My first tkd tournament

[TigerLove]

I got my first taekwondo tournament this weekend.

I am green belt, and prepared 2 months for this - but i was sick last week so it damaged me pretty much. It's itf competition.

Well, i am happy but my hands get shaky when i think about it, i wonder what will be when i step in a fight, will i be so nervous i will look like doing robo dance.

 

[ralphmcpherson]

good luck , I know the feeling I get really nervous leading up to anything like that. Train hard and it will all come together on the day.

 

[TigerLove]

Thanks. I will, this week every day we doin' sparring techiques, until the tournament day. It's tournament which will hold 100-150 competitors, so most of them probably won't be beginners (i am green). But whoever i get, i will give my best!

 

[Tez3]

Train hard then on the day relax and enjoy yourself, take in the atmosphere and look at it as gaining experience. Remember to breathe and have fun!

 

[TigerLove]

I don't watch this as a competition, i watch it as experience - in which i am my biggest enemy and in which i must reach or get beyond my limits. I hope it's right approach, because i don't see it different.

 

[Tez3]

I don't watch this as a competition, i watch it as experience - in which i am my biggest enemy and in which i must reach or get beyond my limits. I hope it's right approach, because i don't see it different.

People say to me they can't understand why we do MMA but they don't understand that the main point is not the defeating of your opponent but pushing yourself to exceed your limits and to see what you have inside yourself. At the end of the fight always the two opponents grab each other in an embrace of shared experience and the joy of knowing they 'did it'!
Whatever approach is the best for you is the best.

 

[TKDHomeSchooler]

Win or not, you will learn from it. The most important thing is to enjoy the experience, don't psych yourself out and don't do to much practicing at the tournament; people will be watching everyone.

Go in, register, and start stretching and keep your breathing controlled. You will be nervous, but you won't be the only one.

Make sure you take someone with you who can video you at each competition, it is your first and you will want to remember it. My first tournament I was a yellow belt, there were only 3 others at that level so I got to compete with higher belts that had no points, I was able to pick up some good memories.

 

[Stac3y]

If you're doing kata, use the nervousness to ramp up your tension/intensity. Nerves can be used to sharpen your performance.

 

[terryl965]

Tigerlove remember to go out and have fun, tournaments are about having the guts to be there and the sense to have fun.

 

[Wey]

I hope you know that we expect a full report once it is finished.

 

[IcemanSK]

I wish you all the best at the tournament!

 

[ATC]

Good luck, have fun and make sure to let us know how you felt during and after.

 

[xfighter88]

Hands up. Chin down. Good luck man.

 

[TigerLove]

Thank you all for support, you are so great!! I will place report here after tournament.

Cheers :bangahead:

 

[TigerLove]

I said i will put report here after the tournament finish. Well..let's start with results - i lost my first match, and my only one, according to that. Now about else..

About feeling

It was so wonderful experience!! I traveled with my club, meet a lot of people, seen a lot off stuff! And, i think that the tournament day is really special day for every individual, it's simply different, ''tournament day''. I think everybody knows what i mean with that! This was my first tournament and i'm so happy about that, so wondeful experience, at all, fact that i lost fight doesn't matter a bit.

About fight

Here i learned a lot of stuff. I hoped that tellings how somebody has different skills on tournament and on tranining was a lie. Well, it wasn't. First few hours there was ok - easy streching, talking with people, watching fights..it was ok really. Until the 10 minutes before my fight. I totally losted myself, shaking, confusion..after 5 times i failed in taking the gloves on, i know it's not good. When i steped in the ring, totally perception failure ocurred. No sounds, no field depth feeling, no nothing. I even forgot what chumbi means..offcourse, i lost the fight, 6 : 2. Fight was 1 round 2 minutes, but i have the feeling it was about 10 seconds. My opponent was second at the end, and i found out that he is kickbox and box champion, so as 1. dan taekwondo. This in combination with my state of mind equals no good. After fight i looked at the scoreboard to see result, and then i realised i hited him twice!! I don't know when and how. I also don't remember takin' 6 hits, except one which almost broke my rib cage. Now you can imagine how i feelted during the fight.

Now, i must accept what i learned and try to fix it. Coach sad to me that i am very brave only because entering the fight - because i knewed i will get beaten - well it's strong competition, and i'm 21 years senior with no experience, which mean in the beggining i will almost always get if not strong then at least experienced opponent.

But, ice must be broken, and i will past if needs 100 more ''fights'' like this where i am beaten and demoralized in front of 1000 people, but i will train my mind to keep perception even when it comes to stress and fight.

Just to add, i think i would be really hard rock for this opponent if i could fight like in my dojo during training. But..

As you see, really wonderful experience for me.

Every advice or critic is welcome!!!!

Now, back to dojo!!

 

[Tez3]

You may have technically lost your first fight but you have definitely come out a winner!
Nerves are perfectly normal and you will learn how to prepare yourself before a competition, you'll work out what suits you. You'll know what to expect next time and use your nervousness to your advantage. I've never met anyone who knows what happened in their first fight and that includes TMA ones, as well as MMA and kickboxing! I've never seen a novice fighter fight as they do in the club either, a lot of it goes out the window but it does all click in after a couple of fights and you will start thinking and knowing what's going on, then you'll start thinking ahead in your fight and have good control of it. Just takes time and practice! You did well and I'm glad you enjoyed it.
You're instructor will go over all the technical bits with you but don't beat yourself up for losing! It will make you work harder and prepare you, sometimes winning your first fight is not such a good thing lol, I've seen fighters get cocky at winning their first and lose all their next ones!
Well done again!

 

[TKDHomeSchooler]

As Tez3 said, if you learned anything you are a winner overall. Also, don't feel bad about only scoring 2 points, check out my first tournament sparring match. Note how long the whole thing took, including putting on the pads.

 

[jks9199]

You walked out of the tournament having LEARNED SOMETHING.

It seems like you tried to do what you'd been taught, as well.

Your tournament experience was a success.

I tell my students that it's not what medal or trophy they walk out with that defines whether or not they've won; I do that for them. If they try to use what they've been taught and practiced... they've won.

You've also learned something about the effects of adrenal stress; everything you experienced about the fight is part of the hormone cocktail that comes from adrenal stress. As you expose yourself to situations that trigger this, you'll learn to cope with it, and it'll take more to trigger it.

 

[TigerLove]

Thanks everybody for posting!

I must admit, no matter you are very far and virtual, those words mean real support for me - because no matter how far you are, martial arts philosophy is similar everywhere, and there is things in it that makes us martial artists, and only way we can go is together!

Now when i puted out my feelings, i willl add that i have a discovered one more world in martial arts, which makes it more rounded, so my motivation is bigger to.

Cheers :wavey: