Taking Taekwondo training in my 20s was a natural outlet for a young man used to vigorous exercise and with a body that healed and recovered quickly. A strained muscle in younger adults is generally just a mild inconvenience. Taekwondo training after fifty is a whole different world with challenges not relevant to younger athletes. A person starting Taekwondo training after fifty should take into consideration not just what they can do, but what effect it may have on their muscles.
In younger adults there is flexibility in large leg and arm muscles that diminishes as we age. Starting Taekwondo at fifty or above should be done carefully even though a person may have maintained an active and vigorous lifestyle. A person that is athletic at fifty may go into a new class and very quickly learn to do punches and kicks. And they may be able to perform with strength and power. But a painful lesson that I learned in the first TKD class that I took at fifty three after nearly two and a half decades out of the sport, was that I could kick with the same power as when I trained in my twenties. But the muscle did not respond the same. The result fifteen minutes into my first class was a hamstring torn in two places. A loud, sickening "pop" emerged from my leg as the muscle stretched beyond its flexibility limit and tore. I managed to finish the first class painfully performing every movement with the still warm muscle.
But the after effects, once the leg cooled down, was a right leg disabled, even for walking for the next few days. After three and a half weeks of intense therapy, I reentered the Taekwondo school wiser and far more careful than in the first class. That was a year before the writing of this article and I am still training, now back in a full green belt and with a goal of obtaining a black belt in my fifties.
None of that is to convince anyone not to take Taekwondo at fifty.....or sixty.....or even seventy. I know of one gentleman at the Fort Smith Taekwondo Academy that achieved his black belt rank at 76. The benefits of TKD to the older and elderly are innumerable. It just has to be taken with some precautions that younger adults don't need to be quite so concerned with.
Benefits of Taekwondo training for the elderly are innumerable. Age related studies recorded in The Gerontological Society of America revealed the efficacy of Taekwondo in the elderly. Because of declining abilities to walk and effectively balance, the elderly naturally reduce the dynamic components of walking to keep from falling just moving short distances. Since Taekwondo exercises are designed to train those very components of balance, done carefully, it is a naturally relevant activity to the elderly.
The benefits of exercise to health in the elderly are numerous and well documented. Improvements in aerobic endurance, balance, and walking have helped to lower the risk of fall and reduce the severity of injury in the event of a fall. An elderly person with increased strength and ability to respond quickly can better insure that in the event of a mishap they are able to maneuver more effectively to avoid severe injury. The psychological benefits of Taekwondo include improved mental ability and self-esteem. These improvements have proven to contribute to a greater quality of life in the elderly.
And just a side note to close. All these benefits of Taekwondo training after fifty are enough to seriously consider taking up this martial art. But one benefit that was left out is a considerable reason to get involved. Whether you're 20 or 70 Taekwondo training is just plain fun.
At the Fort Smith
Taekwondo Academy
in Fort Smith, Arkansas, martial arts training is performed by
experienced, expert teachers. Whether for men or women, children,
adult, and the elderly, Taekwondo
training will provide significant benefits both mentally and
physically.
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