Fitness & Stretching

Fitness

All classes have a large element of aerobic and anaerobic physical activity, typically at the beginning of the class. This serves two purposes. Firstly it has the benefit of pushing the student to greater physical demands thus increasing their general fitness level. Our instructors are well versed in training methods to promote aerobic fitness (to take you work longer) and resistance work (to make you stronger). Fitness goals set by the instructors are generally aimed at the students in the class who are the fittest in order to make them work.

It must be stressed however, that individual students are equipped with a sophisticated self diagnostic system, which is able to tell them how much to do! It has taken Nature millions of years of evolution to develop this system so don’t ignore it. If you feel pain or very out of breath then STOP! The instructors will never get annoyed and are more likely to be concerned and praise your common sense. This is especially important if you are a beginner. If the instructor shouts ’20 press ups’ and you know you can only manage 5 then try for 6 but no more. Often the instructors will offer an alternative variation for those members not as fit or strong, for example, press up on knees rather than on feet. If, however, you are fit and trying to get out of working hard, then you are only cheating yourself. Remember the Black Belt Oath!

Fitness is very important for sparring. It is usually the fitter student who will win a bout over the more technically skilful. Many times the talented but lazy student who can perform excellent technique with little effort will neglect their fitness training, preferring to stop and rest when it gets difficult. When sparring comes though, for the first minute this student will be a skilled fighter but as soon as they get tired they cannot lift their arms and legs and are easily beaten by the fitter opponent.

The second benefit to have a proper warm up is that any physical activity is stressful on the body but particularly so in Martial Arts. It is vital therefore to warm up properly before taking part in a class. If a student arrives late and has missed the class warm up then the warm up exercises must still be done on their own, prior to taking part in the rest of th class.. One of the most important parts of the warm ups is the stretching. A lot of it students won’t realise that they are doing stretching excercises because of the way the instructors do it such as Dynamic Stretching, but it is there and important.

There is no specific test on fitness for each grade. Each student is expected to show a standard of fitness appropriate for their grade, which is necessary to perform all the techniques. As each person has a different personal ability, however, this will be adjusted for each student accordingly.

Flexibility – (Pyugi)

Obviously the ability to kick someone in the head requires flexibility, and everybody wants to be able to do the splits. It is not however necessary to be able to do the splits or be hyper-flexible to be able to do Tae Kwon-Do. It does, however, make things easier…The four best ways to stretch are :-

Dynamic Stretching - This is the movement of the body part using the muscle being stretched. Each movement starts with a small movement and is gradually increased to the full range of movement. This gets the blood pumping to the muscles and gets the heart rate up. Examples are bouncing your leg over a partner’s arm or front leg raises.

Static Active Stretching - This is where the body part is placed with a quick movement to a stretched position and held with the muscles in place. An example is to throw a front kick and hold it up. This works the muscles and increases muscle strength. It is a fact that flexible muscles are strong muscles and vice versa. This is best done after dynamic stretching.

Static Passive Stretching - This is where the body is placed in a stretched position and held whilst trying to relax the muscles into the stretch. An example is to sit on the floor with legs apart and reaching forward. The stretched muscles are not under load, like in static active. It should not be done as a warm up on its own as the muscle does not get warmed up and the heart rate is not increased. It is good as a cool down to purge lactic acid from the muscle fibres (so that your muscles don’t ache the next day!).

Isometric Stretching - This is very difficult but has tremendous results. The body part is placed in a position of stretch similar to a Static passive stretch e.g. the splits. The student then pushes the muscles in the opposite direction of the stretch (in the splits you would ‘pinch’ the floor) for a period of a few seconds. The student then relaxes and will (should!) find that the stretch can be increased. The procedure is increased until the stretch cannot be increased where it is held for about 30 seconds. Using this method will produce the best gains in flexibility but should only be performed at the very end of a session due to the exhaustive nature of the stretch.

Again there is no specific requirement of knowledge of stretching for the gradings. Students may be asked what different ways to stretch there are and when to do so.

