Samantha Saunders Family Affair

My eldest son James (12) continuously asked if he could go to Tae Kwon Do classes at Fowey, his friend trained there and he was always saying how good it was and that it would be great if James could come along. I have always fancied trying it out for myself, but thought there was a ‘certain type’ of super fit super skinny person you had to be.

 My younger son Daniel also wanted to come along so I took them intending to leave them to it (as I thought I would not fit in and would look stupid!) However during the warm up Daniel became very self aware and shy, he ran over to the side where I was standing, he was a bit tearful and at that point did not want to go back into the class. I noticed none of the students seemed fazed by this; they were all focused on their training even the little ones. James threw himself into the training with great gusto and thoroughly enjoyed it. Daniel and I sat it out and watched for 40 minutes before Dan agreed to try and have a go if I did too. I agreed, after watching the class I realised my preconceptions of this class were wrong.  

Initially I was intending to leave the boys to it and go to the gym. But I was getting

bored with the same stuff all the time. Once I tried Traditional Tae Kwon Do I realised how good it is for getting fit, toning muscles, increasing flexibility and losing weight (10 pounds so far). Plus it never gets boring - you are always learning something new.

We attend the club at all three centres- St Austell, Bodmin and Fowey and enjoy the flexibility of being able to train on different days at different locations when you have a busy schedule. All three clubs are friendly and not in the least bit ‘cliquey’, which can be a big problem with other clubs, I have attended. Everyone talks to you and makes you feel welcome. Your ability age or size is never an issue with other students.

My son James had real problems controlling his emotions at times- training with the Traditional Tae Kwon Do Association South West has improved this aspect of him 100 times over- it has also taught him how to listen instead of talk. One of his biggest faults! His social skills have improved hugely too. In a short space of time he has really changed for the better and I give Tae Kwon Do the credit for that. I have also spent more time with both boys and have enjoyed learning together. We have a common interest - something we did not have before.

The younger of my sons Daniel had real confidence problems and was painfully shy. He would never dream of doing anything that involved standing up in front of people. He also used to get really embarrassed about getting anything wrong. He would never try it again if he got it wrong the first time!

Tae Kwon Do and Mr Shields and the other senior belts have all helped him overcome these problems. I am amazed at the change in my son. He got up and took part in the grading the other day without batting an eyelid- whereas I was a nervous wreck!

From the Traditional Tae Kwon do Association Schools I have found that everyone is warm friendly and welcoming. I always feel relaxed in all three schools (Fowey, Bodmin or St Austell) and never feel like I am out of place. Everyone at the club has been in our position at some point so you are never made to feel silly or stupid if you don’t grasp something straight away. You feel a real sense of achievement when you do grasp something and passing my grading was a huge achievement that I was really proud of. I am now really glad Daniel needed me to stay! I have lost weight and really toned up- my body shape is changing for the better. Tae Kwon Do is brilliant for toning your arms and legs especially!

I would recommend Mr Shields and his club, as he is an amazing instructor who has a real gift with teaching- especially the younger students. He captures their imagination and manages to get the most out of them. Daniel goes round our house practising his kicks constantly. Just to make sure he gets them right for Mr Shields (and Julie his

next favourite instructor!)

Sam Saunders