For decades, I’ve wished I could supplement my martial arts skill set with a few years of boxing without subjecting myself to the punishment boxers appear to endure. Also holding me back is the fact that boxing just doesn’t appeal to me the way traditional Asian martial arts do. For those reasons, I figured the best way to improve my hands was to seek out a boxing instructor who likes to share.

Enter James Bennett. Not only is he a skilled boxer — he’s trained since he was 10 years old — but he also holds a third-degree black belt in kenpo and cross-trains in muay Thai, judo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and escrima. That makes him the perfect person to offer advice on how a martial artist can learn the lessons of the sweet science without taking a beating and without abandoning his or her art.

“Bruce Lee once said you employ your hands the most in any self-defense situation,” James Bennett said. “It’s normal — we use our feet to walk, run, jump and kick, but we use our hands for everything else.” Martial artists looking to fortify these primary weapons with the lessons of boxing shouldn’t worry about sacrificing overall effectiveness, he added. “The hands are absolutely not lacking in power.

Hit a heavy bag at head height with a roundhouse kick, then hit it with a left hook. Nine times out of 10, the left hook will be more powerful because you’re not fighting gravity. When you properly use your backup mass and your torque, when you rotate and drop your weight, a punch to the head can be stronger than a roundhouse to the head.”

The following are the insights Bennett offered on the four main boxing punches, as well as the overhand right.

THE LEFT JAB

What Makes the Boxing Jab Special

“When boxers punch, their weight is usually distributed 50-50, and they’re always ready for a follow-up shot, whether it’s a straight right or a left hook. They never overextend because it would reduce their mobility.”

How Specialization Leads to Power

“The boxing jab generally has more power than the [ordinary] forward-hand punch. The main reason is punching is what boxers practice all the time. Martial artists, on the other hand, practice elbows, palms, knees, kicks and all sorts of stuff. They can’t dedicate as much time to punching. This specialization teaches boxers to thrust the jab out like a ramrod. When their arm is three-quarters extended, they turn into the jab for more power. When their fist is almost in the opponent’s face, they lean into it for even more force. That way, they don’t telegraph it.”

How Horizontal Compares to Vertical

“Even though I do kenpo, I prefer to jab with a horizontal fist because that’s how it’s done in boxing. Of course, you can also jab with a vertical fist and still lean into the punch and hit your opponent with a ramrod-type shot. The advantage to the vertical fist is if someone has his hands up, the vertical fist might be able to slip through, while the horizontal fist sometimes gets caught. Either way, the jab is mostly used to stun the opponent, bloody him up a bit, water his eyes — and then set him up for what he doesn’t see coming.”

Whether the Jab Should Gauge Distance or Do Damage

“I teach the jab to hurt as much as anything else. Yes, it’s used to gauge the distance and to ‘feel out’ the opponent — in the ring. On the street, however, you don’t smack a guy in the face with your jab to gauge anything; you do it to hurt him. As Mike Tyson used to say, ‘Punch with bad intentions.’”

When You Shouldn’t Feel Out an Attacker

“Using the jab to feel out your opponent in the ring is fine. Both of you know you’re going to get hit by punches. There are no surprises; you know what to watch out for. On the street, though, you never know what to watch out for. If you throw a couple of jabs for the purpose of measuring, you’re giving up the element of surprise. You’re telling your opponent that you’re a puncher, and that will make him watch your hands.”

What Targets Your Jab Should Aim For

“A jab will often target the face but not always. It depends on the size of your foe, the environment, your clothing and the level of danger present. A jab can be thrown to the midsection, which puts you in a great position for an overhand right, which can be a knockout blow. On the street, however, I’d probably go for the face.”

Why You Shouldn’t Think Single Techniques

“In a real fight, always plan to use combinations. If you throw an initial jab and he goes down, fine. If he doesn’t, you’re ready to keep going until he does go down. Never depend on one-punch-one-kill. Never think, I don’t need a follow-up because I’m going to throw one punch and I’m going to get one kill. Always prepare for combinations.”

