My sparring has too much control.

[bushido_man96]

When I spar in class, I have noticed that when I want to kick someone in the head, I am automatically pulling my kicks, so as not to hurt someone. Not that I don't have good control....it seems to me that I have trained to control everything so much that it has actually hurt me.

Are there others that have this problem? Is it just me?

I have gotten to the point where I am making head contact now, and people are definetly noticing.

I think too much control (ie light contact styles) are a detriment to themselves, and to the art and what it hopes to achieve in the end.

After all, you fight like you train, right?

What do you all think?

[isshinryu5toforever]

the idea is that if you can have that much control in practice, you'll be able to take that same kick and move it over a few inches to absolutely destroy somebody. Also, once that blood really gets flowing, you lose a little bit of that control. You're no longer worried about hurting someone that's trying to hurt you. Practice is a different arena. You're in a controlled situation where everything is set up to be perfect.

[Jiffy]

^^ that is correct, but aside from that, pulling a kick is not excersizing control.

Control is being able to choose where it lands, not landing it short for safety. Although it sounds funny, what you have is actually lack of control. With time, your distance and timing judgement will increase with your skills and you'll be able to get closer and closer at full speed and still know that you won't hurt them. That is control. Then when the time comes, the difference between safety in the dojo and effectiveness is just choice.

Stick with it, it will get better over time.

[Sohan]

Look at the way a boxer spars, do they go 100%? Of course not. Yet they can unleash it in the ring when it counts.

Control is about placement of a technique. There is no such thing as too much.

Respectfully,

Sohan

[NinTai]

The thing is that when boxers spar they don't pull their techniques.

They still make contact just not full force.

I have seen where pulling a technique becomes a reflex action.

If you always pull your techniques or stop them short of the target

then that is what your training your body to do.

I don't belive in "full contact" sparring but with proper head gear

and mitts you should be able to have "light" contact without adverse

effects.

[Dragn]

I told the story once before on this forum about the time I threw a high round kick in a fight only to pull it back after only lightly slapping my opponents face. And he laughed at me and came rushing in.

Years of pulling kicks in TKD had trained me to pull my kicks by reflex. Boxers and kick boxers do alot of heavy bag and mitt work to make them hit hard. We also, spar with large gloves and head gear and go at a bit harder prior to fights to help prepare ourselves.

I say your body will react just how you train it to. Control is important but you need to include some heavy bag work and hard contact sparring in your training to really make the most of it.

[MartialArthur]

Jiffy is right, having to "pull your kicks" is caused by fear that you don't have enough control to extend the kick without inflicting injury.

I don't know about you, but I train in more ways than just sparring. I do a lot of work on the heavy bag and on paddle targets, both of which I use full power. When doing form practice I also extend kicks all the way with full power. In fact, the majority of my training is with full power techniques.

I suppose that if my only training was sparring I would not be sufficiently trained to deliver devistating blows when needed. But since I train a lot with full power techniques to targets and heavy bags, I feel quite capable of delivering devistating blows when needed.

..

[jaymac]

While training on heavy bags, I am going full force, whether it is body or head area. In the ring, there has to some control. I am not a really tall person. Most of my opponents in the ring are taller. I rarely go for the head because it is not a true vital area for me. I strike areas in my fighting zone. Now that doesn't mean I do not ever strike towards the head with a kick, but I notice that I do put more force behind a body blow than I would a strike to the head. I get close without having to pull the kick, but in reality, it isn't a powerful kick for me because I am striking upwards. Most kicks are more powerful striking across and down. I guess I feel more comfortable to allow myself to do that on a body than a head in the ring.

[Dont call me Sir]

After all, you fight like you train, right?

That is so very true.

If you train with 'pulled' kicks you fight with 'pulled' kicks, whether in the ring or on the street.

For a start, the body mechanics are different between a controlled kick and a full contact kick. If you only use controled kicks then you will use, train and condition muscles for a reflexive 'pull', leading to muscle memory. So, sub-consciously you will 'pull' your kicks in the ring and on the street, which is not a good thing if you rely on kicks for self-defence.

Then there's the phychological aspect. If you train fully committed kicks, then you will use them effectively, if you don't, then you won't.

DCMS.

[parkerlineage]

I agree that there's a very fine line pertaining to "control". Control is a virtue and a value, but I also think it is a weapon against us. We do not want to hurt the person we're sparring, but we also want to make it real, yes?

In my dojo, when you get to brown and black belt level, you give as much as you can take back. We're all wearing helmets, and foot gear, and body shots don't kill people (usually), so we throw them like we mean them. Besides, and this is really arguing against myself, high kicks in a fight are not going to be nearly as useful as in a sparring ring. Granted, you can put somebody down with one, but you better practice those like you mean them, too.