Tag: martial arts

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Phillosoph

Hammer-Fist and Single Whip

Sometimes you search for something only to discover it was close by all along.
A case in point:
In my recent book, Crash Combat, I reflect that the hammer-fist is a somewhat underappreciated weapon in martial arts. I may have made this assertion in my previous book too.
Reading Joseph Wayne Smith’s book on Wing Chun, he makes a similar statement.
Hammer-fist can substitute for the chop, back-fist and even some closed-fist punches. It is much less likely to result in self-injury than some of these techniques.
Hammer-fist is easy to perform correctly and can deliver powerful blows to both hard and soft targets. Along with the palm-heel, it is probably one of the best hand strikes that we have.
Naturally enough, I was experimenting with some hammer-fist attacks the other day.
I’d been looking at the rapid 270-360° turn that is possible by using the “closed step” of Pa-kua/Bagua. (See my book for details).
This could be used to power a spinning back-fist to strike a foe in the outside gate. But a true back-fist can be fiddly, requiring a terminal flick of the wrist and impact with the first two knuckles.
A spinning hammer-fist is more logical and for most fighters more powerful.
I notice that if I bend my wrist inward a fraction my hammer-fist seems a little stronger or more stable at the moment of impact.
I also note that this mode favours a sort of “snap”.
I can throw the technique with a relaxed arm and hand and snap into a clenched hand just before impact.
This, of course, lets the arm and hand acquire more initial speed and produces a more powerful attack with less muscular effort.
From a variety of positions, I can just flick my arm and have it land in a hammer-fist. This curve of the wrist seems a technique worth cultivating.
And then it dawns on me!
This is the hand form of horse-foot palm from tai chi’s single whip.
I have written about this as a parrying technique and even as a form of punch. I have probably even written about hammer-fist-like strikes with this hand form.
But I had not grasped one of the other important things that posture was trying to teach: that a relaxed, slightly bent wrist gives you a very efficient hammer-fist.
As always, experiment for yourselves.
Can you use hammer-fist instead of your other strikes?
Can you relax more to make it faster and more powerful?
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Phillosoph

