Comericus

I agree with watching the chest and carriage. Looking in the eyes just sounds great in the movies.

Well, if you're super-fast, you can also hit someone mid-bounce, since they're in the air, they have contact with nothing. But, if the defender is on the back foot, then then his weight is shifted back. If you attack, he's in the ideal position to jam a front leg sidekick or a reverse punch, and you plow right into it (ow! my ribs). If your opponent is moving forward, then they have their weight forward, then they have to "put it in reverse" (shift their weight back) first, to retreat. This is all predicated on the assumption that you're sparring for points, however. In an SD or full-contact situation, you might take a hit in order to close the gap. In a point match, you meet the foot, and lose the point.

I am pro bouncing, but bouncing front to back is to be avoided. If your opponent is bouncing from front foot to back foot, all you have to do is wait until they are on the forwards bounce, and then kick or blitz. Since their momentum is still bringing them forwards, they can't retreat properly. In essence , you allow them to bounce into the attack. Ideally, you try to move without patterns to short circuit this.

I think it's probably a gamble whether SD techniques practiced only against a compliant partner holding one fist out are going to prove useful in a confrontation. Sparring, however, gives you the ability to hone your speed, aim, ranging, and timing, regardless of the contact level. It also gets you used to operating with an elevated heart rate. I like sparring with as much contact as possible, without getting injured all the time. If you don't pick up bruises from time to time, you're not doing it right. That being said, sparring is not the same as self-defense, but it is part of the equation.

I hit the ground a lot harder now. I started in the UFAF when I was 40. I found a school for my son (who was 5 at the time), but I think it was really an excuse for me to join. Now we have something we do together (despite the separate adult and kids classes). Two years later, I don't think about fitness so much as performance, which was a great way to trick myself into pursuing fitness. I had also been wondering if I could even hit someone if I had to. So much of human interaction is a veiled physical threat that never materializes. It's almost all an empty threat. Instead, it's about our idea that we build up about ourselves; whether we can handle ourselves if we need to. I found all about my limitations pretty quickly. (fighting is hard work, man...) Now I feel better, move better, and my blood stats are all in line (they were getting up there). I think the best thing about martial arts for me is that the goal is to perfect the self, not training to win a game. Losing and winning are useless distractions. That being said, I'm starting to hit the tournaments...