Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Ko-Dang

Ko-Dang is an interesting form.  Like the other forms we do for 4th dan (Yoo-Sin and Sam-Il), it features a layer of nuance to technique execution that prepares you for the very complicated nuances of the later forms.  As such, you'll find Ko-Dang is easy to learn, but difficult to master.  While some would argue that the same could be said about all of the forms, I'd disagree.  Some of the even more advanced forms I find do not have the complexity of execution required to master the way Ko-Dang does.

Ko-Dang's opening movements are eclectic.  You start with a backwards step to a 45 degree angle and execute a tension palm hand.  Two things that can be challenging to do correctly by themselves, and together usually pose a difficult challenge.  Then you speed up and execute the next two moves quickly (shift to fighting stance, then inner forearm block / down block simultaneously).

Care needs to be taken here to find the correct cadence.  I find that the theme to this form is body control, both subtle body control and gross body control.  This is an example of subtle body control because the step backwards and slow tension palm can be difficult to show proper timing on, and then the speed up usually leads to a sloppy execution for the inexperienced.  A special note of attention needs to be placed on the 45 degree angle as well.  Over step and your shift to the back stance won't travel very far and will look unnecessary, however having too short of an angle will make you look like your straddle stance early is facing front, which would be incorrect.

The next segment of the form sees you perform some one legged stances, side kicks to the 180 degree behind you with a landing and a block opposite of the kick on the opposite 180 degree center line (if you know the form you'll get this).  This is clearly where gross body control is going to be key.  You need to come up to the one leg stance and find stillness with your double down blocks.  You need to execute the backwards side kick, with good body control, because the landing has you executing a single knife hand block in front of you.

Students will botch this time and time again, they will bleed the one leg stance and the kick together, they will then improperly rechamber the side kick or lose balance and execute what I call a "magic block" (a block that is not actually thrown but just appears where it is supposed to be.)  Yes the concept of fighting an imaginary opponent is important, but not at the cost of turning your form into slop, and the bottom line is that if you rush this segment, you will likely not execute with the proper amount of power required for what is essentially basic technique performed with complexity.  Take your time, execute one move at a time, with stillness of technique the focus point and you'll make this look good.  Also, for the love of god, don't try to kick higher than you can kick here.  You are already on one leg, so you have no momentum to help you rise the kick.  Just throw good, side kicks mid, to low if you have to, so you have the proper body control and it will look good, even without world championship 20 year old flexibility.

Next we have two downward elbow blocks.  It is important to remember that all techniques in TKD are supposed to have a reaction force hand.  You'd be surprised (or maybe you wouldn't) how many people just use one hand and keep the other glued to the hip on this.

The form gets a bit easier for now.  There's a series of pressing blocks, a series of downward forearm blocks and a series of cat stance scooping blocks.  These are all individual techniques and the only real challenge is stance length when you step backwards as this could affect your ending position.

From here you come into another sequence of multiple hand movements and stance shifts.  Starting with a front kick from a cat stance and landing in a front stance with twin inside knife hand strikes, you then chamber for single knife hand high block, then shift to back stance for knife hand block low section finishing with a shift to downward punch returning to a front stance.

Again, it is important to note that although these sections are to be done quickly, speed should not trump stance definition, timing, and stillness of technique.  Also, the downward punch is a source of much confusion.  The way I learned it, your torso should lean forward slightly and the punch goes straight down.  Some people will bend all the way over, where their torso is parallel to the ground.  I find this ridiculous, for many reasons, but your school or style may have a plausible reason for that so do check in with your instructor on that.

The next move is (I believe) a middle knuckle upset punch.  I never remember if it is middle knuckle or not.  I perform it so, but it might just be upset punch.  I know I could have looked that up, and stated it as fact, but I opted with an authentic write up, instead of a curated one.

As stated by many of the posters in The Study of Tae Kwon Do, the last two kicks are meant to be blocks.  I think of them as a cross between an outside crescent kick (at the start of the technique, through the pinnacle of the knee raise, then I quickly turn it into what we call a hook kick, where the hooking motion is on a 45 degree angle with the ground.  With my hips, it is probably the most difficult technique for me to execute, so I rarely try to throw them correctly.  If I am practicing the form, I just throw them as standard outside crescent kicks.

Finally sword hand strike is very different from knife hand strike.  It has a different delivery path (where a knife hand strike snaps at the end, a sword hand turns while in execution).  A sword hand is for gouging the eyes, and should finish in reference to your body where a block ends.  Many students over extend their sword hands out to a 45 degree angle (from their center line) for dramatic effect.  This is wrong.  It should end where a block would end, just outside the front foot.

That's it when it comes to Ko-Dang.  If you are a CTF student and reading this, the terminology might be a little off, but the execution should be expected to be the same.  If you are not CTF, the terminology might be as alien as the execution methods I discuss.  I have a video of my Ko-Dang from my 4th dan test that I am not terribly disappointed in (there were clearly things I could have done better).  I'd be happy to post it for you if you'd like.