Board Breaking: Three Strategies
By Robert P.Borsody
this may be description of three strategies for breaking boards that i believe I invented. Let me tell you who I am and why I did this. I’m a martial arts practitioner and have been completely practicing tae kwon do for about 45 several years off and on. For the last 20 decades, I happen to possess been steadily ascending from the ranks and I am now afourth degree black belt
i’ve a slight body, about a hundred and fifty lbs, and at this point, I’mabove seventy. I never ever was strong enough to punch or kick due to four or 5 boards like most of the even bigger, more robust, younger members of my school. Also, when I attended tournaments exactly where these enormous, powerful young guys smashed cinderblocks combined with different boards, i believed to myself, I Am Going To rarely find a way to do that. Additionally, for the reason that I wish to go on using my fingers and ft for factors aside from smashing boards, I failed to would like to consider individuals tactics. So, with a function to credibly contend with the tournaments as very well as for my own experience of successes, i believed i’d attempt to think of some board breaking ways that no-one else did.
My certain school and variety of karate targeted on a number of board breaking. Starting with small, single seven inch wide boards for any yellow and green belts and, as they progressed, much more boards and more tricky breaking systems. most of the boards were, obviously, standard 1 inch thick pine boards. There were also 1/2″ thick boards at times used for distinct pace strategies and, much more typically, for your more youthful college students. The mature pupils and the greater state-of-the-art belt ranges put to use the conventional ten” x 12″ and 1 inch thick pine board. Which Is what I utilised, and there’s no way that I could place my foot through in excessive of a few of them, even if i believe I did undergo 4 of them once with a turnaround side kick.
I put myself to pondering up some breaks that may look and feel first-rate; be tough to do; it would not want me to go through three or four boards, which I could not do. Certainly as I obtained the black belt rank after which it second diploma black belt it absolutely was predicted that, for demonstrations or around the periodic “stage checks ” in somewhere between the belt degree tests, I would do something that was wonderful and relatively spectacular. Also, I thought it had been the one way that i utilised to be likely to bring home any prizes at the tournaments.
I came up with three many different approaches: the double reverse elbow break combined with a double palm heel break; the “tower of energy”; and “the triple.” One of the attention-grabbing elements about these three methods is the most difficult a person appears the easiest and least complicated a person appears the most difficult. I Have never ever noticed everybody else do these breaks and I Have experienced large quantities of tournaments; in human being and on television and I’ve browse some guides on martial arts solutions including breaking.
In many of the training books on breaking all of them give attention to breaking the biggest range of boards or cinderblocks or one in nearly every of those methods that I could practically never do, most notably a flying side kick, jumping above five or six young students crouched in front of the boards. That generally seems outstanding when you’ll uncover it completed ideal, although I extremely really feel sorry for those bad men who often times get squashed once the fellow trying to break lands quick. The breaks that I will identify for you, I Have rarely witnessed wherever else so, it could be, I invented them. As you will definitely see, they’re not in particular problematic nevertheless they glance outstanding.
allow me to now demonstrate these breaks in depth and, contrary to many of all those stuff you see on tv that say “don’t you could try this at your house” it is necessary to try out this. if you are studying this article you must’ve come to this web-site since you are a practitioner or keen on turning into one particular and so I think one can fend for your self.
REVERSE ELBOW AND PALM BREAK
As we all know, an elbow break is simply not, keep in mind a break aided by the elbow. A Single rarely breaks a board along with a bone. It hurts and it’s seriously not the evident way to break. even although it’s described as an “elbow” break, one essentially does it, when engaging in a ahead break, when working with the forearm, instead of the side with the arm (which might be hitting with a bone) but with the number one belonging to the arm. Having Said That, I am speaking about a reverse “elbow” break. That break is done with the back with the higher arm.
The holders stand in back of you and its preferred to possess two holders for each set of boards. I use two boards on every facet but you should get started off with one particular board on every single facet. Even for a single board it is best to own two holders to supply you with the balance when you break. In Any Other Case, the Board could very well twist if you hit it, dissipating the pressure of just one’s blow. to accomplish good breaks you’ll need good holders. I generally stand within a horse stance for this break, considering the truth that you should be symmetrical once you strike on equally sides directly.. The boards will be positioned parallel with one’s body, about three or four inches out from a shoulders and nearly for the degree of one’s body to be certain that, with the fullest extension of your strike, you’ll pass several inches further than and throughout the boards. In any break you want to finish up, at the fullest extension of your respective strike, many different inches past the broken board. The boards must also be tilted or a bit inclined inward. You chamber for the strike with the two arms prolonged directly out before your complete body; then convey them sharply and forcibly back again throughout the boards. that is certainly an easy reverse elbow strike and that’s the most useful way I started off with considered a person of my “fancy breaks.”
