AboutMichael Cummings Expertise I am available to answer your questions in regard to history, philosophy, technique and practice of karate, jujutsu, kenjutsu and iaijutsu. I also have knowledge and experience in Okinawan kobujutsu and traditional Japanese weapons including the jo (short staff) and yari (spear). I also have a good foundation to answer general questions concerning various other Japanese, Okinawan, Korean and Chinese styles, including their traditions, history and philosophy.
Experience I have a diverse background with over 30 years of study and practice in Japanese and Okinawan bujutsu (martial arts). I presently hold licenses/rankings in karatejutsu, iaijutsu, kenjutsu and jujutsu, respectively, as well as Okinawan kobujutsu. My first sensei was Watanabe Tsuyoshi Soke, and later Makiyama Gogen Hanshi.
I have also studied several Chinese systems, including Hung Gar tiger/crane and wing chun, and hold a black sash (shodan) in Song Shan Kempo.
I have been fortunate to have studied and trained with a number of highly qualified and revered practitioners, sensei and sifu from several different martial traditions.
I am also an amateur marital arts historian and student of hoplology.
Education/Credentials Bachelor of Science in Psychology
Black Sash Song Shan Kempo
Chuden/Mokuroku (Karatejutsu/Jujutsu/Kobujutsu)
Tengu-Sho-Oku (Kenjutsu/iaijutsu)
Question Man... you are great thaaaaaaaaanks alooooooot... But I want your opinion about what I was doing... Before I ask you and before I know All Experts website and Before I know Makiwara or Tamashiwara...... I was Striking Cement wall with puching and with my palm :) really .. About 1000 times for each hand per day ... just for few days I felt real power in my hands and felt that with one punch I can kill anybody !! (( I won't do it i'm just telling you my felling)) so what do you think ? is punching the cement wall is like punching the makiwara ? please tell me..
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Followup To
Question -
HI, I know you answered my question about preparing my hands feet and head for bricking breaks .. but when I was reading the answer my computer missed up and turned off .. so please if you can copy the answer and send it to my email ? please man.
Answer -
Mohd--
Here it is again! It's not too indepth, but it will set you on the right track!
As for hand conditioning, it is not something to be taken lightly. It is a time consuming process, requiring much dedication and patience. If not, you can seriously and perhaps permanently damage your hands, feet or elbows. It is always best to find a qualified instructor to guide you in your training. Please heed this warning!
There are two popular methods for conditioning and learning to break. The first is the ‘karate way’. The second, is the ‘Chinese way’ or iron palm method. The iron palm method is considerably different, and I won’t go into here, but follow this link and you will find some good training tips on how to develop iron palm, http://www.karatebreaking.com/techniques.html.
The ‘Karate Way’
If you want to condition your hands or feet, the best way is to do so by striking a firm to hard surface. My recommendation is to use a makiwara, a padded striking post. If you’re not familiar with makiwara, here is good link http://ctr.usf.edu/shotokan/makiwara.html. This page will tell you what it is, how to make it, and how to use it (beginner level). The same training will apply to your feet and elbows, although I recommend a separate, sturdier makiwara for foot training.
For your hands, if you want to strengthen and toughen your fists, doing knuckle push-ups is a good conditioner (in addition to makiwara training). Assume the push-up position, but instead of supporting your weight with your palms, make good tight fists and support your weight on the first two knuckles (forefinger and middle finger). These two knuckles are the desired striking surface when using a fist. However, I do not recommend frequently using your knuckles to break brick or stone. No matter how much you condition, you are bound to injure yourself at some point. It is better to use the padded, muscular portion of the hand or foot (hammer fist or ball of foot). These portions of the hand can be conditioned with the makiwara.
The general truth is, the more you practice breaking, the more you will be able to break. But do not jump too soon! Work your way up. Start with the conditioning mentioned above and go from there.
