Warmup and Flexibility
First, a word about what you will need to learn. The practice of martial arts requires very little. I am always stunned by how much modern martial arts schools charge students nowadays. I believe that we can work together to give you a very practical education in Hapkido while forgoing most, if not all, of the expense associated with traditional learning. So in short what do you need to learn Hapkido? Well you need an instructor, that's me, and you will need a practice partner. In Hapkido the partner is sometimes called an Uké (prounounced ewe-kay). Ideally you should find somebody who also wants to learn Hapkido so that you can both learn at the same time. If your partner does not want to learn Hapkido that is okay. Training Dummies can be substituted for an uke for some moves but a human being is preferable.
The key to speed and power is relaxed flexibility. The term flexibility is bandied about a lot in martial arts. For our purposes true flexibility means that you can kick and strike any target on another person without hurting yourself. Not just reach any part of the other person but strike with blinding speed and devastating power.
To attain true flexibility we will be utilizing a two stage system, static stretching and dynamic stretching.
Static flexibility is like this. Stand with your back against a wall and have your partner raise your leg gradually. Ensure they support your knee. We want to stretch, not strain. When you feel the muscles in your leg get tight then you are near the apex of the stretch. When you feel a dull ache then that is as high as you should go today.
Just for FUN! Try to measure how high your foot goes every day you stretch, if you are doing it correctly it will go a little higher every time.
This is called a buddy stretch or partner stretch and it's a type of static stretch.
Dynamic stretching is different. Stand next to a wall so that your body is at a right angle to the wall. Raise one foot and straiten your leg and swing the leg back and forth as far as it will go without causing pain. After 30 seconds switch feet and swing the other leg the same way.
Static stretching gives us warm flexibility and helps us to increase our flexibility. Dynamic stretching gives us cold flexibility so that if you had to deliver a powerful kick on the street without warming up you could do it.
The key to speed and power is relaxed flexibility. The term flexibility is bandied about a lot in martial arts. For our purposes true flexibility means that you can kick and strike any target on another person without hurting yourself. Not just reach any part of the other person but strike with blinding speed and devastating power.
To attain true flexibility we will be utilizing a two stage system, static stretching and dynamic stretching.
Static flexibility is like this. Stand with your back against a wall and have your partner raise your leg gradually. Ensure they support your knee. We want to stretch, not strain. When you feel the muscles in your leg get tight then you are near the apex of the stretch. When you feel a dull ache then that is as high as you should go today.
Just for FUN! Try to measure how high your foot goes every day you stretch, if you are doing it correctly it will go a little higher every time.
This is called a buddy stretch or partner stretch and it's a type of static stretch.
Dynamic stretching is different. Stand next to a wall so that your body is at a right angle to the wall. Raise one foot and straiten your leg and swing the leg back and forth as far as it will go without causing pain. After 30 seconds switch feet and swing the other leg the same way.
Static stretching gives us warm flexibility and helps us to increase our flexibility. Dynamic stretching gives us cold flexibility so that if you had to deliver a powerful kick on the street without warming up you could do it.