Secret Dance of the "Other Hand"

Practicing against bigger and stronger classmates makes it hard to always get your punch in. Lesson from this Tuesday's class - use both hands; control both hands. I like this concept because it relates to the greater concept that you need to utlize your entire body - when the ankle is engaged, and the energy is coming up through the legs; when the core is locked and the entire body moving together, the punch is merely a controlled extension of the energy within.

So much focus is going into the punch and strikes that we often forget to position our non-striking hand. This hand allows us to quickly retaliate or to put in another punch - thanks Henry for the reminder!

Controlling the opponent's hands is also important. Most moves involve more than just a punch; it's a pull-down and punch or block and punch. Using the non-striking hand to control the opponent's hand gives you greater control, as the opponent cannot easily release his/ her hands to block the punch, retaliate, or even get away.