WHAT GOES UP . . . Two Types of Falling

By Daniel Middleton

Someone is throwing, someone gets thrown.

The kihap... is absolutely

essential when falling

In any type of throwing art, learning to take a fall properly is at least as important as the throwing itself. Someone is throwing, someone gets thrown. Both are essential. But many people don’t realize that there are actu-ally two basic categories of falling techniques: body protection and martial arts gymnastics—both of which are covered in the Korean martial art of Kuk Sool Won™.

Body Protection Falls

The most basic type of falling, the falling skills with which students in any throwing art will be familiar, are body protection falls designed to pro-tect from serious injury.

Most people don’t get hurt when they fall, but because they try to keep from falling. Fighters instinctively throw out an arm to catch themselves only to injure wrists, elbows, shoulders, and col-larbones—fragile bones and joints not designed to support the body on impact. Break a wrist or collar-bone and it will heal; but impact the head or spine and it can be serious, even life-threatening. Learning proper falling teaches the student to override this instinctive reaction and instead take the fall in a way that prevents injury, especially to the most vital areas—the head and spine. That’s what falling principles—called nahk buhp—are all about. The martial art of Kuk Sool Won™ trains in five basic body protection falls: front, back, side, front-side, and (low) spinning or rolling falls. The back fall is one of the most important falls, simply because it can help protect you from a potentially serious injury. But it is also probably the scariest of all the basic falls. Learning this fall cor-rectly is a great confidence builder and will make learning all other falls that much easier. On first examination, the back fall seems to completely violate the notion that proper falling is designed to protect the spine. However, in the correct application—first learned in a seated or

kneeling position—the actual impact of the fall is taken across the shoulders, rather than in the center of the back, while the arms slap out to the sides, absorbing some of the impact.

What can’t be seen by casual observation is that this arm position also causes the scapulae (shoul-der blades) to protrude slightly, creating a shal-

low depression protecting the spine from contact with the ground. This can be easily demonstrated by placing the flat of your hand across the relaxed upper back of a partner, touching the spine. Then, have your partner extend the arms out and back. This will cause the shoulder blades to protrude, and contact with the spine will be lost. The principle for the side fall is essentially the same as for the back fall, except that the body will contact the mat either fully on one side of the body or on one side of the back. It is most useful to pro-tect against a fall in which the opponent retains control of one of your arms. This is the reason that,

when learning the mechanics of this fall, one hand remains on the belt while the free hand slaps the mat—just like in

the back fall—to help dissipate some of the fall’s energy. When practicing the side fall, the head is up and the chin tucked in close for support, otherwise the weight of the head could stress or damage the muscles of the neck. One element common to all falling techniques is the kihap or loud cry. While many martial art students are familiar with the kihap in striking or kicking, it is absolutely essential when falling. A proper kihap expels a part of your air and com-presses the lower abdomen, which prevents hav-ing the wind knocked out of you from a hard fall. Forget it once and you will immediately understand its vast importance.

Martial Arts Gymnastics

The second type of falling technique is sometimes called mar-tial arts gymnastics, and refers most commonly to the haejuhn nahk buhp--the spinning or rolling fall. There are variations, but the basic principle is the same: to protect the body from injury, but also to escape potentially damaging locks or throws. The most basic variation is the ‘tuck and roll.’ This is effective in a limited number of situations, but not yet the gymnas-tics of the ‘high haejuhn,’ which can be extremely versatile. As students gain confidence, they will gradu-ate from the basic ‘tuck and roll,’ to the higher and

more gymnastic haejuhn, but like any skill, this is something that can only come by falling a lot. Aside from simply falling until the skill becomes instinc-tive, the following drills are effective in developing a spinning fall that can be applied effectively.

