You want me to what?

Shhh....be quiet.  Don't speak so loud.  Don't yell. Lower your voice.  These mandates we hear from a very young age, and are reinforced throughout our lives and within society.  So it comes as no surprise, that when we (Taekwondo Instructors) ask a student to "kihop" or shout, it is met with considerable reluctance.

"Ki Hop" is a combination of two Korean words:  "Ki", referring to the internal energy that dwells in all of us.  Our Spirit (more on this later). "Hop" has meaning of concentration or focust.  Put them together and it becomes "an outcry uttered in such concentration" or "energy shout".  A verbal utterance that brings together for an instant our focus and energy.

So why do we kihop?   First let's discuss the physiological reasons. As we kihop we tighten the muscles of the body for a fraction of a second.  This sudden tension of the muscles combined with the speed and accuracy of the technique results in the amazing power that Taekwondo is known for.  Muscle, skin, and bone harden to steel and stone for a fraction of an instant.  This allows us to break wood and bricks with amazing power.

The psychological reasons for kihop are realized both by the practitioner and opponent.  A strong kihop can temporarily startle an opponent, thus giving an advantage to the practitioner.  Secondly, there is a positive feeling that we get when we make a good, strong kihop;  it feels good!  A strong kihop can stimulate us; motivate us; empower us; rejuvenate us; strengthen us.  A good kihop can return our focus back to the task at hand.

And how should we kihop?  The kihop should be be a short, forceful exhalation and shout.  It should be executed at the same exact moment that we perform the technique.  It should originate in our lower abdomen, and boil up rapidly out of our throat and mouth, like water boiling out of a teapot.  It shouldn't linger or be weak.

One of the beautiful diametric opposites of Taekwondo is the balance between the self-controlled silence of the dojang, and the ear-splitting kihop when we execute a technique.

So, keep training hard and kihop loud!