how can i IMPROVE!!!!?

Question

ive always been pretty good at taekwondoe i have been doing it for six years and i am a black belt but i am not the best in my class i recentley competed in the new jersey national championship and got 4th in forms and 3rd in sparring although many people might think thats good i really would like to do better i am in a school where the instructor has won multyple national and international titles before the age of 20 i would like to achieve that.
so my question is how can i increase the streghth in my legs ( exersices that i could do every other day ) arms and core. also how could i increase my flexibility. i used to have a split but i lost it i am male but i am only 16. so are there any super efective sretches that will help me get my split

Answer 1

first off strength isn't going to help you in a sparring match. work on your speed coming off the line, find techniques that work well, study the top fighters. there are three types of fighters in the circle(defensive-aggressive & runners ) learn to beat each one and you will move to the top. the hardest of the three is the runner as they move in and out constantly and are all over the ring, and can be unpredictable at first.
as far as the forms, I'm old school where crisp hard Kata's won the day, now its all flips and fancy stuff that doesn't really involve much martial art.

Answer 2

You are looking to improve in the wrong places in my opinion. I've been a referee and judge at TaeKwon-Do competitions at all levels, as well as multi-disciplinary events - and I've hosted my fair share of such events also.

If you are taking 3rd and 4th places in State or National championships, improving your strength or flexibility is unlikely to be the area that will gain you the advantage over your fellow competitiors. In the top teir of players, the differentiating factor is much more subtle than something as basic as strong legs or flexibility. What you need to develop is a "presence" that encompasses all aspects of your art and present it in a confident, mature, accomplished, and individualized way.

The BEST person to advise you on how to achieve this, on what to work on, and on how to prepare is your own instructor/s. If they got you to 3rd and 4th places, then they know what they are doing. They will be able to provide you with guidance and help in trying to become more accomplished as an overall martial artist, and that will make all the difference in the competition arena.

I'd also say, if you're focused on achieving all your instructor did by 20, or you're focused on getting 1st place in everything you do - you are missing the whole point of training and competition. It's NOT about winning 1st place, it's about winning against yourself every time you compete. The only person you challenge is yourself, to do better, react faster, read the opponent more accurately, remain more calm, respond more appropriately. If you can advance these skills each time you compete....you have won anyway. The $3 dollar medal they hang around your neck is unimportant in inconsequential in the grand scheme of things.

Good luck with your continued journey!

Ken C
9th Dan HapMoosaKi-Do
8th Dan TaeKwon-Do
7th Dan YongChul-Do

Answer 3

The aging process as you mature starts very early and it sounds like that is what has happened here with respect to your splits. As you mature your muscles in adolescence grow thicker and stronger and you also lose flexibility in some areas. Start doing stretching exercises for your lower back since the groin and especially your hamstring group interact with your lower back muscles. Also start doing slow dynamic and static type stretching where after warming up, you stretch parts of muscle groups slowly holding each stretch for ten to fifteen seconds. Once you have stretched each part of a muscle group individually you then stretch the entire muscle group, once again with slow static type stretching. Also make sure you use proper breathing on your stretching; breathing out through your mouth on the extension or work phase and in through your nose and out through your mouth while holding your stretches. This will help to relax you and get you a more effective stretch. The internet has a wealth of information on static and dynamic stretching.

As for competing and lifting exercises like leg curls, leg extensions, and seated leg presses do very well for increasing your power and strength for kicking, For arms, exercises that work your biceps, triceps, traps, and shoulders will give you increased power in punching.

Besides all this I would also evaluate my fighting if I were you and see if there are some areas that you need to make changes or improvement in. Use of angles, counter punching and counter kicking, use of fakes and feints, use of movement or motion, footwork and positioning, endurance, defense, offense and use of combinations, and mental attitude are all areas that are factors in you winning or losing. By just increasing your ability in just some of them a little you will increase your fighting skill and ability overall. Increasing your abilitly a lot in some of them will increase your fighting skill and ability even more. If you start to work on this now some of the people that are better than you will soon have a harder time beating you and/or eventually you may find yourself beating them. Good luck!

Answer 4

I've been trianing in maui thai. To increase my speed I put weight straps around my wrists and ankle while sparring this will help increase speed and power as well.

Answer 5

Well everyone says the best way to improve is by

Answer 6

practice at home