27 Body Targets

  27

Instinctively, when there is a painful experience, an opponent will move to protect that area or retract from the source; new pain can be very effective when striking. This reaction is biochemical, psychological, and physical in nature. When examining a technique like Chinese Hook C, the closing foot check causes the opponent to shift focus to the area you are checking. Why is this theory critical? Your objective is to move an opponent from an offence to a defence framework. Streetfighters are good at fighting or appear proficient because they don't block. Often, they don't even think about blocking, are offensive, and advance to attack, which is effective unless they run against someone skillful.

To build your striking abilities, select an opponent in sparring and divide them into 27 specific areas. This is done by striking the contact area's side, front, and back. The divisions are foot, foot to knee, above the knee, hip, waist, chest, shoulders, neck, and head. Thus, we have 9 levels and three sides to equal 27 striking locations. When you master the 27 striking areas, add the opponent’s arms. Remember, the increased complexity in striking will improve your chance to hit the target, wherein the opponent’s focus is split into a multitude of areas. You’ll also avoid the common mistake that people exhibit by having a limited striking platform, which makes them predictable and easy to block.

With the re-introduction of sparring into the studio in the coming weeks, count the sides you are striking; we’re going to work on some drills to improve your abilities. I briefly mentioned how to build up your abilities for striking, but I’ll be teaching you how to limit your opponent’s targets.

Written by:

Trevor Poole