Taekwondo - Instructions for Forms & Patterns, Techniques, etc.

Taekwondo is a popular Korean martial arts that is focused primarily on kicks, blocks and punches & strikes. Most Taekwondo schools also teach joint locks, WTF Taekwondo forms or ITF Taekwondo patterns, Korean terminology and some throws. This Korean martial arts is best known for its spectacular kicks (i.e. tornado kick and spinning hook kick).

Section supported by Taekwondo books

Taekwondo Forms & Patterns - Click on each section below for videos & detailed instructions on these forms and patterns.

• WTF Taekwondo Forms - WTF Taekwondo forms such as Sam Jang.
• ITF Taekwondo Patterns - ITF Taekwondo patterns such as Chon-Ji.
• Palgwe Taekwondo Forms - Palgwe are the "old" WTF forms used before most WTF schools switched to Taegeuk forms. Nevertheless, Palgwe forms are still used by some Taekwondo schools.
• Taekwondo America Forms
• Meaning of WTF Taegeuk Forms
• Meaning of ITF Patterns

Main Elements of Taekwondo - Click on each section below for videos & detailed instructions.

• Taekwondo Kicks - List of Taekwondo kicks (Chagi) with Korean names.
• Kicking Techniques - Instructions for a wide variety of martial arts kicks.
• Punches & Arm Strikes - Instructionals for a wide variety of punches and strikes.
• Taekwondo Punches - List of Taekwondo punches (Jireugi) with Korean names.
• Taekwondo Strikes - List of Taekwondo strikes (Chigi) with Korean names.
• Taekwondo Sparring - Instructions & videos to assist students with competition sparring.
• Taekwondo Step Sparring
• Self-Defense
• Martial Arts Weapons such as Bo Staff Techniques
• Taekwondo Breaking Techniques
• Taekwondo Blocks
• Taekwondo Stances
• Taekwondo Stretches
• Taekwondo Warm-Up Exercises

Taekwondo Terminology

• Taekwondo Terminology - Basic words & commands
• How To Count In Taekwondo - Korean Numbers

Misc. Taekwondo Elements

• How To Tie Your Belt In Taekwondo
• Traditional Taekwondo Hand Conditioning Drills
• Traditional Taekwondo Shin Conditioning Drills
• Taekwondo Sine Wave - Information on ITF Taekwondo's Sine Wave.
• Tenets of Taekwondo - The five basic tenets that serve as a guide for all students in the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF)
• Taekwondo Quizzes - Test your knowledge of Taekwondo words, numbers, etc.

Taekwondo History

The meaning of Taekwondo is Tae "to strike with the foot", Kwon "to strike with the hand" and Do "the way".

According to the World Taekwondo Federation, "In the latter part of ancient times on the Korean peninsula, three kingdoms were rivaling among them for the hegemony. They were Koguryo, Paekje and Shilla all indulged in growing national strength with trained warriors. Therefore, the Korean history tells that there were military personalities among the well-known prominent national leaders of the three kingdoms, which proves the military tendency of ruling hierarchy. As a result, youth warriors were organized, such as "Hwarangdo" in Shilla and "Chouisonin" in Koguryo, which both adopted martial art training as one of the important subjects of learning. A known martial art book of the days, called "Muyedobo-Tongji" wrote "Taekwondo is the basis of martial art, enabling one to build strength by using the hand and foot freely and training arms and legs as well as the body to adaptable to any critical situations," which means Taekwondo was already prevalent in that age. Thus, it can be easily assumed that Taekwondo was originated from the days of tribal communities on the Korean peninsula."

In this day and age, there are reportedly over 70 types of Taekwondo. However, they all originated from the following five types of Taekwondo:

• Song Moo Kwan
• Chung Do Kwan
• Moo Duk Kwan
• Chang Moo Kwan
• Yun Mu Kwan

Taekwondo Federations and Associations

The largest global Taekwondo organizations are the WTF (World Taekwondo Federation) and ITF (International Taekwondo Federation). Nevertheless, there are other growing Taekwondo associations such as the ATA (American Taekwondo Association), ICTF (International Chang-Hon Taekwon-do Federation), TA (Taekwondo America), USCDKA (United States Chung Do Kwon Association), etc.

Taekwondo schools use forms/patterns/poomse to teach kicking combinations, build endurance, improve balance & coordination. However, different Taekwondo federations and associations teach different forms and patterns (i.e. schools in the International Taekwondo Federation teach ITF Taekwondo Patterns and World Taekwondo Federation schools teach WTF Taekwondo Forms). Forms/patterns/poomsae are ritualized patterns were students combine various strikes, kicks, stances and blocks. Knowledge of and solid execution of forms/patterns/poomsae is part of a Taekwondo's school belt testing system.

Beyond the difference in forms and patterns, most Taekwondo federations and associations teach similar techniques (i.e. kicking). For example, in many Taekwondo schools, beginners learn basic kicks such as the front kick and push kick. Intermediate color belts learn kicks such as the side kick and back kick. High colored belt students learn more advanced kicks such as the spinning hook kick. Once you become a black belt, you will work on perfecting these kicks (i.e. improving their power and accuracy), joining them together into effective combination kicks and learning additional advanced kicks (i.e. the flying back kick).

Underlying Taekwondo Principles

Many traditional martial arts have a set of underlying principles and/or basic martial arts philosophy that helps to guide a student's behavior and progress. Students who belong to the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) rely on five basic tenets as a guide for their behavior and progress.

References

1. Taekwondo Animals.com, http://www.taekwondoanimals.com, Added - 04/10/13
2. World Taekwondo Federation, Ancient Times, http://www.wtf.org/wtf_eng/site/about_taekwondo/ancient_timers.html, Added - 09/14/13
3. International Taekwondo Federation, Moral Culture, http://www.itftkd.org/?Content=MoralCulture, Added - 02/13/14