Kihap

There are many explanations as to what a Kihap is. These range from the physical and scientific fact that the short, sharp explosive exhalation of breath tenses the abdominal muscles increasing power to the major muscle groups and preventing impacts from ‘winding’ you. Any sports person knows this, just watch weight-lifters shout or tennis players grunt on a serve.

More spiritual explanations say it is a focusing of the body’s ‘life-force energy’ or ‘shout from the soul’, characterised by a large exhalation of breath, with the shout serving only as a good indication of a good Kihap (aligned body structure, focused intent, and good breathing).

To Kihap makes your techniques stronger and is a good way to perform correct breathing. A proper Kihap is a sound, which cannot be spelt and is best described as a grunting shout. Many people feel unsure about what they should say or feel a little silly so few people Kihap properly to begin with. Just look to the senior grades. 

The proper use of Kihap involves concentrating on the use of one's ki more than it does shouting. Kihap can be a silent coordination of breath with activity. A relaxed and powerful exhalation can add power to movement. The noise from a kihap involves the abdominal muscles and diaphragm and should not be sounded merely from the throat.

As well as the above, the kihap can be used to:
•           startle and demoralize your enemy.
•           prime yourself for combat, by "amping yourself up."
•           protect the upper body from a strike by providing an escape route for exhalation of air.
•           protect the lower body by rapidly contracting the transverse abdominals and other core muscles, shielding the internal organs.
•           provide solid abdominal support for striking techniques.

Power – (Himm)

Theory of Power (Him Ui Wolli)  
  
The beginning student may ask; “Where does one obtain the power to create the devastating results attributed to Taekwon-Do?” This power is attributed to the utilization of a persons full potential through the mathematical application of Taekwon-Do techniques. The average person uses only 10 to 20 percent of his potential. Anyone, regardless of size, age, or sex who can condition himself to use 100 percent of his potential can also perform the same destructive techniques.
 
Though training will certainly result in a superb level of physical fitness, it will not necessarily result in the acquisition of extraordinary stamina or superhuman strength. More important, Taekwon-Do training will result in obtaining a high level of reaction force, concentration, equilibrium, breath control and speed; these are the factors that will result in a high degree of physical power.
 
REACTION FORCE (Bandong Ryok)
 
According to Newton's Law, every force has as equal and opposite force. When an automobile crashes into a wall with the force of 2,000 pounds, the wall will return a force of 2,000 pounds; or forcing the end of the seesaw down with a ton of weight will provide an upward force of the same weight; if your opponent is rushing towards you at a high speed, by the slightest blow at his head, the force with which you strike his head would be that of his own onslaught plus that of your blow.
 
The two forces combined; his, which is large, and yours, which is small is quite impressive. Another reaction force is your own. A punch with the right fist is aided by pulling back the left fist to the hip.
 
CONCENTRATION (Jip Joong)
 
By applying the impact force onto the smallest target area, it will concentrate the force and therefore, increase its effect. For example, the force of water coming out of a water hose is greater if the orifice is smaller. Conversely, the weight of a man spread out on snow shoes makes hardly any impression on the snow. The blows in Taekwon-Do are often concentrated onto the edge of the open palm or to the crook of the fingers.
 
It is very important that you should not unleash all your strength at the beginning but gradually, and particularly at the point of contact with your opponent's body, the force must be so concentrated as to give a knock-out blow. That is to say, the shorter the time for the concentration, the greater will be the power of the blow. The utmost concentration is required in order to mobilize every muscle of the body onto the smallest target area simultaneously.
 
In conclusion, concentration is done in two ways: one is to concentrate every muscle of the body, particularly the bigger muscles around the hip and abdomen (which theoretically are slower than the smaller muscles of other parts of the body) towards the appropriate tool to be used at the proper time; the second way is to concentrate such mobilized muscles onto the opponent's vital spot. This is the reason why the hip and abdomen are jerked slightly before the hands and feet in any action, whether it be attack or defense.
 
EQUILIBRIUM (Kyun Hyung)
 
Balance is of utmost importance in any type of athletics. In Taekwon-Do, it deserves special consideration. By keeping the body always in equilibrium, that is, well balanced, a blow is more effective and deadly. Conversely, the unbalanced one is easily toppled. The stance should always be stable yet flexible, for both offensive and defensive movements.
 