Having Said That that without delay got aged and I had to incorporate it with one thing else so I added a double palm heel strike. At Times I do a punch however it constantly hurts my knuckles when I punch thru a board and so I detest to accomplish it. A palm heel strike is a great deal kinder for the hand and, as I stated, I am not about to injure my arms or ft to acquire almost any a prize at a tournament. As each individual practitioner appreciates, as expected, a palm heel strike is completed by bending the knuckles back so far as they’re likely to go and striking along with the palm of your hand.
I combined a double palm heel strike with my double reverse elbow strike. The holders for your double palm heel strike (all through again, two holders for each set of boards) would stand before me, aided by the two sets of boards held about a shoulder duration apart to make sure that, as I did the double palm heel strike, i’d hit directly in the middle in the boards. As you will want to have guessed by now, among the many disadvantages of the break, is the fact you must have a first-rate deal of holders; eight being precise.
So, here is the setup: assuming you begin with solitary board breaks, you’ve two boards held immediately in front of you at shoulder peak, and two boards in back of you at just about the degree of your shoulders, and tilted a little ahead.. You stand in the horse stance and chamber by stretching out your fists just touching the boards in entrance of you, then you certainly do the reverse elbow break; bringing the arms sharply again and smashing in the boards in back of you after which it, instantaneously, in the compressed bent elbow place, do a double punch forward in the boards in front of you; at the same time thrusting the upper human body forward a few of foot or so, carrying the weight and momentum belonging to the upper physique behind the double punch (or double palm heel, as I like.)
That’s it. It seems excellent and is dramatic and, I guess if you are sturdy sufficient, you quite possibly can do the breaks in sets of 3 for your complete of twelve boards in all. The essence of it’s the swiftness and simultaneity for the breaks. In about a 50 % a 2nd the arms are thrust backward and punched ahead and one can find damaged boards all in excess of the place.
Right After a while even this received a bit tedious and I extra an additional refinement, which, then again, I don’t urge. To the currently crowded bunch of holders, I added a different set of four holders, stationed inside the middle, with boards inclined at about 60 angle through the vertical, to get a double downward knife hand break. i’d do the reverse elbow break then the forward palm heel break then i’d provide my palms up before my experience, cross them, and convey them down in the double knife hand, breaking the boards inclined up in direction of me at a sixty angle. the situation with this is the simple fact that it took twelve holders and it absolutely was this form of crowd you couldn’t genuinely see the breaks clearly. i utilised to be really pushing the envelope to try to do something dramatic.
The break method of your double reverse elbow with double palm heel looks problematic nonetheless it’s certainly pretty convenient as shortly as you follow it step by step as laid out earlier mentioned. Then I invented the “tower of energy.”
THE TOWER OF ELECTRICITY
This one could be a series of speed breaks coupled with a double hammer fist. you may well also do it as a single hammer fist when you begin out. You put in place the hammer fist break inside conventional way. Two cinderblocks, upended, using the board suspended in involving. I ordinarily have almost a 50 % an inch of the board on each and every cinder block. quite a few people place the boards for a hammer fist break higher up on two cinderblocks peak to carry it to about waist height. As you may see, considering that we are likely to place the boards with the velocity break on number one, you cannot try this.
Placing the boards at this small levels, about eighteen inches previously mentioned the ground, means that, to accomplish a tremendously effective hammer fist strike, you will need to drop down your complete physique, bending your knees, as you bring your fist close to inside a complete circle swing about your shoulder and down from the board.
I after did a hammer fist break such as this as a end result of 4 boards, at among the many tournaments, and cracked a bone with the bottom of my striking hand on the grounds that I did it the incorrect way. It’s important to sink the whole system down small as being the fist is swung around the shoulder and brought down within the board so that the arm also, the fist, on the moment of impression, are directly. when the fist is bent within the arm the bone could break. I materialize to realize that from practical knowledge.
Becoming back again into the arrange for any tower of electricity, still, I will really need to bring up that, if you’ll put many different boards between the cinderblocks to interrupt, it will help to place spacers in in between the boards. As all professional “board breakers” know, spacers allow it to be better to interrupt boards. In my subjective belief, it causes it to be about 50 % as very simple. quite simply, if you maybe can break 3 boards with no spacers, you potentially can break 5 or six, with spacers. The spacers, obviously, are placed over the outdoors edges of the board, directly previously mentioned the cinderblocks. they are often pencils or strips with the boards themselves, about half an inch vast. For my breaks, i might establish up 3 or usually 4 boards, with spacers, which would signify that there might probably be about a seven or eight inch high stack of boards.
As I developed the tower of energy thought, I additional a double hammer fist. Very Same issue as above besides a few cinderblocks and two individual stacks of boards. This was, needless to say, for your simultaneous double hammer fist downward strike in the boards. By this time you could quite possibly be thinking where exactly does the “tower” can be noticed in as, at this point, we just have a bit of squatty couple of cinderblocks with boards on them. But wait, you will find increased. Right Here arrive the speed breaks.
