Street efective TKD

[terryl965]

What do you believe to be the best part of your training so you can be street efeective?

How do you put this into your training on a daily basis so you can have that info. ready at any given moment?

 

[Fluffy]

I like to work on muscle memory so I react without having to think too much.

 

[terryl965]

I like to work on muscle memory so I react without having to think too much.

excellent muscle retintion is a great way to help the problem.

 

[FearlessFreep]

What do you believe to be the best part of your training so you can be street efeective?

I practice techniques in shoes and 'normal' clothes on various surfaces (tile, carpet, grass , etc...) so I know how techniques will differ and what techniques will work in street contexts. This is not something part of my formal training but just something I do on my own.

 

[dancingalone]

Believe it or not, full-contact sparring. I don't think sparring necessarily equates to fighting on the street, but the pain I feel when I get clocked in the ring is very real. I'm confident that short of a knockout, I'll be able to take any punch or kick coming my way and I will be able to dole out some punishment in return.

 

[onibaku]

speed of reaction and counter-attack

 

[exile]

What do you believe to be the best part of your training so you can be street efeective?

Training hyung-based responses to common street attacks.

Example: Attacker throws a righthand straight punch at your head. You respond from a `fence' type guard position with a deflection of the punch to the inside, leaving you on the outside, where you trap the deflected hand with a grab-and-pull as part of the deflection imposed by your own right hand, while bringing your left-side in close to your attacker, with a hard left forearm strike to his throat, knocking his head back and causing him to sink down on his knees, which you target with a low, very hard front kick, simultaneously with a grab to the ear or hair using your left hand, pulling the attacker's head around into position for a right hand punch (or palm heel strike) to the face or jaw.

This combat sequence is a realistic bunkai for, e.g., Palgwe Yuk Jang. The `knifehand block' it begins with is, in terms of practical applications, a strike to the immobilized attacker's throat; the `high front kick' is actually a low kick to his now exposed knee, and the straight punch is set up by a muchimi-type conversion of the original striking hand to a controlling move via a painful grip on a head target, bringing that target into very close range for a finishing strike to the head, face, throat, etc. as described.

How do you put this into your training on a daily basis so you can have that info. ready at any given moment?

When I can get a partner to work on it with me, do increasingly realistic simulated street attacks using this scenario. When playing the part of the attacker, try to avoid getting hospitalized by training partner.

When I can't work with a partner, I train the sequence using visualization techniques. It's not the same, but it's remarkably effective in keeping your game sharp for the times when you can work with a partner.

This isn't sparring. I never spar. This is a mock-violent attack type of training that gets decreasingly `mock' as the workout progresses. If I can, I like to work out at least one hyung-based scenario for each of three or four common street attack initiating moves.

 

[foot2face]

Exile, do you practice any "free sparring/fighting" or do you focus primarily on full-contact boon hae drills?

 

[exile]

Exile, do you practice any "free sparring/fighting" or do you focus primarily on full-contact boon hae drills?

It's the latter, f2f (though not nearly as often as I'd like). I've never been interested in the kind of free sparring that goes along with sport-competitive versions of TKD; it's something I've ever wanted to do, and anyway, at this point it's a (much) younger person's game. But I've always wanted to understand and have the ability to carry out the self-defense side of the MAs, and kata and hyungs struck me from the very beginning as puzzles that could be solved, if the right methods of analysis were applied, even though early on I had no idea what those methods might be.

So when I started reading people like Abernethy and the other proponents of realistic bunkai and saw how these MA patterns were 100% self-defense, if `read' correctly, it all made complete,perfect sense...

 

[Laurentkd]

hmmm... don't know if this "counts" but my most effective training for the street is my awareness. Without being paranoid, I have my little radar up constantly scanning for any sitution that I could find myself in where I would have to use physical techniques, and (so far) it has kept me from ever being in a situation where I have had no other choice other than a physical confrontation. Instead I have been able to avoid a sitution or get away from a specific person before it became a problem (walk with my head up, notice those around me, carry items so I am not burdened, have my keys out and ready, don't drink much in public places, etc).
I have "honed" these skill by not only learning what to watch for, how to listen to my gut instinct, and how to react, but also just by continuing to "practice" it every day in real life. I truely feel these are the most important "self-defense" skills that I have.

