Physical & Mental=Yin & Yang?

[mantis.style]

There isn't time to actively think in a fight. What happens instead is that we rely on what things feel like. When you block something you don't see what it is; you feel what it is and you should react accordingly because of what it feels like. As it has been said, your reaction is based on what you've been doing in training - at least it should. That reaction is supposed to happen by it's own accord; as an instinctive reaction almost.

[The BB of C]

Do you think it would be possible to train yourself to think like this so quickly during a fight that it seems like a reflex?

[mantis.style]

Your problem is that you are still looking at it as an active thinking situation. If you throw a punch at me, my first instinct is to put up a guard to simply get in the way of that punch. Everything I do comes from what is considered my guard hands position and even then, my guard hands position is based on two blocking/interception hand positions.

This is probably the second thing we train after the basic punch.

If you were in my living room right now, I could show you. It isn't anything special. The trick is to get yourself to recognise when you have to perform that kind of reaction. I don't do it when a door is about to close on me. I don't do it when a friend is play fighting with me. I only do it when it is a real threat.

That's why I have trouble when people ask "what would you do if..." because I don't have a set of moves that I have against x, y, z.

[The BB of C]

I see.