Dear Members,

Our reduced schedule continues this week.

Next week (February) we will be back with our FULL timetable, but there won't be any class onMonday 1 February as it is a public holiday. 

Check out the timetable for this week

TKD Tools for Success: Mental Contrasting
Here's a taster of our latest article exploring the mental skills that will help you in your training.

In this article we look at how you can harness the power of positive AND negative thinking in your training goals. This is called "mental contrasting", a technique coined by motivation psychologist Gabrielle Oettingen that brings together your long term goals with your short term realities.

We're used to hearing if you want to achieve something "just think positive" and you'll be there in no time. But the problem with positive thinking on its own is that while it bolsters up your confidence of success, it does not prepare you for the obstacles you will encounter on the way....continue reading

Tuesday Night - Special Session With Master Hutton
On Tuesday night there is a seminar between 6.30-8pm open to all ITKD members with inspirational practitioner, Master Hutton from Scotland. 

This seminar replaces normal Warrior training at that time, however we have negotiated a cheaper price for Warrior members.

You can attend at just $20 for an individual or $30 for a family. You do need to register however. If you do not wish to register for the session you are welcome to come to a Monday,Wednesday or Thursday night session this week instead.

Register here

​
Best wishes,



Rachel Bates
Centre Manager

In this article we look at how you can harness the power of positive AND negative thinking in your training goals. This is called "mental contrasting", a technique coined by motivation psychologist Gabrielle Oettingen that brings together your long term goals with your short term realities.

We're used to hearing if you want to achieve something "just think positive" and you'll be there in no time. But the problem with positive thinking on its own is that while it bolsters up your confidence of success, it does not prepare you for the obstacles you will encounter on the way.

That's where 'negative thinking' is helpful in being realistic about the obstacles and temptations you will meet on the path to your goal and preparing yourself to overcome difficulties.

In an example of how mental contrasting works, Oettingen studied a group of obese women enrolled in a weight loss program and asked the women what they thought about their chances of success in losing the weight. Unsurprisingly, the women who thought that they would succeed lost a lot more weight than those who thought they would fail. But she also asked the women their expectations for what the weight loss process would be like. The women who thought they would have a hard time not giving into temptation to eat junk foods lost an average of 46 pounds MORE than the women who thought it would be easy.

Applying mental contrasting to our example goal of "having a better side piercing kick" from our previous article in this series: you will need a positive attitude to your chances of success and believe that you can do it, AND ALSO be aware of obstacles in the way which could include time to practice, other commitments, etc.

The key to making mental contrasting work is that both sides need to work together:
- positive thinking about your ability to succeed and chances for success
- realistic thinking about the difficulties you could face.

When you have positive thinking without realism your overconfidence and big picture thinking may blind you to the reality of the detail, and when you have realistic thinking without positivity the thought of the possible obstacles can weigh you down.

But when you have the two together, you have a superior combination of confidence AND preparedness which will help to lead you toward success.

Read the other articles in this series, TKD Tools for Success:

Mindset Matters
Goal Planning
Mental Contrasting
Self Talk

Most people have goals but aren't so good at reaching them. Maybe you want to get fitter, have a better side piercing kick and improve your patterns for a tournament. All of these goals are 'big picture' that are motivating (if it's something you truly want to do) but lack the detail to propel you into action. If you stop there, your goal will remain a lovely thought with little progress.

If you want to take action and really achieve your goal, you need to continue on from goal setting to goal planning. In goal planning you work out the actions you will need to take to achieve your goal in specific detail, breaking them into smaller goals.

Let's look at the "have a better side piercing kick" goal. We've identified the big picture goal - now what will it take to get there?

We could say practice, but that isn't specific enough. If you include more detail about when, where and how, and write it down, you will improve your chances of follow through by over 50%.

So, practice on Mondays and Wednesdays is better, but practice for 20 minutes on Mondays and Wednesdays in the backyard at 7am is even better still.

To satisfy the 'how', make up a training plan of exactly how many repetitions of different exercises to improve your side piercing kick you will do so that your practice session is meaningful.

And of course you can ask your instructor for help in setting up a training plan too.

Remember:
A goal without a plan is just a wish.

Read the other articles in this series, TKD Tools for Success:
​
Mindset Matters
Goal Planning
Mental Contrasting
​Self Talk

Dear Members,

We've had a great first week back on our reduced schedule for January at Warrior and also an awesome training session with other Taekwon-Do martial artists from the Auckland North region at Cornwall Park yesterday (see photo above).

Our reduced schedule continues this week and next week.

Check out the timetable for the rest of the week and January

TKD Tools for Success: Goal Planning
Here's a taster of our latest article exploring the mental skills that will help you in your training.

