Warwick & Leamington TKD

Welsh Open Championships Results

Well done to team WLTKD, really proud of everyone of you all, it's not about the medals it's about stepping up, the medals are an added bonus.

Results:
* Kaj Boniewski : Gold in 65-70kg, Gold in +65gk overall, Bronze in patterns
* Piotr Boniewski : Bronze in patterns
* Julia Singleton Tasker : Bronze in sparring +65kg, Silver in sparring +65kg overall

Thank you to Mr Perrier as always, excellent organisation and awesome support and coaching, team work makes the dream work.

Last night at our Leamington class we had a deep dive into side kick, a highly technical technique which can be take time to master correctly.

But breaking the technique down incrementally and gaining a deep understanding of the movement biomechanics the improvements were excellent. Well done everyone.

DON’T BUY A BLACK BELT: EARN YOUR BELT THE RIGHT WAY!

THE STUDENT
A quality, experienced Taekwon-do instructor understands that earning a black belt is not one-size-fits-all. People learn differently:
• People learn differently
• Move differently
• Grow differently
• Mature differently

However, individuality cannot become an excuse for the absence of standards. The standards must remain common. The journey to reach them may look different, but the benchmark is the benchmark.

Some students progress through athleticism, others through discipline, others through repetition, and some through sheer resilience and determination. And yet, when clubs lower standards to protect feelings, hit timelines, boost retention, or satisfy ego, they don’t create genuine martial artists, they sell rank and create members that cannot protect themselves when it matters!!

A black belt should not mean:
• “They stayed long enough.”
It should mean:
• “They developed enough, and developed appropriately.”

True compassion means teaching and correcting properly, not paying lip service to progress. An Instructor trying to be liked at the expense of real development turns rank into fraud. Our goal isn’t to create identical martial artists, it’s to create qualified ones with a baseline of ability and a real understanding of Taekwon-do and self-defence.

THE CLUB & INSTRUCTOR
There’s a crucial difference between adjusting how you teach and adjusting the standard.
• A good instructor adapts methods to help students learn.
• A dishonest or inexperienced instructor adjusts the standard just to get people promoted.

Unfortunately, some clubs are led by instructors who lack the real experience, ability, discipline or integrity required to teach martial arts properly. These “rank-focused” settings often promote students primarily to keep sales moving, rather than to build competence and confidence.

We also see a growing trend of franchised or template-based martial arts clubs, the so-called “McDojo” model. These businesses may recruit people with limited martial arts experience (Walts), give them a brand, marketing systems and pre-written lesson plans, and encourage promotions regardless of whether students have truly earned them.

If a club can’t clearly explain:
• what standards you must meet
• how grading is assessed
• how they measure real skill and understanding
• and what the instructor’s own training and experience looks like

…then students may be learning little more than forms of “rank” they will then just expect promotion with little effort or ability!

A quality martial arts instructor is built through years of training, ongoing development, and a genuine understanding of violence, not just theory, or what someone has seen online. In our club, we teach, test, and develop properly and thoroughly.

CONCLUSION
Choose your club and instructor wisely!

Do your due diligence before you train. Ask questions. Observe a class. Look at how students are graded and coached. Most importantly, don’t waste your time or hard-earned money on a club that sells belts instead of building ability.

If you’re looking for a martial arts club where standards matter and development comes first, Warwick & Leamington TKD is here to help you earn your rank the right way and give you the ability to protect yourself if ever you need to.

NEW BEGINNERS CLASS STARTING NEXT WEEK

Leading the way in so many areas:
* Highly experienced instructor team
* Highly effective self-defence system
* National competition track record (second in UK last year, 1st the previous year)
* Established, friendly, supportive community

Six Warwick & Leamington TKD students traveled to Manchester today to attend the T-UK black belt promotion test under the Association Masters board.

Everyone of them have worked exceptionally hard in the lead up to the test showing immense dedication to making the required improvements in their Taekwon-Do to get as prepared as they could be.

Congratulations to all of you, four new black belts and two new 2nd degree black belts in the club.

The Choice You Make for Your Child

The image is simple, but the message is not.
On one side, a child sits absorbed in a screen, passive, slouched, disengaged, awake too late. Or they’re out with the wrong people, pulled into peer pressure and negative influence. On the other side, a child trains, focused, disciplined, learning standards, respect, and that actions have consequences. It’s positive growth and development, built day by day, week by week.

The difference between those two paths is not chance, It’s choice.

The modern distraction
Today’s world is designed to capture attention. Screens are immediate, easy, and endlessly stimulating. Left unchecked, they become the default. At the same time, there’s increasing pressure from unsociable behaviour and gang culture, especially when children feel bored, ignored, or disconnected.

The issue isn’t technology itself, it’s the lack of balance. A growing child’s brain is still developing, and if there are no positive influences to counteract what they consume online, those influences become the “program” that shapes their habits and attitudes.

A child who spends most of their time sedentary doesn’t just lose physical fitness. They can lose:
* Structure and routine
* Resilience and confidence with effort
* The ability to engage with discipline (because effort starts to feel “optional”)
* Exposure to toxic influences that are far more common online than many parents realise

Person-to-person influence matters
Peer groups shape children fast. Gang culture offers belonging, but it also offers consequences. Martial arts offers something better: community with standards, positive influence and a moral culture. When your child trains at Warwick & Leamington TKD, they gain a sense of identity that doesn’t connect with the negative options.

They’re surrounded by a supportive, learning-focused environment where behaviour matters, respect is expected, and role models lead by example. That gives your child the confidence and courage to say “no” when others are pushing the wrong direction.

What training teaches (beyond kicking and striking)
Training teaches a child that growth comes from effort, not convenience. They learn discipline, respect, consequences, patience, and confidence. They don’t just become physically stronger, they become more capable as a person.
And that matters for life. Confidence, self-control, and resilience don’t only show up in the dojang, they follow them into school, friendships, and the choices they make later.

Children don’t choose their environment. Parents do.
There are 168 hours in a week. Training takes 2 hours per week (and sometimes a little more with practice at home).

2 hours out of 168. Time isn’t the limitation, priority is.

If you want your child to have a realistic chance at success, physically, emotionally, and psychologically, then give them a positive path that builds them instead of one that numbs them.

The choice you make now determines the result later.
Children don’t drift toward the better path on their own. They are guided there by the adults who care enough to choose it first.
We’re here to help your child grow into the best version of themselves.