Soo Bahk Do Curriculum
The Soo Bahk Do curriculum has five components: Ki Cho (basics), Hyung (forms), Dae Ryun (sparring), Ho Sin Sul (self-defense), and Ki Gong (breathing exercises). Together they train the whole practitioner — body, mind, and character — rather than fighting technique alone.
Written by Brian Corrales, Sa Bom — 6th Dan (Yuk Dan #36364), certified Sa Bom, and member of the USA Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan Technical Advisory Committee. Teaching in Salt Lake City since 2007.
Wasatch Martial Arts Academy is Utah’s only certified Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan school, and every element below is taught to the standards set by the U.S. Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan Federation and World Moo Duk Kwan.
Taught by Brian Corrales, Sa Bom — 6th Dan certified master instructor, Ko Dan Ja certified, and Moo Duk Kwan Heritage Liaison to the U.S. Technical Advisory Committee. Teaching in Salt Lake City since 2007.
What Is the Soo Bahk Do Curriculum?
The Soo Bahk Do curriculum is the complete training system codified by Grandmaster Hwang Kee, founder of the Moo Duk Kwan in 1945. Unlike systems that separate sport competition from traditional practice, Soo Bahk Do treats all five components as one integrated study — a student advancing through the gup and dan ranks is tested on all of them at every level.
The word Soo Bahk Do itself points to this. It does not mean “hand striking way.” It describes the cultivation of the whole self through martial practice — a distinction explained further in our philosophy of Soo Bahk Do.
Ki Cho — Basics
Ki Cho is the foundational training of stances, blocks, strikes, and kicks that every other part of the curriculum is built on. In Soo Bahk Do, what distinguishes Ki Cho from surface-level basics training is the systematic use of the hip.
Hip (Huri): The Core of Soo Bahk Do Technique
The most recognizable characteristic of Soo Bahk Do technique is its use of hip, or huri. Every technique breaks down into two distinct movements: defensive hip and offensive hip. The center of the hips is the body’s physical center of gravity and the source of a technique’s power. Ki Cho training is where each movement is analyzed so that every block and strike is as powerful, efficient, and effective as it can be.
Training the hip correctly teaches you to move from your center, bringing the whole body into harmony and producing coordinated balance, speed, and power. Many practitioners describe the resulting sensation as a form of moving meditation — a state connected to the concept of Moo Do Jaseh, the martial posture of the mind.
Hyung — Forms
Hyung are prearranged sequences of blocks, strikes, kicks, and stances that preserve and transmit the technical content of the art. They are a fundamental and elemental part of Soo Bahk Do training, not a supplement to it.
The Moo Yei Do Bo Tong Ji — the oldest surviving documentation of Korean martial arts, published in 1790 — argues that while form appears unnecessary in actual combat, practicing it is what frees the hands and feet to move well under any conditions. Each hyung has its own unity and purpose, and its character emerges from twelve elements defined by Hwang Kee: form sequence, power control, tension and relaxation, speed and rhythm, and eight more.
Our complete guide to the hyung covers all twelve, the full syllabus, and how forms progress by rank. See also The Moo Duk Kwan’s Philosophy of Hyung.
Forms Unique to Soo Bahk Do
Four sets were created or interpreted by Grandmaster Hwang Kee and are found only in Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan. They are what distinguish the art from Tang Soo Do and from the Okinawan lineages it shares a classical core with.
- Chil Sung Hyung (set of 7) — Named for the seven stars of Ursa Minor. Just as the polar star guided sailors to their destination, the Chil Sung forms guide the practitioner to the essence of Soo Bahk Do technique and philosophy. Hwang Kee began developing this set in 1952. See also Chil Sung Chul Hak.
- Yuk Ro Hyung (set of 6) — Hwang Kee’s interpretations of techniques found in the Kwan Bup section of the Moo Yei Do Bo Tong Ji.
- Ship Dan Khum Hyung (set of 10) — From the same Kwon Bup section of the Moo Yei Do Bo Tong Ji as Yuk Ro, and uniquely able to be performed alone or with a partner as Dae Ryun application.
- Hwa Sun Hyung — Hwang Kee’s interpretation of one side of the two-person form documented in the Moo Yei Do Bo Tong Ji.
Shared Hyung Sets
Wasatch Martial Arts Academy also teaches the classical hyung that appear across related systems, including Tang Soo Do and the Okinawan and Japanese karate lineages — the Ki Cho, Pyung Ahn, Naihanji, and Bassai sets, through to the advanced forms required at dan rank. The full list, with common alternate names and the rank each is introduced at, is on our forms guide.
Dae Ryun — Sparring
Dae Ryun is the sparring component of the curriculum, divided into pre-sequenced sparring such as Il Soo Sik (one-step sparring) and free sparring, including Moo Do Dae Ryun (Moo Duk Kwan-style competitive sparring).
Il Soo Sik are predetermined sequences in which one partner delivers a punch to the face while the defender applies a studied response. Working in a controlled environment lets students learn defensive theory — distance, timing, angle, and counter — without the variables of open sparring.
Ja Yu Dae Ryun follows once a student has built enough drilled responses. In a non-contact environment, students test their reflexes in both offense and defense. Harmony and balance are emphasized over scoring.
Moo Do Dae Ryun, or Martial Way Sparring, is a competition format developed over more than a decade by Kwan Jang Nim H.C. Hwang and first contested at the 2014 National Festival here in Salt Lake City. Rather than counting points, judges score which competitor better demonstrates five martial values: History (Yeok Sa), Tradition (Jon Tong), Philosophy (Chul Hak), Discipline and Respect (Neh Khang Weh Yu), and Technique (Ki Sool). It asks a different question than free sparring does — not who landed more, but whose sparring showed the whole art. Read more: The Five Values Every Sparring Match Is Secretly Testing.
