Here’s the link that I used to pick out my kick: https://youtu.be/gXLHXfg-Qwo. It also includes a very helpful tutorial that I will be following. After watching this video I realized that I had been missing a super important step before practicing all my kicks. I had been forgetting to stretch prior to training, and that is definitely not good. As Master Chong says in the video, stretching and warming up before training are essential to making sure you prevent injuries and perform your very best. So, before training, I stretched and warmed up. Then everything went downhill pretty quickly. I started off by learning the basic steps in order to do the first motion in the kick. My attempts at it were not the best as you can see in the video, but they weren’t as bad as my attempt at the second motion—the spin. As I look back on my video and my attempts at the spin, I realized that my arms were in the wrong position the entire time. My arms should have been more horizontal, and more spread apart to look like an equal symbol. Also, I was relying on only one of my arms to create power/force, but instead, I should have been using both arms. Then, I moved on to the kick, just for fun. My first attempts at the Cheat 900/720 were absolutely horrendous. My motions were very choppy and slow, however, today is the first day trying this kick, so I’m not that upset about it. As I picked this kick, I expected it to be a lot more advanced than the tornado, as I wanted to build my skills even more by doing a harder kick, however, I certainly didn’t expect it to be this difficult.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_cqE9MFrIt0YMtJ2cSOIK8LwEE176Ydu/view?usp=sharing

Here are my arms while doing the spin:

Here is how they were supposed to look like:

See you next blog!

Last blog, I practiced the swing leading into the kick, and that practice payed off, as I was able to do it pretty good (at least I think I did). After that, I practiced the rest of the kick, but I still had some things to say about myself. So, today I just practiced the kick again and again, determined to only stop when I felt I had actually acheived something. After 30 minutes of dedication, I did it. Well, to the best of my abilities, anyway. I was surprised to say that this kick was actually a lot harder than I thought. I did not expect it to take me this long to successfully do the kick! My kick certainly was not as fast as the tutorial, but I feel my technique and form is quite good. Also, in the tutorial, the boy did more of a crescent turning kick, but I’m doing more of a snapping one (this is on purpose), so I can see how that can make the kicks look different from each other. Now that I feel I have accomplished this task and successfully learnt the kick, I’ll be moving onto another kick. One that is harder, and more challenging for me.

Here’s the video of my successful attempt (and some not so successful attempts) at the tornado kick!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tcJlg1jeqpS6EDXrF2CbATJR0jf296lv/view?usp=sharing

See you next blog!

Today, I tried perfecting the swing that leads into the actual kick. It took multiple tries to even get it somewhat good, but I actually ended up almost nailing it! After a couple attempts, I could really feel my swing momentum improving. After that, I put all of the steps together and practiced the kick a couple of times. Reflecting on myself, I think next time I should try not to pause before the kick that comes after the swing. Also, I should consider not swinging/flopping my arms around as much, and instead have them in a more controlled position. So, those are the things I will be working on next blog.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UGtZZtnXb5JdyW3JuN8gFP3dhi9a1BAl/view?usp=sharing

See you next blog!

For today’s blog, I spent 30 minutes just practicing the tornado kick over and over again. Once again, I’ve linked a video compilation of a couple of my tries. I am surprised to say that this kick was a lot harder than I thought it’d be. It’s just a jumping turning kick (a super basic kick that I learned years ago), but in order to do it, you need to be able to get the right momentum and power. Getting my knee higher was still a problem, but today the problem got a little bit better, and some of my attempts at the tornado kicks were actually somewhat good. I think that I need to take this whole process a bit slower. I need to perfect the swing that leads into the kick first, and then only once I’ve got that mastered should I put it all together. These are some reflections I have made that are going to be useful for next blog.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K4lonGjdQj3duvk5qgKJ8_xVLFyYS79L/view?usp=sharing

See you next blog!

