GM Remy A. Presas' View on Blocking

[Guro Harold]

"It is said that the capacity of a defender to endure an attacker's strike depends much on his ability to parry or block deadly blows effectively and to counterstrike with equal efficacy...To be able to put up an effective defense, the defender must, of necessity, achieve perfect body balance so that his potential martial strength will be concentrated in his two hands."
[Excerpt from "Modern Arnis:Stick Fighting", By Remy Amador Presas, 1st U.S. Edition 1997, Page 39]

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[Guro Harold]

"Keep in mind that when blocking one stick with your own, your free hand should always be poised to guard, ready to brace a stick block or grab an opponent's stick. You must stay loose and move quickly, always pivoting to face the strike and keep your balance."
[Excerpt from "Modern Arnis: The Filipino Art of Stick Fighting", By Remy Presas, 1983, Page 45]

 

[Bob Hubbard]

What is the difference between a parry and a block?

What is meant by "body balance"?

 

[Dan Anderson]

I look at a parry as a defensive action which moves your opponent's cane, such as a palis movement. A block creates a wall your opponent'c cane cannot move through. Brace block is the ne plus ultra of blocking but a strike and follow through, to me, is in the same category.

Yours,
Dan Anderson

 

[DragonMind]

I tend to distinguish them by comparing vectors and the impact force. Blocks tend to have opposing vectors (90-180 degree differences from one another) and require large impact forces. Parries have small angles, often following the same line as the incoming object, so that the resulting vector moves the incoming force minimally away from its intended target and requires a small impact force. Example, a #6 strike could be met with a 90 degree power block (similar to blocking a #1 strike) or by parrying it with a small body shift that allows your stick to just tangentially touch it and guides the strike a few degrees past your body.