hi all
Does anyone know the theory and uses behind the relaxed punch? I am just curious about this different way of punching.
What is the relaxed punch you say?(haha!). all you do is punch!… but with total relaxation. No clenching of any muscle in arm or shoulder. Your fist isn’t even clenched but closed.
When you watch it, it doesn’t look any different to how a normal punch is executed but its the feeling you get when you are hit that is different.
One example is when I was asked by a friend to hold a punching pad on my chest. This friend of mine first hit the pad with a conventional punch (tensed before impact), which felt solid and strong.
After a couple of those he then threw a relaxed punch. When the punch hit the pad it felt like the pad wasn’t there at all… but it didnt stop on the surface of my chest, the force traveled through my chest.
So from what I can gather is that the force of his first two conventional punchs hit the pad but did not travel through the pad. When the relaxed punch hit, the force went through the pad and into the body. So hopefully that makes sense.
Please enlighten a fellow student on this particular way of striking.
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Sifu Victor Botes from the Fighting Spirit Boxing & Martial Arts Club in South Africa, http://www.FightingSpirit.co.za replies:
A relaxed punch is still executed with focusing energy somewhere, be it through the target, or into a point somewhere behind the pad into your body, that’s why you can actually feel the energy differently as the strike is received. It is a good example of how being relaxed allows the energy to flow without any blockages or tensing.
However, practically though, I would advise you to train punching by paying attention to the correct bone structure alignment of your arm, fist (bottom 3 knuckles) and body when punching, and making a really tight fist on point of impact, maximizing the power in the strike, but minimizing the chance of injury to your hand (and wrist) while striking.
Hitting stationery pads which are not moving is different to moving targets or shaped body or head targets which can change causing different stress angles on your fist.