More Applications of Single Whip

Today's blog continues on the topic of applications of tai chi's single whip movement. Be sure to read the previous blog on this subject.
As the left foot steps forward and out, there is a moment when there is no weight placed on it.
Anytime that your foot is in this state it may be used to kick.
Kicks from the single whip movement will often be forward or horizontal snap kicks.
Since tai chi fighting tends to be at relatively short ranges, it is prudent to use your opponent for additional support.
For example, an opponent swings a club at you with his right hand. You use your left palm to parry his forearm and momentarily take hold.
Your left leg springs upward and throws a roundhouse kick, contacting with the shin, instep or toe as appropriate for the range.
A likely target is the Liv 13 point on the side of the body where the torso is narrowest. This point allows you to attack the kidneys with a strike to the side of the body.
The hold on the opponent’s arm gives you support but also allows you to sense any following movement he makes.
If you have the window of opportunity a snap kick to the groin may be possible instead. You can follow this with the hooked palm making a strike to the Liv 14 area as described in the previous blog.
The next technique is an extension of something I described in my book in the section on the outward karate parry.
In that technique, you parried across the foe’s chest and a slight turn outward and body movement forward unbalanced them.
In our single whip example, the foe’s right hand is first parried by our right, so we are on their outside gate.
You step towards your foe, your left foot advancing behind them.
This movement may allow you to make a strike under their arm with your left shoulder.
Your left arm swings up under their right arm and extends forwards across their chest. Done correctly, this will nudge the opponent off-balance and the placement of your left leg will prevent him stepping back to regain it.
The next example uses an earlier part of the single whip movement.
As an enemy punches at you with their right, you use your right arm and the hooked palm to parry it outward to your right.
The fingers of your left hand point towards your right elbow so your left arm forms a shield across your body.
Keeping your arms in the same relative positions, you step forward and use your hooked right palm to strike forward and down at the area beneath the foe’s right armpit.
This punch with the hooked palm and some of its targets were described in the previous blog on single whip.
In a variation of the above, you again parry with your hooked palm but your right hand finishes in a position where it is not on a direct line to the armpit. In this case you step forward and use your left to palm strike the foe’s body.
I mentioned single whip being used to initiate locks in the previous blog. Today I will describe some of the possible techniques in a little more detail.
Suppose we are on the outside gate and acting on the foe’s right arm. Your right arm has either hooked over or grabbed his wrist area.
One of the simplest moves from here is for the left palm to come up and strike the elbow. Since the other hand is pulling the arm in the opposite direction such an attack to the joint can be very damaging.
If the application of force is less acute, then a straight arm lock can be applied. Pull his hand back and to your right and apply your weight to his elbow.
If your left palm is applied to the lower side of his elbow, you can move the elbow up and pull his hand down to set up a bent arm lock such as a hammerlock. This can be used in various ways, including to pull him off balance.
For our third variation of lock, the left hand goes under the elbow and makes contact with the inner side of the elbow.
Readers of my book will know there are some strike points on the inside of the elbow and that the edge of the hand can be applied to these as this lock is made.
The intention here is to fold the elbow joint, raising the hand up.
You can then use the forearm as a lever to twist the upper arm and shoulder joint. Force the hand up and back and also push the upper arm backwards to unbalance the foe.
Sometimes the foe will not unbalance, orat least not enough to fall.
If this happens, release the hand and use your right to move in a fast semi-circle to hammer-fist him below the pectoral in the area detailed in the previous blog.
Bounce you right hand up again and use it to palm strike on the chest or face. Then try something else.
You can also apply locks from the inside gate, although this is a bit more dicey since you can be hit by his other hand.
In these examples the hooked palm right hand engages his left wrist area. As you step forward your left hand makes an edge-of-the-hand-strike on the crease of his elbow.
This is the same sort of lock as described in the previous section.
You fold his elbow joint and take his hand up and back, moving to his outside gate. As you stepped in, you probably placed your feet between his so this move can be turned into a thigh or knee strike to the groin.
Another technique for the inside gate is the variant of the karate outside parry. Engage the left wrist with your right hand and then step in, passing your left arm under his and extending it across his back. Turn your hips to the left to unbalance him.
In the previous blog on single whip I mentioned breaking wrist grabs.
My book contains a variety of methods for doing this, my favourite being the “underneath and outside” movement.
The video below shows a number of applications of single whip, including a method for breaking wrist grabs.
Note that as the hooked palm turns over it effectively passes underneath and to the outside of the grabbing arm.
The left hand coming over has a number of applications, one of which is to shield the body should the grab be turned into a strike or should the other hand or head be used to strike.
I hope this brief look at the applications of single whip have been of some interest.
For much more information on self-defence and the principles upon which some of these applications are based please buy a copy of my book.
 
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Phillosoph

Single Whip and Horse Foot Palm

One of the advantages of writing this blog is that I can often cover topics that there was not room for in either of my books.
Today I am going to write a little about the “hooked fist”, which in turn leads to some discussion of tai chi’s single whip movement.
Single whip has a number of variations, and this is worth bearing in mind when you view videos of the movement.
Some are variations between different styles of tai chi, while others are different interpretations.
While tai chi is a potent martial art, many of its practitioners only study it for health or meditative purposes and this should be kept in mind when viewing movements.
For purposes of today’s discussion, the “whip” part of the movement will be considered to be with the right hand and the movement has three components I will discuss.

