Jay

First you need to tell us what you are nervous about?

In my opinion if you are smaller, you have to train harder. Especially when it comes to grappling strength is an important factor. When you are young and you play fight a lot the bigger kid usually always wins. Strength is a very necessary attribute because a stronger athlete is usually faster, more powerful and also has more endurance.

The towel whipping analogy only works when you have a weapon that functions like a towel. One which you can use to create a force couple. The whipping effect can't be applied to straight punching but it can be applied to a back fist or a snap kick. For instance the backfist you pull back at the last moment to make you wrist reverse in direction to add force. It also works with the front snap kick but its hard to do. You force your knee down at the last minute to create a whipping movement

This is why strength training is in my opinion more important once you can do the technique. There is a point when going to the gym and adding 20lbs to your body weight will make such a huge diference in your ability to hit hard that technique doesn't matter so much anymore. No improvement in technique (once you get to a certain proficiency) will help you like the addition of more mass behind you hit. The same goes for you ability to produce force. There comes a point where shear strength outweights technical benefit.

I would like to add that this is one of the reason that I dislike ranking. Its a shame that a lot of students give up because they feel like they are not making progress. There have been many talented people that have left because they just get fed up of doing the same thing over and over again. Its mainly the reason why I gave up, I was a 1st Kyu and didn't get time to train as much as I wanted because I worked hard at school. I only trained once a week. It took so long to learn the 4 different kata and one steps and everything that I just got fed up. I decided just because someone can do a kata that I can't doesn't mean they can fight better than me or have better technique. I was also sick of 12year olds getting to black belt before me. It took me a long time to realise that the real reason I was doing martial arts was to learn stuff. I wasn't learning things that would make me better like kata or one steps or line work, so I left.

Interesting, I would just like to state something On average (this being the key) , Lightweights are faster than middleweights who are faster than heavyweights. Anyone disagree?

I can't relate because I have never competed. However Losing is not a problem sure you can sit there an be disapointed or you can try to work out the why? and how? If you know what you did wrong thats a step to doing it better next time.

I don't think this is actually a good analogy to make. They are mechanical needs of the system. The martial artist should not be part of the style. He should only root himself in it. Then he can use what he likes. You chose the techniques you like thus not restricting yourself to the system. Very JKD argument orientated but nevertheless it should be the same in all arts The mechanics of the body are the same but the way you use the body is different. For example a Cross in boxing and a reverse punch in karate. Similar but different. The little things add up No but it is one of the most effective ways Very true but in the situation of a fight against another style if you know the style you know what weapons they are likely to use. For example I will use karate again as I know it well. From range a karate person is likely to Roundhouse of Side kick to close the gap. I can anticipate this. I also know a tradition karate person is unlikely to hook punch for instance. Of course you still have to be aware and its a slippery slope if you try and go into an outcome with a prediction you should react. If you know how they deliver the technique you can tell what is coming.

Work ethic is a very good one actually. Maybe the most important because without it you will get nowhere. Its interesting you say he was genetically gifted I have only ever seen one martial artist that actually comes close to his speed which of course I have only seen on film. Even lightweight boxers are nowhere near and they train very very hard.

I was thinking the other day about how great martial artists get to be so good. I have always been of the opinion that the martial artist is more important than the style or sect from which they come. There are of course some superior tactics and strategy's that can be employed but these can generally be used in every martial art. There are also better ways of striking in some martial arts than others, when you consider their application to sparring situations, and the same with some others when you consider self defense applications. Of course all will work with the correct timing and distance but there are better ways. For instance some styles techniques will be less telegraphic than others some will have more power due to the way it is delivered. In essence though a martial artists ability comes not from the techniques of the style but his ability to add his own attributes to the technique to make it better. Thus in my opinion a martial artist can gain more from the development of attributes than from the accumulation of techniques. There are certain attributes that are absolutely key to the efficiency of a martial artist. Here is a short list of what I think is important. My number one key attribute that a martial artist must have is perceptual speed. If you know what the opponent is going to do then you have already won the battle. Now this is very hard to achieve. You must be able to pick up on all the subtle movements of the opponent. My second attribute is mechanical speed. The martial artist must have enough speed to hit the opponent when he has recognized his intentions if he does not he is liable to get hit. Distance and timing are also very important you must be able to judge your distance and timing so that a hit is possible. A limited selection of weapons is also important, training should consist of a few techniques done to a very high standard through repetition. These techniques should have enough variations so that all possible angles and scenarios can be covered. More weapons= more choices= slower reaction time. Power is another attribute than one must develop. This is why strength training is so important more strength=more power potentially. You must also know all styles weaknesses and strengths including your own. Thus should you have to fight or spar with them then you will know what tactics to use against their preferred attacks. Thus what are you opinions on what makes a martial artist good and what attributed do you think they should have and how to develop them?

