No knives necessary for this impressive technique
By Michael Ronquillo  The double knife-hand block is used when blocking a punch or kick delivered towards the midsection. It is a fundamental technique of tae kwon do and allows students to not only ward off attacks but to deliver a counterattack. Energy is expended from the attacker as the weight is shifted towards the punch or kick. The defendant only has a couple of seconds to counter and take advantage of the attacker’s momentum.
Here are the steps to performing this awesome technique: Step One Face forward and place your trail leg back while turning your body to the side. If you are right handed, your left leg (your lead leg) should be forward and your right leg (your trail leg) should be behind and vice versa. Your trail leg should be facing to the side, approximately 180 degrees while your lead leg should be pointing forwards 90 degrees. Your body posture should be in a way where your shoulder, respective towards your lead leg, is leading out. Step Two Form both of your hands into the knife-hand position: your hands are open, your fingers closed, and your thumbs are tucked into the palms. Your hands should look like a closed fist, except your thumbs are tucked into your palms as opposed to your pointer finger. Step Three Reach straight back behind your body with both hands. Your forward hand will cross your chest, palm up. Note that your forward hand is whatever your lead leg is. For example, if your lead leg is your left leg, your forward hand is your left hand and vice versa. Your back hand will extend back, elbow straight, palm facing down. This movement is similar to that of pulling your t-shirt off from behind your neck. Step Four Sweep both of your arms quickly towards the mid-front, where the attack towards your midsection would occur. Step Five Twist your forward wrist at the end so that the palm faces out. Be sure your elbow is cocked at a 90-degree angle, about a fist-length away from your side and aligned with your forward leg. This should be one continuous motion, as it’s a matter of snapping your wrist forwards. Step Six Twist your back wrist as it sweeps across your midsection as a guard. Your palm will face up in front of your solar plexus. The bones in your knuckles and back hand will deflect any attack, coupled with the momentum you’ve gathered from the sweep. Words of Advice: Be sure to reach back far enough with both of your hands. Giving yourself more distance will result in increased power as you sweep for the block. Keep the top of your block level in-line with your eyes so that you can actually see the attacker in front of you!
Voila! And there you have it, a double knife-hand block. Trust me, you’ll need this in case someone decides to play dirty and tries to attack you in the groin! Mastering the double knife-hand block takes practice!
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