We’re starting our first live training session inside the Academy and the best part: it’s already included in the Standard Membership 🙌 We’ll train together, work on mobility, footwork, step & kick combinations and finish with some stretching. No matter if you’re training at home or just want some extra Taekwondo-specific work alongside your regular training. Come join us! 📅 This Saturday 🎥 LIVE inside the Academy 🔥 Included in the Standard Membership See you on the mat!

Good fighting isn’t only about which kicks you can throw. It’s also about where the fight takes place. Being close to the edge puts you under more pressure. Your options become limited, you have less space to react, and mistakes are much more likely. So one of the first habits I want athletes to develop is: if you’re near the edge, look for opportunities to get back to the center. One simple option is to turn your opponent and switch positions. You can do this directly after an action — for example, after working in close range — or whenever your opponent loses awareness of their position. Instead of automatically staying on the outside, use that moment to rotate back toward the center and make your opponent take the edge position. The second strategy happens in the infight. Especially after you’ve just escaped the edge or corner, don’t immediately give that space back. Use controlled body positioning and forward pressure, within the rules, to gradually move your opponent across the mat. This can be especially effective when they are passive or trying to take a short break. The goal isn’t just to move forward for the sake of it. You’re trying to control space, limit your opponent’s options and put them into the position where they are more likely to make mistakes. Key idea: Don’t only think about what technique comes next. Also ask yourself: Where do I want this fight to happen?

Not every training session will feel good. Some days you feel fast, strong and sharp. Other days you’re tired, unmotivated, your timing feels off and suddenly it seems like every technique has a problem. That doesn’t automatically make it a bad session. Training is not the place where everything has to look perfect. It’s the place where you are supposed to make mistakes, find weaknesses and work on them. Sometimes you leave training thinking, “Why did nothing work today?” - when in reality, you simply spent the whole session becoming more aware of the things you still need to improve. And that awareness is part of progress. There will also be days when you just don’t feel like training. If you’re healthy, it’s often still worth showing up. You might feel much better once you start moving. Sometimes you won’t and that’s okay too. On those days, adapt the session instead of automatically skipping it. Maybe you reduce the volume, lower the intensity, focus more on technique or simply do what you realistically can that day. A session where you were tired and had to adjust is still often more valuable than doing nothing at all. The important distinction: this does not mean you should train when you are sick or ignore signs that your body genuinely needs recovery. Rest is part of training too. But don’t confuse “I’m not at 100% today” with “training is pointless today.” And remember: if you have a day where, because of stress, school, work, lack of sleep or simply having a lot on your mind, you only have 40% to give - then those 40% are your 100% for that day. You don’t need to compare today’s performance to what you can do on your best days. Work with the capacity you have, adjust the session if needed, and make the most of it. Giving 100% doesn’t always mean performing at 100%, sometimes it means fully using the 40% you have available. Progress doesn’t only happen in the sessions where everything feels perfect. Very often, it happens in the messy ones, when you show up, identify mistakes, adapt and keep working.

Being here at the EUCC in Albania is another good reminder that the final days before competition are not the time to try to get fitter, stronger or “make up” for missed training. At this point, the goal is to show the performance you already built. That means training should become more specific: • keep the speed and intensity • reduce unnecessary volume • sharpen timing, reactions and distance • rehearse your most reliable scoring situations • leave the session feeling fast and confident, not exhausted Especially in Taekwondo, being slightly undertrained on competition day is usually much better than arriving with heavy legs because you wanted to squeeze in one more hard session. The hard work should already be done. Competition week is about sharpening, not building. That’s exactly what our sessions here in Albania are focused on right now: refreshing the movements and situations we want to use when the fights start. 🥋

Over the last few months, I had the chance to train with and learn from a Korean University Coach, the Brazilian National Team Coach, the Turkish National Team Coach and former German/Swedish/Swiss National Team Coach. Different styles, different systems, but a few principles came up again and again: 1️⃣ Train like you want to fight Whether it’s pad work, situational training or sparring: don’t just throw a kick because the drill says so. Look for the opening, kick with intention and keep working after the first action. Train every situation as if you actually wanted to score in competition. 2️⃣ Never be predictable Use steps, movements and feint kicks constantly. Make your opponent question what is coming next. Stay active, create reactions and use those reactions to attack. The less predictable you are, the harder you are to fight. 3️⃣ You don’t need the fanciest kicks, you need kicks that score The athlete with the most beautiful technique doesn’t automatically win. Find the kicks and situations that work for you, then repeat them until they become automatic. Build a few extremely reliable weapons and use them as the foundation of your game. 4️⃣ Pressing is more than just moving forward Pressure means forcing your opponent into decisions. Use attacks, feints and movement to push them towards the edge, disrupt their game plan and make them uncomfortable. Create mistakes, then punish those mistakes. One thing I keep realizing: the more coaches and systems I learn from, the more I see that good fighting isn’t about knowing 100 different techniques. It’s about being able to create the right situation and execute your best ones when it matters. 🥋🔥