Aiming the Reverse Punch

I've noticed that almost every single karate-ka throws chest height reverse punches in sparring. 
This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it is very interesting that we generally train to punch at the solar plexus in kata and basic technique practice and then punch higher as soon as we put on sparring pads.  And it becomes a problem when it becomes an ingrained habit that prevents us from being able to target other parts of the opponent's body.

Often a chest height reverse punch is an indication of an uncontrolled technique.  Or at least it indicates that the technique is not being consciously aimed.  Let's try an experiment.  Find a wall.

Perferably one with some kind of pattern on it.

Pick a spot on the wall near your solar plexus (here's where that pattern comes in handy) and touch it. 

Step back until your your arm is at full extension and your finger is on the spot. 

Now, Move your finger to a spot straight out from your shoulder (your left shoulder if you are using a finger on your left hand). 

If you actually did this little exercise, then you already know that you can reach a spot across from your shoulder that is farther away than a spot across from your solar plexus because you had to bend your arm, step back from the wall, lean back, or otherwise make same space.  For me the difference is not quite an inch.

The reason that many of us punch to the chest in sparring is that we fling reverse punches out into space and hope they land.  Since they aren't going anywhere in particular, if they don't impact our opponent before they reach extension they end up at shoulder height. 

And having our techniques go just any old place is bad, or at least limiting.

If we try aiming our reverse punches to places where our opponent's hands aren't in the way, instead of the places where our reverse punches tend to go on their own we'll probably win a few more points.

So next time you score with a reverse punch to the body that ends up in an armpit or square on your opponent's pec, challenge yourself to hit a floating rib in the next exchange.  You'll be a better martial artist for it.

The Game of Martial Arts

All of us that have been in the martial arts for long enough have a series of 'lightbulb' moments.  One of the best of those moments for me was the first time I kicked my instructor upside the head.

I was visiting my parents on a break from school and had stopped back in at Steve Perry's dojo (not the Journey singer or the science fiction author) to say hello.  Turned out I was the only one around, so Sensei Perry and I had a short class and then went a few rounds.  Before the first round I said to him "Sensei, the club I've been training at (Coung Nhu Cypress School at University of Florida) allows groin kicks and I'd appreciate it if we could include them for our practice."  His response was "Sure, all of the tournaments I did back in Indiana allowed groin kicks."

We lined up; I started to sweat.  Sensei Perry had been winning tournaments around the country before I could spell my name.  He had been sponsored by Budweiser and been on a team with Billy Blanks (before the Tae Bo bit).  He was still in excellent shape, having boxed in high school and taken up karate under Robert Bowles in Ft. Wayne.  I had seen him walk a line of brown and black belts from another school and beat each one (in a single point match).  And he had been my instructor for four years . . .

The round timer buzzed and we bowed.  I circled, he toyed with me, probably tagged me with a reverse punch or two.  Then I threw a front roundhouse kick to the groin, he blocked.  He returned the favor, and I blocked.  I launched a faster and harder roundhouse kick to his groin, he blocked and countered with the same. I blocked, stared at his belt . . . and threw the fastest front roundhouse kick to the head I'd ever thrown.

It made a very loud noise when it smacked into his head gear.  He stopped and acknowledged the point and proceeded to beat the tar out of me for the rest of the round.  When we were done he got a rueful smile on his face and said "You really got me with that one."  Although his praise was warming, the best part was that I had known when I threw it that I was going to nail him -- that there was no way I could miss.

I floated home on a cloud.

I wish I could say that since then I've been unbeatable in sparring but that's not how it works.

But I did use that event as a springboard to understand the game of karate better.  I had always learned combinations by rote, and tried to throw them in sparring.  Or I had tried to surprise my opponent by changing angles or throwing feints.  Both of those methods can be successful and should be part of your sparring tool box.

These methods are limited, however, and the way to get good at match fighting is to learn to pair attacks that 1) force a predictable response and 2) limit your exposure to counter attack.

Let's look at that front leg groin kick to front leg head kick combination:

It works so well because the threat of a groin kick draws a lot of attention -- it demands respect.  By driving a hard and fast kick towards Sensei Perry's cup, I made it nearly impossible for him to not cover up.  And when I followed that with another kick that looked like it was going to the same place he naturally covered again.

This sort of misdirection is very dependable once you get some practice in.  It relies on the same principles that stage magicians use to keep us from noticing where they are tucking our card.  The 'ultimate' in the game of martial arts is to chain together attacks so that the opponent's reactions set them up for each attack in sequence.  In this way you can literally steer your opponent into your attacks.

The classic example applies to an opponent that uses their front hand to block a back fist to the head.  The back fist-reverse punch combination takes advantage of this tendency.  The back fist draws their hand up and the reverse punch slides under the front elbow to score.  If your opponent drops their arm down and retreats to cover the reverse punch then they have opened a line of attack for the back fist. . .and so on.

A few other excellent combinations are back fist (head)-reverse punch(body)-rear leg roundhouse kick(head), front leg sweep - reverse punch, same foot snap kick(groin)-roundhouse kick (head).

And not all manipulations of your opponent use a combination of strikes.  Many opponents will stalk you around the ring.  This makes them easy to draw into your striking distance by backing up in a big-step, big-step, little-step pattern.

Really, the options are endless. . .

Rereading this I'm disappointed that this explanation cannot spark in you the enthusiasm that I felt when I first pulled this off.  There is no substitute for the experience of making this work in the ring.  But I hope that reading this helps you understand what you are trying to accomplish in the Game, so that you can feel excitement for yourself.