Your guide to family martial arts classes by Paul Palcic

Your Guide to FAMILY MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES

www.realblackbelts.co.uk

Your Guide to FAMILY MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES

www.realblackbelts.co.uk

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Your Guide to FAMILY MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES

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Table of Contents Before you start ............................................................................................................................................ 5 

Ensure the instructors are fully qualified, reputable, and vetted..................................................... 5

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Chose an established and recognized school ................................................................................... 5

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Pick a martial art suitable for you ..................................................................................................... 6

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Safety!!!............................................................................................................................................. 6

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Make sure you can try a class ........................................................................................................... 7

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Do they run a beginners class? ......................................................................................................... 7

“Our journey into martial arts” by Bhavin Vaghela ...................................................................................... 8 

Lifestyle change: ............................................................................................................................... 8

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Bonding: ............................................................................................................................................ 9

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Discipline: .......................................................................................................................................... 9

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The ‘Community’:............................................................................................................................ 10

What to do next??!! .................................................................................................................................... 10

Your Guide to FAMILY MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES

www.realblackbelts.co.uk

Dear families... Thank you for taking the time to research our school and download our free report into our family martial arts classes. It is in this booklet that we are able to go into more details about the many benefits that we feel martial arts classes have for you, and advise you in what to look for in a good martial arts school. It must be pointed out that this report is in no way a definitive guide, and if you are still left with any questions then we would warmly invite you to CONTACT US ON…

07968056416 or email info@realblackbelts.co.uk For this report we felt it would be a good idea for you to get an actual account of what to expect from our family classes from one of our own family members. Our student, Bhavin Vaghela from our harrow school has written you an account of his experiences of Palcic Taekwondo family classes, and their journey into martial arts with us. However, before we start this we would like to bring to light some area’s which may be important to consider before starting any martial arts school..

Your Guide to FAMILY MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES

www.realblackbelts.co.uk

Before you start Firstly, we congratulate you in your decision to consider starting martial arts classes. Done correctly it is without doubt one of the most rewarding activities you and your family can all do together, and can really give you many amazing benefits and reward you in ways you could not have even dreamed of. We shall be discussing this in more detail later, however at this stage it is important to inform you of some things you should consider before joining any school. As just as choosing the right school can be a life changing experience for all the right reasons, choosing the wrong one may well have the effect of putting you off martial arts for life!!

 Ensure the instructors are fully qualified, reputable, and vetted. This may seem such an obvious point that but is often neglected. Though he/she may not have it at hand to show, all instructors should be CRB checked, and carry a full paediatric first aid certificate that is valid. They should also be able to show some proof of their instructor’s qualification if needed, such as a certificate etc. At our schools we insist that all instructors regularly attend instructor’s courses, and are constantly working both to refine their own teaching and training methods. This keeps our instructors inspired and always keen to teach you more. We would expect any reputable school to follow the same policy.

 Chose an established and recognized school It is important to choose a school that is well established and successful. Are they a recognized school? There are occasions where the school may not be recognized by any national group or governing body, this does not necessarily make it a bad school, but may mean that you do not get recognized qualifications.

Your Guide to FAMILY MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES

www.realblackbelts.co.uk

We are a school that is recognized by the ITF (international Taekwondo Federation) and as such, all our students will have their grades and qualifications recognized all across the world. Whether it is with us, or any other school, we would always recommend that you aim for a school with similar credentials. Also, by picking a well established school, you can be certain of the longevity of a school, and that it will be there for many years to come, allowing your child to enjoy the experience for as long as they want.

 Pick a martial art suitable for you Not all martial arts are going to be suitable for you, our chief instructor Mr Paul Palcic trains in many different styles, but would be the first to admit that some of them are simply either way to complicated, or possibly dangerous, or maybe even too boring to sustain a beginners interest. Some of them require many years of experience to pick up. We believe a martial art such as Taekwondo karate is the perfect martial art to get you started in. The reason for this is that even though they take many years to perfect, they are simple enough that even after a few weeks you will be kicking and punching your way into a fitter and healthier lifestyle. The other advantage of a martial art as popular as taekwondo, or karate, is that it is an internationally recognized activity. If you were to ever move towns, or even country, you could easily continue your training in your new location.

 Safety!!! This is an area which cannot be overlooked, your safety!!! As a professional martial arts group, we understand the importance of training safely. You should always enquire into whether you have to wear safety gear when

Your Guide to FAMILY MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES

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they spar with partners, even if there is no contact, accidents happen, and it is very important that you are always safe!

 Make sure you can try a class We like to encourage all our potential new beginners to come down to a free trial class! We believe that all schools should do the same. No amount of research will give you as much information on whether the school is right for you, than to actually come down and try a class out for yourself. In fact, if the school doesn’t allow that, then you really wonder what they have to hide?! A free class will allow you to see the instructors and find out if it is a professional and well run school. It is without doubt the best way to make the right decision!!

 Do they run a beginners class? The only way to really get a good foundation in martial arts is to start at the bottom. This sounds obvious, but many schools do not really appreciate this and therefore do not really accommodate beginners properly. It stands to reason, that if you try a school that has many different grades in one class, say all the way from beginner up to black belt, then you are going to get very little attention for your personal needs as a beginner! It can also be very intimidating training with such senior ranks, and feeling out of your depth. This is why WE always have beginner’s classes separate to other grades! It is not only a great way to introduce you to martial arts in a less intimidating and more friendly manner, but it also means that you are certain to get the whole class time dedicated to your own personal needs at your beginner level. And therefore develop a rock solid foundation for your future in martial arts!