To do a speed break, without a holder, carrying out an “in-out” or “out-in” knife hand strike, you stand a board on stop, and slice your hand from the board. Mainly Because that is a martial arts information site that i’m producing for, I suppose every body knows what these type of knife hand strikes are.
for any velocity break section of the tower of energy, I would set three boards on end, on top rated of amongst the stacks of boards which were laid to the cinderblocks. The a few boards can be spaced about 50 percent inch aside. Just After a while, as I perfected the tactic, I set spacers in somewhere between the boards, arranged horizontally, after which it taped the boards additionally, the spacers together to create one particular sound unit. This became required also to keep the entire point from falling around since, as you should see, this was just the first layer. On leading of the extremely first layer of three boards I put a second layer of two much more boards, again spaced a 50 % inch aside and on the best of that 2nd layer a 3rd layer of an individual board. If you don’t tape the bottom two layers of boards along with spacers as I mentioned, you’ll have to place something, in all likelihood the identical fifty percent inch extensive spacers, on top notch of each of the first and 2nd layers of boards, perpendicular with the boards, to assist the layer higher than it.
this might be lots much simpler to show if I could have a image and upload it or draw a diagram, but make an effort to photo this. you’ve gotten the three cinderblocks with two stacks of boards stretching in between them piled up, with the spacers, about seven or 8 inches great. On best of on the listing of stacks you’ve got a few boards standing on conclusion perpendicular with the stack of boards and spaced a few of 50 percent an inch aside, and on number one of that two way more, and on top of that one solitary board.
This complete factor stands about 5 toes significant. The breaks are executed as follows. You stand in entrance of it, in a very horse stance. (you’re capable to do the speed breaks with the equivalent hand or, as I did, with alternate fingers. they could possibly be in-out knife hand or out-through which ever before you do most effective.) Beginning in the major, you do a knife hand pace break from the solitary high board; then a further knife hand pace break throughout the second layer of two boards; then another knife hand speed break in the bottom layer of three boards. Eventually you raise up both fists more than your shoulders and smash them down due to the two stacks of boards suspended concerning the 2 cinderblocks.
It is an excellent “crowd pleaser” and ends up with damaged boards and spacers all approximately the landscape. It appears to be like hard but seriously isn’t awfully stressful except for the speed breaks. The exciting factor I noticed regarding the pace breaks is usually that, whether or not a number of of your boards typically are not broken over the velocity breaks, it isn’t visible because boards go flying off into the distance anyway. Also, immediately after the speed breaks everyone is thinking about the double hammer fist, which quite often ends in an extremely gratifying crash, and never noticing the boards which were hit from the knife hand which are flying off from sight. Although this break tactic glance magnificent it isn’t practically so tough as “the triple.”
THE TRIPLE
The essence of the triple is its simultaneity. it is just a simultaneous double downward knife hand strike, using a front kick; all at a similar time. along with the knife hand breaks, the boards are held at your sides, inclined about thirty going through you, at about waistline top. I use just one board on every facet. A stronger breaker could use greater, nonetheless, the essence here is not strength, but speed, timing and coordination. I stand within a backstance amongst the two boards at my aspect and chamber for any break by elevating my arms in entrance of my confront, hands crossed, palms going through me, inside a knife hand position. For the break, each fingers are brought sharply down and turned outward at the point of effect of your break for the boards.
to the front kick, the board (just as before, I use just one board. You could use even more if you are more powerful) is held in front of you in the usual front kick place, a little inclined downward to satisfy the ball of your foot because it as it truly is snapped ahead inside of a front kick.
This break would use 6 holders; two on each and every of this boards on each aspect and two for the entrance kick in front of you. though they can be just single boards, two holders prevents the boards from twisting and offers a better break. This break seems rather simple; a whole of only three boards. It involves an amazing degree of aim and concentration, nonetheless, to break them all at the very same instantaneous. As, the two palms are introduced down in the chamber situation before the experience to slice throughout the two boards on just about every facet, you snap your foot ahead inside of a front kick to satisfy the entrance board simultaneously that you do the knife hand breaks.
I attempted adding a fourth board. I tried a backward head strike because of a fifty percent-inch board. (There was no way I was planning to bang my head on an inch thick board.) While the backward head strike was no giant deal on its unique, when extra to the opposite three breaks, I just could not do it at the identical time. Possibly one of several readers of this short article will try and do it and be in a position to write in to explain it.
Very Well which is it, we’ve disclosed my tricks to the full world and expect now to get a hold of out these breaks becoming conducted on TV and at the Olympics. conversely, perhaps you’ll uncover it no huge solution and other people were carrying out these elsewhere for really quite a while. I may be inquisitive about listening to from anybody if they have looked at breaks like these done.
(A condensed of this insightful article was published in the August2009 edition of Black Belt Magazine. The author want toacknowledge the advice, educating and assistance of his instructor Henry Weber, and f Henry Weber’s instructor Grand Master Shin.)