Martial arts like taekwondo are an excellent form of exercise. Beyond learning about self-defence, many people become practitioners for the physical benefits. This post will detail the advantages of taekwondo for physical fitness.
What are the benefits of taekwondo for physical fitness?
Here are ten of the most significant benefits of taekwondo on physical fitness.
- Taekwondo increases strength.
As with any martial art, taekwondo is physically demanding. Practitioners must constantly execute moves in the proper form. It’s more than just doing the motions because arm, leg, and core strength are all required when performing these moves.
Taekwondo builds strength over time. And it’s perfectly normal for beginners not to have the power to perform the moves with a good form. Constant training, however, will eventually build the necessary muscle groups required for these moves.
Don’t get the wrong idea, though: jins don’t need bodybuilder-level strength to practice taekwondo. If there’s strength to fuel the proper form and enough force to power kicks and punches, then that’s more than good enough.
2. It improves muscle mass and tone.
The best way to build or tone muscles is regular (but reasonable) exertion. This is exactly what happens in taekwondo. Constantly performing strikes, kicks, and throws can help make the practitioner build more mass.
Those who aim for aesthetics will also find taekwondo a great way of sculpting one’s musculature. In addition, this sport can help shape muscles, leading to a leaner appearance.
3. Taekwondo burns fat.
Aside from improving muscle mass and tone, taekwondo is also an excellent way of burning fat. Taekwondo schools incorporate cardio, flexibility training, rehearsing moves, and more. All these activities are pretty energy-intensive, so they burn heaps of calories.
People with higher muscle mass also have an easier time shedding fat. Since taekwondo also builds muscle, it is even easier to lose all that unnecessary weight.
4. It’s excellent for increasing flexibility.
Seeing well-trained jins do ahp-chagis and neryo-chagis is particularly impressive. These are not kicks that a beginner can do on a whim. It takes great flexibility to execute these moves correctly and with the necessary force. This is the reason why taekwondo is more than learning how to do all these fancy kicks and throws. So, expect a good chunk of the time in a taekwondo lesson to be dedicated to flexibility training.
Doing moves like the ahp-chagi is painful for some beginners because of the tremendous flexibility required. However, performing these moves will gradually become easier and easier with regular training.
5. Taekwondo builds endurance.
It takes a different kind of endurance to practice a martial art or combat sport. How so?
Imagine constantly watching out for an opponent’s move while sparring, all while consistently acting and reacting. That’s not to mention how tiring it is to perform kicks, blocks, dodges, and strikes in quick succession.
This is why taekwondo schools also aim to build a jin’s endurance. It takes a lot of stamina not to tire out when sparring. Exhaustion in the middle of a match is a quick way to defeat.
6. Practitioners become more agile.
Mobility is extremely important in taekwondo. Dodging attacks, closing in, reacting, blocking, and more — these are agility-related skills that all jins must develop.
With taekwondo, practitioners will learn how to build agility. This includes the proper stances and footwork techniques to maximise mobility.
7. It improves reflexes.
It’s a basic rule in any combat sport not to get caught flat-footed when fighting. A well-placed kick can knock out even the most seasoned veteran so it’s important to minimise the risk of this happening. The best way of doing so is by having quick reflexes.
Fortunately, taekwondo training can dramatically improve a practitioner’s reflexes. There are methods to do so, and jins will see a marked improvement in reaction time even after just months of training.
Some experienced practitioners even claim that time seems to slow down around them when they’re concentrating. It sounds like a superpower except that it’s real, and it’s a particularly useful skill when sparring.
8. Taekwondo improves balance.
Another of taekwondo’s physical fitness benefits is an improved sense of balance. It’s tough at first, but balance is entirely trainable.
Developing this skill is especially important, as many of the moves in taekwondo rely on a practitioner’s balance. For example, kicks won’t land on an opponent without proper balance. Also, performing poomsae is challenging if the practitioner cannot shift their weight efficiently.
9. It’s excellent for relieving stress.
For some reason, doing strenuous physical activities while stressed is a great feeling. A martial art like taekwondo can help channel all this stress into something more productive.
Taekwondo is excellent for relieving stress and the sheer physicality involved is a great way of releasing pent-up energy. Getting to punch and kick practice pads and bags (not people) is just a bonus for stress relief.
10. It’s good for mind-body coordination.
Many beginners initially have difficulty coordinating their strikes with what they intend to do. Unfortunately, this is common, as not everyone is born with a great mind-body connection or coordination.
This coordination can drastically increase with training. Activities like poomsae and regular practice all help develop this skill.
Are there any other benefits?
There’s no question that taekwondo’s physical fitness benefits are excellent. However, it’s worth noting that the advantages go beyond just the physical. Mental and emotional health also improve in many ways through:
- Increased focus and easier concentration
- Discipline
- Calmer mental state
- Better emotional control
- Improved alertness
- May reduce the symptoms associated with emotional and mental disorders
Don’t underestimate the mental and emotional benefits of taekwondo. It pays to keep both mind and body sound, after all.
Find a taekwondo school and reap the benefits.
As we have explained above, taekwondo has many benefits regarding physical fitness. If you’re looking for a rewarding way to become healthier, why not give taekwondo a try?
Team Carlo Taekwondo, a taekwondo school in VIC, is taught by Carlo Massimino. He’s a two-time Olympian, and the chance to learn from someone of his calibre is rare. Learn more about Team Carlo Taekwondo. Visit one of our centres or call us to speak with a representative.
