Dear Members,

We had two great sessions on Thursday last week with our special guest patterns expert, Miss Melissa Timperley! And great work on planks last week too - we've still got two weeks left in our plank challenge, so see if you can increase your plank time over the next couple of weeks.

Don't forget for those of you on the colour belt syllabus that your grading is coming up onThursday 13 August. Your instructors are making decisions about grading readiness and giving forms to those who are ready to grade. If you do receive a grading form, make sure it is returned to the office with payment as per the instructions on your form by Friday 7 August.

Warrior Sweatshirts - Last Opportunity to Order
Due to popular demand we are doing one final Warrior sweatshirts order for this year. The sweatshirts are black and look pretty smart with the tenets on the back, personalised with your name. 

If you want to order one of these sweatshirts this is your last chance this year and orders must be received using the online form by Friday 7 August. There are youth sizes ($45) and adult sizes ($55) available.

Order here

Auckland North Kids Camp
Registrations are now open for the hotly anticipated AUCKLAND NORTH KIDS CAMP!! The kids camp is a highlight of the year for kids in the Auckland North region and is held in Mangawhai over 18-20 September, with some day stays available on the Saturday too. 

It is suitable for kids aged 5-14 including Kubz, Mini Kids and Colour Belts. There are limited spaces that always go quick so get your rego's in ASAP to avoid disappointment. Warrior students who have attended in previous years have come back with awesome stories of an amazing weekend.

More information and online registration forms

Can Adults Begin Martial Arts Training?
We sometimes have people ask:
"Can I start Taekwon-Do at my age or is it just for the kids?"

Taekwon-Do is for all ages, and within the Taekwon-Do community in New Zealand there are members aged 3 to about 70! While we have many kids in our club who enjoy Taekwon-Do, we also have members who have started Taekwon-Do as adults and derive much enjoyment and benefit out of their training (and many of whom train with their kids too!).

Taekwon-Do Gets You Active!
Taekwon-Do is a great way to get fit and strong. We do a range of activities in our classes including fitness work, pad work, fundamental movements, stretching, flexibility work and more. Unlike working out at a gym, you get to train with other people, become part of a community and learn some awesome martial arts and self defence skills at the same time.

Click to read the rest of the article

Register Now for mid-August Adult Beginners TKD Course
If you're aged 13+ (or know someone who is!) and keen to give Taekwon-Do a go, we are running a three-week course in August on Tuesday and Thursdays at 6.30pm. The course is run by Master Paul McPhail and Mrs Sonya Robinson and will equip you with all the basics of Taekwon-Do to feel confident in the main classes.

The cost of the course is $60 for the three weeks, which will go toward your membership if you decide to join after.

The course starts on Tuesday 18 August and we already have three registrations - so register now for one of the limited spaces. We are unlikely to run any further Kickstarter courses this year so make the most of the opportunity.

REGISTER HERE



Best wishes,



Rachel Bates
Centre Manager 

Dear Members,

Welcome back everyone! We are looking forward to a great term with lots planned already!

Plank Challenge
How long can YOU hold a plank? Planks are a great way to build core strength. We'll be testing your planks this week and seeing who can hold the longest plank out of all our Warrior branches - and of course how much you have improved! The final plank testing and end of challenge will be in week three of the term.

FUN FACT: A front plank like the one we are doing in this challenge is part of the black belt fitness test. Black belt candidates earn maximum points on their plank if they are able to hold their plank for 4 minutes.

Special Guest Instructor This Thursday
Miss Melissa Timperley (pictured above) is a multiple medalist in patterns, having most recently won gold in 3rd dan patterns at the 2013 World Championships and silver in 3rd dan patterns at the 2015 World Championships. She will be at our 5.30pm and 6.30pm classesthis Thursday - an amazing opportunity to train with one of the best patterns practitioners in New Zealand ahead of our August colour belt grading. If you train at 5.30pm or 6.30pm on any night of the week you are welcome to come.