Ho Sin Sul — Self-Defense
Ho Sin Sul is Soo Bahk Do’s self-defense curriculum, focused on escapes from grabs and holds using joint manipulation and throws rather than striking.
Self-defense begins before contact — with awareness of your surroundings and your own circumstances, which is what allows most dangerous situations to be avoided entirely. When a situation cannot be avoided, Ho Sin Sul provides the tools to escape it or protect someone else. Techniques address wrist grabs, lapel grabs, chokes, bear hugs, and hair grabs, with emphasis on joint locks and throws over strikes.
Ki Gong — Energy Exercises
Ki Gong is the health-cultivation component of the curriculum, using controlled breathing and movement to develop internal energy.
Martial arts serve two purposes: effective self-defense and increased health and well-being. Ki Gong addresses the second. Ki is the term used in East Asian medicine for the force that sustains life — explored at length in Ki: Energy in Martial Arts. Ki Gong is the practice of developing and cultivating that energy through specific exercises that gently work the bones, ligaments, and muscles along with the internal organs and the circulatory, immune, lymphatic, and meridian systems.
Alongside modern stretching and strengthening work, Wasatch Martial Arts Academy teaches two traditional sets:
- Moo Pahl Dan Khum — the martial eight silk brocades, commonly known as the standing baduanjin.
- Moon Pahl Dan Khum — the scholarly eight silk brocades, commonly known as the seated baduanjin.
- Yuk Keun Kyung — commonly known as yijinjing.
The principles underlying Ki development are also expressed in Ship Sam Seh, the thirteen influences.
How the Curriculum Is Sequenced
Beginners train all five components from their first month — Soo Bahk Do is not taught as separate stages. What changes with rank is depth. A white belt learns Ki Cho Hyung Il Bu and basic one-step sparring; a Cho Dan candidate is examined on Chil Sung, Yuk Ro, free sparring, and Ho Sin Sul applications, and is expected to articulate the philosophy behind them.
Testing requirements by rank are listed on our Belt Ranks and Testing page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ki Cho (basics), Hyung (forms), Dae Ryun (sparring), Ho Sin Sul (self-defense), and Ki Gong (energy exercises). All five are trained from the beginner level and tested at every rank.
Hyung is the Korean term for prearranged forms; kata is the Japanese term. Soo Bahk Do teaches several hyung that share ancestry with Okinawan and Japanese kata — Pyung Ahn corresponds to Pinan/Heian, Naihanji to Tekki. But Soo Bahk Do also has form sets found nowhere else, including Chil Sung, Yuk Ro, and Hwa Sun, which Grandmaster Hwang Kee developed from the Moo Yei Do Bo Tong Ji and from Chinese internal principles. Soo Bahk Do hyung also emphasize hip rotation and fluid motion where Japanese kata typically emphasize linear tension.
No. Free sparring (Ja Yu Dae Ryun) is practiced non-contact, with control and precision valued over impact. One-step sparring (Il Soo Sik) is prearranged and cooperative.
Soo Bahk Do includes the seven Chil Sung hyung, six Yuk Ro hyung, ten Ship Dan Khum hyung, and Hwa Sun, plus the shared sets — Ki Cho, Pyung Ahn, Naihanji, Bassai, and the advanced hyung — for roughly forty forms across the full gup and dan curriculum.
Yes. Ho Sin Sul is introduced at the beginner level with basic escapes from wrist and lapel grabs, and expands into joint locks and throws as rank increases.
Ki Cho means “basic.” It covers stances, blocks, strikes, and kicks, with particular focus on generating power through hip rotation (huri) — the defining characteristic of Soo Bahk Do technique.
They share an origin. The Moo Duk Kwan was founded by Hwang Kee on November 9, 1945, and originally used the name Tang Soo Do. On June 30, 1960 the organization adopted Soo Bahk Do to reflect the art’s Korean roots and Hwang Kee’s research into the Moo Yei Do Bo Tong Ji. Many schools that separated from the Moo Duk Kwan retained the older name. Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan is the certified continuation of Hwang Kee’s system.
Wasatch Martial Arts Academy is Utah’s only certified Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan school, offering classes for ages 4 through adult.
You can still study this curriculum and advance in rank. Brian Corrales, Sa Bom teaches the same material — hip mechanics, hyung, application, and the principles behind them — through Digital Dojang, an online training platform for students and martial artists worldwide. Remote students train the full curriculum and test for rank by video submission, with technique reviewed and evaluated directly by Brian Corrales, Sa Bom, a 6th Dan certified master instructor. If you’d prefer in-person training, the U.S. Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan Federation maintains a directory of certified studios worldwide.
Yes. Through Digital Dojang, students submit video of their required Ki Cho, hyung, one-step sparring, and Ho Sin Sul for evaluation. Testing is reviewed against the same technical standards used in the dojang, and students receive detailed feedback on their submission. Video testing has the added advantage that a student can review their own performance frame by frame — something that isn’t possible in a live test.
Train This Curriculum in Salt Lake City
Reading about Ki Cho and hyung is one thing; feeling your hip connect to a technique for the first time is another. Wasatch Martial Arts Academy teaches this full curriculum four nights a week in Salt Lake City, with tracks for preschoolers, kids, teens, adults, and whole families training together.
About the Author
Brian Corrales, Sa Bom is a 6th Dan (Yuk Dan #36364) and certified Sa Bom in Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan — the art’s highest teaching certification — with direct lineage to founder Hwang Kee. He serves on the USA Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan Technical Advisory Committee as a member of the Ki Sul Bu. He has trained in the art for over 35 years, completed Ko Dan Ja certification through 2026, and has taught in Salt Lake City since 2007.
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