Is bigger better,
Size in a fight can make a difference but mainly in the ability to recover from a mistake more easily. Meaning, a stronger person can recover from a mistake of position more easily because of their strength but power and effective fighting ability has to do with technique and body mechanics. So this morning we went over the mechanics of striking. As YHC has stated many times before there are three things required to win a battle,,; movement, rotation and balance. Rotation creates power. The power of a punch is not created by the arm,,, the power starts in the legs and gets converted into rotional energy in the hips and shoulders and then this energy is directed at the attackers through the arms. We have all seen the Geroge Foreman type punch that starts somewhere way behind the body and swings up wildly toward the target. The movies perpetuate the grand image of this punch because it creates a dramatic scene,,, especially in slow motion. Unfortunately the mechanics in swinging the arm like this creates very little force on the target. If the proper mechanics are applied, a tremendous amount of force can be applied with your hand starting about 6 inches from the target. So, how is this accomplshed. To symplify this,, we need to coordinate all of the bodies movement into a unified motion that culminates in the maximum position of force for each body part involved. In other words, it is like a machine that applies force to a target just as each moving part is at the optimum position to create the most force. In order to feel this in our body movement,, imagine reaching for something that is in front of you but is just out of your reach. In order to reach this object our bodies would bend at the knees,rotate at the knees, hips and shoulders as our arm and hand move in a direct line to the object. Leaning would put us off balance and we would fall, but rotating the body creates the balance and position needed to reach this point. And that body movement is exactly the motion that creates maximum force in a strike. No matter what the intended strike,, the body will fundementally move in this manner with variations made for position and angel of attack. We will come back to this many times as we train and eventually it will become the natural way of striking.
Now striking is supposed to cause a large amount of damage to the body part this is being targeted. And initially everyone will want to hit the big ball of bone on top of the shoulders. Ok, lets use this target. That ball of bone is very hard. Our hands,,,,, not so much. So how do we develop a fist that can cause damage. In order to cause damage we need to use our bones to hit with. Our hands have many small bones that arent intended to be used as weapons so we need to allign these bones in order to deliver the force without damageing ourselves. We can practice the alligning of the bones of the hands by making a fist, get down on our knees and place only the first two knuckles on the ground. Then plank from there,,,, making sure that the force is held on only the first two knuckles. Once we can do this we need to be able to handle the entire weight on one hand. So lift one hand off the ground. this will train the body to be able to deliver the strike and align the bones so the damage is not done to our hand. Yes it hurts a bit, and so does punching somone in that big ball of bone. If our hands cant handle the weight on those knuckles it wont handle the force of hitting somone without incurring damage to ourselves. It takes some time but training the hands in this manner will enable the proper transfer of force.
But we have other bones that need very little training for us to apply great force. Last week we used the elbows. These are amazing personal weapons that can be used to apply devasting force,,, but,, we need to be very close in order to do that. One of YHC's favorite bones to use is what we like to call the end of the pipe. This area is just below the crease of the wrist and hits like the end of a metal pipe. These bones are very hard and move at a faster speed than the elbow and give us a bit more distance from the attacker. We will use these bones to deliver strikes to the face, neck, shoulders, collarbones,biceps, ribs,legs and back. Pretty much any target we can think of. This morning we used this area to practice a very effective strike, YHC refers to this technique as the passing strike. because we are often moving past the target at the same time we apply the force. The amount of force that can be generated is similar to that generated by swinging a bat. So, please be careful when practicing and only use it when needed to defend yourself or a loved one.
From here we went on to practive the boxing drills. These will be used often and will be reviewed on most days. Then we began to practice basic escapes from holds. We will practice many different techniques. Mainly to give us an understanding of how the body works and what force applied in which direction may work the best.
Time ran out far too quikcly but this mornings training accomplished alot. YHC is looking forward to trading bumps and bruises with you fine men.
I once again thank you men for allowing me share this art. Stay safe and stay strong.
Tick Tock