Kuk Sool Won™ is a systematic study of all of the traditional fighting arts of Korea. As a martial arts system, Kuk Sool Won™ is extremely well-organised; and seeks to integrate and explore the entire spectrum of established Asian fighting arts and body conditioning techniques, as well as mental development and traditional weapons training. The following list includes some, but by no means all, of the elements of Kuk Sool Won™:
Striking
- Closed and open hand striking
- Basic kicking
- Advanced kicking – jumping, spinning, double leg, combination
- Pressure point striking
Wrestling and Grappling
- Variety of throwing techniques
- Wrestling
- Ground fighting principles
- Defence from a variety of situations
- choking
- grabbing
- takedowns
- striking
Joint Locking Techniques
- Restraining methods
- Small joint (wrists etc) locks
- Control and redirection techniques
- Arresting and pain compliance techniques
Traditional Forms (Hyung)
- Empty hand forms
- Weapons forms
- (These are sometimes known as patterns or kata in other martial arts)
Falling and Acrobatics
- Safe falling techniques
- Agility and plyometric training
- Basic acrobatics
- rolls
- cartwheels
- basic tricking
- Advanced acrobatics
- flips
- twists
- combining tricks
Body Conditioning
- Resistance training and mobility exercises
- Cardiovascular training
- Building overall fitness and endurance
Traditional Korean Weapons
- Sword (variety of lengths and styles)
- Staff (short & long, jointed staff)
- Spear
- Cane
- Rope
- Korean thumb-draw archery
- Knife throwing
Recovery and Mindfulness
- Meditation
- Breathing exercises
- Mobility training
- Stretching and flexibility training
As you can see, Kuk Sool Won™ covers an extensive range of martial art techniques. But it is not merely concerned with methods of attack and defence, Kuk Sool Won™ also includes healing and recovery techniques and mental development, in addition to physical training. These are all of equal importance in Kuk Sool Won™ and helps to build self-confidence and self-discipline, a calm self-assurance, and the values which are traditionally associated with the character of a martial artist.