Courtesy, Integrity, Perseverance, Self-Control and Indomitable Spirit. These are the Tenets of Taekwondo that we learn and live by.

This past weekend, Kim’s Taekwondo Center in MN held their normal Promotion Testing. Promotion Testing is for practitioners to progress through belt ranks. This one was for all belts, including Black Belt Testing.

I really like the intensity of this picture, I think it shows what Taekwondo is all about, all the hard work and the amount of persistance it takes to succeed at what you set your goal for. I know Damien Troupe (Red Belt in the above Picture) and helped him with his test preparation so I know this was a moment that he practiced so long and hard for that his emotions on accomplishing this at a high level had to be an awesome feeling.

Also another now Black Belt Chong Luo, another student that worked really hard for his belt. I wish I could recite their black belt essays, but I find it very interesting how each person’s personal journey to that day is. From what I remember Chong said he didn’t feel that Taekwondo was for him when he first started at the University of MN, but decided to commit himself to getting better and doing what he felt was necessary to get there. I really enjoyed listening to their essays and how different their journeys were, how different their personal goals were, but achieved it all on the same day. I feel so proud of all the people who get to this point, the perseverance to overcome what most people can not do until they commit and test themselves, and very few make it this far, and even fewer continues on, but to see the progression is amazing to me and the resason I am still involved with Taekwondo today.

I myself, also tested for 3rd Dan Black Belt. I normally would not post about my own accomplishments for the sake of sounding like I am bragging or showing off, but this past Saturday I did something I never thought I would nor if I had the ability to do so. Although with my own self doubts, I challenged my own self to overcome those fears and try to test at a higher level then I have in the past. I decided to test with bricks instead the usual wood boards. Partly because I was going for a higher degree and the other was I wanted to prove to myself that I could accomplish this. I was very happy with the outcome as I broke 4 bricks on two different breaks, one break with a jumping back kick and another with a knife hand strike (shown in the picture to the left also links to the youtube videos below).

I love doing martial arts, nothing really beats the physical workout, the self accomplishment, the confidence, and the comradely that you get when practicing any martial art, regardless if it’s Taekwondo, Gung Fu, Karate, etc..

If you do decide that you want to possibly train in a martial arts school, it is important for you to find the school or training center that you enjoy, that you are comfortable in and one that has legitimacy. There are way to many fake schools out there that say one thing, but they don’t give you what you need or are looking for. So before you decide on a place for instruction, be sure to research the location, watch a couple of classes and talk with the people who are not instructors or owners. This will give you a good idea if it’s a good school environment or not. Of course that’s if you decide that you want to try something new.

Thank you for viewing my blog and hope you enjoyed it, also feel free to leave a comment on any blog you see here.

Here’s My Youtube Vids of my Breaks:

Kinfe Hand Strike: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdSZ7h6x4a0

Jumping Back Kick: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCsrjsAAouY

-John Willett