On Saturday 30th October students from Whitchurch, Malpas and Oswestry Tae Kwon Do competed in the North Wales Inter Club Championships in Wrexham. For most of our students this was their very first competition or their first competition for a long time due to COVID.
I am very proud of all our students that entered the championships. Competing in competitions is not all about winning, it is invaluable in helping to improve your Tae Kwon Do, gain experience performing under pressure and learn new skills. 
Many Congratulations to our Medal Winners 
Saskia Lockley - Gold in Girls Yellow Belt Patterns.
Lily Ryder - Silver in Girls Red Belt Sparring and
​                   - Bronze in Girls Red Belt Patterns.
Rob Lloyd - Gold in Men's Green Belt Sparring.
Ryan Stonier - Gold in Men's Red Belt speed kicking and
                         - Bronze in Men's Red Belt Sparring.
Carys Williams - Bronze in Girls Green Belt Sparring.
Carl Willmott - Silver in Man's Black Belt Sparring and 
​                         - Bronze in Men's Black Belt Sparring.
Sam Fielding - Silver in Boys Black Belt Sparring.
Dexter McArdle - Bronze in Boys Black Belt Sparring.

Congratulations and Well done to all of you!!
 

​We have had a very busy few weeks of Tae Kon Do with grading and competitions with lots of success.
On Saturday 21st September we had our colour belt grading in Newcastle with Grand Master Sergiew. There were 15 students grading and we achieved a 100% successful pass rate.

On Saturday 5th October was the North Midlands Area Championships in Nottingham. There was over 250 people participating at the competition and we had 7 students competing in a variety of events. For many of our members this was their first ever Tae Kwon Do competition. We were extremely successful and every one of our students came home with a medal and we had a total medal haul of 16. Gold x 8, Silver x 2, Bronze x 6.
Thomas -  2 Gold & 1 Bronze
Henry - Gold & Silver
Dexter – 3 Golds
Isobel – 2 Golds & 1 Bronze
Ryan – Bronze
Sam –  Bronze
Ashton – 1 Silver & 2 Bronze 

Congratulations to all of you that competed and for all the dedication, hard work and skill shown. 

Want to take your sparring to the net level?

What are the benefits?
The squad training sessions are supervised by national TAGB team coach Master Kenny Walton. They are however of benefit to all, at all levels. Your physical fitness will improve, your technical ability will get sharper, you will learn new things, you'll be given the opportunity to take your performance to a new level and you'll meet some great people on the day.
Who can attend?
Anyone who has a currently valid TAGB licence, make sure you have it with you so it can be shown if asked for. You must be training with your TAGB Instructor regularly and have their permission to attend.
What is the Cost?
The squad sessions costs £5  
What do I need?
Your valid TAGB licence, (please take it with you, we might need or ask to see it), loosely fitting clothes, trainers, full set of TAGB sparring equipment that is in good working order, A skipping rope and a tagb approved focus pads could also be useful if you have them, lots of water and the expectation to work hard.​

The last two weeks in August the Marches School is closed and therefore we cannot use the hall so the classes will be held at The Venue Park Hall.
The Venue at park hall, Burma Rd, Whittington, Oswestry SY11 4AS
Tuesday 20th August – The Venue, Park Hall 7.00 – 8.30 pm
Friday 23rd August – The Venue, Park Hall 6.00 – 7.00 pm
Tuesday 27th August – The Venue, Park Hall 7.00 – 8.30 pm
Friday 30th August – No Training
Tuesday 3rd September – The Marches School 7.00 – 8.30pm, All classes back to normal.

​We are once again into the exam season and many children and parents will be doing everything they can to help with their exams so to achieve the best possible results.
Many children will stop participating in sport and exercise during their exams but a study by The Headmasters’ & Headmistresses’ Conference (HMC) has found that taking part in sports will have no effect on results.
The study analysed the GCSE results of 1,482 male and female students from 19 independent schools, and examined the effect that participation in sports had on their results.
In fact, taking part in sport appears to have a lot of positive impact. There is no evidence that people involved in sport get any worse GCSE results. They are however happier, mentally healthier, less anxious and more resilient and robust. Taking part in sport on a regular basis is not doing any harm and it is doing them good, there is an abundance of benefits to sport and wellbeing and it plays a vital role to a balanced and healthy lifestyle and the findings in this research strongly suggest that students revising for their GCSEs or A-levels should not abandon sport.
The profile of “super performers” was also examined in the research. Students, who were the very top academic performers, played a lot of sport as well as achieving the highest grades in their class.  
Aside from providing a well-needed break from the marathon revision, when our bodies engage in exercise, it triggers the release of various hormones and chemical compounds in the body. These hormones and chemical compounds all have very important effects on a variety brain functions.
What endorphins are released during exercise, and how they help
Serotonin – involved in regulating sleep patterns and improving mood.
Dopamine – positively influences learning and attention span.
Norepinephrine – affects motivation and mental stimulation.
Combined with an increased blood flow to the brain, this concoction of hormones and neurotransmitters improves cognitive function and the ability to focus for longer time periods. Which translates into higher quality revision sessions and a higher chance of achieving your target results.
Research also shows that exercise significantly reduces resting levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, allowing you to spend less time worrying and more time getting work done.
Not only that, regular exercise has also been shown to increase the size of the part of the brain involved with memory retention, the hippo-campus.
Taking all of this into account I strongly believe and encourage children to continue participating in sport during the run up to exams as it is good for them to have a balance of activities, also integrating exercise into a revision timetable promotes discipline with time management.