Ok, now if you want real physical movements than I'd have to just second Exile's post (as always it feels!) about taking form sequences and working them realistically with a partner.

 

[jim777]

I would have to say awareness as well. I never let myself be put in a position that I can't respond in, or where I'm at an obvious but avoidable disadvantage. Even when stangers stop and ask for directions (which happens in Manhattan a lot) I make sure I have distance between us and I slowly assume a stance and get ready to go even as I'm saying "it's three blocks a head on the left"

 

[foot2face]

It's the latter, f2f (though not nearly as often as I'd like). I've never been interested in the kind of free sparring that goes along with sport-competitive versions of TKD; it's something I've ever wanted to do, and anyway, at this point it's a (much) younger person's game. But I've always wanted to understand and have the ability to carry out the self-defense side of the MAs, and kata and hyungs struck me from the very beginning as puzzles that could be solved, if the right methods of analysis were applied, even though early on I had no idea what those methods might be.
So when I started reading people like Abernethy and the other proponents of realistic bunkai and saw how these MA patterns were 100% self-defense, if `read' correctly, it all made complete,perfect sense...

Interesting! At my school we relied on both but put an emphasis on “free fighting”(not sport-competitive sparring). We believed that in the chaos a SD situation there are too many variables to account for, limiting the effectiveness of a predetermined response. We put a higher value on spontaneity and flexibility. Being able, on a subconscious level, to explode on our adversary with violence striking their vulnerable targets were ever they may be or how ever they may change. We envisioned a sphere encompassing our body and extending just short of our maximum reach. We trained to quickly hit any point within that sphere at random. When we sparred, two BBs (but not always, we also trained against multiple attackers) would stand in front of each other and then be told to “SI-JAk”. Their goal was to quickly incapacitate their opponent without taking damage. No one knew beforehand what techniques they would use or what techniques they would have to defend against. It was like a game of speed chess, see an opening and attack and keep attacking them until you opponent is finished. Training like this helped us develop good instincts regarding target acquisition and a very quick reaction time, as well as helping prepare us for the adrenaline dump and stress associated with a frantic attack.
We relied on our boon hae to counter techniques or tactics that would hinder our “instinctive and spontaneous eruption of aggression”. They were generally geared towards anti-smothering/anti-grappling and once executed would allow us to commence with our striking. For example, while defending myself the average punch or kick directed towards me would be instinctively blocked or evaded, and have little to no effect on my ability to attack, however if I am smothered or grabbed my ability to effectively strike is significantly reduced. Some of these techniques or tactics may completely neutralize my striking, forcing me to immediately counter it or fall victim to my attacker. Lets say I’m attacked, I immediately land a kick to my attackers low region. They lurch forward, exposing the back of their head, as I deliver the blow they lunge forward and grab hold evading the strike and locking me with double under-hooks. This is a bad position, at this proximity my striking is virtually ineffective and if I don’t counter this technique quickly I’m likely to be jostled to the ground and put on my back. An extremely bad position, at least for me. There are applications from my poomse that can counter this technique, breaking the hold and repelling my attacker, allowing me to continue to strike if they are not already incapacitated. We trained boon hae similar to how you descried. The attacker would put the responder in a “bad position” and the responder would the counter using the boon hae.
In this way we balanced instinctive, spontaneous striking with predetermined, technical counters.

 

[DArnold]

What do you believe to be the best part of your training so you can be street efeective?

How do you put this into your training on a daily basis so you can have that info. ready at any given moment?

The meditation before and after class!
Everything is governed by my mental state in class.
The more I can keep my mind focused and on point then everything else falls in line.

 

[Omar B]

You wanna survive on the street then you gotta practise hard. Sparring with light tapps conditions you to hold back eventually, trained for point sparring they may deliver a clean blow but they will have no power behind it. Some TKD students only hit with full force during exams and they are a nervous wreck a lot of the time before and after. I say, get the pads on and fight, swing for the fences.

 

[K31]

One aspect of our training that I feel would be essential to bring to a street fight is endurance. Our instructors are place a great deal of emphasis on endurance training for sparring.