– Blocks –

All Traditional Taekwon-do techniques that have a defensive function, blocking, are covered in this chapter. At least, as far as they occur in the Tuls. It is only arm techniques that are applied, even though it is also possible to use leg techniques to make a block.

Outer forearm-blocks

A forearm is used to make the block. The forearm is an area between the wrist and the clenched fist. This is used to perform various blocks. The outside is the side where the little finger sits.

An outer forearm block comes from a crossed starting posture on the opposite shoulder with the technique wrist on the wrist of the counter-movement. The technique rotates around the opposite shoulder and arcs outward to the point of contact and the counter-movement goes straight back to the side. The point of contact is on the outside between fist and forearm.

There are three heights at which the block is executed:

Upward: the forearm is bent at a 45-degree angle with the contact surface of the block in front of the center of the head.

High: the forearm is vertical on the shoulder line with the fist in front. The arm is bent more than 90 degrees. The point of contact is just above the shoulder line.

Low: just like with the upward block, the contact point is in front of the body, but now just below the band. The forearm is slightly bent.

To be continued.