Your Guide to FAMILY MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES

www.realblackbelts.co.uk

There may well be some other factors which you may wish to consider before committing yourself, things such as are there other local locations you can train on different nights, if there is anything that you feel we have left out above which you would like to discuss then please do not hesitate to ask us.

“Our journey into martial arts” by Bhavin Vaghela It was our son Kai who initially wanted to start Tae Kwon Do, but then we thought why not give it a try, rather than just sit and watch at every class!! 18 months later, we are more committed than ever, having realised the benefits not just to our fitness levels, but more importantly as a family partaking in a joint activity. We would definitely recommend other parents to join in with their kid’s and see how close your bond grows. Classes are mixed with adults and children, and there is a real community feel & spirit about Palcic TKD, with many new friends having been made since we started. All the instructors are very supportive and accommodate for different fitness levels, helping you with your individual needs, so Tae Kwon Do is suitable for everyone, no matter what your age!!

 Lifestyle change: We had started growing more and more uncomfortable with how monotonous our life was becoming – work, eat, sleep, work, eat, sleep!! We took a week to pay attention to where we were channelling our energies and it was pretty easy to see we didn’t have a good balance. Having seen Kai’s enthusiasm to start Tae Kwon Do, we thought to ourselves that rather than just attend Tae Kwon Do classes as a spectator, we now had an opportunity to make that required change to our lifestyle. At first, twice a week classes were pretty tough going, but with the right focus and determination, 18 months later we are really reaping the benefits. Our diet is healthier, our minds are clearer and most importantly, and we are a very strong family unit. We were looking to introduce a positive change to our lifestyle anyway, and are eternally grateful to Palcic TKD for giving us the right platform to make the change.

Your Guide to FAMILY MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES

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 Bonding: Sharing physical activities with your children isn’t just a good way to get your heart pumping and burn calories. It’s also a great way to build family bonds! You are creating memories your children will treasure someday – memories of time spent together and simply enjoying each other’s company. For us, Tae Kwon Do provides important shared family time. It’s going to get harder to spend this kind of quality time together as Kai gets older, so we take our moments of ‘togetherness’ wherever we can get them, even if it’s not in a way suited to other families. When practising Tae Kwon Do at home, we have found it is critical to sometimes let Kai take the lead when doing patterns. We prefer to let him practice a pattern or line work several times before stepping in with suggestions for improvement. Equally he also gets the chance to be the ‘Master’ rather than ‘student’ as we are all always learning and one person’s strength may be another person’s weakness, irrelevant of age!!

 Discipline: Discipline teaches both social and moral standards and should ideally protect children from harm by teaching them what is safe. It should also guide children to respect the rights and property of others. We realize there are a variety of ways in which both adults and children alike should be disciplined, but through our family classes at Palcic TKD, we have learned the most effective disciplinary techniques take place in the context of a loving and secure relationship between a parent and child. By showing our support to one another in Tae Kwon Do, we have noticed a considerable decrease in any negative energy, thus enhancing a more positive relationship throughout. ‘Good’ behaviours such as sharing and good manners go a long way to how we respond to actions by other students. Kai has continued to mature and now desires more responsibility and independence and we have a consistent approach to how we communicate with him. Tae Kwon Do has been a factor because, like school, there is a structure/hierarchy, which must be respected and by return, we feel we have now earned the respect Copyright © 2011 – Palcic Taekwondo - All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

Your Guide to FAMILY MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES

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of our teachers as well. Parents should not ‘force’ their children to attend classes, nor should they expect the Palcic TKD instructors to solely discipline their children. Discipline should first and foremost be taught and practised at home and only then will the child be in a position to carry those skills into other environments. It is about encouragement through reward. Our instructors are there to encourage and motivate – our reward has been to pass our belt grading, which automatically encourages us to work harder and progress further in Tae Kwon Do.

 The ‘Community’: An important factor we need to mention is the positive ‘community spirit’ we have found within Palcic TKD. This ranges from the senior instructors through to adult students and child students. The instructors are excellent teachers and are extremely attentive and supportive to each student in helping us achieve our individual and eventual aims in Tae Kwon Do. As students, we are there to support each other when learning new patterns or line work and have formed fantastic friendships with many people through Palcic TKD. We attended our first tournament in Northampton in 2011 which gave a massive confidence boost, not just to us, but to other students from our class that attended. It was a great opportunity to see and learn from students from other schools, competing in patterns and sparring. Unfortunately, we didn’t come away with any medals, but definitely with a mindful of knowledge and steely determination to return soon and succeed!! What to do next??!! If we have convinced you, or even made you a bit more curious into finding out for yourself whether martial arts is right for your child, then remember, we recommend that you try a FREE MARTIAL ARTS CLASS with us, or any other school. To see for yourself the difference that we could make please call us on -

07968056416 or email info@realblackelts.co.uk OR fill in our online form here http://www.realblackbelts.co.uk/special-offers and we will contact you.