Adult Beginners "Kickstarter" Course - Starts mid-August!
If you're aged 13+ (or know someone who is!) and keen to give Taekwon-Do a go, we are running a three-week course in August on Tuesday and Thursdays at 6.30pm. The course is run by Master Paul McPhail and Mrs Sonya Robinson and will equip you with all the basics of Taekwon-Do to feel confident in the main classes.

The cost of the course is $60 for the three weeks, which will go toward your membership if you decide to join after.

The course starts on Tuesday 18 August and we already have three registrations - so register now for one of the limited spaces. We are unlikely to run any further Kickstarter courses this year so make the most of the opportunity.

REGISTER HERE

Best wishes,



Rachel Bates
Centre Manager 

Dear Members,

This our last week on our reduced holiday timetable - our full timetable is back next week and we are looking forward to seeing everyone back from holidays!

Special Guest Instructor - Thursday Next Week
With our next colour belt grading exactly one month away today, we have an amazing special guest instructor coming to our Thursday 5.30pm and 6.30pm classes next week to help put the polish on your patterns. Miss Melissa Timperley is a multiple medalist in patterns, having most recently won gold in 3rd dan patterns at the 2013 World Championships and silver in 3rd dan patterns at the 2015 World Championships. Miss Timperley is one of New Zealand's foremost patterns experts and we are really looking forward to having her.

Breaking Competition
Saturday 5 September, 3pm
198 Marua Rd, Ellerslie

There is a fun power breaking competition coming up in September! There are divisions for adults of any rank, and under 18s ranked at least yellow belt, and some competition events you won't ever have seen before in your usual TKD tournament!

In the lead up to the competition you can attend BREAKING CLUB, a new initiative starting soon with Mr John Matsuoka (5th Dan) who's passion is power breaking. Breaking Club starts on Saturday 8 August at 3pm and will be 3pm on Saturdays. Check your email-newsletter for more information about this.

Full information and registration here


Best wishes,


Rachel Bates
Centre Manager 

Dear Members,

National Championships
This newsletter is coming to you later than usual as I have just got back from Christchurch (where the National Championships were held this weekend)! From Warrior, we had Anton Keay-Davies and Steve Milne (pictured above) competing as part of the 34 strong Auckland North regional team and 5 staff traveling down as officials or supporters.

Mr Keay-Davies and Mr Milne both won silver medals in their respective patterns divisions on the first day of competition. The International Taekwon-Do (ITKD) Awards Dinner followed in the evening, where the annual awards from our national governing organisation were presented. 

Our own Mr Steve Milne was up for the Gup Student of the Year Award and we are thrilled to announce that he won! A very well-deserved nomination and win.

One of the other awards presented each year is the President's Award for Outstanding Contribution, whom only the President of ITKD can nominate and award and therefore the winner is not printed in the awards shortlist prior to the event or notified of their win. We are very proud that this year's winner is our own Master Paul McPhail. In ITKD President Master Evan Davidson's speech before the award winner was announced, he specifically made reference to Master McPhail's contribution and spearheading of the development of what is now called the High Performance Programme, which has seen New Zealand shoot to the top of the world and command respect on the world stage, as well as to his contributions as part of the Technical Committee of ITF (our international governing organisation, of which ITKD is a part). 

The final day of competition saw mostly sparring and team events and finished with the presenting of the tournament awards. Our neighbouring region Counties Manukau did extremely well placing 1st, with our own region coming in 4th out of the 6 regions. Massive thanks and congratulations to the South Island region for putting on a great event.

There are a few photos from Nationals you can see here.

Holiday Timetable
As previously communicated, today marks the first day on our reduced holiday period timetable. You can view the timetable here.

Holiday Training
If you are interested in grading at our next gup grading (August) but are unable to make classes during the holidays, make sure you keep training at home. We will also be posting some "holiday TKD workouts" on our Facebook page during the holidays so you have some ideas to help you practice. Here's the link to our first workout post.

Guardian Angel Course - This Sunday
The Guardian Angel Course is a unique and innovative programme by Protect that aims to inform and empower young people, while avoiding the classic pitfall of so many child-safety courses: instilling fear into young minds. There are just 6 of 30 places left, so if you are keen for your child to attend make sure you register here ASAP.


Best wishes,



Rachel Bates
Centre Manager