Karate Way: How to Follow up Your Martial Arts Attacks
Karate Way: How to Follow up Your Martial Arts AttacksBy Dave Lowry |
You’ll have some difficulty with this second punch. If you’ve fully extended yourself in the step-in and are making your second punch with your left arm, it won’t have the penetrating power of the first punch. You can get some power by shifting your hips. Still, the distancing is off, and the punch is weak. Now, put yourself half a step closer to your partner. When you step forward, you’ll be very close—too close to fully extend your first right-side punch. You’ll find that you’re in a good place, though, to make the second punch. OK, so how do you make both punches work when the distance isn’t ideal for a full step forward? A common phrase in karate is ki-ken-tai ichi, or “spirit, fist, body, all moving as a single unit.” Beginners can’t do this. They stick their punches out and then move their bodies. After a while, the intent, or spirit, of the attack and the body begin to move together. Karateka at this point tend to believe they’ve got it. In most cases, they haven’t. The average karateka can take a full step forward and make his punch end at the same time his leg and hip movement end. If you ask him to do the exercise described above, he’ll likely compensate. He’ll make his step shorter, which is an ineffective solution. What he needs to do is make the punch focus correctly, using the power of his hips, even though he hasn’t made a full step. In other words, he needs to make the critical distinction between “spirit-fist-leg” and “spirit-fist-body.” Learning to make a powerful punch while the leg is still in motion isn’t for beginners. However, training only to make a focused attack when you’ve completed a step isn’t a suitable strategy for advanced karateka. It’s too limiting. To be balanced on both feet when executing an attack is ideal. It isn’t always practical, though. Distancing in a real confrontation requires being able to generate power and focus, regardless of your balance. Maybe it’s better to say that your balance must be adequate to deliver power and focus, no matter the distance or your position relative to your opponent’s. Broadly speaking, internal Chinese arts like tai chi are categorized as “single-footed.” That means the balance is never centered on both feet. Rather, it constantly shifts from one to the other. Balance and stability never depend on both; either foot should be able to do that job. The Japanese combat arts are, again, broadly speaking, “double-footed” in that a center of balance is usually best achieved by some kind of weight distribution between both feet. This is an oversimplification, but you can see how it makes sense. Too many karateka reinforce this in their training. Techniques are almost always executed using a full step. At a higher level, karateka need to begin exploring ways of attacking effectively with one leg still moving. Being able to produce an effective punch not only at a closer range than is ideal but also without resorting to the double-foot method of balance has obvious advantages. Critically, it allows you to make what the Japanese call oi-komi, a “following entering motion.” Go back to the initial exercise we discussed, to the part in which you’re half a step closer to your opponent than you normally would be for a reverse punch. Step in with your right leg, but this time, connect with your punch as that leg passes your left leg and not when your foot lands. It won’t be a good punch unless you’ve had a lot of experience with oi-komi. What you’ll see, though, is that after your punch connects, your right leg steps down and you’re in an entirely different situation. You’re really jamming your opponent. It’s easy to upset his balance. It’s difficult for him to organize his body against your attack. The move breaks through his defenses and sets him up for the follow-up. Of course, being able to employ this kind of following attack means you must develop your timing so you can make a strong punch while moving. Try it on a makiwara or heavy bag, and you’ll see the difficulties it presents. Start your training from a deep stance. It’s harder this way, but it’ll teach you a lot about generating power from your hips and developing timing. Try to focus the power of your punch while standing on one leg, then gradually make the focus happen as you move forward. It’s tough. It’s also excellent training. (This column originally appeared in the July issue of Black Belt. Dave Lowry is a freelance writer who’s trained extensively in the Japanese martial arts. He started writing Karate Way in 1986. To read more of his work, check out The Best of Dave Lowry.) |
