The Joy of Breaking
Flying High Kick
By the Wiz
Attend any martial arts demo, and you are
guaranteed to see someone fl y up into the air and
break a board above their head. Occasionally,
the breaker will run and leap off an object or a
person to get greater height or even perform a
backwards fl ip before landing. Detractors will
say “What’s the point?!” Th e point is to show
fi tness, strength, agility, and timing. Besides,
it looks very spectacular. After all, who can
forget how Bruce Lee made it look super cool
(as the Kato in the Green Hornet) when he
kicked out hanging lights in the bad guy’s lair?
It is also used as one of the specialty board
breaks used by the International Taekwon-
Do Federation in their championships.
Without including taking off from a person or
object, there are three ways to execute a fl ying
high board break. Th ey revolve around how
the breaker “takes off ” from the ground and
what foot they will attempt the break with.- Two foot take-off
- Same foot take-off
- Opposite foot take-off
All have benefi ts and drawbacks and are usually
a manifestation of the breaker’s personal choice,
although for competition some federations may
mandate “take off ” or execution of the break.
Two Foot Take-Off
Th is method allows the breaker to use the power
generated by BOTH legs to create greater lift
and usually a higher jump than other methods.
It is very common to see beginners attempt this
method naturally, as they intuitively know that
to gain maximum height, they need to use both
legs. Maximum height requires that both knees
are drawn upwards towards the chest. At the
right moment, the breaker must snap their foot
upwards and through the board. Th is breaking
style requires greater agility and balance than
the other methods. With both knees drawn tothe chest (like a ball), the body tends to rotate
backwards as the kick is executed. If the breaker
is not careful or does not have enough core
stability, they can fail to regain their equilibrium
and land badly, often on their back. Th is
rotation is, however, a benefi t if the breaker is
attempting to fl ip over backwards as they break.Same Foot Take-Off
Th is is the most popular method and the one
often required for competition. Th is method has
the breaker plant the foot of their dominant (and
usually strongest leg) on the ground for the take-
off , while driving the other knee upwards to gain
height. At the apex of the jump, the “take-off
foot” is snapped upward to kick the board while
the other leg snaps backward/downward. Th is
method makes it easier for the kicker to maintain
their equilibrium, as the body has a greater
length and the descending leg acts as a counter-
balance to the ascending leg’s momentum.
Switching legs can also generate more force12 January 2018 / taekwondotimes.com