Recent discussions and preparation for Black Belt testing has caused me to think about mind over matter; specifically, mind over boards and cement bricks.
Breaking (Kyukpa) is one of the four elements of Taekwondo, along with self-defense (Hoshinseul), sparring (Kyorugi) and forms (Poomse). Breaking an object is an excellent way to practice concentration, focus, speed, power and precision. Breaking also helps you realize that your body is a potentially dangerous weapon. You learn to respect it and others and to take care when you practice with others.
As to the physics of breaking, author Barry Nauta has observed:
”In order to break a board (or any kind of material); you must cause a shearing moment in the board that is larger than the critical moment for that type of material. When you try to break a board, the board itself is supported as both sides. If you perform your breaking technique well, you will hit the board in the center which leads to an equal distribution of force on the two parts. Both parts will supply a reverse force of half the initial force. When the force meets the board, the top of the board will be in a state of compression and the bottom will be in tension. This will produce a torque on an axis through the middle of the board. If the torque is great enough the board will break. Besides force other elements that are important are power and pressure.”
Generally, a martial artist engaged in breaking practices hitting something hard. According to Wikipedia:
Masutatsu Oyama, a famous breaker who was known for breaking the horns off bulls would use trees. In karate, a device called a makiwara is used; this device has found more popular use by practitioners of other martial arts today. In the past, Shaolin and other earlier martial artists would use many different types of devices in order to condition themselves, not always for simply breaking, but using the same concepts used today. For instance, there is Iron Palm, Iron Shin, Iron Shirt, Iron Head, and other types of training which center around conditioning various parts of the body so they could withstand or give blows such as what is seen today in martial arts breaking. Many Chinese systems also are of the school of thought that “internal energy” or Chi is used when breaking, which is not dependent upon muscle strength and body weight.
The general principles used in martial arts breaking training are similar to the same principles used for most athletics. The body adapts to stress. There are generally three areas a martial arts breaker wishes to force their body to adapt to: the bones, the skin (calluses), and muscles (for both mass and speed). The general principle here — for instance, for the bones — is found in Wolff’s law, which states that the skeletal system will, after healing, be stronger. Wolff’s law is a theory developed by the German Anatomist/Surgeon Julius Wolff (1836–1902) in the 19th century that states that bone in a healthy person or animal will adapt to the loads it is placed under.] If loading on a particular bone increases, the bone will remodel itself over time to become stronger to resist that sort of loading. This kind of training is called “progressive resistance training. There are safety concerns with martial arts breaking, so one should seek out an instructor. There are many small bones of the foot and hand which need to be very carefully and slowly conditioned for safety. Repeated damage to the extensor capsules of the knuckles can lead to long term problems with dexterity.
Preparing the mind for breaking involves practice achieving the “empty mind” (mooshim). If you have trained sufficiently, there should be no thought in your mind at the instant you are breaking. Mind is no longer concerned with the solid object you are breaking. That has become the job of your hand, elbow, foot or fist.
Dennis Schaefer is an Instructor at the Asian Arts Center Taekwondo School in Dayton, Ohio. www.aacdayton.com
http://aacdayton.ning.com/video/dennisbreaking-3rd-dan