How to tie your Taekwondo Belt

It is very important for Taekwondo students to know "How to tie Taekwondo
belt" properly.

Taekwondo students should have pride and respect for their Dobok(suit) as they have for all areas of Taekwondo.

How to tie Taekwondo belt

:

If you have to wrap your belt around your waist more than once,then follow the diagrams from start to finish. If your belt only needs to go around your waist once, start at diagram 5 to the end.




















Finally....

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The Taekwondo Belt Ranking System

There are traditionally ten color belt levels.

They are called gup (or kup) ranks. The nine black belt levels are called degree or dan ranks.

Each color of belt, namely white, yellow, green, blue, red, black, have a particular meaning. For example, white signifies innocence; it signifies the student who is just starting with no previous knowledge of taekwondo.

The International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) uses a system of 10 kup ranks and nine dan ranks. The colour belt ranks run from 10th kup to 1st kup.

The black belt ranks run from 1st dan to 9th dan.

The 1st to 3rd dan have the title of Assistant Instructor (Boo-Sabum).

The 4th to 6th are have the title Instructor (Sabum).

7th and 8th are Master (Sahyun).

And the 9th degree as the Grand Master (Saseong).

The first Grand Master was General Choi Hong Hi, the founder of Taekwon-Do. The second Grand Master was Rhee Ki Ha, who was promoted to 9th dan by General Choi at the 1997 World Championships in Russia.

At present, there are probably about 20 Grand Masters.

According to General Choi, the reason for nine black belt degrees, is that the number three is a powerful number in the orient. For that reason, three threes must be the most powerful.

It can be noted that the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) has 10 dan grades instead of nine.

The traditional belt colors recognized by the Kukkiwon (headquarters of the World Taekwondo Federation) are white, yellow, green, blue, and red.

Between solid colors, a central stripe down the middle of the belt reflecting the next full belt color is added to indicate progress in Gup level. For instance, from white the next belt would be white with a yellow stripe.

Some schools instead place a "tip" or belt-end stripe of the next color on a student's belt to signify a rise in rank.

Other schools opt for two-tone belts, reflecting both the lower rank and the next rank. For example, between the white belt and the yellow belt would be a belt half white, half yellow.

Some schools opt to use a solid color alternative instead of stripes. A common belt-color scheme is: white, yellow, gold, orange, green, purple, blue, brown, red.

There is no standardization in belt colors in the United States or elsewhere.

In Australia, many schools use white, yellow, blue, red and black. In these schools progression through gup levels is signified by white stripes near the tip if the belt, so white or yellow I, yellow II & III, blue I, II & III, red I, II & III, then red belt with black tip for Cho Dan Bo (sort of black belt in-training) and black for Cho Dan (1st Dan).

Another system in use in Australia is White, Yellow, Green, Blue, Brown, Black, with intermediate kups/gups being indicated by a stripe of the higher color. This is usually 1/4 to 1/2 inches wide and is going across the belt, close to one of the end.

This is usually called a 'tip'. For example, 3rd kup is blue belt, brown tip.

Rank advancement records are kept by the school of origin and often by the style's association headquarters.

Black Belt ranks are recognized as:

1st - 3rd, Instructor.

4th - 6th, Master.

7th - 9th, Grand Master.

In the past, tenth dan has been reserved as a posthumous award. But in recent years it has seen presentation to a few living, Korean recipients.

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Taekwondo : What's there to know..

Every school has a different way of testing/grading. In some schools, being invited to the test means you've already earned the next belt and the test is just a formality. In others, they're deciding during the test whether or not you've earned your next rank. One school may have a set order of events during a test and another may vary on the instructor's whim.

Hydration

It's a rookie mistake – during your first test, since you don't always need a drink during the brief break in class, you don't bother to bring a bottle of water. This can wind up not being serious, if you have access to a water fountain or a bathroom sink. However, if you don't, it can quickly become a major problem.

During a test, you will be working doubly as hard as you did during any class. This isn't because you were lazy during class, this is because a test will send massive amounts of adrenaline racing through your body. While this is wonderful for snapping off those extra-high kicks, it can be very troubling for your body if you don't introduce adequate water. If you start to feel woozy, don't be embarrassed to quickly get the attention of your instructor and ask if you can stop for a water break. Chances are good that you aren't the only person out there who's desperate for a brief sit-down.

Your Forms
Image by David Reber's Hammer Photography via Flickr
This seems to be a fairly obvious expectation, but the amount of people who arrive to a test presuming they can just “wing it” during their forms is staggering. Most tests have an audience, and they're all going to be cringing as you start-and-stop your way through your form. Running through it once or twice every day the week leading up to the test will completely negate this issue. Even if you get stage fright, your body will remember what to do as long as you don't try too hard to think.

How to Put on Your Belt

I'm serious. In the excitement of receiving the new colour of belt, you will find you've suddenly completely forgotten how to put it on. You don't want to be a brown belt who's trying to figure out how to do something a white belt mastered their first night, so take a breath before you start trying to remove the previous belt and apply the new one, and take it slow.

