• RELAXATION - You must relax the muscles that you are stretching. You cannot stretch a tensed or contracted muscle; it must be relaxed. A good way to warm up the muscles with out too much physical exertion is to have a hot bath. This helps to relax the body and warm the muscles.

• MYOPHASIC REFLEX- Muscles have sensors, which check, for changes in muscle length. For example, when you kick, the muscle changes length very rapidly. This activates the myophasic reflex which means that the muscle contracts hard. This myophasic reflex will prevent you from stretching successfully. Stretching and bouncing will cause the myophasic reflex to be activated. (This is called the ballistic stretch). To avoid activating the myophasic reflex, stretching must be done slowly. The myophasic reflex helps to prevent injury and gives you an indication of when stop. No pain, No Gain? When it comes to stretching pain is your brain telling you its time to stop. So do not over stretch.

• SAFETY- Stretching exercises must be done under careful control, You must not overload the muscles being stretched. In other words, the position you are in while stretching must be safe, with no chance of slipping or falling, or else you can unconsciously tense or tear the muscle.

DYNAMIC FLEXIBILITY

Finally, remember that kicking correctly is the ultimate stretch. Nothing will stretch your body as completely as a kick. The leverage, force, and relaxation inherent in kicking exercises will increase your flexibility dynamically. Also, a kick is extremely specific in the muscle groups and fibres, which it stretches. So after you have warm up do your hand and leg techniques slowly at various heights and with no tension or force. After you have done 20 to 30 increase the speed and power of the technique. This will help increase dynamic flexibilty but too truly increase mobility, dynamic and static movements must be done.

Remember the 48-72 hour rule- Don�t` kick hard one day and stretch hard the very next day. Stretch and kick the same day; or, kick on day one, rest on day two, stretch on day three. Good luck, be careful, and much success.

STRETCHING

A. Advantages of stretching:

1. Increased range of motion (kick higher, kick faster)
2. Increased heart rate at a gradual pace. (if doing dynamic flexibility)
3. Less chance of leg injury (a stretched muscle is less likely to strain)
4. Increased muscle capability (as an athlete's flexibility increases, so does his muscles ability to perform work)

B. How to begin your stretching routine:

1. If you wish to increase your heart rate before you stretch, choose an activity that will not cause your heart rate to increase too quickly. Start off slowly and gradually increase the intensity for less chance of injury.
2. You can use your stretching routine to increase your heart rate or warm up. Working with the same premise as mentioned in #1 above. Start slowly and gradually increase the intensity. Stretching is an exercise, and if done correctly, it will develop muscle strength.

C. Stretching should follow four basic rules:

1. DO NOT use a ballistic type of stretch, using a bouncing type of motion to stretch the muscle. The jerking motion will increase the chance of muscle strain and will not develop good muscle control. Use a static type of stretch: stretching slowly with a constant pull. Hold for 30 seconds to 1 minute, relaxing the muscle while in this position.
2. Stretch muscles in proper order, head to toe or vice versa. When trying to stretch a specific muscle, it is important to realise which muscles are inter- related. Forward for a hamstring stretch involves not only the hamstring, but also the back, neck, buttocks and calves, so to get the maximum stretch in certain areas, it may be necessary to stretch an inter- related muscle first.
3. Once you establish a certain sequence (order in which you do your stretches), it is best to stay with that sequence, especially for the beginning student. Your body becomes adjusted to your warm up procedures, which in turn, means less chance of injury.
4. An important part of stretching is muscle control, the ability to relax one muscle for stretch, and tighten another for strength. Example: Contract hip-flexors and quadracept muscles while relaxing the hamstring. To front kick high, you must let the hamstring relax to stretch high, but the hip- flexors contract, lift the leg and the quadracepts contract to cause leg extension .If you tighten the hamstring at this point, your kick will be low, or you might strain your hamstring. This can be developed during stretching.

D. Stretching routine example:

1. Jog on the spot or skip for 3 to 10 mins
2. Rotate the neck, left to right going shoulder to shoulder.
3. Shoulder shrugs, rotating backwards 20 -40 times and then repeat forwards
4. Stretch the chest by crossing arms across chest and then extending the arms fully at chest level.
5. Rotate hips, left and then right.
6. Legs apart at shoulder width extend left arm to knee and repeat action on the right side.
7. Legs slightly bent touch toes ( when you increase your flexibility straighten )
8. Sit down extend left leg and tuck in right leg, bring you chest down to the knee kicking the back straight. Repeat exercise on the other side.
9. Lie down face down arch the back slowly counter stretch with a cat stretch (brings buttocks back to heals)

E. Making your own stretches.

1. There are too many different stretches available to explain all of them. Most of all stretches can be done with a partner, on a stretching bar, standing, sitting, walking or squatting. Do not stretch hard every day, alternate between one light day and one hard day.
2. When selecting which stretches from the many available, remember the four basic rules listed above.