In today’s genius hour block I began with practicing my basic Taekwondo kicks. These kicks include front kick, hammer kick, turning kick, side pressing kick, hooking kick, and back kick. Below, I’ve linked a video that has me doing all of these beginner kicks, because to do something hard, I need to get good at the basics. I watched some YouTube videos on these basic kicks to see if I could improve my form and technique. In the same video, I added myself trying out the tornado kick for the first time(s).

I tried the kick a couple of times, and I noticed that in order for me to successfully do this kick, my knee needs to be raised a little higher in order for my kick to be high as well. My current kick is low, because getting your knee up high is harder than it seems. Especially when you have to spin while doing it. Next blog, I will take these observations and judgments into consideration and apply the feedback to my new attempts at this advanced kick.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KpqAOSvJDbm6a4iAcrbswXsM7h_NbCKK/view?usp=sharing

Thank you for your time, and see you next blog!

For today’s genius hour block, I watched several YouTube videos on some Taekwondo kicks I may be interested in. This is the YouTube video that I used to find my kick: https://youtu.be/cslIbZERhSc. As you can see, I had many options to choose from. However, I decided to go with the tornado kick. The reason as to why I picked this kick is because, in my plan, I had mentioned starting off with a kick that had a medium-level difficulty. This kick is just that. The tutorial that I will be using is https://youtu.be/tZ1ohiTliPM. In conclusion, I spent today’s block figuring out how exactly I am going to launch my genius hour project, and I have figured out just that.

See you next blog!

For the next couple of months, I will be learning new Taekwondo kicks. I already do Taekwondo, but I’d like to do something more advanced than what I already do in my current Taekwondo classes. First, I’ll start with a simple but difficult kick. After that, I will make my way up on the difficulty scale, and once I feel I have achieved my goal, I will stop.

If I achieve my goal by the end of February (or however long it takes me), I will have a completed slideshow with videos of my progress in trying these kicks. I will have one video every week, however, I’ll be practicing these kicks for more than just one day every week. Then, I will reflect on my progress compared to the previous week (I’ll be judging myself). If I am able to achieve my goal before the end of February and I have a lot of time left, I’ll start something new and different.

Some steps I need to take to make it are: 1. Find a good area to practice 2. This is not a once-a-week project, to make progress I’ll need to make time to practice more, so I will practice for a minimum of 3 times a week, but I can always do more or even less if I have to. 3. Record my kicks (even the fails).

I don’t need any supplies, as my Genius Hour project is physical, however, I will need a good environment (large). Finally, I might need help with my kicking technique, but that is not a problem because I can always ask my instructor for help.

Hello! My name is Shreya, and I’m a Grade 8 Jr. High student. In this paragraph, I will introduce myself to you! To begin, I’ll share my hobbies and interests. Taekwondo is a sport/hobby I thoroughly enjoy. I’ve been doing Taekwondo since I was only seven years old (2016)! Currently, I am on my Red Belt, and I’m close to accomplishing my goal of earning my Black Belt! I am very passionate about Taekwondo, and I hope I always will be, as I have worked diligently to be where I am right now. Other sports I enjoy are volleyball, basketball, soccer, and occasionally badminton. Other things I like are reading, animals, and long walks. Moving onto culture and origins, I am originally from Nepal, something I pride myself on. It is a beautiful country with wonderful people, fantastic festivals, and rich culture. Recently, we celebrated Tihar, the festival of lights. I’ve talked enough about myself. Let’s move on to my ideas for my final project!

I have two ideas that I have been reviewing, cake baking and learning advanced Taekwondo kicks. However, I have finally settled on which one I want to pursue. Cake baking is very unique and exciting, but it requires a lot of patience and money. Additionally, I do not feel as strong of a pull to cake baking. Firstly, Taekwondo is something that I already have background knowledge on. Also, learning advanced kicks would actually benefit me, because in my upcoming belt tests, there is a high likelihood of having to do advanced kicks. Adding on, I feel as though learning these new kicks will encourage me to work harder in Taekwondo. Finally, I have been wanting to get better at Taekwondo, because despite doing it for half my life, for the past few years, I don’t feel as though I’ve made much progress in terms of skill. So, that concludes what I will be doing for my genius hour and why!