Effective "APPs" Self-Defence 3: Never Blink at Incoming Punches to Your Face

Effective "APPs" Self-Defence (3): Never Blink at Incoming Punches to Your Face 
-- by Frank C Yue

Why?

Because if you do, you would --

1. simply waste and black-out 0.25 second out of the precious first 1.00 second of the initial attack that is vital to your survival.

2. forgo the chance of watching uninterrupted the actions of your Attacker who may be feinting and change abruptly the direction of his/her attack and the target on your body.

3. show your Attacker that you are weak and afraid. This does no good to your self-confidence and self-defence mechanism, but would embolden the Attacker to launch more vicious attacks.

Start Practising "Not Blinking"

Therefore, you should try throwing fake punches towards your own face but stop the clenched fist about an inch from your eye. Alternate with the other fist and train both eyes. Once you get the hang of it you will "not blink automatically whenever a fist is thrown at your face", even if your eyes can feel the sudden rush of displaced air streaming directly towards them.   

"Haa!! Hung!! Yi-aii!"

Now, the next step. 
Start doing together the "kiai" or "sound attack" -- i.e. the controlled scream with sudden exhaling through the mouth -- whilst practising fake punches to your eyes without blinking at all. 

The "kiai" serves two basic purposes:

(a) It provides considerable extra power to your hit upon impact with the abrupt expulsion of about 70 to 80% of the air from your lungs while contracting and tightening all your body muscles to facilitate the penetration or the vital "follow-through" -- up to 4 to 6 inches -- of your "hardened" body weapon (be it a tightly closed fist, a palm strike with the heel of your hardened palm, or a stiffened 4-finger hand-spear) through your Attacker's soft body target (be it his/her eye, nose, throat, side of neck, etc.) to instantly incapacitate the Assailant. (If you are wondering why 30 to 20% of air are kept in the lungs while hitting or kicking, well, these serve as a cushion to protect your own internal organs should your Attacker's fists be hitting simultaneously your body as yours are hitting his or hers!) 

(b) The sudden controlled-shout would frighten and intimidate a less experienced fighter, thus demoralizing him/her.        

When you are accustomed to the sudden sounds of the "kiai" (and not blinking either) you will never be surprised or intimidated by any Attacker's loud or low-grunted "sound strikes", even if he/she launches behind your back a series of ferocious attacks on you.
   

A devastating downward karate chop, the versatile "shuto" or hand-knife,  with kiai to the Attacker's groin. 

(Photo from "Karate Breaking Techniques" by Jack Hibbard.)   

Of course, the kiai is only a part of the many components enabling you to eventually execute a "unified whole-body all-powerful hit or kick" at your Attacker! (More on this later.)

Distance and Area of Maximum Attacker Effectiveness

We talked about this last time. (Please refer back to the two diagrams shown in Part 2.) The point is that you, being the Defender, must save yourself at the outset and quickly remove yourself out of the distance and area of maximum Attacker effectiveness. To remain in this area, you are courting disaster and personal injuries!

The Strong and Stable "Bow and Arrow" Stance

We also mentioned the Bow Stance last time. Here is a demonstration by Li Hui; photo excerpted from "Si Shi Er Tai Ji Jian" ("The 42-Form Taiji Sword Play") on pages 46-47.

 

In actual combat, you are rarely able to execute the full form as shown. There is simply no time and no need to do so. The fight scenario is changing every 0.25 second! Anyway, this low, wide stance -- though very stable and firm -- is not conducive to swift moves or snap kick in the next instant.

Avoidance Maneuvers

When your Attacker launches an attack at you, he is committed to a forward motion of some sort -- be this a straight punch, a roundhouse kick, an overhead machete chop or club swing, or a knife swipe to your throat, etc. While the methods, weapons and directions of the originating strikes are numerable, they all end up predictably at one single target -- you! So, you must quickly move out of his/her way! Avoid being a stationary target!  

You have to remove yourself or that part of your body as the incoming Attacker's target. 

No "Dancing like a butterfly and stinging like a bee"

The Mohammed Ali style of BOXING does not apply where there are no referee, no rules, no bell at the end of each round to save you when you are engaged in a live-or-die fight situation.   

Many Ways to Avoid an Attack

Fortunately, there are many directions you -- as the Defender -- can move, especially when you also use direct or deflective blocks. But
you should not use direct or hard blocks to stop the force of the attack; you are simply not trained in this aspect and you are likely physically weaker than the Attacker. Use the deflective block that seeks only to change the direction of the force of the attack, not stopping the attack altogether. 

Three Main Types of Avoidance Maneuvers

1. As the Attacker rushes in for the kill, you can move straight towards him or straight back from him. See the photo below: 
(copied from "Intermediate Techniques of Jujitsu Vol. 2" by George Kirby.)

But retreating straight back from the Attacker is not advisable. For he will only rush faster forward with greater force towards; you are back to square one and are even worse off than before! Your best bet is to move boldly forward -- with a deflective block plus a counter-strike -- into the Attacker so that his hit or kick may not be delivered effectively!  

2. You may move laterally slightly, either to the left or right, of the line of attack, using a deflective block plus a counter-strike. See the second photo below; ibid.                                                                                          

3. You may move vertically, either up, like leaping up and executing a spectacular tae kwon do jumping high front kick (in which the kicking foot is the last one to leave the ground; you should first bring up the knee of your other non-kicking leg to help lift yourself high above the ground) but then this is definitely not for you;  or move vertically down (e.g. in a half-kneeling posture or rolling onto the ground), to avoid the attack. But this vertical type of avoidance is not advisable for you either since you are most likely unfamiliar with the much more advanced on-the-ground fighting techniques.

According to George Kirby, when the three maneuvers (1. to 3.) mentioned above are combined, there are at least 32 different directions or combinations of defensive maneuvers, though some of these may not be very effective or realistic than others.

Your Counter-Attacks: 6 Defensive Horizontal Moves

To recap, the Attacker's most effective range is 18 to 48 inches. This rule also applies to you, the Defender, when you are counter-attacking with a strike or kick. 

The 6 defensive horizontal moves are (see photo below; ibid):

1. Move straight in.

2. Move straight away (not advisable for you).

3. Move to Attacker's left-hand side.

4. Move to Attacker's right-hand side. 

5. Move to Attacker's rear from his left-hand side.

6. Move to Attacker's rear from his right-hand side.

 4 Defensive Vertical Moves
 There are 4 defensive vertical moves (see photo below; ibid):

1. Vertical movement from left side in front of the Attacker.

2. Vertical movement from right side in front of the Attacker.

3. Lateral movement from left side followed by vertical drop at side of the Attacker.

4. Lateral movement from right side followed by vertical drop at side of the Attacker.

These evasive and offensive maneuvers have advantages and disadvantages. Some are used as last resorts. The fluid and changing fight situation, your own strength, knowledge, training and experience will dictate which maneuver you can use.  

Well, at least you are now a theoretical martial art student! Hahaa!
Good luck.


Keep on practising and playing different what-if fight situations in your mind and how best to counter each and incapacitate your ferocious Attacker. 

Leaning Away from the Incoming Attack

A martial art Master doesn't care about the fore-going movements to evade an attack. Because of his experience and keen observation, he would have judged precisely the "ultimate reach" of the incoming punch or blade. Without moving his feet, the Master would simply lean away just enough from the incoming strike and tackle the Attacker at the same time.

As a last resort, when you don't have even 0.50 to 0.75 second to sidestep from the attack, you must bob or weave your head, or lean away at once from the blow as well as deflect the strike (with both hands!) to lessen the force of attack.