• Mikey Ryu
• April 29, 2024
• 0

Mikey: 7th Month At Tae Kwon Do

This month the black belt grading is coming closer and closer with the grading happening in May, we’re all helping the black belts cover the material that they need to know for their gradings, while also preparing for our next gradings towards the end of May.

Week One: The Focus of This Month is – Dexterity

Straight off the bat this week, I noticed a drastic improvement in my flexibility more so my vertical flexibility, so while I still can’t do the splits yet it’s a drastic improvement from what I used to be able to do. I’ve always wanted to be able to do a proper sidekick so I’ve been working on strengthening my tensor fasciae latae (TFL or the muscle on the side of your hip) so I can increase my flexibility in that regard.

Week Two:

As the focus of this month was to improve dexterity I set out to force myself to use my left side (typically my leg). This week’s lessons were more focused on pad drills so that allowed me to practice with my left leg doing mainly turning kicks and sidekicks as there are the most that needed dexterity.

Week Three:

This week we focused mainly on patterns and line work which is great for me as I enjoy practicing the basics.

I understand that the basics are the foundations for everything, and have come to understand the pillars of martial arts (The basics, The Techniques, and The ability to use them efficiently and adapt them to situations) so I love practising the basics as I know the effort will be seen in every aspect of my Tae Kwon Do Studies.

Week Four:

Week Four has mainly been cardio, endurance and Step-Sparing. A lot of people dislike Step-sparing but I enjoy it as it teaches you distancing and that (in my opinion) is one of the building blocks. Martial arts has always been about doing the most with the smallest amount of energy. Fast, Flowing and efficient is what I aim to be, I haven’t got height and I haven’t got brawn, I have brain, agility and acceleration on my end so I must use that to my advantage.

In the upcoming weeks, I will be practising theory, Linework and my new 3-step-sparring. In order to get ready for my next grading, I’m determined to keep my A+ streak going.

Self Improvement Plan:

Over the years I’ve kind of been the same person never getting any better nor getting any worse and it was this year that I decided was going to be the year that separates the me I used to be and the me I want to be. This year is the Year of the Dragon and my Surname is Ryu (meaning Dragon similar to Ryujin which translates to dragon god) So over the last months I’ve been working on a plan to become the greatest me I possibly can be and that’s where Tae Kwon Do comes into it. As well as training in Tae Kwon do I’m also going to be studying fields of topics that I Enjoy (Science, Phycology, and Philosophy) as well as studying Japanese, working out, and learning the way of the Samurai (by reading the Dokkodo, The book of five rings, the book of bushido). All of these will help me become who I truly want to be and help me be content in a world full of distractions and negativity.