THE STRAIGHT RIGHT

What’s in a Name

“Some people call it the straight right, and some call it the right cross. They’re the same thing: a straight right punch that goes down the middle. If you’re right-handed, you’re standing with your left foot forward. Your feet are a little wider than shoulder width. You have your front toe and back heel aligned so you can rotate into the punch and get your body mass behind it. Your hands are up.

As you extend your right arm, your right shoulder stays in close proximity to your jaw for protection. You torque your upper body just before it lands. Always use a horizontal fist.

“The traditional martial arts reverse punch starts with the fist on the hip. Then you punch forward while retracting your other hand, which creates a push-pull opposing force for power. The problem is you don’t have a hand to guard your head and your chin is usually up and your back straight. It is a powerful punch, there’s no doubting that, but it leaves you susceptible to a counter. In contrast, a boxer is crouched, his chin is down for protection, and his shoulders and hands are up for protection.”

Where the Power Comes From

“In addition to the arm, shoulder and torso, a boxer throwing a straight right gets power from the legs. If you look at the greatest knockouts in the sport, the victors usually have big legs and big glutes — they’re heavy from the waist down. That’s because their power comes from driving off the rear leg; their hand just makes the connection. They tilt forward, but they don’t distribute their weight unevenly.”

What the Preferred Targets Are

“If you want an instant effect, go to the head. In a boxing match, where the fighters are wearing gloves and maybe headgear, you don’t always get an instant response. On the street, with the knuckles landing directly on the opponent’s head, you do get that instant response.

“Depending on the situation, you might drop a straight right into the body and come off it for a left hook to the head. If you see an opening to land a right hand on his ribs, go ahead and take those ribs out. Then come back up and take the head off.”

Whether This Should Be Your Go-To Weapon“It all depends on the person and the scenario. If you’re in the ring and you know who you’re sparring with, it’s OK to think that way. But if you’re in a street scenario, you won’t know what your opponent will do. You have to be prepared for anything.

“If you’re at medium range and can fire off a straight right, absolutely. But if you’re at close range and can’t fire, maybe your go-to weapon is an elbow. The good thing in this situation is that concept and principle are the same; the only differences are the weapon and the distance. The targets and the movements are the same. I’ve seen people get knocked cold with elbows.”

THE LEFT HOOK

Why It’s the Left Hook

“If you’re right-handed, you want to use your [left] hand for the hook because it’s closer to your opponent. If you get full rotation into it, it’s very powerful even though it’s fired off your lead hand. The disadvantage comes when your timing’s off because it can leave you susceptible to a counter with the right hand, so you’ve got to make sure you’re throwing it properly.”

Why It Has Knockout Power

"The left hook is a knockout punch because of the force it gets from body rotation. Earlier, I said the left jab isn’t typically a knockout blow, but the left hook is.”

When to Throw It

“If you feel sufficiently threatened, you might just fire off a left hook and hit your adversary smack on the jaw. But the safest way to use it is when someone launches an attack and you’re able to slip to one side and come across with a counter-hook. Or when you bob and weave and then come up before throwing a left hook. It’s fine as an initial attack, but if you miss, you need to watch for a counterstrike that comes over the top.

“Sometimes you’ll throw a left hook and miss — but it still stops him from attacking. Often, not hitting him is OK as long as you stop him from hitting you.”

Whether Fist Orientation Matters

“Some people do the left hook with their fist horizontal, and some do it with their fist vertical. In a real fight, I say just hit him. The last thing you want to be thinking about is details. It will have the same effect either way.

“In training, I do the hook to the head with a vertical fist because if I’m off a little bit, there’s no damage to my wrist. However, when I’m training to hit the body while I’m in close, I usually go with the horizontal fist. Both work; that’s all that matters.

“If you’re a martial artist who’s just starting out in boxing, train both ways. You will automatically find what works for you. It’s best to be able to use either one, depending on the angle and the distance.”

