Breaking Through

Dive into the heart of a living, breathing, traditional martial art with Master Colin Wee’s award-winning book Breaking Through: The Secrets of Bassai Dai Kata. Colin’s exploration of the Bassai Dai Kata transcends the boundaries of hard style training, illuminating dynamic practical applications, and timeless training wisdom.

What sets this book apart is the fusion of both hard-style tactics, and soft-style efficiency. Along the way, is the illumination of an epic journey undertaken to acquire this synergy.

A comprehensive look at twelve combative applications with over 200 vibrant photographs explores this training methodology. And step-by-step traditional methods come to life, encompassing traps, striking angles, seamless takedowns, and nuanced combative principles often overlooked in modern martial arts training.

When instructors and students link the applications from Breaking Through to how Colin and his Black Belts got there – the logic of why the applications work, and how they address a dynamic situation – you will be able to fill in the gaps left by modern hard style training.

You will find that while this book centres on Bassai Dai, it has nothing to do with Karate.

With it as a guide, picture-perfect techniques evolve into combat-ready defense strategies, and you discover how to apply this knowledge to any other form in any other system. Equip yourself and your students with the insight to explore body mechanics, new learning strategies, and drills to expand your knowledge of your martial art.

Breaking Through clinched Winner of 2023 Best Indie Book Awards in Non-fiction Martial Arts, and Sports Finalist in the 2023 International Book Awards.

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I’m Colin Wee, a martial arts instructor with over four decades of experience. My journey began in Singapore in the early 80s, led me to the Southwest USA, and then to Australia.

In 2000, I founded Joong Do Kwan on Whadjuk Land in Perth. Over the years, I’ve focused on the human element in every practitioner, developing decision-making abilities, unpacking traditional systems of training, and pushing growth areas.

Outside the dojo, I’m an avid cook, blending French, Italian, and Spanish cuisine with Asian influences. Writing is another passion, and I’ve contributed to magazines like Totally Taekwondo and Taekwondo Times.

Martial Arts has given me many opportunities in life. The mental visualization techniques help manage stress in various situations, the training provides emotional balance, and the exercise keeps fitness at an all time high. It would be a pleasure to connect through social media and platforms like Goodreads if you’d like to talk about what you have gained from your practice.

I want to be remembered as someone who shared knowledge without reservation, thought deeply about the legacy I’ve been gifted, and one who continually makes traditional martial art knowledge accessible. When I launched my book, the gratitude from so many practitioners affirmed my efforts, showing me the value of reaching out to like-minded people in the martial arts community.

I look forward to connecting and sharing more of this incredible journey with you.

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Colin at Goodreads | Listen to Whistlekick Interview | Amazon Author Bio