Knife-Hand Block

Target Areas

Prerequisites

The knife-hand block (Sonnal Makgi) is the first open-hand technique in the Taekwondo curriculum. Unlike the closed-fist blocks taught at white belt, the blocking surface here is the outer edge of the hand (the "knife" edge — from the base of the little finger to the wrist). The technique is characteristically performed in back stance (Dwitkubi) and is distinguished by the simultaneous guard hand held open at solar plexus level, rather than the usual fist-to-hip reaction hand.