Why Taekwondo?

So, I was doing some research last night on the interwebs, putting together my competition schedule beginning late December/early January next year when I hope to be ready to return to competition. I'm nervous as all gettup about it, but it makes me want to push harder already.

Meanwhile, the incredibly hilarious B.Jones, who now has a permanent place of honor on this blog, left a great comment mentioning how my posts make him think about putting his kids in martial arts. This got me to thinking about all of the parents I've met while teaching, and several of the questions I receive once someone finds out what my job is. Since I've always wanted a platform to talk about teaching taekwondo on, and now I have one, let's get going!

Question #1- Is it dangerous?

Well, yes and no. Life's dangerous. Sports are dangerous. I can't guarantee that your child won't be hurt doing taekwondo, that's impossible. What I can tell you is my experience. Personally, the only injuries I've ever received doing TKD are a sprained ankle and knee, separated by around 3 years. Yes, you get bruised a bit once you start to spar (practice fight), but Olympic standards dictate that head, chest, arms, hands, shins and feet be covered in padding. Honestly, there are more injuries in cheerleading than TKD. As an instructor, I have never had a student injured seriously during a class.

Question #2-How long will it take to get a blackbelt? Once I have a blackbelt, am I a master?

The first question depends entirely on your system. I've trained under two separate international bodies- International TKD Federation, and World TKD Federation (ITF, WTF). Under both systems the average seemed to run between 2-2.5 years to get a blackbelt. However, I encourage students not to countdown the time until blackbelt. A blackbelt is an amazing achievement, but it is really only the true beginning of a journey in taekwondo. Receiving your first dan means you have mastered all basic techniques. Once you've "crossed over to the other side" you begin to train to teach and share your knowledge, along with beginning to have mastery over other elements like weapons. 7 years after getting my first blackbelt, 13 years after starting training, and I'm still training basic elements like round house kick, because they can always be better.

Question #3- What will my child get out of taekwondo?

There are five tenets to taekwondo- courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, and indomitable spirit. The sport is built around teaching these and impressing these values into their students. Courtesy is impressed by how we must treat our instructors, fellow students, and training hall during class. Bowing, saying thank you, yes ma'am/no ma'am; all of these things are taught in taekwondo. Integrity is taught through pushing students to be honest at home and at school, as well as in TKD class. If a student fails to show integrity in one of these areas, consequences are given (push-ups, missing out on board breaking) in class. Because students want to participate in these activities, many parents see better behavior in their children. Perseverance is one of my favorite tenets, and I think TKD got it right. TKD is one of the only sports where there is a definitive reward system. You are encouraged to persevere through difficult training in order to receive a new belt. It promotes the concept that with hard work, comes great reward. Self-control- It takes impeccable self-control to learn martial arts and not use them. In class, students must exercise self-control to behave properly, but it is outside class where this really comes into effect. In every single school I have trained in, if a student is caught using their martial arts to instigate fights, that student's career could very well be through. TKD is all about knowing how to fight, and knowing that it is a last resort. And finally, indomitable spirit. This comes more from seeing yourself grow as a martial artist more than anything else. By practicing TKD, students come to realize the importance of never backing down on a goal or dream, and this refusal to be beat is what makes champions of all students.

Question #4- Sure, this is great for boys. But what about my daughter?

...Are you really asking a female TKD instructor this?

But seriously, TKD is hands down my favorite martial art for girls, and I'll tell you why. Martial arts is male-dominated, it's true. In many arts, you will not find a single female practitioner. I know this from experience; my brother is a Brazilian Jiu-jitsu student, and while I've always been interested in taking it, even as a blackbelt in another martial art I'm uncomfortable taking it up because it is all men. The instructor himself told me he did not have a single female student. But walk into any TKD studio and you will not only find several female students, odds are there will be at least one female instructor. This is mostly because the sport is the largest martial art in the USA, but also because females can truly excel at TKD. Flexibility, agility, grace- all these things are natural to many female athletes, and they shine in TKD. Now, I'm not saying another martial art couldn't be great for females, Ronda Rousey has shown judo can be amazing for girls, I'm just saying odds are your daughter will find better role models, friends, and excellence in TKD. Plus, girls kick guy butt all the time in TKD. Just sayin'.

Question #5- My kids do TKD....can I?

YES! I had a 73 year old man who came with his grandfather and they both got blackbelts together. TKD is for all ages, and instructors are sympathetic if you can't quite bend like an 8 year old. This doesn't mean anyone will go easy on you, it's a workout! But it's amazing fun, and I love seeing parents and children get new belts together. You can't do soccer team with your kid, but you can do TKD. Plus, most families that do it together tend to stick it out, because once the kids lose interest after a year, the parents are totally hooked, keep coming, and eventually the kids find their way back.


Finally, let me just say that TKD is the most rewarding thing I've ever done with my life. One of the main motivating reasons behind me getting back into competitions is so that I will have better credentials to start an experiential psychotherapy program based on the tenets of TKD for children with both learning deficiencies and negative behavior patterns that I hope to practice out of my own do-jang, and eventually introduce into a public school system.

Unfortunately, this requires grad school, so I'm off to study. Calculus, you're about to be schooled!