The reason a karate strike is the hardest strike in all the martial arts is because of this little thing called focus. Focus is the point at which all your energy is put together, thus making the whole greater than the parts. Focus is an outpouring of energy which maximizes the efforts of the human being.
Unfortunately, many martial arts schools have gotten away from teaching students how to properly focus. Many karate schools would rather have the student strike the bag, rather than taking the time to focus. Nothing wrong with hitting the bag, of course, but it develops resistance which can slow a strike down.
Proper focus is generated in the fist...and it isn't. This contradictory oddity means that the strike must be generated through the whole body. It must travel up the legs, course through the body, and appear in the fist.
Proper body alignment is necessary at the point of impact. The bones and muscles and other body parts must be lined up between the feet and the target in a way which develops maximum efficiency. This doesn't mean a straight line, necessarily, but it does mean choosing that arrangement of the body which gives best transmission of energy.
Something which is crucial to the art of karate, and which people usually don't understand, is the concept of emptiness. The body must be 'emptied' so that energy can travel through it without resistance. When the energy travels through an empty body it moves at a greater speed and can come together in the sudden closure of a fist.
One moves the body without mass, then snaps just the fist, and then one is empty of energy. The snapping fist should actually make a popping sound in the air. The idea is to snap the fist so that it closes inside the body of the enemy.
It is impossible for two objects to occupy the same space. Yes, one could thrust and knock the enemy's body backward effectively. Snapping the fist, however, causes a shock wave to explode in the space of the enemy's body, and the result is massive revulsion, and the enemy dropping like a rock.
Proper focus, you see, invalidates the enemies body when you insert it into the space of his body. Invalidating the enemy when he comes at you is what it is all about, you see. Remember that, and practice your focus, and you will be able to invalidate the very atoms of an enemy's body.
Unfortunately, many martial arts schools have gotten away from teaching students how to properly focus. Many karate schools would rather have the student strike the bag, rather than taking the time to focus. Nothing wrong with hitting the bag, of course, but it develops resistance which can slow a strike down.
Proper focus is generated in the fist...and it isn't. This contradictory oddity means that the strike must be generated through the whole body. It must travel up the legs, course through the body, and appear in the fist.
Proper body alignment is necessary at the point of impact. The bones and muscles and other body parts must be lined up between the feet and the target in a way which develops maximum efficiency. This doesn't mean a straight line, necessarily, but it does mean choosing that arrangement of the body which gives best transmission of energy.
Something which is crucial to the art of karate, and which people usually don't understand, is the concept of emptiness. The body must be 'emptied' so that energy can travel through it without resistance. When the energy travels through an empty body it moves at a greater speed and can come together in the sudden closure of a fist.
One moves the body without mass, then snaps just the fist, and then one is empty of energy. The snapping fist should actually make a popping sound in the air. The idea is to snap the fist so that it closes inside the body of the enemy.
It is impossible for two objects to occupy the same space. Yes, one could thrust and knock the enemy's body backward effectively. Snapping the fist, however, causes a shock wave to explode in the space of the enemy's body, and the result is massive revulsion, and the enemy dropping like a rock.
Proper focus, you see, invalidates the enemies body when you insert it into the space of his body. Invalidating the enemy when he comes at you is what it is all about, you see. Remember that, and practice your focus, and you will be able to invalidate the very atoms of an enemy's body.
About the Author:
Al Case has analyzed martial arts for forty plus+ years. Details on The Most Powerful Punch are available at Monster Martial Arts.
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