Effective Hapkido Throws by Grand Master Ronald Stone

Effective Hapkido Throws by Grand Master Ronald Stone

          An effective Hapkido technique should achieve a maximum effect with a minimum of expended effort.  At the same time a proper throw should use the attacker’s own strength and directional force against himself, while focusing the martial artist’s speed and Ki energy intentionally into a specific and focused direction.  Most of all, a correct throw  should both unbalance and take the opponent by surprise.  Properly performed it should appear fluid and effortless.

Any study of correct throwing techniques in Hapkido would have to include the mechanics of leverage and body position, balance and stance (before, during and after the throw), strength and Ki energy utilization, pressure points and joint manipulation.

          A scientific breakdown of an individual throwing technique step by step would include the following factors.

1.  Speed

2.  Balance

3.  Body position

4.  Knowledge of joint function, leverage, and Ki application

5.  Utilization of the circular principle and the water principle

          The first time a throwing technique was demonstrated to me I was amazed by how quickly I was placed off-balance and how smoothly and effortlessly the throw was performed.

It seemed as if I was powerless to respond.

Over the years I have become increasingly more convinced that far too many martial arts instructors teach strength training as a substitute for proper technique and underestimate or misinterpret the importance of Ki energy, stance and balance.  They do a grave disservice to their students.  A simple hip throw for example is often incorrectly taught as a muscular pull over the hip instead of an effortless direction of the opponent over one’s lowered hip.  Properly performed, it should utilize a combination of low stance, hip rotation, and circular movement of the arms while applying Ki energy to a firm grip.  The opponent should be effortlessly thrown not wrestled or muscled over.

One of the beauties of the study of Hapkido is the practicality of its techniques.  When studying throwing techniques it must be remembered that in a real-world scenario the opponent is attacking, not cooperating.  Speed therefore becomes paramount. Of course any student must of necessity first begin training slowly in order to learn the basics of a particular throw.  Repetition is necessary for instinctive memory or a movement.  Constant practice will eventually allow one to reach the speed necessary to correctly position oneself and to achieve the level of surprise that is essential to survive a real world confrontation.

As a martial art movie star once said: “The best way to handle a punch is to not be there!”  The same concept can be said regarding the application of a Hapkido throw.  If you quickly avoid the attacker’s technique, whether it be strike or kick, and if you can quickly position yourself into a proper stance before the opponent can react, you will have a far better chance of successfully executing a proper throw.

Balance is both a physical as well as a mental concept and is important when executing a Hapkido technique.  Just as a good stance is important for striking or kicking techniques, stance and balance are essential to perform a proper throw. When performing a hip or leg technique, for example, a stable stance that puts the thrower underneath the opponent’s center of balance is very important.  Also the Hapkido practitioner must remember that such stances must not only be rooted at the base and strong, but also be very flexible.

Any practitioner performing a throw must be alert to subtle changes in the opponent’s body.  Often times the counter to a certain throw ends up being the exact same technique performed in reverse.   Therefore any stance taken for the purpose of throwing an opponent must also of necessity be flexible enough to flow into an alternative technique.  Those who remain inflexible, stiff or muscle bound will not be able to perform such techniques smoothly and effortlessly.

The Hapkido practitioner performing a throw must have a body that is balanced from the knees straight up through the spine.  This not only provides added strength and stability, but aligns the Ki centers of the body and increases the effect of the technique.  Any lifting or twisting should be started with the legs and hips not with the weaker shoulder muscles.  Often a Hapkido artist finds that while positioning himself into a throwing techique the opponent is so off balance or has committed so strongly to an attack that he has effectively already begun to fall.  The simple act of placing oneself into the correct position with a proper stance has in effect led to the completion of the throwing technique.

The longer one studies Hapkido the more you begin to recognize the opponent’s strategy of attack, oftentimes before that attack is even launched.  As training progresses the student’s understanding of body language cues will become more and more important.  If, for example, we realize that an attacker is about to strike with a right foot forward straight punch we can lower and circle our body in such a manner as to both avoid the punch while at the same time placing our right foot in front of the opponent’s.  This is an ideal position for a variety of Hapkido hip, shoulder or leg throws.  Positioned in this manner the attacker practically cannot help but fall over the defender.

It is important to understand how an attacker moves and what the importance of his body position is in order to properly execute a Hapkido throw.  If all of the attacker’s weight is on one leg it changes the dynamics or the choice of defense.   Attack the sole leg’s support and the attacker must fall.

The same can be true of any Hapkido throwing technique.  Opponents who are bent over to the front will more easily be thrown forward while those inclining backward will more likely succumb to a rear technique.  Whether side to side or back to front, each of the opponent’s stances has certain advantages and disadvantages.  Knowledge of the weakness of an opponent’s stance and body position allows for greater success in throwing.   In orther words; attack weakness and defend with strength. 

          While placing one’s body under the opponent’s center of balance is preferable for most throws, it is not always possible.   This is when the Hapkido practitioner’s knowledge of leverage and pressure points comes into play.  Very often opponents or attackers will have some martial arts skills or perhaps are naturally well balanced.  Many are stronger or taller.  Regardless, an intimate knowledge of pressure points, joint function and Ki points will often allow the Hapkido expert to manipulate the opponent into a different position, one more easy to attack with a throwing technique.

          A classic example of this would be the use of a pressure point or Ki center to break an attackers grip and to create a situation were the attacker’s balance changes in response to pain.  When being choked by a well balanced, larger and stronger opponent a simple finger trust to the notch at the base of the throat will cause even the most determined opponent to loosen his grip and lean backwards in response to the thrust.  This in turn sets him up for a throwing techique. 

          An extension of this phenomenon would be the application of the circular and water principles of Hapkido.

Attacks can be blocked, absorbed, deflected, trapped or redirected.  Most of an attackers power comes from a linear force, be it a kick, a hand strike, or even a rushing tackle.

Hapkido often teaches us to meet this force with a circular redirection.  By then applying our Ki energy into a new direction of our choosing the attacker’s own force is concentrated against himself.

          If we meet a hard attack with softness and then apply a counter with hard, fast and concentrated Ki energy we cannot help but succeed.  This then is also and application of the water principle.  A strong punch can be avoided, trapped and the, defender can redirect the attacking arm in a direction that is contrary to the normal function of his joint, be it wrist, elbow or shoulder.  Leverage now applied firmly in this new direction will cause the attacker to experience pain, disorientation and inevitably lead to success with a properly applied Hapkido throw.

          When first learning to throw it seems difficult for a student to overcome the seemingly instinctive notion that one must force the throw and apply more muscle strength in order achieve success.  If Hapkido teaches us one thing it is that the more relaxed and focused one is, the more knowledgeable one is about balance, stance and leverage, the easier it will be to throw one’s opponent without much physical effort.  Especially when we quickly focus our Ki energy into the application of our techniques.

About the author: R.W. Stone is currently a practicing veterinarian in Central Florida. He is an avid equestrian, a master ranked martial artist, a best-selling western author, and a firearms enthusiast. After joining a martial arts school in 1970 Stone started studying Yudo with a Korean grandmaster. He eventually became a member of the Judo team of the University of Illinois. It was at the University that a Korean classmate and friend introduced him to Tae Kwon do. After graduating veterinary college, he found the martial arts becoming too sports oriented and eventually after moving from Miami to Central Florida he sought out a Hapkido grandmaster. Currently Stone is ranked 8th dan in Haemukwan Hapkido, 4th dan in Daehan Yudo and a second dan in Kukki Taekwondo. He is the Hapkido Instructor at the American Dragon Martial Arts Academies.

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