The art: taekwondo
Hai-ya! A spinning mid-air kick explodes near your ear -- welcome to taekwondo. But the Korean martial art, known for its emphasis on flying kicks and legwork, is more than just "the way of the hand and foot." Deeply philosophical, taekwondo preaches etiquette, modesty, perseverance, self-control and indomitable spirit, making it one of the most popular family-oriented martial arts available.
"In taekwondo," says grand master Tae Eun Lee, one of Canada's few ninth-dan (degree) black belts, "you use your mind and your physical and spiritual power. You're in competition with yourself, elevating your personal character. That's true taekwondo power."
It's good for...
"Flexibility, coordination, rhythm and body stability," says Lee. "As you get older, you need to maintain them. We get more and more ladies joining for this." When Lee opened his first school in Ottawa after emigrating from Korea in 1977, "there were not even 10 per cent women. Now, there are more than 50 per cent, along with many families," he says. "It encourages communication, releases stress, and there is a sense of happy learning."
Blow by blow
It's no Chorus Line, but taekwondo delivers enough high kicks to rival Broadway. After warming up -- the focus on legs means plenty of stretches, such as slowly elevating your foot to your partner's shoulder height or higher -- you will spar with a partner and learn basic stance for balance, kicks and blocking, as well as how to protect the body's 119 vulnerable points. Poomse, or set movement sequences, are also used to train the body to respond automatically to threats.
The art: karate
Back in the 11th century, conquered, weaponless peasants on Okinawa island (south of Japan) fought with their "empty hand" -- karate. Now a full-contact sport with a reputation for spectacular flying side kicks, karate attracts women such as former CFL cheerleader Rhea Olfert, 25, of Winnipeg. "Karate has been such a positive influence in my life -- it has created a sense of balance and harmony that I have never achieved before," says the executive assistant, who has studied karate for two years.
It's good for...
"Finding yourself," says Diego Beltran, a world-ranked kyokushin karate master and instructor at Guardian Dojo in Winnipeg. Karate's aggressive attacking style is intimidating, he admits, but learning it yourself can be incredibly empowering, too. "It's about seeing a challenge and facing it without fear," says Beltran. "One of our main objectives is to approach the spiritual aspects through pushing ourselves physically."
"I remember feeling like I had never exercised in my life during my first few classes," says Olfert. "That's changed now -- my cardio endurance is way up; I can do pushups on my knuckles."
Blow by blow
Full-contact karate focuses on gravity-defying kicks, leaps and blocks and powerhouse strikes involving the whole body. Some variations such as kyokushin add elements from jujitsu and kickboxing, while some schools teach noncontact sparring. Although you don't need to be in top shape, the one- to two-hour classes will make you so. They start with warm-up conditioning exercises, followed by technique instruction.
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