Dec 29, 2025
Exercise is necessary for everyone, but it's not easy for everyone.
Some are afraid to even start, while others repeatedly renew their resolutions only to give up soon after.
Nonetheless, for some people, exercise can become a catalyst for changing the direction of their lives.
The protagonist of this episode, Researcher Park Kwang-beom, is an example of such a case.
Kwang-beom is solving the lifelong question of, “How can people make exercise more enjoyable and sustainable?”
So, what insights are contained in Researcher Park Kwang-beom’s journey?
Let’s take a close look at the main text together.
The ‘World of Exercise’ that Began at a Taekwondo Gym in Childhood
Kwang-beom's exercise journey started very early.
It was from the moment he first entered a taekwondo gym holding his parents' hands at the age of five.
Although he seems like someone who grew up naturally within exercise environments,
he didn’t always enjoy it.
The athlete development methods he experienced at a young age were overly coercive,
and the stress from the process took root in him.
The decisive moment was a left wrist fracture.
When he got the opportunity to take a break from exercise, Student Kwang-beom confessed that he was extremely happy,
clearly showing what kind of environment can drive people away from exercise.
This experience later led to the question,
“What is needed to make exercise more healthy and sustainable?”
This core question traversing his career started right there.
The True Meaning of “Loving Taekwondo”
After elementary school, he began to enjoy taekwondo not as a player but as an amateur sport enthusiast.
Interestingly, even though he moved away from competitive play, his affection for taekwondo became even deeper.
Kwang-beom explains that taekwondo,
offers high exercise efficiency,
allows adults to feel sufficient fun and a sense of achievement,
and motivates individuals with its varying skill difficulty levels
as an exercise.
The problem lies in the societal perception of taekwondo gyms as places for kids to expend energy.
The concept of taekwondo for adults has hardly taken hold.
However, he wanted to break this mold.
“With fewer kids, taekwondo gyms cannot operate targeted solely at children. Expanding the market to adult exercise isn’t a choice but survival.”
He intended to create a new market in the area he excels at.
Expanding Martial Arts into Fitness: The Birth of ‘Half Minute’
Researcher Park Kwang-beom also participated in the development of the Half Minute program based on taekwondo techniques.
This project, in simple terms, reinterprets martial arts movements into a fitness routine.
The reasons for needing this program are clear:
The teaching methods among taekwondo leaders are too varied.
It is challenging to properly convey the appeal of taekwondo in the adult exercise market.
The existence of a unified program is necessary for market expansion.
Therefore, the headquarters produced the program,
while each branch could focus on encouragement, support, and management.
Like Cross*fit’s WOD, it efficiently circulates limited movements, allowing even adult beginners to experience the fun of ‘challenge-achievement-progress’.
“I wanted to integrate a part of the martial arts market into the fitness market.”
Creating a new exercise culture based on his major field.
In this way, his unwavering love for taekwondo could be confirmed.
From Taekwondo to Running: Moving Towards the Essence of Exercise
Currently, working at Sam*, researching a running coach app,
The seemingly distinct worlds of taekwondo and running
are clearly linked by Kwang-beom.
“How to make people exercise for a long time, joyfully, and consistently.”
He is keenly interested in helping everyday people, not elite athletes, to
maintain health,
enhance quality of life, and
develop exercise as a habit.
This interest naturally led to the current research on the AI-based Samsung Running Coach.
Kwang-beom’s Wellness: “Endure, Empty, and Start Again”
Just as LinkO defines wellness as a balance of physical, mental, and relational states,
Kwang-beom also views wellness in a very realistic way.
Surprisingly simple.
“You have to endure from Monday to Friday.
Instead, on weekends, you have to empty out.
That creates the power to live again.”
Carrying the stress built up during the daily routine means
that no matter how much you exercise, life quality doesn’t improve.
The most important thing is to take time to empty and fill your own state.
Following Kwang-beom’s story,
We come to understand that exercise is not simply restricted to the domain of ‘special people’
but an everyday activity that anyone can enjoy in their own way.
From taekwondo gyms to fitness, and further to AI-based running coaches,
The journey conveys that the essence of exercise remains unchanged even amidst changing times.
If you want to know more deeply,
listen to the ‘Full Version Interview’ on the LinkO Coach YouTube channel
Feel the mood and insights that are hard to convey in words alone
