John G

Chang Hon was the penname for General Choi , up until his death General Choi was ITF. The Chang Hon set (sine wave motion and all) is what is taught by the ITF. Now that there are 3 ITF’s who knows what will happen next. tufrthanu, is sine motion incorporated in your pattern set or do you train using pre 1980s Chang Hon set, and do you know if 2nd degree set includes Juche or Ko dang. Thanx in advance. Respectfully,

Where did you read that General Choi said that ITF Taekwon-Do was made up from japanese arts and Tae Kyon? I agree a kick is still a kick, however ITF and WTF (KTA) parted ways in 1965 and developed their own respective style and direction in the martial arts community. I have read that article and found it informative with regard to the politics surrounding Korean martial arts. Respectfully,

Welcome zigy Hows the weather in your part of the world.

I’m a bit confused and wished that you had named names, therefore I will make a few assumptions. Firstly: “Taekwondo in actuality was not formed by one individual The martial art taekwondo in reality through written documantation with the list of names who helped the formation of taekwondo. Like all things though one man get the most credit for organizing Taekwondo to what it is today.” I assume you are referring to General Choi (ITF Taekwon-Do) and yes I agree with your statement. “Any ways as you read this as I said in the beginning it wasn't until 1930 when the korean martial arts and language were banned.” I was lead to believe it was around 1936-7 just prior to the Second World War when these sanctions took place. “A person may speculate thus that at least some or a good-bit of Korean Martial arts are indeed older than many people realize.” WTF Tae Kwon Do refers to the fact that elements of TKD are thousands of years old making it a truly Korean martial art. General Choi has always stated that TKD was developed after the Second World War and was a new martial art (not entirely true as most of it was swiped from Karate). Mixing ITF and WTF histories tends to be the trend these days as a way of invalidating the art. I apologise if I have misread your post and made the wrong assumptions. Respectfully,

Some people can be real ba**ards when it comes to blocking, as you progress your technique will improve then it will be payback time. The main thing to remember is that you are able to take a hit or a block and still survive. What doesn't kill you makes you strong. My only advice is to keep focused and try not to think too much about how it’s going to hurt, mental and physical preparation for pain is one of the many rewarding lessons taught in the martial arts journey. To paraphrase some B grade movie “Make pain your friend”, at least if it hurts you know you’re still alive.

If only LOL:

I teach 15 – 20 Little Dragons ( 4 to 7 y/o) at any one time and know how you feel, I learnt if you cant beat them join them. First thing to remember is to make things fun, turn the boring and mundane into a game. Make a strategy / lesson plan. I use what if scenarios to teach kids self defence/ life skills. i.e. what would you do if you got lost in a shopping mall? What would you do if a stranger grabbed you by the hand? What would you do if your house caught on fire? What would you do if a bully was picking on you at school? What would you do if a dog was about to attack you? Etc. Roll playing is a lot of fun although, crawling on all fours and barking at the kids feels a bit strange at first. Telling young ones to punch on a sitting stance / horse stance for any length of time is near impossible, tell that we’re going for a horse/pony ride turning the horses head form left to right usually keeps them occupied for 5 – 10 minutes. Play aeroplanes, where they have to keep their arms horizontal above their shoulders palms down following the leader strengthens their upper bodies. Jack in the box, where the kids crouch down and jump up as high as they can on command helps develop leg strength. Something akin to the hoaky poky (sp?) helps develop balance. Skipping rope games promotes stamina and co-ordination, balloon mid air kicking and punching games helps hand/foot/eye co-ordination and timing. Noise, kids love to make noise. Those who don’t are generally shy or reserved, let them find their voice, build up a bit of self confidence. This of course is only on your command for the rest of the time, tell them they have to be quiet as mouses and go moo. Allow for several options at once (skipping, jumping, kicking, punching), and let the kids at first gravitate to activities they feel comfortable with before rotating them. Have parents/seniors hold air shields, ropes etc so you can show proper technique to the kids. “Simon says” games helps them to remember rudimentary techniques and promotes discipline. Having fit, self-confident, well co-ordinated, disciplined little dragons helps the transition to juniors (7 to 14 y/o) where more formalised martial arts training takes place. Some of the juniors like to join in with the little dragons to have a bit of fun, I don’t mind this as long as they don’t get to cheeky and are willing to help the little ones with technique or confidence building. Anyways I have bent your ear enough; hopefully I have helped in some way. The main thing is to enjoy teaching, that way they will enjoy learning from you. They smell the fear so don’t pretend to be someone your not. Helping someone to grow, to achieve, to be the best they can through your teaching is the way to an eternal life. Most of all have fun and enjoy. Respectfully, ...

