Left-Handed Sparring

[Shotokannon]

Any other lefties here?

If so, how do you find sparring with right handed people? do you find advantages with it?

I personally like it, because the majority of Karateka aren't prepared for a leftie so it gives one an advantage.

[Wastelander]

I'm right-handed, but I spend about 75% of my sparring time in a Southpaw stance. There are pros and cons to everything, but I would say that people fighting from a left-handed stance generally have an advantage over people fighting from a right-handed stance. That advantage being that there are more right-handed people than left, so both people will have more experience fighting against right-handed people than left-handed people.

Personally, I find that fighting from an open stance like that really opens up my strikes, in general. You just have more space to work.

[Karate_John]

Any other lefties here?

If so, how do you find sparring with right handed people? do you find advantages with it?

I personally like it, because the majority of Karateka aren't prepared for a leftie so it gives one an advantage.

Yea, I'm left handed although I mostly practice and train Orthodox to keep it strong. I'm known to switch if my partner is getting too comfortable, or I feel outclassed. it really throws off people who never spared me before because they don't expect it. And gives me an an advantage as I can play to what might be a weakness.

I made a thread not to long ago with some good talk on the subject [url=http://www.karateforums.com/the-left-handed-vt48105.htmlhttp://The Left Handed Thred

[pers]

When I started off in karate the gap between my left and right side techniques were huge ,being right handed my left hand and foot techniques were very weak comparing to the right side ( mind you my right hand techniques weren't that good either !) but now apart from mawash geri which my left one still not as good as right I don't even contiousely think about left and right hand and feet or if my opponent is right handed or left handed .

I would automatically adjust acoarding to their stance , it doesn't mean I will always get it right ,if my opponent is better than me then he will have the edge ,if I am better than him or more experienced then I would try and dictate and get the advantage , but intersting this thread was brought up ,got me thinking about it .

Interestingly after few years of training in karate I found myself very capable of playing soccer with my left foot , I could pass and cross and shoot and score goals with my left foot ,something I never could do in the 20 years of playing football before I started karate !

the only thing I could not do with my left foot like I could with my right was to shoot the ball with the top of my foot powerfully from behind the box ,which was something I did on regular bases and score with my right .

Edited April 27, 2015 by pers

[Nidan Melbourne]

I fight predominately in orthodox but i fight a lot of people that are lefties so they fight southpaw. So I have gotten used to those types of fighters along with the orthodox.

I trained in both orthodox and southpaw to accommodate for more of a well rounded approach.

[albeaver]

I spar, and am right handed. I can fight right foot forward and left foot forward. The orientation of my opponent doesn't change what I'm going to do.

[wayneshin]

When fighting in mirror stance (right versus left handed) lines/angles of attack change, some techniques and combinations have reduced chance of success while others come into play. In general left handers understand this better than right because they deal with it more often.

[brickshooter]

Im right handed and spar leading with my left because I want knock out power at all times, and I cant generate that lower with my left.

[Bulltahr]

I try to do everything I can on both sides, including sparring, maybe it can be off putting for my opponent if I switch while I mid-fight, I don't know..................

[liger]

I personally like the idea of training both sides so no matter the situation you can be effective.