How long does it take to get a black belt in Taekwondo
As a Taekwondo master, most people who are planning to start martial arts especially Taekwondo have many questions to ask, which is the right thing to do, but I noticed there is a question that I get a lot.
- How long does it take to be a black belt in Taekwondo or how many years I should train Taekwondo to earn my black belt?
The answer can not be as easy (1+1=2), and i can not answer by saying four or five years of practice. so what are the factors that make this period of earning the black belt different from a person to another?
1 - People are physically different
- Some would be already fit and healthy while others can be over weight.
- Injuries:
Injuries can be prior joining Taekwondo training or after starting practicing it)
- Flexibility:
It is an important factor that helps the student to practice and master techniques faster than people who are not flexible enough, and we mean only the amount of flexibility needed for logical kicks in martial arts, and you do not need to be a gymnast to be good in Taekwondo.
2- The age of the practitioners:
- Young people respond to training faster than older people, but it does not mean that age is an obstacle, but it is making the
physical response a bit slower and the result of the training would be different of course between different ages.
3- The commitment :
This is a very important factor, and most people get bored after a short time of practice and they quit then go back to it, this is why some people can be in martial arts for so many years, but their achievement is too little and their struggles with the techniques is the same, because they always leave the mission unfinished every time they leave the practice.
4- the school (Real of fake):
Some fake masters and also grand masters open training studios similar to grocery shops, it is what they call Mcdojos. In this
''schools'', money matters more than anything else, and the business man (master or school owner) does not care really about the practice its self. In this fake schools it is easy to get a black belt with less efforts if you have enough money to fill your master's pockets :).
Let's go back to the question about the period required to earn a black belt :).
Let's try to do some Mathematics, even though I was not good at it and I do believe many readers are not, just joking :)
In most schools a student can be allowed to have a test after each three months of Taekwondo practice, and if we follow this plan, the student should do 9 or 8 tests before being eligible to have a test for the black belt. Therefore the student will reach the 1 Gup in red belt after 27 months (2 years and 3 months) or at least in 24 months (two years). but unfortunately this period is too long when inpatient student meet a Taekwondo business man ''master'', and this period can be reduced much.
I do believe that the Taekwondo organizations such as Kukkiwon or ITF organizations can not have a complete control on the schools or about their promotions tests, because school owners can do illegal acts without being caught.
Taekwondo schools can do their own color belts certificates and the national or the international Unions have no control on that, which make school owners promote their students whenever they want.
I have been asked once to have a deal of one year training with a student and allow him to test for a black belt, but I found it ridiculous, and it would look like selling a black belt certificate, because in one year of training, the student will be still a beginner.
In my personal opinion the average time to test for black belt better be above 4 years or even more, because the period of practice in martial arts is very important, and many techniques are achieved by thousands of repetitions, and this goal can not be reached in a short period.
''Black belt is not something you wear, but something you become''
By master Hamael
training in the dogang 2 - 3 times a week, training at home. Several lots of cracked/broken ribs. Took me just over fives years to get my first BB at the age if 43. 76 and still training.
ReplyDeleteGood job. Keep going 🙏
DeleteThank you Sir
DeleteSweet read! In Estonia and Eastern Europe it is very hard to earn a black belt under 7 years. I think it is achievable in 4 years with a lot of commitment. If a practioner is promoted to a full Dan before the proper time is fulfilled missing elements in character and personality development often occur but if there is great commitment beyond the norm I will promote accordingly especially if the traits of our tenets are prominent in the lifestyle because Taekwondo isn't just martial arts it's deeper than just fighting skills...
ReplyDeleteIn Kenya 4th year taekwondo student and still have not earned a black belt ������still training Harder everyday
ReplyDeleteItf tadwondo 6 years
ReplyDeleteOver 4 years of training sound good in getting to BB. Any legal gym or dojo open for training around Durban (KZN) in South Africa.
ReplyDelete5yrs of consistent training 4 to 5x a week
ReplyDeleteOUR SCHOOL style, out of Korean Karate Assoc of America, now US chung do kwan , et. al. [ Kyu - Sell - Beghtol, ]; Beghtols WMTKD [Not WMTKDA] was MINIMUM 3.5 years, ave. 4-5 - just for eligibility, let alone technique, student age and actual student training time. Some very, very exceptional, students - perhaps a bit less.
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to share my brief taekwondo story-
ReplyDeleteI was playing Wushu kungfu and Tang before I moved into taekwondo.for the past 3/4 years just wasted my time in street fighting. Later, I decided to move into taekwondo because I needed a certificate and promotion.it tooks me 3 complete years to finished my black belt from SAI( sports authority of India)later I gave a belt test for tan...then another 2 years I spend in getting 6th Dan black belt in taekwondo professionally..i depends on how a practitioner put his efforts and hard work.. taekwondo is all about maintaining a disciple rules and regulations.i wish u all the best in getting a black belt in near future 🙏
I started TKD January 1981 and made my 1. Dan in December 1986. Most of the time I had class training minimum 4 times a week and other fysical training on top of that.
ReplyDeleteTo my opinion a fast learner who put a high number of intelligent practice hours in to it, could do it in 4-5 years.