Tae Bo is one of the more popular exercises that has emerged from the fitness-crazed subculture of America. It is a type of aerobics derived from old techniques, yet it eschews tradition. Its name and meaning are also carefully thought out and tailored: Tae Bo aspires to be a modern day holistic philosophy of mind/body training.
Definition
Tae Bo is a type of exercise that is a blend between aerobics and martial arts, combining the kinetic pace of the former with the movement and grace of the latter. Much of Tae Bo concerns rhythmic kicking and punching, so speed, power, coordination, endurance, flexibility and awareness are all important attributes of Tae Bo training. For that reason it has also been called cardio kickboxing by its founder Billy Banks.
History
Tae Bo was developed in 1976 by tae kwon do practitioner Billy Banks. The nascent years of Tae Bo were spent in the city of Boston, until a Los Angeles studio was established in 1989. In 1998, the first Tae Bo video was released. In an article dated March 15th, 1999, Nadya Labi, writing in "Time" magazine, called Tae Bo a "grueling combination of punches, kicks and squats set to the rhythm of hip-hop."
Meaning
The word Tae Bo is a portmanteau, which is a linguistic trick that blends two or more words and their meaning to form a completely new word. In this case Tae Bo combines the term tae kwon do with the first two letters of the word boxing. Tae means foot or leg in Korean, emphasizing the importance of the lower body in training.
Significance
Tae Bo, as the name would suggest, is essentially a variant of a myriad number of disciplines and abilities. Banks described it as a combination of the self-awareness and control of martial arts, the focus and strength of boxing and the grace and rhythm of dance. The name as an acronym stands for Total Awareness Excellent Body Obedience.
Effects
Tae Bo emphasizes movements that are seldom done on a regular basis, which makes it efficacious at toning and defining the entire body, according to personal trainer Troy Obrero. Tae Bo is considered a high-impact training, however, so it should only be pursued by people who are reasonably fit and healthy. An hour of Tae Bo will burn 500 to 800 calories. This isn't quite the same as an intense run, but it's more than the 300 to 400 calories burned with a conventional aerobic class.
Member Comments