The first “component” is the right hand which comes up to chest level and moves outward, the wrist bending so that the closed hand hangs down. The arm looks a little like you are whipping the rump of a donkey with a riding crop or switch, hence the name of the position.
The shape the hand makes has a number of names. It is sometimes called “Hooked Palm” while the name “Turtle Head” is probably the most descriptive. Some instructors liken it to the “Crane Beak” hand form.
Given the equestrian aspect of the single whip position, the “Horse Foot Palm” name is perhaps most apt.
After the right hand has assumed position, the body turns to the left and the left hand comes up in an open palm. On some variants this is a simple semi-circular movement, while other variants cause the hand to roll over or spiral.
At the same time that the left hand moves the left foot steps forward and outward slightly. I used to find the turn and step unusually difficult until Erle Montaigue told me that you should keep your left elbow above your left knee when making that part.
In English, we tend to call single whip a posture or position, but it is actually a sequence of movements.
When movements from a kata or form are used in combat it is unlikely the whole thing would be used, and used exactly as you would perform it during a kata.
Elements of a kata or form are rather like clay from which you build the thing you need at the moment that you need it. They are not rigid geometric or mathematical constructions, or at least, they are not once your use of them matures.
Most tai chi moves are multifunctional. One instructor may tell you the combat application is one thing, another that it is something else. In reality there may be many more applications.
With that in mind, let us investigate some of the combat applications of the components of single whip.
Single whip is very much the signature move of tai chi.
In movies such as The Matrix you will see single whip used as an opening posture. In reality, it is better reserved until range has been closed with an opponent.
The left palm’s most obvious application is that it is a palm-strike. It is in a good position to hit the chest region or the chin, and the accompanying step forward adds power.
The open palm can also be used to parry, either with the palm or either edge of the hand. The spiralling motions used for the left hand in some varieties of single whip can be used to neutralize a wrist grab.
The horse foot palm is probably most widely understood as a parrying hand form.
It can hook over an enemy’s arm and pull it out or down.
It can parry to either side or upwards.
In his book “Knives, Knife Fighting and Related Hassles: How to Survive a Real Knife Fight” Marc MacYoung describes a tai chi-inspired “Whip Parry” as a defence against knife attack. Since the arm is semi-relaxed, the parry has a very short response time. Marc recommends that you move the wrist and let the hand go along.

Horse foot palm can also be used offensively in a number of ways.

The most obvious is to use it as a hammer-fist strike against targets such as under the arm or the temple.
The hand can also be used as a reverse hammer-fist: swing inward to hit targets such as the back of the head or the shoulder blade.
The hand can also be used to execute a downward glancing punch against certain bony areas of the body.
The hand posture is such that the force of hitting a bony area is dissipated along the arm.
Targets often used for such attacks include the GB 22 point about 3" under the armpit and the area just below the pectoral muscle.
The latter are Liv 14 and GB 24, on the mammary/mid-clavicle line, a couple of ribs down from the muscle in the sixth and seventh intercostal spaces.
These are all potent and potentially very harmful targets which can also be attacked by a hammer-fist from a horse foot palm. Horse foot palm can also suddenly be flipped over to make a back-fist strike to the enemy’s nose!

Both hands can of course be used together. Either hand can parry while the other counter-attacks.
If one hand grabs the wrist, the other can contact the elbow in various ways and apply various varieties of lock. This is another possible application for the spiralling movement of the left hand. Armlocks can be used to unbalance a foe.
The step forward with the left foot also has martial applications. In high level tai chi it is supposed to strike the KD 5 point on the enemy’s foot and drain their qi.
For the less advanced of us, the foot can be positioned to stop an enemy stepping back to regain their balance when the balance is disrupted by hand techniques.
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Phillosoph

