What are the benefits of learning Taekwondo?

Taekwondo as a martial art form which emerged in the 1940s from Korea. It focuses more on head-high kicks, jumping spinning kicks and other fast paced kicking techniques. It is one of the more popular and one of the fastest growing martial art forms in the world. Here, we look at some of the physical and mental benefits one can achieve from practicing Taekwondo:

Muscle Toning and Strengthening

Strengthening and toning of muscles is one of the most obvious benefits of Taekwondo. The training for Taekwondo includes a lot of weight and strength training. All those countless kicks, punching and grappling during the training goes a long way into helping one in strengthening and toning of muscles.

Increase in Stamina

Along with an improved strength in muscles, Taekwondo also helps a great deal in improving your stamina. While performing Taekwondo it is highly necessary that you are able to go on with the kicks, blocks and strikes for a long period of time without getting tired. If you are a starter, you might get tired with the opening few moves, but with continuous practice your stamina too will increase.

Improved Concentration

The amount of concentration required to be a good Taekwondoin is immense. Apart from being a sport based on strength, if you want to succeed in Taekwondo you need to be able to concentrate. With more and more practice of this martial art you will be able to recognise how better you could concentrate on any given task.

Goal Setting and Decision Making

Taekwondo is as much a mental art as much as it is physical. Learning Taekwondo and practicing various kinds of moves requires goal setting; and during any match situation you need quick decision making skills in order to come up trumps. Practicing Taekwondo helps you develop just that. This ability of goal setting and quick decision making would also help you in real life scenarios.

Self Defence

Taekwondo, just like any other martial art would help you in self defence. One of the main objectives of Taekwondo is to teach people to defend themselves from any threats. In any unwanted situation, this martial art form will help you to defend yourself and come out unhurt.

Self Esteem

Other than self defence, Taekwondo also helps in developing your self-esteem. Practicing Taekwondo means learning various kinds of moves, postures, strikes, etc. Perfecting each of these gives you a confidence booster and also helps in muscle toning which would naturally increase your self-esteem.

Flexibility

Taekwondo involves a lot of different types of kicks which requires you to have a flexible body. The more and more you practice and master these moves, the more flexible your body would get. Usually, martial arts don’t involve flexibility as such, but to succeed in Taekwondo your body needs to be flexible.

Improved Cardiovascular Health

Taekwondo also helps in improving your cardiovascular health. Though, it is not completely a cardiovascular martial art, Taekwondo does involve certain aspects which train your cardio. You need to have great cardiovascular strength to become a good Taekwondoin. Practicing it daily would help you improve your cardiovascular health and help you live a longer and better quality life.

Respect and Discipline

Being a martial art form which has emerged from Korea, Taekwondo focuses a lot on discipline and respecting the peers and authorities. Failure to respect and indiscipline may result in stiff punishments from your mentor. Thus, Taekwondo helps in developing respect and discipline in anyone practicing it.

Weight Loss

Taekwondo involves a lot of physical activities which will surely help one in losing weight. Practicing this martial art would help you get in shape and burn calories as well which would indirectly lead you to weight loss.

Also read: How Bollywood is inspiring Indians to take up Taekwondo