FIFTY FIFTY's KEENA Told She Can't Leave the Dojo Until She Lands a Headbutt in Taekkyeon Lesson

The instructor set a condition: he would not leave for the day until KEENA fully pulled off the technique. Living up to her nickname, the "Daejeon wildcat," the FIFTY FIFTY member kept working through taekkyeon's moves one by one.

From a headbutt to a neck throw

In the final stage of training, KEENA took on a "distance from the launch" mission that included the headbutt. The headbutt is a move in which the body is thrown through the air to strike, and she moved as the instructor directed. As the mission grew harder, she voiced how difficult the technique was.

Before that, she learned "mokmujang," in which the opponent's neck is grabbed and turned. The instructor stressed putting body weight into the move at the moment of applying it, and warned that it can be dangerous if the opponent is not released the instant the technique is applied. KEENA attempted a difficult sequence of grabbing the hair and jumping, concentrating on getting it right.

A cat-family strike for a "wildcat"

She also met "eorugo ppyamchigi," a strike delivered with the whole forearm. The instructor explained that it was inspired by the motion of cat-family animals rubbing behind themselves. KEENA performed it as if drawing a bow and said she would make it the wildcat's signature move.

Footwork that looked like idol choreography

In learning the basic moves "pumbapgi," the footwork, and "hwalgaetjit," the arm swing, KEENA showed a natural sense of rhythm. The instructor taught a triangular stepping pattern in which weight shifts as the hips are flicked slightly, and her hip-popping steps in and out drew the reaction that it looked "idol-like."

The instructor also explained "ikeuekeu," a distinctive taekkyeon movement. He said it is a concept created in the 1980s to give rhythm to taekkyeon's trait of gathering and then releasing power through breath pressure, and that it was wrongly spread and reproduced among the public, causing misunderstanding. KEENA tried to absorb the distinctive flow of the movement as she practiced.

Why she picked up taekkyeon

KEENA, who became interested in martial arts through action scenes in dramas such as "Bridal Mask" and "Boyhood," went to a taekkyeon dojo herself to learn the techniques, showing a different side of herself.

Source: original video (YouTube)