The warmth oozed over my lips and chin and continued down my neck. I knew something was wrong, but my adrenaline kept me focused. My opponent took two steps back and signaled the referee to address the massive amount of blood that was spilling from my nose and down my chest.

Competition is something that has never been new to me. I’ve competed in Taekwondo competition, both point style and full contact. I’ve won several championships. In fact, I just won the State Championship in full contact, Olympic style Taekwondo sparring, about 2 months prior to my bloody match described above.

It was only my third or fourth tournament with WTF (World Taekwondo Federation) rules. Early on, I identified my opponent across the crowded gymnasium. Inconspicuously, I watched him warm up and work the paddles. I watched him exercise with some hogu drills. I watched him dance around a little executing techniques here and there. “EASY…” Those were the words that kept going through my mind. He was skinny and weak looking. He moved so awkwardly, that I thought to myself that if I’m not careful, I could hurt this poor kid.

I’m not sure if knowing this gangly looking kid was a former National Champion would have helped me or hurt me more. Either way, my immediate thought to some of my teammates, was, “now you tell me!” I’m not sure if my nose was broken that day, but it did leave a nice knot on the side of my nose for about a month. I sported butterfly stitches for a few days above my eye as well.

So what the heck happened. Here I am, a successful point style fighter and then getting absolutely creamed. Well, as unfortunate at the time it may have seemed… it was probably one of the best things that ever happened to me in competition. Two words consumed my thoughts during my training sessions for years to come- Never Again!

At this point, I took it upon myself to really examine my Taekwondo training. Since this day, I’ve incorporated this training methodology for preparation to all competition as well as having all my students follow it.

People will sometimes ask, what does it take to become successful at sparring. The answer is quite simple- it’s drive. Drive from the inside. Don’t get me wrong… physical training is important, and we’ll get to it. But, if you don’t have drive, you don’t have a chance. Boxers often refer to this drive as heart. In some instances, boxers are fighting something much greater and stronger than their opponent across the ring. They’re real opponent is within. I only bring up boxers because many of our great professionals have historically come from abusive households, the ghetto’s, the projects, the barrio, and developed a fighting heart the moment they were brought into this world.

Okay, so you’re not a boxer and you didn’t grow up in the roughest part of town. How do you get that fighting spirit? You develop it. You cultivate it, and then you nurture it. First, you must ask yourself, why do you want to win? If you want to be competitive in Taekwondo, you must have a reason. If you want to spar recreationally in tournaments, then your desire to win is to fulfill some competitive spirit you may have.

If your goal is to go to the National Qualifiers, place 1st, 2nd, or 3rd, then go onto Nationals, then your desire must be focused on something much greater than what is taking place at the local tournament. Here are some steps outlined below that will help you prepare.

1. Goal– Why do you want to win? What is your ultimate goal? 
2. Spirit– Each tournament, each training session, every repetition, every drop of sweat must be thought of as a means to bring you one step closer to your goal. This is the beginning of your fighting spirit or your drive. 
3. Remember– Not a moment goes by with your mind not consumed with your goal, during your training. This goal is being nurtured right here. When you continue to nurture your goal, you will build up that fighting spirit. You’ll train harder, you’ll get stronger, and your will to win will become more ingrained. 
4. Prepare– Unfortunately, drive or heart is not enough to win a National Title. You need to prepare. The National Champions have both- Preparation & Drive.

Don’t hit the road running for miles or doing tons of weight lifting. Often times, we may distract ourselves with senseless training because we don’t know what to do or we want to think we’re doing something of value. Convert your tournament experience into a training session. See below on how to prepare physically.

Duplicate your competition experience. Take the length of your round- 2 or 3 minutes and use exercises that challenge you for that time length. For example-

Double kick continuously on a bag for 1 minute at a time. Then move for 15 seconds while you catch your breathe, and start again.

Alternate between speed jump roping and push ups (1 minute each).

Choose plyometric exercises that develop strength and speed in the legs (1 minute each).

Perform timing drills with hogus, paddles or shields.

Lastly, ensure you spar, and you spar a lot, preferably with many different people. Practice situational sparring. For example, imagine you’re down 2 points and the match has 10 seconds left. If it were competition, would you change your strategy? Hopefully you said, “you bet!” What if you were ahead 2 points with 10 seconds left? How would that change things? Begin sparring backed all the way against the boundary. Think of as many scenarios as you can. Don’t get too caught up standing around thinking about stuff, which is easy to do. Just get sparring!

I wish you the best in your Taekwondo competition experience.

Respectfully, Duncan Richardson Chief Master Instructor Performance Training, LLC Ph: 208.381.0587 Web: http://www.SucceedinMartialArts.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Duncan_Richardson

The question is, how do you win when your opponents legs are just too dang long. Well, I’m actually 6′ 3″ and I can tell you first hand what scores on me and what doesn’t. Most of my Taekwondo fights have been against opponents either my size or shorter. Even at nationals, the heavy weight division has several 6 foot guys weighing around 200.

Whenever I would attend smaller tournaments, that’s when I was paired up with the 5′ 8″ or 5′ 10″ guys. I hated it. I actually shouldn’t be so quick to say I hated it. I hated it when they knew what they were doing.

