How to Size Up an Opponent!
[I:http://mymartialartsblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/AlCase17.jpg]A trained martial artist will be aware of how the attacker is holding his body, even if a fight is a frantic affair from the outset, and what his positioning means. This article details my thought evolution when I formulated a plan for handling attackers. What is nice is that it is workable in freestyle, so you don’t have to go out and find a mugger to see if it works.
One of the earliest things I learned, concerning how to size up an opponent, was how he moved when you made a quick move towards him. If he moved back he was a runner, if he blocked he was a blocker, and if he moved towards you he was a fighter, or a jammer. This theory came to me through kenpo, was put forth by Joe Lewis, and supposedly was originated by Bruce Lee.
I came up with my own observations in this matter, as time passed. My observations were not based the fact that you have wasted a motion if you have feinted towards an opponent to make a response, and if he is not wasting motion you’re already in a fight. I realized that I better just get on with analyzing the attacker because the fight was already started
First, I began to dissect such factors as speed and mass. If he was strong and chunky, he would be more likely to close and grapple, and if he was quick and lean he would be looking for speed and striking. And, of course, there wasn’t much value in this general an analysis.
So I began to isolate whether he was left handed or right handed by observing which hand was forward. This was much better because it told me where the power was coming from, and even what angle it would from. Still, this observation only resulted in maybe a ten per cent edge in fighting, and I needed more than that.
Still, knowing which hand he was attacking with made me aware of whether he was setting up for a kick. Distance played a part in this, and I gauged how far an opponent was, and how I should angle my attack. The real key, however, was just being aware of how he was standing, whether he was shifted to free one leg up or not.
The importance of the positioning of the feet and the hands became crucial to my analysis, and this led me to view the body in halves. I would view it as two pieces, the right and the left, and estimate from the angle of his body, what what angle he would take on the attack, and what angle I should take on the response. This analysis was gold, and it drove my effectiveness up by as much as 70%.
When fighting there will always be a bit of mystery as to what is going to happen. Still, if you cut the body in half, top to bottom, and then cut the body in half, side to side, you’re going to reduce the mystery by having a distinct plan. Try it, let me know how it works out, and feel free to send me your observations, good or bad, I’ll be very interested in your progress and results.
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