Post by bazooka on Mar 10, 2020 5:57:01 GMT
Are leg kicks and oblique kicks effective in a street fight Oh my, yes!
Early in my training I was fighting a much more experienced opponent, and they kept kicking me in the back of the thigh and knee. Every time he did this I scored with a reverse punch to their body. I remember thinking, “this is going to be easy. While they are wasting time with leg kicks, I am piling up the points.” In most competitions leg kicks are not awarded scoring. So I didn’t even bother to block or deflect, I stood in and kept hitting my opponent in the chest.
After the tenth strike to my hamstring/knee area, I could not move, and I was a sitting duck. From that point on my opponent began striking me to the head and body at will, with the occasional leg strike just for good measure.
It was a merciless beating: I was knocked down many times until my teacher finally had mercy on me and threw in the towel. I was left battered and dazed, and couldn’t walk for several days afterward.
It made me realize a big difference between theoretical martial arts and practical martial arts. I adjusted my training accordingly.
I learned to move to avoid. I learned to block with my feet, shins and knees. I learned to “check” a kick. I learned to adjust my body when receiving contact in order not to take the full brunt of the blow. I also learned to throw low kicks myself.
Most importantly, I learned not to waste time striking non-vital target areas, and how to drive through the target - regardless of the target. In other words, to ensure that every technique was devastating and a potential fight ender.
You might think your legs are non-vital areas. Wrong. Although the legs tend to be your strongest body part, and you think you can absorb a beating there, believe me, a few well placed strikes to the legs will end a fight.
As an aside, after training (and reprogramming my fighting) I did get a rematch about two years later. I opened up with a kick to his legs, took him to the ground, and throttled him. Afterwards we became friends.
Early in my training I was fighting a much more experienced opponent, and they kept kicking me in the back of the thigh and knee. Every time he did this I scored with a reverse punch to their body. I remember thinking, “this is going to be easy. While they are wasting time with leg kicks, I am piling up the points.” In most competitions leg kicks are not awarded scoring. So I didn’t even bother to block or deflect, I stood in and kept hitting my opponent in the chest.
After the tenth strike to my hamstring/knee area, I could not move, and I was a sitting duck. From that point on my opponent began striking me to the head and body at will, with the occasional leg strike just for good measure.
It was a merciless beating: I was knocked down many times until my teacher finally had mercy on me and threw in the towel. I was left battered and dazed, and couldn’t walk for several days afterward.
It made me realize a big difference between theoretical martial arts and practical martial arts. I adjusted my training accordingly.
I learned to move to avoid. I learned to block with my feet, shins and knees. I learned to “check” a kick. I learned to adjust my body when receiving contact in order not to take the full brunt of the blow. I also learned to throw low kicks myself.
Most importantly, I learned not to waste time striking non-vital target areas, and how to drive through the target - regardless of the target. In other words, to ensure that every technique was devastating and a potential fight ender.
You might think your legs are non-vital areas. Wrong. Although the legs tend to be your strongest body part, and you think you can absorb a beating there, believe me, a few well placed strikes to the legs will end a fight.
As an aside, after training (and reprogramming my fighting) I did get a rematch about two years later. I opened up with a kick to his legs, took him to the ground, and throttled him. Afterwards we became friends.