Horizontal Throwing

Throwing objects in self-defence is a legitimate tactic if your life is in danger.
Some missiles may be capable of injuring an attacker, but a more likely consequence is that you will distract them long enough to press home a counter-attack or affect an escape.
In my book I describe a number of throwing techniques, some of them not that well known.
In this post we will look at an addition technique, that of horizontal or side-arm throws.
Horizontal throwing is harder to master than vertical throwing and generally has less range and power. On the other hand, it has several features that make it more applicable for self-defence.
One of these is that horizontal throws are less telegraphic than most vertical techniques, which increases the surprise element and distracting ability of a missile attack.
Another element is that a horizontal throw can be combined with drawing a missile from a place of concealment.
If a supply of projectiles are held in the other hand a number can be launched in a short period of time, the action of moving the throwing hand back to take another missile naturally setting up for another horizontal throw.
To throw an object such as a pencil, nail or knife, it is held in the palm, parallel to the fingers, as is described in the book for push-throwing.
Bend the elbow so your hand is near the opposite shoulder or hip, palm downwards. The action you are going to make is rather like a horizontal karate-chop.
Your arm should be relaxed during the motion and you should avoid the temptation to hurry the movement.
Lock your gaze on your intended target.
Smoothly let your arm swing straight and let the missile leave your hand when your fingers are nearly towards the target.
At the same time, sway your body towards the target to add momentum.
If you are throwing consecutive missiles you will rock back and forth as you throw and “reload”. Some sources talk of the missile being “pressed” towards the target and this is probably a better description of the release you are aiming for rather than thinking of this as a throw.
Unlike some of the other throws described in the book, this technique adds very little stabilization to the missile so is more suited to “nose heavy” objects.

To throw missiles such as coins or washers, the same basic action is used but the missile is head slightly differently.
The object is held horizontally between the thumb and second finger, with the forefinger on the edge to apply a little drag and induce some reverse spin.
Lock your eyes on the target and in a smooth, relaxed and unhurried manner swing your arm out straight so your thumb points towards the target.
If the missile you are using has a sharp edge, you may need to hold it between thumb and first finger and adding some spin-stabilization may require a little bit of a snapping action on release.

You will need to practice this to get the correct feeling and timing. Generally the missile is released just before or as your hand reaches the same vertical plane as your target.

Depending on distance you may have to aim above your intended target rather than pointing your hand right at it.

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Phillosoph

Kubotan and Kongo Locks

Stuck in my files is an article on the kongo that I never seem to have time to finish, so today I thought I would post part of it.

Keep It Simple

99% of the time the only techniques you will need for using the kongo are the strikes.
However, the reader is doubtless curious about “fancy stuff” such as locks, so I’ll include some discussion of these in today’s blog, with the caution that it is better to keep things simple but effective in a real fight.
Some of these techniques are “pain compliance” techniques so their effectiveness will vary between individuals and situations.
For information on sensitive areas and “pressure points” a kubotan or kongo may be used against, purchase “Attack, Avoid, Survive”.

Know Your Bones

Most of the locks described here are applied against the bones of the forearm.
The forearm has two long bones, the one on the upper/thumb side being the radius and the lower bone the ulna. You can remember these by knowing they are alphabetical from top to bottom, R above U.
Locks should be applied so that the pressure is applied against either the ulna or the radius, depending on situation.
Force is applied against a single bone rather than distributed to several will be more effective.
Force is applied to these bones at the ends where they joint the hand.
Squeeze around this area with your fingers and you will soon locate where the more sensitive areas lie.

In the following description my main intent is to convey the mechanical principles of how these locks work.
For that reason I’ve generally described the positioning of the kongo/kubotan first. Many of the locking techniques are easier with the longer, thinner kubotan.
In practice, it is more likely that the opponent’s arm would first be gripped by the non-weapon hand and the weapon then brought into position.
To avoid such unwieldy terms as “strong side thumb” or “weak side fingers” the following descriptions will all assume that the kongo is being used in the right hand.

The Pincer or V-Locks

Hold your kongo/kubotan so several inches project from the top of the forefinger side of your hand.
You may have to shift your grip slightly from that normally used for striking.
At the same time, stick out your thumb so kongo and thumb form a sort of “V”. We will call this configuration “the pincer” and use it as the basis for learning the following locks.
The pincer itself is a pretty good technique. Grasp the foe’s thumb between your thumb and the kongo and apply pressure, using the weapon as a fulcrum. This can be performed against other fingers too. Or, use your pincer to take hold of the subject’s ear or other fleshy body part.
There are several other variations of the pincer-based locks. It is possible to hold the wrist, fingers or thumb in the pincer and use the left hand to assist in some other way such as manipulating the foe’s hand or thumb.