Well written history lesson Sens55 , closer to the truth than a lot of people would admit too let alone take the time to research. ....

Well done Leila

Run Forest, Run!! ...

LordBucket. Many of the answers you seek are in the Bunkai of the Kusanku kata from which the Heian/Pinan katas were developed. If you wish to go that extra step take a look at the Chinese quan fa White Crane and Tiger forms to gain even further insight behind the Bunkai. Shorin Ryuu, You guys get to go to all the interesting places, us ITF guys can only look forward to a trip to Pyongyang (North Korea) ...

I'm a member of the WCKFA here in Perth, and went on one of Grandmaster Cheung’s week long summer camps two years ago in Melbourne (had a ball and learnt a lot). Respectfully, …

Might I add Laurie that not all ITF schools are totally martial arts orientated ether. ….

This comment tells me that you need to do some research on the origins of Taekwon-do, find out where the tuls (patterns/forms) which are the cornerstone of Taekwon-do come from. Most (not all) of the original Korean TaeKwon-do Masters are dead or retired, therefore you may find yourself looking for a second or third generation Korean Master. Have you a preference (North Korean or a South Korean Master)?, consider you choice wisely. Respectfully, ...

Not trying to be disrespectful, but how come I never see these in any TKD tournament, sparring or any other video that I watch? Am I just so darn unlucky in choosing TKD videos or what? I mean, yes they seem to be in the basic techniques, but never in the actual fighting, why is that? No disrespect taken, Except for punches in ITF TKD all of them are disallowed in free sparring (tournament) and only a limited number of kicking techniques above the belt are allowed. Free sparing is not meant to imitate real life situation and is only a training tool, think of it as training your legs on Large Punching Bag that moves and kicks back. Some people train exclusively in free sparring techniques for sporting prowess (Olympics etc) I say more power to them. I train no more than 16-20 hrs a year for the 3 or 4 state and club tournaments I enter each year, the rest of the time is dedicated to learning the martial art. Respectfully,

Aue! He kaha a Aotearoa! I know a couple

I just cant keep up with you people, by the time I have check fro spelling error’s you lot have added half a dozen posts. Never mind the quality feel the width. ….

Atrocities didn’t start with Hitter or Stalin they go back tens of thousand of years, history will always be written / re-written by the victors. Those who are responsible for the murder all be they one or a million innocent people will be call liberators/patriots/nationalists or terrorists/dictators/oppressors depending on which side of the fence you are. In a thousand years from now who knows how the recollections of event happening in our lifetime will be written. / re-written Lets face it people, whilst greed pervades there will always be wars between those who have and those who have not. Gee you people type fast.. …..

They don’t need an aircraft carrier they have the haka

Welcome to the forums sethgraham, Another TKDer, the more the merrier..

Wear some protection, like a white hat; those guys never get shot no matter how many bad guys are shooting at them. ...

If If you could tell me the name of the Taekwon-do club or instructor, I might be able to tell you what type of Taekwon-Do you are doing. BTW: I’m in Wundowie, 65Km east of Perth.

The Baath Party regime ruled Iraq for 35 years, killing two of leaders won’t solve the problems in Iraq. ...

Great article Sai, I hope you don't mind but I sent your artical (links etc) to the MS Society here in Western Australia. Respectfully, ...

Yeh you and me would show those Matrix guys a few tricks. ...