Roundhouse Punch

[Superfoot]

Can anyone tell me how the Roundhouse Punch differs from a Hook Punch? This week my Jitsu sensei instructed me to throw a roundhouse punch at him, and I threw a hook punch (I assumed that the term roundhouse applied to a kick would work in a similar fashion to a punch). I threw the hook punch and he was fine with it.

http://members.tripod.com/~reylsongracie/tutorial.htm

Above is a link of what a Roundhouse punch may look like. I seems like a hook to me.

http://www.medfordjudo.com/month/hon-getsu.gif

In this image, a Roundhouse punch seems to look more like an Overhand. Apparently, Overhands are also different from Roundhouse punches.

http://www.shitoryu.org/skills/punches/images/furi_tzuki.GIF

This is another Roundhouse Punch demo.

However, I have been reading some articles lately and apparently the Roundhouse and Hook punch are totally different from each other. Can anyone explain exactly what this punch is, how it is performed and when you would most use it?

http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=22990

In this thread, at the beginning, both punches are also identified as the same.

http://www3.baylor.edu/BUKarate/articles/ForgottenPunches.html

Here is another article detailing all of the punches mentioned above, in addition to somemore. I think I have a fair idea of how each punch is executed, but I do not practice these punches within any of my training halls and would like to know how they are done by someone who uses them on a regular basis. I think what is confusing more than anything else is the difference in execution between different schools.

Thanx.

Edited October 3, 2005 by Superfoot

[feels]

From my understanding, there are only six punches that can be performed from the orthodox stance.

Jab

Straight-right

Hook

Cross or overhand-right

Uppercut

Backfist

[Steve_K]

He was probably referring to the western movie style, round about kind of punch. You know when the guy twists his body back, and throws his fist around as opposed to straight. At my school we call it a John Wayne punch. It's kind of hard to explain, but yeah, it's like a hook punch, but less sophistocated, if you will.

[Meguro]

Three different punches come to mind: mawashi uchi; kagi tsuki, furi uchi. Mawashi uchi, as practiced in kyokushin kihon, is like a back fist and the finish looks like you're doing a jodan uke. Kagi tsuki is a bent arm punch powered by rotation along the horizontal plane. Furi uchi targets the opponents collar bone. Like kagi tsuki it is a bent arm punch, powered by rotaion. It looks like a baseball pitchers throw, only your elbow remains cocked as your arm travels from above your shoulder down and diagonally across your body.

[lgm]

Can anyone tell me how the Roundhouse Punch differs from a Hook Punch?

I don't know whether or not the Shotokan karate definition will help you, but here it is. The roundhouse punch (mawashi zuki) is a punch delivered from the side in a semi-circular trajectory to the side of the opponent. On the other hand, a hook punch (kagi zuki) is one which although also delivered from the side, it does not travel a semi-circular trajectory or route, but straight across the body to the opposite side at right angles to the body and parallel to the ground.

TKD, other karate ryus or martial arts styles may have a different definition or concept of the nature of these two punches.

[Shorinryu Sensei]

Being the simplistic person that I am, and since your sensei tells you to throw a certain kind of a punch...I would think the best/place you should go to answer your questions would be to your sensei, since he's the one asking you to do something.

What I, doing Shorin Ryu, or someone else doing another system, would classify as a roundhouse punch, is not necessarily the same thing your system/sensei classifies as a roundhouse punch.

A good example of this is the roundhouse kick. The end result is about the same as most systems I've seen, whereas the top of the foot strikes the target and comes from the side, but it's in the execution of getting that kick to the target that varies within different systems. Ours is quite a bit different from many that I've seen, especially the Korean systems.

[Superfoot]

Thanx for the responses. When I threw the hook punch, and got no complaints, I assumed the Roundhouse and Hook Punch were indifferent, so I didn't think my Sensei would say other wise. The class in which I learned this was in my Jitsu class. The whole name of the style is Shorinjikan Jiu Jitsu. The striking is taken from Shorinji Kenpo.

The John Wayne punch I think is called a "Haymaker" which is some wild swinging fist-bomb that was popular in cowboy movies.

To Meguro: So is Furi Uchi executed the same way as an Overhand Punch?

To Lgm: When you say the hook punch travels "straight across" the body @ right angles to the ground, do you mean that this punch is coming over the opponents guard, like an Overhand?

[lgm]

To Lgm: When you say the hook punch travels "straight across" the body @ right angles to the ground, do you mean that this punch is coming over the opponents guard, like an Overhand?

Hopefully it does, if he fails to block or evade. But our JKA Shotokan hook punch (kagi zuki) travels straight from one side to the opposite side at right angles to the body and parallel to the ground. Our Heian 5 and Tekki kata have these hook punches.

The overhand punch is different from the hook punch. This is semi-circular (not straight) in trajectory like a roundhouse punch but directed frontally towards the head (and not towards the side of the head). The reason why it is labelled "overhand" is because it is intended to go over the opponent's normal guard or block. The upper half punch of the U-punch in our Bassai dai is an example of an overhand punch.

[Meguro]

Superfoot: Overhand punch? I haven't used that term, but I guess it's right. The trajectory of the punch is high to low. If your fist were held open, your palm would be facing out.

[Superfoot]

Okay, I have been looking over pictures, and it seems that Mawashi-Tsuki is what is commonly called an Overhand Punch, where the punch is thrown in line between opponents, but rises up and then down into the collarbone or torso. However, some schools adress the Hook and Roundhouse punch as the same, only that hooks are thrown at closer range. Other schools use the term interchangeably. Some schools called the Roundhouse punch Furi Tsuki/Uchi, others Mawashi Tsuki.