Defences to try against someone who 'blitzes' suggestions ?

[vantheman]

If someone has longer limbs than you, they will enjoy putting you in position where they can kick and punch you easily, yet you are too far to strike (I know I love to do this ) You either want to stay inside or outside of the range, and want to cross through it quickly to avoid getting hit.

[MasterPain]

Have you tried changing levels and going to a body lock or double leg or single leg takedown?

[sensei8]

Don't "shift back" as a defense. Ever. Full stop. The only reason to move backward is as part of an attack, or in some freakish situation where you are standing on top of an environmental hazard. (The attack can be an extension of a momentary shift back that has a side effect of defense.)

Treat the edges of the mat as if there were rusty spinning saw blades outside of it or something. Every time I see people run out of mat in sparring or competition, I feel embarrassed for them, since the mats are generally so big. If they're in a space that's only ten to fifteen feet from edge to edge, I can see being driven to the edge. I've jogoed in a space 9 feet in diameter, and it's hard to stay off the edges while lining up for kicks in that size of space. However, if they're in a space twenty-something, thirtysomething or even more feet across it's just sad; it's a bit like seeing people bouncing around with their hands dangling at their side get popped in the face, over and over and over again. A lot of those competition mats are unfathomably large areas. You have to work pretty hard to get all the way out to the edge on those.

Anyone moving forward like that is counting on the person they're in the space with moving backward like a raw white belt. You have about a hundred eighty degrees of good directions to move in, and backward isn't one of them. Shift and tag them on their off angles until they have to start dialoguing with you instead of just acting like a bogeyman and chasing you around.

Solid post!!

'

[pittbullJudoka]

Work on your angles because your opponent will always be able to move forward faster than you can go backwards. You should always go by the rule 1 step, 2 steps, 3steps dead. We have always went by this in my dojo and it was re-enforced when a friend of mine that is a pro mma fighter taught a seminar at my dojo. If you're cutting angles properly you are also cutting half their weapons off. Also work firing counter attacks imediatley after you angle of the center line of attack. Doing this gives you time to reset and prepare for your next exchange.

[yamesu]

I have had the exact same issue with taller people in Kyokushin (I am 5'10" and some of the people I train with are upwards of 6'5"). The only two effective strategies I have found work for me are:

1) Sabaki diagonally towards (to engage in in-fighting) or away to launch a round kick, followed by moving in to engage in-fighting.

Basically, being short does not allow me to keep a distance with anyone taller to pick techniques that will tag the opponent time after time (sure I get lucky with them if they are well timed - like a front kick to the solar-plexus), but need to focus on strengths.

So, I have to get in and dirty. In fighting with short compact punches, knees and leg kicks.

If I can get inside, it is more difficult for someone with longer limbs to attack me full force, so I gain an advantage as I can shoot off my quicker, more compact strikes.

[hertsmas]

Guys all genuinely interesting , and refreshing to get some plain speek opinion

Forgive me i didnt really think to mention style as even in our 'style' rules seem to vary. We practice Wado ryu and Shito ryu and though its not exactly practiced in class i have certainly noticed a few sneeky ' grab and throws ' at the higher level comps (as a spectator!)

Theres clearly no score for a throw though just for the punch in the head that follows lol

Cheers

[shadowspawn]

Generally speaking, I prefer people who blitz. It lets them do the work of getting in range for me. Due to my short stature, I usually have to fight for every inch of headway when trying to close the distance between me and the opponent. If they're coming to me rather than me having to go to them, it makes my job so much easier. That being said, staying light on your feet and working on evasive footwork is probably the best way to go if you're trying to stay out of range from someone who crowds you in. The idea being to force them to change directions and thus their momentum. If you move in a linear line (forwards or backwards), your opponent doesn't need to change their momentum at all and you'll find yourself crowded in really fast.

[sensei8]

In his days, Steve "Nasty" Anderson had a mean set of blitzes that were hard, if not difficult at times to counter against.

Check out his small bio...

http://steveandersonkarate.com/trainers.php

http://www.usadojo.com/biographies/steve-anderson.htm

[ShoriKid]

In his days, Steve "Nasty" Anderson had a mean set of blitzes that were hard, if not difficult at times to counter against.

Check out his small bio...

http://steveandersonkarate.com/trainers.php

http://www.usadojo.com/biographies/steve-anderson.htm

Hey! Steve's "California Blitz" was featured in this month's Black Belt Mag.

As others have said, off angle and hit with an attack. "L" step and front kick/side kick about belt level. Tends to put a much better stop to an aggressive guy than hitting higher. Sometimes pivots them at the waist and opens them up to counters.

[Shizentai]

One of my most favorite things to do when someone blitzes on me...I use my longest weapon...kicks...to intercept their attack. For me, that just works quite well for me. If their weapon can't reach you, then their weapon is greatly diminished in its effectiveness.

I am a fairly small person, and I actually find that Sensei8's method works well for me also. It took me a long time to work out how exactly to get my jamming kick in with just the right timing and posture though. I had to eliminate a good deal of excess motion and relax more to increase speed. Also, I had to get used to the feeling of my kick hitting a target that would not go back as I struck it. It's a totally different feeling than kicking something mobile like a bag. If in a blitz situation you kick the same way as when your opponent is stationary or backing up, you may or may not go flying backwards. To prevent this from happening I went out into a park and found a big rock to kick for about 30 min a day.

Even if a jamming kick doesn't earn a point by itself, it will surely make an opponent think twice about running at you full speed. Also, if you can keep your center of gravity where you want it, a jam-kick can be a good set-up for another swiftly-following strike.