Most people have goals but aren't so good at reaching them. Maybe you want to get fitter, have a better side piercing kick and improve your patterns for a tournament. All of these goals are 'big picture' that are motivating (if it's something you truly want to do) but lack the detail to propel you into action. If you stop there, your goal will remain a lovely thought with little progress.

If you want to take action and really achieve your goal, you need to continue on from goal setting to goal planning. ...continue reading

Master Hutton Seminar
Master Hutton from Scotland is taking just one Auckland seminar - and you're invited to come along. It's on Tuesday 26 January from 6.30pm-8pm. This seminar replaces normal Warrior training at that time, however we have negotiated a cheaper price for Warrior members.You can attend at just $20 for an individual or $30 for a family. You do need to register in advance however. The seminar will be filmed by TKDCoaching.com.

Register here

​
Best wishes,



Rachel Bates
Centre Manager

Dear Members,

Our summer training starts today!

- At 4.30pm we have a combined class for preschoolers and TKD Kubz students
- 5.30pm is a combined class for kids aged 5+
- 6.30pm is a combined class for anyone aged 10+, and younger students who are at least yellow belt

Check out the timetable for the rest of the week and January

Regional Training
Come to Cornwall Park on Sunday 10-11.30am for training with clubs from the whole region. Meet in front of the Memorial Steps. All ages and ranks are welcome. Check our facebook pageif locations change due to rain. This will be a great opportunity to train with and meet other Taekwon-Do people from all over Auckland.

National Camp
Entries close this Friday for the National Camp, which will be held over Anniversary Weekend in Rotorua. The camp is open to all ranks and ages and there are a number of Warrior members already registered.

Find out more here


Best wishes,



Rachel Bates
Centre Manager

As with any activity, Taekwon-Do requires a mixture of mental and physical skills.

In this article series, TKD Tools for Success, we explore some of the mental skills that will help you to take your martial art to the next level this year. These skills will help you in Taekwon-Do and in life.

Mindset Matters

​Progress in any endeavour owes much to your mindset: the beliefs and attitudes which drive your thoughts and actions.

Your mindset has a big impact on how you train, how much effort you put in, and how much you improve.

Compare these statements:

Do you believe your physical ability is fixed and there is nothing you can do to change your natural ability? ... or do you believe that your natural ability can grow as you learn?

Would you rather 'look good' at Taekwon-Do? ... or 'get better' at Taekwon-Do?

Do you give up if you don't get something the first time? ... or do you keep trying and get better over time?

Are you afraid of making a mistake and 'looking stupid' in class? ... or do you see mistakes as an opportunity to learn and get better?

Would you rather stick with what you know so you 'look good'? ... or do you love a challenge, even if it means you don't get everything right?

Do you feel threatened when your classmates succeed? ... or do you feel inspired by their success?

Carol Dweck, author of Mindset: How You Can Fulfil Your Potential would consider the orange text to be a 'fixed' mindset and the blue text a 'growth' mindset.

Which of the two mindsets do mostly identify with now?

And which one do you think will help you improve in Taekwon-Do the most? 

The good news is that you can CHANGE your mindset with practice. You can catch the thoughts that limit your potential and exchange them for thoughts that will help you to grow and exceed your limits. ​It will take time, but your new mindset will gradually replace the old one.

​And of course you can apply this to anything as well as to Taekwon-Do!
​

Read the other articles in this series, TKD Tools for Success:

Mindset Matters
Goal Planning
Mental Contrasting
​Self Talk

Dear Members,

Happy New Year! We hope you're having a great summer so far!

Summer Training
Taekwon-Do training is starting up at our club and in the region!

Training at Warrior Taekwon-Do
Our summer timetable kicks off on Monday next week (11 January) and we'd love to see you if you are around! Check out the summer schedule here.

Regional Training
Clubs from around the Auckland North region are getting together for some fun training at the park over January. The next regional training will be on Sunday 17 January, 10-11.30am at Cornwall Park (meet in front of the Memorial Steps), and the head instructor will be Mrs Debbie Hart. All ages and ranks are welcome. Check our facebook page if locations change due to rain. This will be a great opportunity to train with and meet other Taekwon-Do people from all over Auckland.

TKD Tools for Success
We spend a lot of time working on the physical skills of Taekwon-Do - but have you ever wondered about developing your mental skills? In our new article series TKD Tools for Success, we explore some of the mental skills that will help you to take your martial art to the next level this year. These skills will help you in Taekwon-Do and in life. 

Check out the first article on our new-look website - Mindset Matters.


​Best wishes,



Rachel Bates
Centre Manager