Injury,s

[gregtca]

Hi all, wasnt sure where to post this so bare with me for a moment ok, many many years ago I started karate and T.K.D, and enjoyed them as a tteenager,then went onto ninjutsu, ok I now go to a fitness clas twice a week with a group of ppl, the instructor is also a 4th Dan karate with over 20 years , he turned up last night with a broken right ulna in is forarm
, we talked as to how this happened, it was sparring practice with another 4th Dan 20 year veteran, the roundhouse kick to the head was blocked by my fitness instructor , by his right arm , and BANG , broke the bone, anyway I asked why he blocked it , instead of moving out of the way or even ducking, I could see on his face that he just could not comprehend either of those two actions , as he,d spent all his life blocking these attacks, I then asked that if I attacked him with a katana, would he block it , he said no , but subconsciously with all his years doing the same block , I bet he would as he's trained to do that block for that attack to the head,as we all did when we started ninjutsu training , before we were taught to move out of the way of the attack, the sad thing is he's still thinks it was a good block, ?anyway I guess what I'm at is that I try everyday not be stuck with a set technique, in traing or life

Regards Greg

 

[Tez3]

I think it depends on what style of karate he was doing, in Wado we are taught that 'getting out of the way' is the best option and are taught to do that though there are still blocks in it, it's knowing when to block and when to move I suspect. I've seen in places where they teach to block low kcks with a block and the result is usually broken fingers.
Having said that my instructor was putting up our boxing ring a couple of years ago when one of the large heavy poles that holds up the corners was falling towards his head as the person who was holding it let go to answer his phone, my instructor did instinctively block it and saved his head at the expense of bruising to his arm,so it may depend too on how you block?

 

[Tony Dismukes]

Evading an attack entirely is generally your preferable option, if possible.
Redirecting the attack is the next best.
Outright blocking is usually your last choice.

That being said, evasion is not always possible. A lot of times you'll detect where an attack is about to land with only a split-second to react - enough time to move your arm for a block but not enough to shift your whole body out of harm's way. (Especially if your body weight is already moving the wrong way.) Unless you are just way, way more skilled than your opponent you better have blocks and parries in your toolbox as well as evasions, or you will get hit.

Also, in a lot of karate styles the "block" is really as much an attack as it is a defense. Of course, this attacking style of block depends on a number of factors, including timing, distancing, angling, and conditioning. It's possible to mess these up in the heat of the moment just as it's possible to mess up a purely defensive maneuvar.