J-Locks

Put your right hand in pincer form and slip your right thumb under the foe’s wrist so the kongo passes over the top. Slip the thumb of your left hand over the free end of the kongo and pass your left fingers under your opponent’s wrist.
This is the basic mechanism of the lock but in practice it is more likely that you would first grip the foe’s wrist with your left hand and then bring the kongo into position under the thumb.
This technique can also be applied against the thumb. The opponent’s thumb is clamped between right thumb and kongo and your left hand grasps his wrist and hooks your left thumb over the free end of the kongo.
A related technique against the wrist is performed in the same way but does not place the right thumb under the wrist. The kongo is laid across the bone and the free end taken by the left thumb.
Disadvantage of this variation is that the kongo must not be allowed to slip around the wrist. Maintain the relative position of your hands so the kongo/kubotan lies level across the bone.
The advantage of this technique is it can be applied in situations where the thumb could not be easily slipped under the wrist.
I call this family of locks the “J-locks” since the kubotan forms the crossbar of the J while the fingers of the other hand form the curved section around the wrist.
Depending on the relative orientation of the arm these locks can also be applied against the ulna.

Delta or Gasket Locks

Instead of taking the free end of the kongo with the left thumb, it is also possibly to wrap the left fingers around the kongo and slip the left thumb around the wrist.
You therefore have eight fingers pulling against the kongo and two thumbs pushing into the wrist.
Takayuki Kubota (inventor of the kubotan) stresses that when using this technique the web of the thumbs should form a tight “gasket seal” against the suspect’s arm. The advantage of this technique is that it can be applied to either surface of the arm.
As well as placing the kubotan across the upper side of the wrist and the thumbs underneath, you can place the kubotan under the wrist and push down on the upper surface with your thumbs.
I think of this lock as the “Delta lock” since the two hands and the kubotan form a triangle,

X-Locks

Like the delta-locks, the X-locks create a triangle around the opponent’s wrist.
Hold the kubotan like a wand. This hold is easily assumed from the pincer. Alternately, an “ice-pick” hold may be used with the longer length of the kubotan projecting from the little finger side of the hand. 
Place your arm so the forearm crosses over the opponent’s arm. Hook the kubotan across the end of the radius or ulna on the far side of the arm.
Grasp the free end of the kubotan with the other hand so your forearms cross. The kubotan and your wrists form a triangle around the arm.
Reorient the opponent's arm as necessary and move your elbows apart so your wrists are scissored tightly around the opponent's wrist/forearm. Pressure may be increased by adding a rolling action to the wrists.

Eda Koppō

The Eda koppō techniques are taken from Matsaaki Hatsumi’s “Stick Fighting” (p.56) and he defines the term as “Attacking the bones with a stick”.
Many of the techniques shown in the book are variations of those already described but one is worth dealing with separately
Slip your fingers through the loop of the kongo as though you were going to strike with it and open your hand.
Place this hand on your foe’s forearm near the wrist so that the kongo either crosses the ulna or the radius.
The fingers encircle the wrist and the kongo is sandwiched between your palm and the foe’s arm, pressing onto the bone.
The other hand can be used to assist.
How effective this will be will depend on several factors, including the diameter and shape of your kongo, strength of your grip and the pain sensitivity of your foe.
For this reason my personal inclination would be to use this technique on the ulna if there is a choice, which seems to be the more sensitive of the two bones.
The advantage of this technique is that it can be applied with your kongo in the normal striking position and does not need your grip to be shifted so can be rapidly applied against a target of opportunity.

Suppose you are using a kongo without a finger loop or an object as improvised weapon? Brace it by placing your little finger and thumb under the object and your other three fingers on top (shown above).
You can also brace it between your thumb and second finger with the fore finger on top. This is a good technique for a longer, thinner object such as a pencil.

