[Class #1] Teen & Adults Taewondo Sparring Week

   This week is a Taekwondo Sparring week which many students like. So, a student 'Drew' is coming in carrying a bag?! He is currently a teenager and a blue belt. Being a blue belt means it has been practicing at American Black Belt Academy Peachtree City for about a year and a half.

 Can you see the time there? It's 6:46. The teens and adult class on Tuesdays starts at 6:50, but already some teenagers have came early, adjusting their belts and uniforms. Teenagers can learn time management skills like this while learning Taekwondo.

    The class for children with brown and red belts has ended before the teen & adult class. There's a 5-minute break before the class starts. Before the class begins, both teenagers and adults are sitting on the mat, stretching individually. Especially for adults, stretching before exercising is very important in injury prevention.

     They are jogging around the mats to get their bodies warmed up before diving into the main training. The teenagers are leading the charge with their energy! But where are the adults? Our teens need to learn some more respect, huh? 😄

   They are doing partner drills. Facing each other, one person holds the target while the other person kicks it. The individuals in the photo are a mother and daughter. The daughter started Taekwondo first, and the mother was motivated by her to begin practicing Taekwondo. They can have bonding time while exercising together. And because they cheer each other on while training, it seems they can enjoy Taekwondo even more.

     After the basic target kicking drills, students who have brought their sparring gear take a moment to put it on. This gear includes protective padding for all bodies, designed to safeguard bodies during sparring and prevent injuries.

     Students with lower belts engage in sparring drill practice until they become proficient in kicking and sparring steps. Typically, students start sparring with Taekwondo sparring gear from the blue belt level. Our assistant instructor wears practice chest gear and help students in performing kicks as if they were sparring. This way, they can sweat and relieve stress while practicing kicks.

     Finally, it's time to do Taekwondo Sparring. Wearing all the protective gear, we're enthusiastically engaging in the sparring. Despite wearing all the protective gear, there's always the concern of injury, so we're always coached to control ourself at 70% of my strength while sparring. Through sparring, we learn how to control ourself and develop an attitude of consideration towards our opponent. Moreover, we learn how to give our best regardless of the outcome.

   Female students also engage in sparring. Particularly for them, there might be more fear and pressure when sparring with male students, but they overcome all of that and give their best. Sparring, especially, can teach confidence to all students. In our martial arts school in Peachtree City, except for the sparring team, head strikes are not allowed. Therefore, many students can enjoy Taekwondo sparring without feeling too much pressure.

     Sparring practice demands a lot of physical activity, so after class, students sweat a lot. This allows us to blow off the stress from school or work that we accumulated during the day. It's such a joyful moment.