Those of you who do TKD can tell from this picture that I did not have good form when trying to break on Saturday.
When you do a front elbow break, you need to hit the board with the stretch of muscle close to the elbow itself, not along the whole arm, which is where I hit (you can tell by the bruising) and why I was unsuccessful.
You might also be able to tell that I have little to no muscle in said area. My arms, especially my forearms, are exceedingly wimpy. I'm really not cut out for this aspect of TKD.
Ms. Pryor would say (and she has said to me) that's why my technique has to be exactly right when I break--and especially when I break with my arms. I have very little power, so it's technique, technique, technique that'll get me through.
1 comment:
OUCH!!! Impressive battle scars . . . they should be an attractive shade of green and yellow by Easter!
You say you have no power, but remember, even with hand or elbow techniques, the power starts with your hip rotation, then torso, then shoulder, and finally into the arm and hand. If you're only moving your shoulders and arms, you won't have enough power. Breaking a board is like a good golf swing - the club swing starts way behind the head and body and moves in an arc all the way past the body. You need to fully wind-up your body and then strike through the board, not "at" the board.
I too had testing days where I felt like my performance did not match my ability. It just made me want to prove (to myself) during subsequent classes that I deserved the new belt that was awarded to me.
Regarding the crowded floor during forms testing - perhaps you should point this out to Master Hughes. When the floor is so crowded that you have to wait to perform the next move or hop back a few steps to avoid getting hit, it interrupts the flow of a form. Perhaps the Master would consider testing forms in two groups, e.g. lower-level belts and upper-level belts, in order to eliminate the crowding problem.
Kicker Chick
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