The Bubishi and Tang Soo Do

[dancingalone]

Because I have only been running my own dojang for 3 months now, the black belts are still digesting the basics of what I've been showing them. Incidentally, I've learned much of the bunkai from Karate practitioners I trained with while away in college, and I showed what I had learned to my Sahbumnim, who wanted me to incorporate what works into my curriculum as long as it built on our foundation of movements (i.e. not changing our wrap ups, stance details, etc.)

So far, the black belts are loving it, they have told me that they have a new found purpose to their movements. They now have purpose to a block to the down, which they would've never done as a block to the down in an actual fight because of all of the openings it would've created for their opponent.

I am not taking away from anything that was ever taught to me, just adding more explanations to movements to our advanced students. I feel that the first 3 years of study doesn't need to change, since they are concentrating on absorbing the discipline of the curriculum and the motor skills of the basics. Once they have that foundation, I have begun introducing these details to the black belt ranks.

I understand you have a different situation than I do inheriting an established dojang, but I would encourage you to roll out the same explanations to your colored belts too when you deem it appropriate. My TKD students all begin learning alternative explanations from day one and we will hit striking pads with them to drill the muscle memory in. Example: down block, upper block from Pyung Ahn Chodan becomes a low section hammer fist with an high section European uppercut/forearm strike. My students are pleased with the 'deeper' TKD they are learning and retention has been good.