Martial Arts Breaking Techniques
Many martial arts such as Taekwondo and Kyokushin Karate practice breaking techniques in order to test a student’s power and accuracy. For Japanese martial arts, breaking techniques are known as Tameshiwari. In Korean martial arts, they are known as Gyeok-pa or Kyeok-pa.
Martial arts breaking tests and demonstrations utilize kicks, punches, elbow strikes and other striking techniques in order to break wooden boards, concrete blocks, etc. There are a variety of different breaking techniques and combinations but they usually involve speed (i.e. breaking a large number of boards in a certain amount of time) and/or power (i.e. breaking a number of concrete blocks in a single blow).
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Martial Arts Breaking Tips & Instructions
- Martial arts students need to aim for a spot that is PAST the board.
- In order to break a wooden board, martial arts students need to kick/punch THROUGH the board. They shouldn’t stop or slow down when they have hit the board (or it will hurt more and they will not break the board). Kicks and punches should continue at full power through the board towards the target “spot that is PAST the board” (see above).
- Practice with plastic rebreakable boards. Much cheaper than buying tons of wooden boards.
- Rebreakable boards often come in 3 or 4 different thicknesses. The thinnest is used for children as it is very easy to break. The thickest version can be difficult to break for adult beginners.
Advantages of Breaking
- Teaches precision & accuracy (as breaking can hurt if the board or concrete is hit incorrectly).
- Teaches power as a person must hit the board with sufficient power to break it.
- The breaking of thick boards can demonstrate the power of a specific technique (i.e. axe kick).
- Confidence booster.
- Helps condition/toughen hands and feet.
- Acrobatic or challenging breaking demonstrations are often used as a tool to attract potential students.
- It is fun!
Disadvantages of Breaking
- This training tool is not used by all martial arts styles. However, breaking is popular with Taekwondo and some styles of Karate.
- Safety concerns because people can injure themselves by misplaced strikes (i.e. break a hand on a concrete block). Bystanders can also be injured by flying chips from broken wood boards, etc.
- Holders of the boards can also be injured by errant strikes (i.e. a spinning hook kick to the holder’s fingers). Some holders wear thick gloves in order to reduce the chance for this potential injury.
- The breaking target is usually stationary versus moving like a real opponent.
- Breaking is seen by some as a flashy demonstration tool versus a practical martial arts training technique.
- As Bruce Lee stated “Boards don’t hit back”.
Taekwondo Breaking Demonstration
Power Breaking
Taekwondo Breaking Demonstration
Image provided by Wikimedia Commons
References
- Taekwondo Animals, Tips for Better Taekwondo Breaking, https://taekwondoanimals.com/taekwondo-breaking