Martial Arts - How to Break Boards and Cement Blocks Using Science

Some people dream of being on TV, breaking cement blocks with single knife hand strikes like the world's greatest martial artists. There are many professional martial arts competitions where the strongest fighters break boards and concrete using different techniques. The average person wonders how they can make it look so easy. People that aren't overly large or muscled can still shatter bricks and wood.

The secret to such ability is not in strength. Strength matters to a degree but it is the pure manipulation of strength that determines whether or not you will break that block or the block will hurt something fierce. The secret behind breaking boards is in technique - speed, impulse, and kinetic energy.

Physics is yet again the power that determines whether or not you can impress the opposite sex by learning ground-breaking techniques. But it's not so rare; everyone can do it. Bruce Lee was very good at using physics to manipulate how much power he can exert on boards, and of course, people. The one-inch punch is a legendary example of mind over matter.

What is Impulse?

You see, when we say something exerts a force - for example, Jackie Chan executing a spinning kick on his opponent, or when a bullet is fired into a wall, there is one factor everybody forgets to remember.

Time.

If you were in a speeding car, unable to brake, but were given a choice of hitting a haystack or a brick wall, you don't have to be genius to pick the haystack.

If you had to jump off a cliff to avoid an explosion, would you rather jump off the side leading to jagged rocks or the opposite side leading to a lake down below?

It's obvious; we don't even have to think about it. Impulse is the product of force and time.

Impulse = Force x Time

The haystack would increase the time of impact, lessening the force over a longer duration. The water does the same to save us from a devastating fall. Even airbags in cars increase impact times to save your life in a highway collision. In martial arts, the gloves are used to decrease the force dealt by punches that are too dangerous to be done bare-knuckled.

Remember, impulse is always the same in all events. It doesn't matter what you choose to hit - the impulse is the same. However, the times and forces are different. If the time is long, the force will be mild. If the time is very short, the force is powerful. And when things bounce off an object after hitting them, it is even more deadly in force magnitude. When weightlifters accidentally let the bench-press bars slip onto their chests and the bars bounce off, it's a good lesson in teaching people the importance of having a spotter.

You have to be precise when you strike a stack of wooden boards with a knife-hand. Your strength doesn't nearly matter as much as how you hit the board. Your movement must be fluid and accurate, with no loose movement during the strike. When the blade of your hand makes contact, you have to follow through with as much power and speed as you can.

But here's the trick. Withdraw the knife-hand quickly after following through, 'bounce' your hand back off the breaking board like a whip-crack. This is not a weak blow; your strike must be powerful and quick but the entire movement must be done in without sacrificing technique.

This is easier said than done. It takes much practice to be able to do it right each time and should not be done at home.

There's a simple way to explain the secret to breaking boards and cement blocks. Or any life activity in general:

1. Decrease the time of impact (to increase the force of impact).

2. Follow through with each strike like the way a baseball coach stresses

following through with the baseball bat on a swing.

3. The impact must be quick and powerful. Keep your striking arm rigid and if you are experienced enough, 'bounce' back off the impact to maximize the destruction. Kinetic energy is the key factor here. Every time you double strength, kinetic energy is doubled. But every time you double speed, kinetic energy is quadrupled; Kinetic Energy = ½ Mass x (Velocity)^2.

4. Use the twisting torque of your shoulders, waist, and core of your body to amplify the rotational force of the strike. The more you use your entire body in a short duration of time in the martial arts technique; you are capturing the laws of physics in real life.

Impulse = TIME x force (Boxing Gloves)

Impulse = time x FORCE (Bare-knuckles)

Size no longer matters. It is all about using the right technique and making the most of your 'size.' You can break boards and blocks easily if you master the process of using force in motion. It's not a secret; do not believe advertisements and 'strength' pills. This is something you can learn in a high school textbook.

Martial arts must know these laws to master legendary techniques. The much discussed and featured technique of Bruce Lee before his untimely death was the one-inch punch. He was able demonstrate how the punch can blast people off their feet. Watch him do it here in this YouTube video.

Another example is in, Kill Bill Volume 2; a scene in which the main character had to escape from a coffin using very little space. She had to break out of the spot with only one technique - which she learned from the old Chinese master. Although the movie is fiction and it is nigh impossible to break through a coffin while under thousands of pounds of dirt, the principle of impulse force still applies.

If you ever wanted to see a martial arts master making the most of impulse and physics, the one-inch punch's very small duration of time and extremely large impact force is a definitive example. Turn on the television and tune into board-breaking competitions to see it being used.

You can do it, too. All it takes are three simple steps: Quickness, technique, and following through.

Strength is not the deciding factor. It is truly mind over the body, which is something technology and martial arts prove every day.

References:

Newton, Isaac. The Principia: Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy. U. of California Press, (1999). 974 pp.