Boris has now taken the shackles off. So what will the complete lifting of restrictions mean? Many of our longer-standing students will have forgotten, some students have progressed through the ranks during lockdown so have never experienced 'normal' Intermediate classes and we have a huge cohort of new Beginners. So, what does this mean?
Firstly, the booking in system is NO LONGER IN EFFECT. No need to book, no need to ask to come, no need to tell us you're coming & no need to tell us when you're not! Just rock up to the correct number of classes per week as your tuition package & the job's a good 'un!
With classes back to normal, we will expect timekeeping to be back to normal. Some students have found it difficult to turn up to class on time - with COVID, travel restrictions, etc, we have been lenient & tried to accommodate where possible. From the 19th, anyone late to class will not be admitted in order to make sure that the class is not disrupted for those that have turned up on time. You have been warned...
Well be keeping all the good habits - washing hands before & after classes, using sanitiser when there is contact between students, extra cleaning of the cebtre/equipment & making sure that the airflow remains high!
There will be a greater variety of activities in class - Instructors have been working hard to develop the range of ways in which things are taught, but we've been foiled by some of the restrictions. Greater use of equipment, plus the option to work together & more closely opens up a whole world of opportunity. Movement has been restricted in many classes, which should no longer be an issue.
Tigers Classes
Our Tiger classes remain really popular so we will start to add in new students from the waiting list. People have been waiting patiently for spaces and so, with the lifting of restrictions, we will start to allow them to join.
The seating area will therefore become busier as there will be more parents watching. Whilst masks may not be compulsory any more, we will be advising people to still use them when the seating area becomes very busy. It's completely your choice whether to wear them or not, but our advice is 'mask up'.
These classes have been impacted the least in terms changes to the syllabus so the Tigers will notice little or no changes to the classes they know and love.
Beginners Classes
We will now be able to do a wider array of padwork in class - this will bring some much needed variety to some of our syllabus work. We'll also be able to work closer together & with partners.
One area we have not been able to cover very well is the wrist grip self-defences - air drills just don't cut it - so we will cover off all of the areas we have not been able to practice sufficiently well up to now. in particular, we'll be able to work on the 'real life' side of our practice.
In fact, we'll be recapping all of the syllabus areas from the past 15 months to make sure we have a chance to catch ourselves up to where we need to be at the end of the Beginner programme.
Again, we have people waiting patiently on the waiting list, so we will start allowing these people to join in the fun too!
Intermediate Classes
We will finally be able to practice our self-defence techniques with partners, adding in the real life component to our training. Again, we will make sure we cover off all of the areas that we were not able to cover during the restriction period.
We'll also be able to crack out the dusty pads (don't worry, they'll be shiny like new pins when we do get them out again!). We will (re)learn how to hold pads correctly as well as striking with power. I know for many of you, this is the area you are most looking forward to!
Sparring will also make a return - a completely new addition to your training some some. We'll work back into this slowly & steadily, making sure you have the skills to be able to defend yourself correctly but not to kill your sparring partner in class! Don't forget, there is a worldwide shortage of martial arts clothing & equipment, so if you haven't got any sparring gear, hit the club shop quickly.
Black Belts
Again, we will make sure we cover off all of the syllabus areas that we have not so far covered under lockdown - uniform grabs & knife self-defence in particular.
We will make sure that all of your Hyungs are up to scratch, plus, for those of you that are still to undertake the final portion of your Dan Test, all of your Gup level syllabus will get a good going over!
We will develop our one-step & three-step sparring, working with partners instead of socially distanced or doing air drills. Expect the odd knock as people relearn how long their arms and leg are!
You too will be reintroduced to sparring - I'm looking forward to this myself...
So for some it will be a brave (and maybe scary) new world of training. For others, it's a welcome return to the familiar that you have all missed.
So strap in, embrace the different and enjoy the ride. It's gonna be great!
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