First, let’s talk about what doesn’t work…

Going toe to toe with me. Hopefully that’s obvious. You never want to trade kick for kick with someone that has 4 to 6 inches on you. There is a zone that everyone has. I call it your red zone- red symbolizing “warning”. Everyone’s red zone is different and it’s size is determined by the reach of your kick.

Being that I’m 6′ 3″, I have a larger red zone that most. This also means, if you’re shorter than me, you enter my red zone before I enter yours. In other words, while you’re trying to get close enough to get a kick in, I am already scoring on you.

Next, you may want to try and overwhelm me with speed. Not a bad idea, but not the best either. Whenever I would get into the ring with someone shorter than me, I’m assuming their going to be lighting quick. The first thing I do is create some distance, then I hang out for a little bit. I study how fast they can really move. I note how fast they can close the gap between us. After I see how quick they really are, I simply adjust my gap so I can begin scoring.

The bottom line is this, speed is good, but when it comes to a taller opponent, they’ll simply compensate with distance. Against a taller opponent, too much distance is your enemy. Your opponent has a stride that is mostly likely 1 ½ times yours. After you make 2 steps forward, your opponent is already 3 steps away, then WHAM… they’ll let you have it with a roundhouse kick.

So, what is the best strategy? If you want to dominate your taller opponent in Taekwondo, you must use a method called B.T.C. This stands for Bait, Trap, Counter. Pay attention, because this is the ultimate Taekwondo scoring method against taller opponents, and I hate it! Of course, only when it’s used against me.

Here’s how it works…

When your Taekwondo match begins against a taller opponent, you WAIT. In fact, you wait in a high defensive mode. Be ready to whojin (slide back) and unleash a spin hook kick or back kick if your opponent is overly aggressive. Other wise, wait a moment, then we begin the strategy of B.T.C.

Slowly, we’re going to creep closer to our opponent- making sure not to over commit too soon. This technique is known as baiting. We’re basically making ourselves susceptible to an attack with the main objective of counter attacking before they ever have a chance to score.

The best time for you to Counter is during the Trap. The split second your opponent misses you is known as the trap. As a side note- this is why it’s super important to kick and bring that leg down to the floor immediately, so you don’t get caught in the trap. The taller the opponent, the longer it takes for them to bring their leg down. This makes for an easier trap. During this trap, that’s when you unload your counter attack.

If your strong suit is a back kick, then you’ll bait in an open stance (belly’s facing the same direction), and try and draw out your opponents roundhouse kick. If your strong suit is a spin hook kick, bait in a closed stance, and try and draw out your opponents fast kick (skipping front leg roundhouse kick). If you are truly one of those shorter, fast fighters, then you can lateral step and do any sort of counter you want, just after the Bait.

Okay, what happens when your opponent figures out what you’re doing? Well, you bait even closer, at least to the point where you’re still successful at getting the counter attack.

When that has run it’s course, you disguise the B.T.C. by move aggressively around the ring. Move aggressively, then quickly bait, thus making your opponent panic and hopefully attack.

Good luck with your training!

Respectfully, Duncan Richardson Chief Master Instructor Performance Training, LLC Ph: 208.381.0587 Web: http://www.SucceedinMartialArts.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Duncan_Richardson

Tae Kwon Do is perhaps the most commonly practiced martial art in the world today. Developed in Korea, it is a combination of combat technique, self defense, exercise, sport, entertainment and philosophy. It is the national sport of Korea and an Olympic sporting event.

Tae Kwon Do sparring is generally divided into two forms: one-step sparring and free sparring.

One-step Tae Kwon Do sparring involves prearranged movements performed by two participants in concert. One of the participants employs punching and kicking techniques while the other uses various combinations of blocking and counterattacking techniques.

One-step sparring helps familiarize the students with the fundamentals of kicking, punching, and blocking movements. The students will learn to develop and manage their reaction time for accurate counterattacks. One-step sparring is essential in preparation for free Tae Kwon Do sparring.

Free sparring in Tae Kwon Do is the practical application of self defense techniques. The points of contact include the belt and above.

Typically, full contact is not permitted in free Tae Kwon Do sparring for safety reasons. Students are only allowed to strike specific target areas. Hand techniques, for example, may only be used on the front and side of the body from the belt to the shoulder. This also means that no hand technique may be delivered to the face or head.

Foot techniques may only be executed on the front and sides of the body from the belt to the head. Intentional kicks to the back and back of the head are strongly illegal. Also, there should be no throwing, knee attacks, head butts, or elbows are allowed. These rules are generally maintained by the World Tae Kwon Do Federation (WTF).

Taekwondo sparring tournaments consist of three rounds, each of which is three minutes, with a one minute rest period between rounds. In competition, matches are held in an 8×8 meter contest area in the center of a 12×12 meter competition area. A referee controls the match and enforces compliance with the rules. The event is judged by four corner judges who award the scores.

The article you have just read is just one of several informative articles on the subject martial of arts sparring that you can find here: http://www.martial-arts-sparring-gear.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Laurence_Clunie