The Infonian

When it comes to protecting our targets against an opponent’s attacks, especially striking attacks, a martial art student focusing on real-world\effective self-defense must be careful that you’re not overlooking one. While this target may be virtually invisible to most attackers, not to mention martial arts students and instructors, going up against a skilled fighter who knows how to exploit this weakness can have you on the losing end with a badly damaged arm, if not more, when everything is said and done it’s all over. What is this target?

And how can an attacker get to this target and you end up with a broken arm, or close to it, as a bare minimum?

Before I answer that question, here’s one for you.

Have you ever seen a boxer’s stance? Have you ever watched boxers move around during a match?

I’m sure you have.

Now, how do they hold their arms?

held almost vertically. Right?

And they do it for safety – to protect their heads and faces from being pummeled by the other guy’s fists, right?

Of course.

One more question.

Have you ever looked at pictures or film footage of one of the old-style boxers? You know, like Joe Lewis, or even those who came before him? Have you ever seen how those guys stood back then, or held their arms…before boxing gloves were used?

If you haven’t, you really should do some research so you can understand what I’m talking about. Especially if you’re serious about being able to survive against an assailant who’s serious about beating, breaking, or even killing you.

To cut to the chase, here’s a little about the old school, bare-fisted fighters. Even those who fought with gloves, didn’t have the kind of padding that you see today. So, they positioned their arms and fists in very different positions than modern boxers.

And why was that?

Because they knew that holding your arms vertically in front of your attacker’s fists, would get them beaten. They also knew that if their arms were hit while in this position, that they also stood the chance of punching themselves in the face with their own knuckles!

What does this have to do with anyone learning self-defense. Simple. Because many systems are teaching their students to fight or defend themselves with their arms in this modern boxer position.

“So,” you might be saying, “what’s the problem?”

The problem is that not knowing why something is done, or why it works in one context, can lead you to think that it works all the time. And, particularly when we’re talking about self defense and not-dying at the hands of some crazy maniac, this is certainly important.

The reason that modern boxers can position their arms the way they do is because of their gloves. Sport martial artists fighting in competitions can get away with this too. It’s because the opponent’s knuckles are covered with padding that keeps your arms from getting damaged. So, these fighters generally avoid the arms as a target. They know that it’s pointless.

But, without gloves, your attacker’s knuckles can deal a lot of damage to the narrow bones of the forearm. Something that’s just not a problem in in a sport fight.

The point here is this: if you’re studying martial arts to win trophies or to get belts, do whatever style you want and all the luck to you. However, if you’re trying to develop the ability to protect yourself against a brutal assailant who will do anything to win, there are certain mistakes you can’t afford to make.

So, regardless of what you’ve been told, avoid holding your arms vertically or at least turned with the broad back of the forearm toward your assailant and rely on distance to keep the attacker from going after your arms. After all, it’s going to be really hard to throw your own punches with arms that have been weakened or even broken because you put them out there for him to beat on.

Author: Jeffery Miller