A final trick. Place your kubotan, kongo or pencil between any of the subject’s fingers, then squeeze the fingers together.
You probably have a pen or pencil nearby as you are reading this.
Try it out on yourself.
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Phillosoph

Kama Twirling

Distant decades ago, eager for knowledge of martial arts, I brought a set of four books in a deal by a mail order company.
Three of them, on Chin-na and shuriken, I still have on my shelf. The fourth was called “Kusarigama” and was not as expected.

Rather than being about the weight and chain weapon familiar to me it was about twirling kama by means of a butt-loop, rebounding it from the shoulders, ribs and thighs.
I couldn't see how you ensured the blades arrived point first, but did think it might have been an interesting thing to try with a nightstick.
The book now goes for a hefty amount of money, and if I recall it was one of those publications rich on photos but thin on information.
Here is a video I found of some of these techniques:
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Phillosoph

Defending Against the Rush

A couple of years back I came across a Youtube video that was called something like “Close Range Knife Defense”.
This one was notable since it involved several young men having a great time fast-drawing their guns and shooting down imaginary attackers. Their speed and skills were impressive, their tactics deplorable.
Even if you can kill a charging attacker instantly, he is still likely to travel several metres.
This may be enough to knock you down.
If he had a knife this may arrive point first, resulting in you being injured or killed by a man already dead.
The chances are you will not achieve an instant kill every time. Even if your attacker is fatally wounded, he may use the final seconds to knock you down, stick his knife in you or thrust his thumb in your eye.
Remember, many victims of knife attacks are not aware of the knife until stabbed or cut. Always treat an aggressor as though they are armed.
You may not fatally wound him. Even the best of us miss occasionally when shooting under stress, drawing gets caught up on clothing or weapons misfire or malfunction.
If the charger was unarmed, you are still in trouble. If he knocks you down he can stomp you to death or take your weapon to use against you.
I have tried to emphasize in my book that defence and evasion must come before counter-attack.
If you have a weapon sheathed and you are attacked, your first response should not be to try and attempt to draw the weapon. You cannot outdraw him if his weapon is already drawn.
In a fast-draw competition, the odds are not good either since the attacker will have the advantage of initiative.
Even if your weapon is already in hand, it is prudent to combine using it with some evasive/ defensive action.
If an enemy appears suddenly before you, you don’t have time to see if he is going to charge you or open fire on you. Don’t stand were you are, move! Better a moving target than a sitting duck.
Let us return to our original example of the young men with pistols.
If their drill had been realistic, they would have executed some form of evasive action before they drew and fired. By having one of their number play the aggressor, and using some toy guns, this could prove a fun but very useful practice session.
In martial arts, considerable attention is paid to blocking and parrying techniques but generally these are concentrated on defending against hand strikes and kicks.
Some attackers will not move into a set distance and start throwing kicks and blows.
In our example above, we considered a knife-armed attacker charging a gun-man, but there are many other situations where one party may try to rush and overwhelm another.
Fighters who favour groundwork will want to get close to their opponent and get them to the ground as quick as possible.
Defending against an enemy that charges seems to be something some martial arts would rather not think about.
Yes it is crude and brutal. Whether it is unskilled or not is irrelevant.
It is a real and likely threat and can be very effective, particularly if you have never bothered to practice against it.
What defences are there against a rush? The primary defence remains the use of evasion.
The ginga movement from Capoeira that is included in my book is very good for teaching side-stepping and other evasive footwork.
Also useful is the hip-twist move that is the basis of in-quartata and certain kicking actions.
If your dodge does not take you sufficiently out of harm, you must combine it with a parrying action.
A charging opponent will have a lot of momentum, so blocking his force directly is not a practical option. We need to parry to redirect it.
Parrying his hands or forearms is not likely to have much effect. There is no point in knocking these aside if the body behind still knocks you down.
Parry against the upper arm, shoulder and torso regions. Use both your arms to make contact.
The p’eng hinge action detailed in the book can be easily adapted for this action, as can several other techniques such as the double-handed push, the shoulder check and the outside crane.