If you’re interested in starting Tae Kwon Do but are afraid that you’re too old, you are not alone. Many adults want to start Tae Kwon Do but they never make it to a class simply because they let their age stop them. But think about this: if you don’t even try, you won’t know what you’re missing out on!
If you have or are considering starting but you’re afraid of being too old, remember that age is merely a number and it doesn’t define you and your ability to thrive in the dojang. Instead of just thinking about it, why not take action and book or go for that first class now?

1. Tae Kwon Do is excellent for stress relief
Life can be hard, stress and anxiety are on the rise. A little Tae Kwon Do training is a great way to take the edge off. Whether you are looking for an adrenaline rush from sparring, the stress release from punching and kicking pads, or the focus of practising patterns, chances are that Tae Kwon Do will provide a way of managing your stress in a healthy and enjoyable way that works for you.
Tae Kwon Dot doesn’t just give you a needed break from the challenges of life outside of the dojang. It also assists you to develop the tools that will help you combat stress in other aspects of your life. Physical activity and mental training are effective ways to manage stress, and Tae Kwon Do training provides both of those in a safe, friendly and fun environment.
2. It’s a fun way to develop and maintain physical fitness
Getting and staying fit takes work and it can be a challenge if you’re not into weight lifting and aerobics classes offered by your traditional gym.
Tae Kwon Do lessons offer adults a way to challenge crucial components of physical fitness including strength, cardio, balance, flexibility, and agility in a fun and non-judgemental environment.
Whether you’re looking for the intense warm-ups, pad routines, and sparring or the low impact endurance training of line work, patterns and theory Tae Kwon Do training offers an extensive variety of options for people of all needs and levels of fitness who are looking for a new way to improve their wellbeing. 
3. Tae Kwon Do can provide you with vital self-defence skills
It’s better to be safe than sorry, you don’t know what’s round the corner and some sound self-defence training is beneficial to people of all ages. Tae Kwon Do lessons can provide you with practical techniques that you can apply to real life situations that will help give you the confidence and skills to help to protect yourself and your loved ones in the real world.
Good Tae Kwon Do training will also help you gain the ability to think on your feet, prevent situations escalating and when to fight and when to run, which is an important but often overlooked component of self-defence.
4. Tae Kwon Do is great for your social life
Some health professionals say we are currently in a "loneliness crisis", medical studies have associated loneliness with costly physical and psychological ills, loneliness has been proven to be worse for health than smoking 15 cigarettes a day, Countries such as Japan, China and South Korea report similar problems, and in January Theresa May appointed the world's first “minister of loneliness” to address the issue here in the UK. 
Tae Kwon Do is a great way to improve your social life for a number of reasons. Most training takes place in an encouraging and fun atmosphere, helping you to relax and be yourself amongst new people. Tae kwon Do can also be relatively non-competitive, because it focuses on individual development and accomplishment. Your fellow Tae Kwon Do practitioners are there to help you and each other be the best that they can be, not compete against you, which makes for a very positive environment to build new friendships in. Tae Kwon Do introduces you to some of the finest, coolest, most thoughtful, respectful, and interesting people you’ll ever meet.
5. It’s never too late to get into shape
Each and every day is a new chance to work on becoming an improved version of yourself, and Tae Kwon Do can help you to get there. From the physical to mental, there’s no doubt that regular Tae Kwon Do training will help you to get into the best shape ever, whether that be martial artist or as a person.
Tae Kwon Do encourages continuous self-improvement. As a result, you would constantly be working towards becoming a better version of yourself and eventually evolve into everything you wish to become in life. 
It may be cheesy but, it helps to remember that you only live once. So don’t let your age stop you from unleashing your greatness!

Why Set Goals?
Setting precise, well-defined goals can help you measure and take pride in the achieving of those goals and you will see forward growth in what may have earlier appeared a lengthy hard slog. You will grow as a person raising your self-assurance, recognizing your own ability and capability in achieving the goals you set for yourself.
Some of the most successful people, elite athletes, businesspeople and high achievers in a variety of fields set goals.
When you set yourself goals or targets it gives you a long term vision and short term inspiration. It concentrates your attainment of knowledge and helps you organize your precious time so that you can make the most of your life. 
 
Deciding on the right goals for you
When deciding on which goals are best for you it’s often worth discussing this with a mentor, instructor, coach or manager. They can provide advice suggesting reasonable effective goals that will challenge you but are realistic and motivate you.
 
How to Set Goals

• First think of your main goal, the overall goal to wish to achieve.
• Timeframe, when do you wish to achieve your main goal. This needs to be realistic.
• Then, you break your main goal down into smaller and smaller targets that you must hit to reach your main goal.
• Finally, once you have your plan, you start working on it to accomplish your goals.

Here is a GOAL SETTING WORK SHEET to get you started. If you want an editable copy fill in the contact form below to request a copy.  

Jack from the Oswestry Advertiser came to visit us at the end of last year to write an article on Tae Kwon Do. 
His article can be found here.