Your Gear

Your instructor is likely to call you out for a lack of safety if you forget to bring your mouth guard, and it's the easiest thing to forget. You not only don't want to receive a lecture, you don't want a white belt testing for their yellow to pop you in the mouth and subtract a few teeth. It's also terribly embarrassing to realize you pulled one of your gloves out of your bag for some reason and forgot to put it back. So always, before walking out the door, take a look inside of your gear bag to ensure that everything is in there. It's easier to remember your mouth guard if you keep it in a case, that way it's not as tiny as it would be left free. A note on mouth guards – they will change shape if heated. So, if you leave your bag in the car in between classes, check periodically to be sure you don't need to reshape your mouth guard or you'll be very surprised when you try to pop it in for the test and it doesn't fit.

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Flaunt Those Taekwondo Belt Colors

Most of the time, the colored belt around a Taekwondo practitioner’s waist seems to hold many presumptions for people. Those who see someone with a yellow belt, think that the bearer of the belt lacks ability. This is not true.

On the same note, many believe that a black belt is the ultimate in martial art achievement. In reality, it is just another step in the learning process.

Taekwondo belt colors were only implemented after the martial arts developed.

There is even a myth behind the origin of the colored Taekwondo belts. Some say that originally, students would begin with a white belt, as is common today, but they are not given new colored belts.

Students were not permitted to wash their belts. And so as they trained, the belts would get darker and darker from perspiration and soon it would become black showing everyone how hard they worked.

The most popularly accepted one is that the Judo founder Professor Jigoro Kano, had implemented a belt system derived from a ranking system used in Japanese schools. The colors are a way of allowing an individual to see how they progress, step by step, and give them something to work hard towards.

When someone move up in the ranks, they begin to realize that it is not the belt they are striving for, but the knowledge which they have gained to achieve the belt.

Many martial arts have different belt rankings and some do not use belts at all.
The following descriptions of the belts are the meanings behind the colors and how they represent development in the student.

1. White.
Image via Wikipedia
White is the traditional color of the Korean dobok. New students wear this as their first belt.

This color represents honor, purity, virtue, and innocence. White signifies innocence as that of a beginning student who has no previous knowledge of taekwondo.

2. Yellow.

Yellow is the second belt color of taekwondo. It is the color of honor, wealth, royalty and well-being.

Yellow signifies the Earth from which a plant sprouts and takes root as the Tae Kwon Do foundation is being laid.

3. Green.

Green is the third belt color in martial arts. The first of the intermediate colors, it is here that practitioners will realize how much there is to learn and how far there is to go.

Green signifies the plant's growth as taekwondo skill begins to develop.

4. Blue.

Blue is the fourth belt color.

Blue denotes authority, truth, loyalty, and mystery. It also symbolizes quality.

To wear a blue belt is to start to learn the vast history, philosophy and mysteries of taekwondo.

Blue signifies the Heaven, towards which the plant matures into a towering tree as training in taekwondo progresses.

5. Red.

Red is the last color belt before black belt.

Red evokes excitement, anger, and intensity. Red orders attention. There is great joy and passion in red.

It signifies danger, teaches the student to exercise control and warning the opponent to stay away.

6. Black.

Black is the color most people link with martial arts.

To a non-martial artist, to have a black belt is to have mastered the art.

To a student, it symbolizes just beginning true learning of the art.

Black is the color of wisdom, silence and eternity. To have a black belt is to have the sum of all knowledge from prior belt levels, and to move on to new levels.

Black is the opposite of white, therefore, signifying the maturity and proficiency in taekwondo. It also indicates the wearer's immunity to darkness and fear.

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A Guide to Taekwondo Belt Colors

The belts and their colors that are used with Taekwondo aren't just a random assortment of colors that are used to separate the ranks in the martial art. In Taekwondo, each belt color has a meaning that lets fighters known about their advancement and increasing knowledge. Belts are also great for the stylist, as they let the stylist know just how far they have progressed.

The colors of the belts found in Taekwondo vary, as they represent the advancement of rank, as well as the growth of the student. It can take a long time for students to move up the ranks, all depending on their knowledge and how quite they adapt to the techniques and forms of the art.

Below, are the colors and belts of Taekwondo, along with their meaning.White Belt

White belt

A white belt is the symbol of birth, or the beginning for the stylist. Students that wear white belts are just starting out, searching for the knowledge to continue Taekwondo.

Yellow belt

A yellow belt is the first ray of light that shines on the student, giving them new strength to the Taekwondo martial art. Students that have yellow belts have taken a great step in learning, and have opened their mind to new techniques.

Green belt

A green belt is the symbol of growth, or a seed as it sprouts from the ground and begins to grow into a plant. Students with green belts are continuing along the path of Taekwondo, learning to develop further and redefine every technique they have been taught.

Blue belt

A blue belt represents a blue sky, with the plant continuing to grow upwards, heading for the sky. Students with blue belts continue to move higher in ranks, as the plant continues to grow taller. Students at this stage will also be given additional knowledge of Taekwondo so that their mind and body can continue to grow and develop.

Red belt

The red belt is the heat of the sun, with the plant continuing the path upwards toward the sun. Students that possess red belts are higher in rank, as they have acquired a lot of the knowledge in the art of Taekwondo. Red belts also tell the students to be cautious, as they gain more knowledge and their physical techniques increase.

Black belt

A black belt is the best of the best. It symbolizes the darkness that is out there beyond the light of the sun. Once the student is given a black belt and begins to train other students, he will teach all that has been taught to him. Black belts recognize the best students, as they continue to teach others the art of Taekwondo, and continue the never ending cycle of training.

Article Source: ArticlesBase

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