The History of HupKwonDo

After many years as a member of the Taekwon-do community, Grandmaster Lim became dissatisfied. He began to wonder about some of the limitations he had discovered with certain conventional forms. While he appreciated the great input of his previous masters, whom he still highly respects, he began to long for something new, something he could call his own.

Grandmaster Lim began to experiment. He developed a different way of punching and kicking that was more compact and less stressful on the joints.

He found that he could get as much or more power by not hyper-extending his blows but by following through shorter, more natural strikes.

This innovative way of attack was not only more powerful but much quicker.

Soon, Grandmaster Lim began to incorporate the same concept into defensive maneuvers and blocks. Instead of deflecting strikes, power for power, with hard, abrupt interference, he chose to use softer, fluid movements that were just as effective and hurt the defender less. In time, a system was developed that was lightning fast, explosive and painful only to the opponent.

Foot movement was the next phase. To supplement the punches more foot movement was allowed. Now, you could continue to drive your adversary back with as many steps as was necessary. Each combination of punches was matched by an appropriate number of steps for maximum power. You could now move in on your opponent and strike repeatedly with an endless flurry of punches and kicks. The only thing we can think of that compares is being pelted by a semi-auto./

Patterns were invented that beautifully combined defense and attack. Every conceivable combination of kicks, punches and blocks was featured in movements that struck out in eight directions. Now one could defend and attack in any direction without missing a beat. You could move back and forth, in and out, round and round without ever being vulnerable. It was incredibly easy to adjust from offense to defense. All could be done in the blink of an eye without ever being out of position.

This new art was made for real situations. It is an art for the streets. True and effective self-defense that gets you out of trouble in a hurry and stops even the most seasoned street fighter.

HupKwonDo was born.