Ok I only did up to A-Level mechanics and bits of particle physics in uni, but that doesn't make much sense to me. Change in momentum basically means velocity or acceleration, so force=mass x acceleration , i.e. Newton's first law. Means you hit the target when you fist is travelling the fastest in order to gain maximum force. That's pretty straightforward. But it means its not so much spending less time in contact with the target as transferring the mass as fast as possible i.e. acceleration. Doesn't matter how long you are in contact for because if you are travelling fast enough when you impact the mass is transferred in a split second rather than over a longer time period which would happen if you were travelling slower. After the energy has been transferred as impact you can keep your fist there if you want, its not going to suck the energy back. Think car hitting a wall, once it hits and kinetic energy becomes impact, doesn't matter if you then accelerate in reverse, the damage is already done. Another example, a sledgehammer wont do more damage if you hit and then recoil. Once it's hit, it's hit. You also have to punch through because your arm isn't travelling the fastest at the end of the punch, its travelling fastest at probably around 75-80% of the distance. No matter how fast you accelerate throughout the punch, you have to stop your arm at some point so you decelerate towards the end of the motion. Therefore to maximise the energy transfer you want to hit when its travelling the fastest, ~25% before full extension. So for a better punch, don't decrease the time you are in contact, decrease the time it takes you to make contact. Also decrease the time/increase the distance before you have to decelerate and you will maximise the amount of acceleration created. DWx effectively you a correct in what you are saying which is similar to what I was saying. I have had a long conversation with my housemate, we are both engineering undergrads. I was slightly off with newtons second law. Effectively you always need a follow through on your punch or kick how much depends on the ability of the object to conserve the momentum. You do need to make contact at the point of maximum acceleration which as you correctly stated is roughly 25% before the end. Basically you want to keep applying force until the object you have hit has absorbed all the momentum. Thus for a light object your fist velocity and his head will reach a maximum equilibrium velocity, that is when you retract because you cannot exert anymore force. Thus we decided was about 2-4inches. For something to the body because it has more mass you need to follow through more because it is a larger mass you need to be in contact longer so that the velocities equalize and then you pull back when you can no longer give momentum to it. This is probably about 6inches for a punch or a Bruce Lee said about 12inches for the sidekick as you can continue applying energy for a longer period of time thus the body is absorbing more. Which is where your kinetic energy comes into it. Basically earlier I was talking about impulse. This is a fairly complicated thing to be honest and im not 100% up to scratch on my physics, I design cars so its a bit different. But what my housemate was saying made sense to me. Either way the problem is more complicated than just snap or follow through. You need both but to varying degrees and us as human seem to have an uncanny ability of feeling the correct amount. So in other words you are correct with you analogies and I was off with my momentum which im not impressed with because I was at one point in time very good

Right here we go, elementary physics A punch with snap is much better than a punch without snap. A punch without snap is just like a push which although can hurt will do less damage. Pressure onto the body is what creates damage. Pressure is the force of the blow divided by the area in which it makes contact. Thus if you are throwing a punch the area over which it hits will generally be the same. So lets look at why the snap works. Force of a object is determined by the rate of change of momentum, That is the momentum difference over a certain time period. Momentum is the mass of an object multiplied by the velocity. The momentum for a punch is constant. because the mass and velocity of your arm are pretty much the same out as in. This is highly assumptive but makes things simple. Remember that change in momentum=momentum/time=force With the snap punch you spend less time in contact with the target thus increasing FORCE. FORCE over an area= Pressure=Damage With the follow through punch you are spending longer in contact with the target which REDUCES FORCE. Which In turn reduced pressure=LESS damage. If you are not snapping you are reducing the effectiveness of your punch.

Interesting that someone has said this because this is what the majority of people who come into contact with JKD think. Bruce did take things from other arts but integrated them into a preexisting framework that had principles. He didn't just randomly jam techniques together he took what he thought would fit with the rest of the things in his system. Originally the Wing Chun and then through Jun Fan into Jeet Kune Do. JKD is mainly made up of 3 arts. Wing Chun, Boxing and Fencing and he did not just take odd techniques he took ones which fit him best. There is also a little bit of Jiu Jitsu,Judo and Wrestling in the ground game which to be honest there is not much off. The techniques or more accurately principles he took he researched their effectiveness and then put them in based upon scientific principles. This is what interests me no other 'style' was designed upon scientific principles. They work because of them but were not manufactured in this way. Which all in all I think is very very cool.

Interesting, however is it not just easier to hit them.

When you feint you need to feint as If you about to hit them. Then if they fall for it be ready to change line. If they don't then renew the attack and hit them anyway.

All techniques have their time and place. You just don't go out looking for opportunities to use a specific one or you lose. Pressure points don't work on everyone I know for a fact as I have tried them on lots of people. However for example during grappling for head control the one near the earlobe can be good I would have thought. This is the most effective one I have found it works on 99% of people. Interestingly a punch to the face also works.

I have always been confused with martial arts and character building. I mean what is it defined as. I guess it depends on the person. But to tell the truth I am no different now than I was before but I can fight better.

Put bluntly this is of course a very subjective thing. But your not a warrior unless you fight to kill. Look at the spartans, true warriors in the sense.

Technically jkd is a style but once you have the techniques and the 'root' you can use the formless form.

My speed, Power, Flexibility. Finer points of my technique. Few other areas I want to improve on before the end of the year is my explosiveness from rest. Very very important to enable you to get the jump on the opponent. I still need to work on confidence during sparring. I have the ability I just don't use it.

In my opinion the two most important things in sparring are distance and timing Unfortunately you have to train these with someone

That sounds awesome. Yea the no chambering thing is very weird and hard at first but really teaches you to use your body more.

Yea honestly your much better cooking them. Then you don't have to eat as many. I think body builders just do it for convenience its easier to down 4 raw eggs than cook 2. As discusting as that sounds. Get yourself some protein powder and then you don't need to eat eggs like me! Great added to smoothies throw in and blend.

Raw egg isn't as nutritious for you as cooked egg because its harder to digest.

Jeet Kune Do is based all around feinting. We never go in without doing it. And if you don't react to it well you still get hit.