Do blocks really work?

[steve57]

How can blocks be effective if people forget to use them?

 

Surely a large part of martial arts training is to develop NLP (Neuro-linguistic programming). The concept of level that we should aim to reach is: Unconscious competence this is where you have the martial arts skills and no longer have to think about applying them.

[Master Jules]

i'm kinda surprised that a goju ryu guy is talking about blocking THEN striking.

 

Goju Ryu is inherently a Buddhist art. In fact, if you examine ALL of the Goju Ryu kata, you will find that each and every one of them begins with a block, or defensive movement of some kind.

[steve57]

Ditto!

[ovine king]

i'm surprised because goju is one of the more traditional karate styles and is one that doesn't partake in the modern point sparring where block THEN strike is a viable game tactic.

 

i would've thought someone practising goju would be aware that each movement is at the same time a block, a strike, a lock, and a throw depending on the circumstance of exectution.

 

in other words, the movement whilst being all of them is at the same time, none of them.

 

it is 'just' an arm/hand movement.

 

what you are saying is suggesting to me that a block movement is totally separate and different to a strike movement.

 

not to mention that you are talking about blocking as a singular technique.

 

what happened to block AND strike

 

or

 

block AS YOU strike

 

or

 

block WITH your strike?

[Thaegen]

To the one who wrote that you can block a stick if you condition your arms, well that is rubbish:). Hard against hard, I will bet my money on the stick

[steve57]

With all due respect ovine king, I think that you are complicating a relatively simple question-perhaps you are reading too much into it.

 

I am PURPOSELY refering to a singular block in my question.

[PhnxShnx]

Depends on the stick. I didn't say two by four.

 

Conditioning makes the difference of your arm breaking or not. This is my point. Without conditioning, blocks are not effective, the first hard kick or stick or conditioned arm you block, will break your arm.

 

and how can blocks be effective if people forget to use them? They can't.

 

But, they ARE effective if you train to use them automatically. Then you don't forget, you don't even have to remember, you just do it.

 

For effective blocks: Condition, and train. seems pretty obvious to me..

[ovine king]

complicating?

 

well, like i asked before,

 

when do you ONLY do a block

 

and

 

when is that block ONLY a block?

 

if you are talking about a singular block THEN strike then yes, that doesn't tend to work because the other guy is hardly likely to only throw punches in any sort of rhythm

 

but then, that's what in most martial arts you are taught to block AS you strike, block AND strike, block WITH your strike etc etc.

[steve57]

So have we established then that a block and counter wouldn't work in most cases on the street?

[dingyuan]

In my personal view parry is much more useful than blocks.