverance and the never-give-up attitude of a winner. Martial arts training is difficult, physically taxing and time consuming. Setting long- and short-term goals and actively working toward them demonstrate a student's perseverance.

    • 4

      Practice self-control. Do not act in anger, for revenge, retaliation or to bully others. Making the choice to walk away from confrontation and having control over emotions help focus the mind and underscore a student's integrity.

    • 5

      Embrace your indomitable spirit. Stay true to your own beliefs and build a positive self-image despite adversity and negativity in others. Stay on track to meet goals and challenges.

    • 6

      Develop control of the body. This is the first of three basic concepts in Kim's Tae Kwon Do. The body is developed through seven fundamentals: focus, power, speed, accuracy, balance, relaxation and coordination. Develop muscle memory through focused repetition of movements. Develop power in kicks through practiced movements. Achieve speed as movements become second nature and kicks a natural extension of the body's power. Practice accuracy by focusing on the specific target area to be struck. Relaxed, but attentive posture leads to superb balance and coordination.

    • 7

      Achieve control of the mind, the second basic concept. This is achieved through a singular focus on the task at hand. Channel the energy of the mind into automatic reflexes which sharpen over time as speed and accuracy continue to develop.

    • 8

      Aspire to the control of spirit. This means maintaining a constant awareness and sense of inner responsibility that come with the realization that the student can kill or inflict serious injury to others. Students of Kim's Tae Kwon Do do not bully, and they avoid confrontation through self-control.

    Specific Elements

    • 9

      Practice the Tae Kwon Do forms, also called patterns, poomse, poomsae or pumse, which are a series of stylized movements which help students learn the fundamentals of Tae Kwon Do. These forms begin with basic movements and build one upon the other. Beginner forms have about twenty different movements while advanced forms may contain hundreds. In order for students to progress through the various colored belts, from white to black belt, the forms must be memorized and accurately demonstrated.

    • 10

      Spar with partners. Sparring consists primarily of attacks and counter attacks. When students spar, they put into practice additional sets of movements, primarily kicks and blocks, with blocks and punches used as secondary strategies. Attacks in Tae Kwon Do consist primarily of kicks ranging from roundhouse kicks to axe kicks and back kicks. As students advance, they learn to combine various movements together for both attack and counter-attack strategies.

    • 11

      Master breaking techniques. Breaking techniques are for advanced students and involve the complete focus of mind, body and spirit. Breaking techniques involve the ability to envision kicking or punching through the board, accuracy in striking the exact center of the board and a strike powerful to break the board without damaging the hand or foot. Breaking techniques are part of the black belt test.

    • 12

      Achieve additional physical strength through a series of stretches and aerobic exercises ranging from leg extensions to barbell squats and hamstring curls.

    • 13

      Work out with weights to increase speed. Focus on repetitions rather than how much weight can be lifted. It also involves students smoothing the movement sets and taking out the so-called beginner steps. In a back kick, for example, beginners turn, look and then kick. More advanced students develop instinct for their opponent's whereabouts and do not have to actually sight their opponent prior to delivering the kick.

    • 14

      Attend additional classes to increase stamina. Stamina training requires students to practice for longer periods of time. Some achieve this by attending more classes, spending more time practicing at home and engaging in a series of practice drills with bags or dummies.