Strike a trend

Manpriya Singh

Thanks to Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee movies all of us are fairly introduced to several forms of martial arts, including the Korean Martial Art— taekwondo. While many of us may have thought of the martial arts strictly as a form of self defense , not many view the martial sport as an interesting, practical and a versatile alternative to gyms. As a means to a fitter body, agile mind, and better reflexes. But first things first; taekwondo consists of the following Korean words ‘tae’, which means ‘to strike with foot’ and kwon, which means, ‘to strike with hand’. “In taekwondo, one’s body movements should be light and anything that contributed to a lighter body makes for a fitter body. Taekwondo is a mental and physical fitness programme, much before it’s a martial arts or before it became an Olympic sport,” BS Handa, one of the first persons to introduce taekwondo in North and director, Extreme Martial Arts, takes on from here. “Before we had gyms, how do you think people stayed fit?”

Why taekwondo?

For starters, it requires the athlete to use all parts of the body in one move, including the mind. He adds, “It enhances both the left and the right side of the brain. One having to imagine the actions involved before fighting is one of the techniques in fighting.”

Get fit the taekwondo way

Talk of variations in the workouts and he almost challenges the traditional gym set-ups. “It’s a much more focused cardio because there is a lot of jumping, kicking and stepping involved. In fact, there are 12 different kinds of taekwondo workouts.”

Mind you, it’s a lifestyle choice

It’s a way of life and not a hobby to be picked up and dropped as insolated activity. “Only when you follow and respect the set patterns of exercise, waking up, sleeping, warming up; it can be practised the right way. It’s a life changing programme.”

How popular in the city?

Given today’s times and unfortunate news that regularly trickle in about women safety, he wishes it was a little more popular among women than what it is. “Apart from children, now a lot of adults too are keen on learning it. Although, anytime after five is the right age to be introduced to it, but it is never too late.”