Black Belt Test

[frightmaster]

Does anyone have any advice for me to try to get an 11 year old to be NOT afraid to atttempt a break during her BB test? I was told that the Master will ask her to try to break it. HE is not looking fro her to do it but to only try.

[ps1]

Go buy some 1 inch pine boards. Be sure they are cut with the grain so she can break them with the grain. Usually 12in wide with a height of 8 inches will do the trick. Have her break them at home a few times. You'll see how weak they are. It takes very little effort. 6 year olds do it with some ease. I'm sure an 11 year old can do it. Also, is there a limit to how they must strike the board. Using a palm strike or knife hand is usually less intimidating than using a punch.

[DWx]

I would advise that she gets used to actually hitting something. Either the boards themsleves like ps1 suggested, or use a pad or something to get her to feel what its like to make full contact with an object. You can buy children's re-breakable boards with a layer of foam padding. They seem less scary but offer about the same resistance as a pine board. Whatever you practice on I would make sure she breaks at least once before the actual grading.

Good luck to her.

[bushido_man96]

I have done practices on breaking techniques using paper as the material. It is not as easy as one might think, either. Another step up from the paper would be to use styrofoam pieces. They make a nice pop, and the kids like to pop them. It gets them more used to penetrating the target, and the sound of the break.

[IcemanSK]

I have done practices on breaking techniques using paper as the material. It is not as easy as one might think, either. Another step up from the paper would be to use styrofoam pieces. They make a nice pop, and the kids like to pop them. It gets them more used to penetrating the target, and the sound of the break.

Good suggestion.

[frightmaster]

Excellent ideas. She has broken 1 inch pine bpoards many times. Her problem is the first time she tried an elbow break, this being her first break, she hit her wrist on the edges and cut her arm up. For me to get her NOT to be afraid is where the problem is. I know she can do it. I just do not want her to get upset about "trying".

The break itself is with a palm strike onto the brick held on 2 cinder blocks. So it will NOT move at all.

[bushido_man96]

It sounds like on that first break she got her body a little bit out of position. I see that a lot on forward elbow strikes, and it comes from the students thinking that they need to crowd the boards to penetrate them.

What I do is tell them to take a back stance, and then shift from the back stance to a front stance when breaking the board. You make sure they are far enough away from the board in the back stance, and then the hips shifting into the front stance will place the elbow on the board, and allow them to follow through, and adds power to the technique.

[marie curie]

Maybe have her watch some videos of other people doing it?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=mqXzzcPXmjU

http://youtube.com/watch?v=V09j6CEe3x4

or just search "elbow board break" or something on youtube

[TKD-BB]

The thing I do with my kids, are to practice alot on small blocking pads. Than switch to a 1/2 inch thick pine breaking board. Your instructor should be able to get these from the place they get the 1 inch thick boards. Get there confidence up than let them get up to the 1 inch required for BB. Another thing is, you need to check the 1 inch boards because over time they to get moisture in them and make them more difficult to break. Goodluck!!!

[NewEnglands_KyoSa]

i just tell my students that it will hurt MORE if they do not hit it as hard as they can as opposed to babying it. so, to avoid the pain, these kids hit like its their job!