Rhee Taekwon-Do - Training

Training

Rhee Taekwon-Do teaches the military style of taekwondo, closer to traditional martial art than modern martial sport in nature. Training consists of exercises that may be classified as: basics (group drill exercises; similar to kihon in karate), destruction (breaking), hyung (patterns or forms), self-defence, and sparring. Basics, destruction, hyung, and self-defence are similar to equivalent exercises in other traditional martial art schools. Rhee Taekwon-Do teaches the Chang Hon hyung.

Sparring takes three forms: three-step sparring, one-step sparring, and free sparring. Three-step sparring and one-step sparring are similar to equivalent exercises in ITF and WTF schools, but free sparring is different, having more in common with traditional karate sparring. Rhee Taekwon-Do free sparring is unscored, unarmoured, and usually 'non-contact' in principle. Members typically achieve non-contact sparring by two methods, whether separately or in combination:

• The attacker consciously stops just short of hitting the training partner, while still executing attacks with full speed and power. The attacker has primary responsibility for non-contact, at a given moment during sparring, and this typically occurs when one training partner has more experience than the other. This is normally the practice when one training partner is a beginner.

• The defender actively avoids or blocks an incoming attack executed by the training partner. The defender has primary responsibility for non-contact, at a given moment during sparring, and this typically occurs with training partners of similar experience. This is normally the practice when both training partners are in the senior ranks.