Breaking bricks in karate is among the few proofs you can find when demonstrating the power of physics. Karate masters can break bricks using their bare hands. As much as it seems unreal, it’s a possible skill that many people have mastered.
Even though bricks are stiff, they have some level of elasticity. If you whack a brick on the right spot, it will break.
It’s a skill that takes time to master. If you are a novice, you may break a bone instead of the brick without the proper momentum, force, or positioning.
Breaking bricks with your hand is a testament to the efficiency and mastery of human movement.
Contents
The Brick Breaking Technique by Karate Masters
There are no special bricks for training karate. These are ordinary bricks that people chop through. There is no secret to brick breaking. And there is also no need to doctor a brick so that you can break it.
Consider applying moderate power, geometry, speed, and precision to the target material if you want to succeed.
1. Power and Force
On average, breaking a brick takes only 720lbs of static force. (Note that brick dimensions may vary). It’s comparatively lower than a heavyweight boxer who can hit with a force exceeding 1000lbs in a horizontal direction.
2. Speed and Focus
Brute strength is a crucial component, but you may end up hurting yourself without speed and focus. How you fashion the chop is an essential part of breaking the brick.
If you are a karate student, you should learn how to strike with maximum momentum. The striking technique is similar to a player playing tennis or golf; it must have a follow-through.
Set the blocks to span long in between supports and strike dead center.
3. Material and Surface
Bricks are stiff, but you also need a hard surface when setting up. For instance, placing the brick on a mat instead of the floor will make it spring upon impact. It’s essential that you maintain a rigid setup before making any attempts to break a brick with your hands.
Breaking Multiple Bricks
Sometimes you see people break multiple bricks. While it requires more force than breaking a single brick, the setup determines if all the bricks will break.
If you take a closer look at brick-breaking events, you will see spacers placed at the edge to separate each brick. The space allows the transfer of force to the blocks progressively, giving it a domino effect.
While you can break multiple bricks, it’s almost impossible to break one thick block of the same thickness.
How to Condition Your Hands and Avoid Injuries
Conditioning your hands to be in their best form determines the difference between injury and success. Consider the following ways to harden your hands.
• Start with soft gloves, then move to no gloves
• Practice the chopping technique on a punching bag. Start by slapping the bag like you would a person.
• Next, slap the bag with your backhand. It helps to harden the soft tissue prepping them for impact.
• Hammer fist the punching bag. Then proceed to chop the bag.
• Pull-up bar. Working on the pull-up bar improves your upper body strength targeting your forearms, arms, hands, wrists, and fingers.
• Hand Grips. These are useful to build muscle in both your forearm and hands.
Don’t hit too hard when starting because your bones are still not hardened enough, and you might break them. Adjust your power gradually and practice more so that you are comfortable hitting stiff surfaces without feeling pain.
Conclusion
The essential lesson for novice brick breakers is that practicing every day will help you achieve your goal faster. To master the technique, you can’t just walk to a cinder block and whack it.
Also, the greatest challenge in brick breaking is more psychological than physical. Even though you need to perfect the technique, you must commit yourself mentally.
Strike with full force and aim at the dead center. Remember to have a follow-through upon impact so that the brick breaks easily.
There is no particular technique for breaking multiple bricks. All you need is more training hours and the confidence to strike the brick with the right momentum and precision.