Some Basic Drills

A good transition from the basic rolling or spinning fall is to practice the fall from an elevated surface—in this case, a folded mat—contacting the far edge of the mat so that the actual ‘spinning’ part of the fall takes place in the air as the students drops the twelve inches or so onto the mat. The next stage is similar, but this time the mat will serve as a barrier. Any type of obstacle may be used, such as a heavy bag or kick-ing pads, but only after the student is comfortable with the ‘mat rolling’ drill. Gradual progression is the

key, trying too far, too fast will only lead to frus-tration or injury. Progress should be based on achieving confidence at each skill level.

Partner Drills

After becoming comfort-able with spinning falls at waist height or higher, the student can begin partner drills, dissecting the spinning fall in response to various types of throwing tech-niques. A progression often used is based on the funda-mental throwing techniques of Kuk Sool Won™, called Ki Bohn Soo. Although, any similar type of throwing

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would work just as well as long as the same type of progression is followed. Ki Bohn Soo #1 is a great place to start. The arm position during the throw is similar to the arm position the student has learned from the basic ‘rolling’ hae-juhn. In addition, the ‘point of control’ is relatively low. The Ki Bohn Soo #1 can really build up a student’s confidence and when building up to high spinning falls, confidence is what it’s all about. The next technique in the progression is slightly more complex and demands more self-assuredness. In Ki Bohn Soo #5, the wrist is locked and the elbow bent, while more height is required to clear the lock. This is essential to using the haejuhn to ‘unlock’ the joints and allowing you an escape. The final technique in this sequence is even more complex. In Ki Bohn Soo #3, the wrist, elbow and shoulder are controlled. The ‘fear factor’ is a lot higher, and the student’s response the first time will probably be, “You want me to do what?” Although the essential principle is the same, there is a definite learning curve with this one that can’t be rushed. The most important component when executing this technique is to relax. Tensing the body in anticipation will only cause you to tighten up, and make a com-fortable fall impossible. Next, understand that every technique

has a point of no return, and to use a spinning fall defensively, it is absolutely essential to ‘beat the thrower to the punch.’ Otherwise, the partner controls the technique and your only option is a body protection fall to reduce the chance of injury. Escape is no longer an option. The way to train for this type of escape falling is to fall enough—and against enough different tech-niques—to be able to ‘read’ the entering motion and then change your body position quickly to control the technique. In this example, when your partner pushes in on the elbow, you will turn your opposite shoulder into the technique to jump up and over, ‘unlocking’ the joints and using a spinning fall to escape. Experiment with a variety of techniques. Not all throwing techniques lend themselves to a spinning fall, and the only way to determine which apply

is through trial and error. Again, the only way to get really comfortable with the haejuhn as a defensive tech-nique is to fall a lot. Fall until you like to fall and you’ll be halfway there.

Don’t Be a Mat Monkey

Finally, remember that falling on a mat is radically different from falling on the ground; within reason, train on different surfaces, and become accustomed to falling on the ground. (photo 13) All the training in the world won’t do you any good if you suddenly freeze up because there’s no padding. Falling on a hard surface is never fun. The spinning fall is definitely a ‘final defense,’ but weighed against the option of being slammed into the ground, a few scrapes or bruises might be a small price to pay for escape.

Disclaimer: Falling is an art and, like any art, only should be done with the proper instruction and under the supervision of someone who is familiar with the process. None of the tech-niques described in this article should be attempted without proper instruction.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Daniel Middleton, a fifth-degree black belt in Kuk Sool Won, has studied a number of different styles and systems of martial arts for the past 35 years. A mar-tial arts instructor since 1985, Kwan Jang Nym currently owns and operates Upstate Kuk Sool Won in Anderson, South Carolina. In addition to his practice as a licensed chiropractor, he is a freelance writer, publishing a number of articles in national martial arts publica-tions and currently completing a young adult martial arts novel called Dragons of Antioch. Kwan Jang Nym Dan has said that as a martial arts instructor, he feels that his strength is in relating his instruction to the individual student, taking sometimes abstract martial arts concepts and translat-ing these into a form that is easily under-standable by the student. This is his first article for Tae Kwon Do Times Magazine.

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