Focus and wood breaking, how can these two items be related?
First off, I have never met anyone that thought wood breaking was not fun. Both children and adults develop an increased sense of self-confidence. Block breaking for adults just takes a little more self-confidence and, of course, power. The focus part of breaking comes in two parts. Focusing on the target is first and past the point of impact is second. Your mind must focus past the point on impact to the place where you have penetrated the surface of the wood or block. The physical focus of hitting the target is the simple part the mental focus of seeing past the point if impact is most important. Another point of wood breaking and focus lies in the ability to close out distractions. This is especially true with children. Mental thoughts of mom and dad are watching, other people are standing next to me, and what if it does not break. Adults are not any different other then what they are thinking about. The ability to close out all distractions for a few seconds is a well-won quality. Breaking and focus go hand-in-hand to build confidence and self-esteem in martial artists.
Martial art claims to increase focus and concentration in its student both adult and children. This article will stick with focus and wood breaking. Focus on reading, tasks, listening, traffic, teachers, and a host of other items. I will agree that not all people, children and adults, focus 100% of the time. However, increasing focus in martial arts student is one of the objectives of martial arts training. Increasing a child's focus can lead to better grades in school and increased reading comprehension. The longer a child and adult can focus on assignments and reading the more they can accomplish. Longer focus time a child can develop the greater their concentration. Longer focus time for adults can mean greater productivity at work and more tasks completed at home.
In the martial arts class, we use focus targets, hanging bags, focus mitts, and large rectangular kicking shields. The purpose of these items is mainly to develop focus by hitting the target in the correct place although the hanging bag develops power in kicking and punching. What develops greater focus is the quantity of repetitions or striking the target repeatedly. Throw in sparring where the target is moving and a person better have focus and concentration. The combination of hitting focus targets and light contact sparring can increase focus in both children and adults. You may be thinking what all this that has to do with wood and block breaking.