Whether the Angle of the Arm Matters

“It can be adjusted according to the situation and the opponent. If the person is farther away, you might reach out with your hook to cover that distance. But it’s better if you can throw it from up close. That’s where most of the power is.”

Where the Power Comes From With the Right Hook

“It comes from the exact same place as the straight right. The body mechanics are the same. The only difference is the angle the punch comes in. Whereas the straight right comes down the middle, the right hook circles around. You shouldn’t cut too wide or you’ll leave yourself open.”

THE UPPERCUT

What’s Technically Correct

“When you teach a person how to throw the uppercut, you never swing it wide because that will telegraph it. You just shoot it from where your right fist is near your chin. To do that, you drop and then rotate as you bring your body up and let it go. The power comes from the act of standing up. All this gives you the correct base to work off.

“But when you use it in a fight or in sparring, sometimes you end up reaching and looping with your arm. Let’s say your foe is coming after you. You throw a jab in his face and put him off-balance. He bends over a little, and you shoot an uppercut that’s really tight — you’re not going to land it. His head is already at your shoulder height, so you have to swing wider and lower.

“It’s best to know how to do it right and how to modify it for different situations. Which one works is dictated by the situation. If he’s down on his knees, maybe your choice will be an uppercut that’s not technically correct and that telegraphs.”

Where You Should Aim

“The chin is the primary target, but you can also throw an uppercut to the body or the liver, depending on the angle. Usually, an uppercut to the body is used after you slip a punch and need to counter fast. You wouldn’t throw an uppercut to the body straight off the bat. You’d go for the chin in that situation. When you do land it on the chin, it usually puts him to sleep. If it doesn’t, it will set up a punch that will.

“If you hit somebody on the street with this punch, you’re going to break his teeth and there’s going to be blood everywhere. His eyes will be watering. Even if he’s still standing, the fight is over technically — unless he wants to keep coming, but usually he won’t.”

THE OVERHAND RIGHT

What the Mechanics Are

“The punch originates from where your right hand is positioned by your jaw. You make a semicircle over the top and come down on the target. The opponent doesn’t see it coming most of the time because he just sees you begin to fire a shot and then it’s gone — and then it hits him!”

How It Combines

“The overhand right combines well with the left uppercut because of how you align your body. When you throw a left uppercut, you tend to move up, and you’re rotating your body slightly to the right, which puts you in a perfect position to rotate back the other way and come down with an overhand right.”

What It Targets

“If you can hit your opponent on the temple with your overhand right, or even straight in the face or on the jaw, it will have an immense effect. The reason so many MMA fighters use it now is it’s so effective and so simple.

“Of course, if you’re not wearing gloves and you hit someone in the head in a street fight, you could break your wrist or a bone in your hand. That can happen anytime the alignment of your hand and forearm is off or the force of the weapon hitting the target exceeds the strength of the bone. But I do know that I’ve hit people with the overhand right on the street and didn’t break any bones.”

Whether You Can Take Steps to Mitigate the Damage

“Some people say you can throw a punch with, say, 50-percent power in a fight. I doubt that. If you’re throwing a punch in a fight, it’s in reaction to what’s happening. That’s how you train to defend yourself. Is it going to be 50 percent, 70 percent, 80 percent? You can’t measure that. And you don’t have time to measure it. The action determines the response.

“If the guy is small and doesn’t appear to be a serious threat — if he’s more of a nuisance — I’d restrain him. If he’s got a lot of fight in him, I’d hit him, but it wouldn’t be 50 percent.”

Why Stopping the Threat Is the Mission

“If it’s a real threat, nobody thinks, I’ll do this and this but not this. If you’re actually justified in hitting a person — if you can walk away, then walk away — but if you’re justified, just hit. Your mission is not to hurt him; it’s to eliminate the threat. I don’t mean you should kill him or anything, but you can’t do half measures. You have to hit until he goes down.”

Photography by Cory Sorensen

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