To excel at Taekwondo, you must
not only improve your
flexibility
but also your Taekwondo strength. This page deals with exercises
that can improve your overall Taekwondo strength - resulting in better breaks, harder kicks and stronger punches.
Focus on doing many repetitions versus just one rep at the
maximum weight. You want strength & endurance! These Taekwondo strength exercises
concentrate on your lower body,
upper body & arms and
core/abdominal area. Remember to first check with your
doctor before starting any exercise program.
Also visit our Taekwondo
speed,
stamina and
explosive
power pages for more martial arts strength training ideas.
For stronger & faster Taekwondo kicks, you need to work on areas such
as your quads, hamstrings &
calves. Here are number of exercises that
can improve your kicking power.
Also visit our
Explosive
Power (Plyometrics) page for more advanced exercises to
boost your kicking power and endurance.
Hamstring Exercises -
Given that people suffer numerous hamstring injuries in
Taekwondo, I have also created a
hamstring exercise page with numerous hamstring
strengthening exercises (such as leg curls). This will help you
to achieve higher & more powerful kicks (with hopefully less
self-inflicted injuries).
Calf Raise without Weight Machine - After I tore my calf
muscle, I have been religiously using calf raises in order to
strengthen my calf muscles for Taekwondo.
Deep Knee Jumps - Be careful with your knees. Don't bend too
much if you have knee problems.
Horse Stance - Just widen your legs, bend your knees and
HOLD IT. This stance will work on endurance and leg power. FYI -
This is a common stance in Taekwondo.
Squat Thrust - Squat thrusts help to build explosive leg
power as well as working on other areas of your body (i.e.
chest). This is an exhausting exercise that I "enjoyed" in the
Marine Corps.
For more explosive punches or
Taekwondo kicks (i.e. spinning hook kicks), you need to work on
your torque or twisting power in order to have more powerful
"wind-ups". You will need to exercise areas such as your
stomach, lateral obliques (side muscles) and lower back. Here
are a number of useful Taekwondo "core"
exercises. Also you will need to perform a variety of these
exercises because you need to work all of your core muscles.
Sit-Ups - Yes, the standard
sit-up that you learned in school is a solid core exercise.
However, be careful and do not pull on your neck when doing this
exercise. A safer method is to cross your arms on your chest
versus holding the back of your head. Also keep your knees bent
(versus your legs being flat on the ground).
Incline
Sit-Ups - Incline
sit-ups are a more intense form of sit-ups. Buy an incline board
and use gravity & your body weight in order to create a more
challenging core exercise (versus standard sit-ups).
Bicycle Crunches - This page shows you how to perform a
bicycle crunch. Bicycle crunches are supposed to be one of the
very best core exercises for fast improvement to your core
strength.
Plank Exercises - Plank exercises are one of my favorite
Taekwondo core exercises! For a more advanced plank exercise,
you can try to lift an arm and an opposite leg (i.e. right arm
and left leg) when you are in the plank position. The
"instability" of this advanced plank makes the exercise even
more effective.
Push-Ups -
Regular push-ups are a great Taekwondo exercise because you can do them
anywhere. No gym or weight set required! Push-ups work on areas
such as your triceps, chest and shoulders. You will also be
boosting your core strength (because a push-up is also a
quasi-plank exercise as you have to maintain a stiff body).
Triangle Pushups - Put your hands together so your hands form a
triangle (fingers touching). This is a more difficult pushup and
will place greater emphasis on your triceps. Triangle pushups
are a great workout in order to build up your triceps... and
your punching power! Studies indicate that triangle pushups are
one of the "most effective" triceps exercises.
Wide Push-Ups - Place your arms as far a part as possible. This
is a more difficult pushup and will place greater emphasis on
your chest muscles.
Clapping Push-Ups - This develops explosive chest power
because you have "explode" upwards when you do a push-up in
order to lift yourself off the ground and clap your hands.
Elevated Push-Ups - For another more difficult push-up, put
your feet on a chair and do push-ups with your feet elevated.