Once your hands, feet and elbows are sufficiently conditioned, you may start with breaking ‘softer’ material, such as pine boards. Select a good piece of wood, such as a one inch thick plank, with no knots and pretty dry. Cut it into 12x12 inch pieces. Place a piece on supports or have someone hold it, firmly. Start with one board (I know you may not want to, but trust me on this), and practice until you can break it easily every time. Progress to two boards, then three, four, five, etc. When using multiple boards, you can use spacers, but this makes it easier to break multiple pieces. It is more difficult to stack the boards without spacers. The same applies for brick, block or stone.
With anything you break, you need to understand a few universal principles. First, is placement on supports or rules for assistants (holders). When placing the material to be broken on supports, be it wood, brick, block or stone, make sure you use strong, stable supports. I recommend cinder blocks. Make sure the breaking surface is level, and that there is sufficient space to allow the hand, foot or elbow to pass through unhindered. The height of the object will be relative to the weapon you use, but as an example, if breaking a 2 inch thick block, the top of the block should be at approximately your groin. The ends of the block should rest firmly on the supports, but only about ¼ to ½ inch of the block needs to be on the support (left and right side supports are equal). If you have any more than ¼ to ½ of the block (or any other material) on the supports, the break becomes more difficult.
Second, your breaking materials should be clean and dry (wood or block). The surface(s) should be even and knot or obstruction free. Always check for nails, screws, straps, supports, pebbles or rocks (aggregate like in cement) before you decide to break it.
Third, if having someone hold the material for you, make sure that their hands and feet are protected against being struck during the break, or by falling debris after the break. Also make sure they turn the head to avoid being directly struck in the face (accidentally, of course). They need to hold the materials firmly and with arms locked, they cannot rock back or away from the break. In fact, they need to lean into the break a little.
This info is a little on the basic side, but I hope it helps. I must reiterate my admonition to seek out a qualified instructor if you really want to learn.
Good luck in your quest!
Answer Glad to hear you won't be doing that anymore! I must admit, punching a cement wall will eventually toughen your hands, but the side affects are terrible. Pretty soon, you would begin to damage your hand, wrist and shoulder. This type of training will permanently disfigure your hand, and cause long-term problems such as shakes (nerve damage) and arthritis. And, the Orientals believe striking hard immovable objects will damage your heart (something to do with the vibrations from the shock of impact traveling into your heart).
It is very important, especially in the beginning, to strike a makiwara with a little spring (give). As your training progresses and your body adjusts, you can 'firm up' the striking post with less give. But this is for the advanced practitioner.
One other training method, popular on Okinawa, is striking jari bako. Jari bako is basically a striking box. This training tools helps to strengthen the finger joints and to harden the tips of the fingers to favor open hand techniques such as nukite (spear hand) but can be used to condition the fist as well. The container, a 1x1x1 foot box, can be filled to 3/4 deep with different materials to promote the progress of the hand conditioning. Most common filling material for jari bako includes sand, rice, beans and gravel. Beginners start their training with soft material, sand, increasing according to the progress of the practitioner.
For conditioning the fingers, start with 50 thrusts a day each hand and work up to 200 a day (each hand). Do 200 per hand per day for six months. Every six months, progress to next material: to rice, to beans (mix green and black together), to gravel. When you get to the gravel, start with small gravel, like found in a fish tank, and gradually replace until you are striking into small rocks (about the size of a U.S. dime or nickle. For the fist, training progesses faster. Start with 200 per day per hand. After about 6 weeks, progress to the next material, just like with the fingers (only 6 weeks instead of 6 months).
Serious jari bako training with the fingers alone will allow you to eventually break boards with your fingertips (spear hand strike).
Follow this training regimen and you should be breaking bricks and blocks with ease in no time (relatively speaking). But remember, even experienced breakers can suffer injury, so be cautious in your endeavor.
Speaking of injury, remember to go slow in your training, an injury during training, especially in the beginning stages, can set you back weeks or months in your training. Better safe than sorry!