Equilibrium is classified into both dynamic and static stability. They are so closely inter-related that the maximum force can only be produced when the static stability is maintained through dynamic stability.
 
To maintain good equilibrium, the center of gravity of the stance must fall on a straight line midway between both legs when the body weight is distributed equally on both legs, or in the center of the foot if it is necessary to concentrate the bulk of body weight on one foot. The center of gravity can be adjusted according to body weight. Flexibility and knee spring are also important in maintaining balance for both a quick attack and instant recovery. One additional point; the heel of the rear foot should never be off the ground at the point of impact. This is not only necessary for good balance but also to produce maximum power at the point of impact.
 
BREATH CONTROL (Hohup Jojul)
 
Controlled breathing not only affects one's stamina and speed but can also condition a body to receive a blow and augment the power of a blow directed against an opponent. Through practice, breath stopped in the state of exhaling at the critical moment when a blow is landed against a pressure point on the body can prevent a loss of consciousness and stifling pain. A sharp exhaling of breath at the moment of impact and stopping the breath during the execution of a movement tenses the abdomen to concentrate maximum effort on the delivery of the motion, while a slow inhaling helps the preparation of the next movement. An important rule to remember; Never inhale while focusing a block or blow against an opponent. Not only will this impede movement but it will also result in a loss of power.
 
Students should also practice disguised breathing to conceal any outward signs of fatigue. An experienced fighter will certainly press an attack when he realizes his opponent is on the point of exhaustion.
 
One breath is required for one movement with the exception of a continuous motion.
 
MASS (Zilyang)
 
Mathematically, the maximum kinetic energy or force is obtained from maximum body weight and speed and it is all important that the body weight be increased during the execution of a blow. No doubt the maximum body weight is applied with the motion of turning the hip. The large abdominal muscles are twisted to provide additional body momentum. Thus the hip rotates in the same direction as that of the attacking or blocking tool. Another way of increasing body weight is the utilization of a springing action of the knee joint. This is achieved by slightly raising the hip at the beginning of the motion and lowering the hip at the moment of impact to drop the body weight into the motion.
 
In summary, it is necessary to point out that the principles of force outlined here hold just as true today in our modern scientific and nuclear age as they did centuries ago.
 
I am sure that when you go through this art, both in theory and in practice, you will find that the scientific basis of the motions and the real power which comes out a small human body cannot fail to impress you.
 
SPEED (Sokdo)
 
Speed is the most essential factor of force or power. Scientifically, force equals mass multiplied by acceleration (F = MA) or (P = MV2).
 
According to the theory of kinetic energy, every object increases its weight as well as speed in a downward movement. This very principle is applied to this particular art of self-defense. For this reason, at the moment of impact, the position of the hand normally becomes lower than the shoulder and the foot lower than the hip while the body is in the air.
 
Power Summary

Reaction Force – This is using another part of the body as an opposite force. For example to pull the other hand back to the waist when punching.

Hip Twist – the secret to all power. Even punches should come from the hips using a whiplash effect to use the body’s momentum to transfer energy to the striking tool.

Body Weight – the subtle act of slightly dropping the bodyweight at the point of impact transfers some of that bodyweight through to the striking tool. Also it is important to position your bodyweight in the correct place as you strike. The heavier you are (or make yourself), the harder you can hit.

Focus – this is a little harder to grasp. In the Orient it is sometimes called ‘Chi’. Basically it is the act of concentrating on the task at hand and not worrying about if anybody’s looking at you, or what you’re going to eat later, or if you’ve remembered to set the video etc. With proper focus you can ‘channel’ all your efforts into the technique and show greater power than you probably thought you could (see breaking section).

With a great deal of practice the Tae Kwon-Do student can learn to instinctively combine all of the above elements. True power is fluid and almost effortless. Tensing up and trying to hit hard will probably mean that you have the opposite effect and your muscles work against each other making your techniques less powerful. Power is more in technique than physical size, but it takes time.