 

NOTE: The most important thing about stretching - stretch through range of motion. If you become limber, but do not have strength to lift your leg high or kick at this height, you will not have got the full benefit from your stretching.

PULSE

Heart rate and pulse rates are separate phenomena. The difference for our purpose is not significant. Resting heart rate is our pulse rate at rest ( before rising in the morning). The averages are: 72-76 per minutes for men; 30 to 84 per minute for boys; 75-80 per minutes for women; 82-89 per minutes for girls.

Generally, a well-conditioned heart will have a lower resting heart rate and, generally the lower the resting heart rate, the healthier the individual. A well-conditioned athlete will have a resting heart rate of approximately 50 beats per minute.

You can lower your resting heart rate by making it beat faster during regular prolonged periods of exercise (12 to 20 minutes). With proper exercise your heart becomes richer in oxygen, more massive and powerful and more efficient. A reconditional heart beats more slowly at rest and, during work, acquires greater pumping capacity. The heart is strengthened by increasing the quality of the heart muscle (myocardium), and by increasing the co-ordination of the fibres.

The heart needs an overload of blood to be conditioned. You must pursue an activity that pushes your heart rate to a level higher than your normal routine. It is possible to increase your maximum heart rate during exercise from 115 to 180 and lower your resting pulse from 51 to 40 in a five week period following the guidelines of an aerobic kicking drill. Remember, fitness means the development of all the components of your body, these are:

1. Muscular strength
2. Muscular endurance
3. Cardiovascular endurance
4. Flexibility
5. Co-ordination
6. Concentration.

To improve a skill involves specificity-specific strength and co-ordination of muscle groups and nerves that perform that skill.

Finally, a single activity will not achieve total fitness. Fitness strictly relates to your ability to meet the demands to your environment. Performance is how well you accomplish a task. So we must engage in a variety of physical exercise on a regular (ideally weekly) schedule.

 

HEART RATE CHART PER 10 SECOND COUNT.

Age Group	60%	65%	70%	85%	MAX
20-22	20	22	23	28	33
23-25	19	21	23	28	33
26-28	19	21	22	27	32
29-31	19	21	22	27	32
32-34	19	21	22	26	31
35-37	18	20	21	26	31
38-40	18	20	21	26	30
41-43	18	19	21	25	30
44-46	17	19	21	25	29
47-49	17	19	20	24	29
50-52	17	18	20	24	28
53-55	17	18	19	23	28
56-58	16	18	19	23	27
59-60	16	17	19	23	27

 

HOW TO TAKE YOUR PULSE.

You take your pulse by placing three fingers over the artery near the centre of the inside wrist. Touch fingers lightly to the area until you feel your pulse. Use a wristwatch or clock with a second hand or a stopwatch. Count the number of beats for a period of ten seconds. Then use the chart above, which is based on a 10-second count.

 

THEORY OF POWER

The beginning student may ask, "Where does one obtain the power to create the devastating results attributed to Taekwondo?" This power is attributed to the utilisation of a person's potential through the mathematical application of Taekwondo techniques. The average person only uses 10 to 20 percent of their potential. Anyone, regardless of size, age or sex, who can condition themselves to use 100% of their 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 superb human strength. More important, Taekwondo training will result in obtaining a high level of reaction force, concentration, equilibrium, breath control, and speed; and these are the factors that will result in a high degree of physical power.

REACTION FORCE

According to Newton's Law, every force has an 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 a 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 are small, are quite impressive. This then is the reaction force from the opponent. Another reaction force is your own. A punch with the right fist is added by pulling back the left fist to the hip.

CONCENTRATION

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 snowshoes makes hardly any impression on the snow. The blows in Taekwondo are often concentrated onto the edge of the open palm or to the crook of the fingers.

It is very important that you should unleash your strength at the beginning, and gradually, particularly at a point of contact with your opponent's body, the force must be so concentrated 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 mobilise 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) to the appropriate tool to be used at the proper time and the second way is to concentrate such mobilised muscles onto the opponent's vital spot. This is the reason why the hip and abdomen are jerked sharply in any action whether it be attack or defence.

EQUILIBRIUM

Balance is of utmost importance in any type of athletics. In Taekwondo 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 balance. 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 centre 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 centre of the foot if it is necessary to concentrate the bulk of the body on one foot. The centre of gravity can be adjusted according to body weight. Flexability and knee spring are also important in maintaining balance