A look at an American Kenpo Training Technique
by Jeremy C. Bays
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Slap! Slap! Slap! This is a sound that you will hear upon
entering into an American Kenpo, Shaolin Long Fist, or various other styles of
karate and kung fu's class. People seem to be slapping themselves while
performing the techniques of this system. Have you ever wondered what they
were really doing? Have you ever wondered if the martial artists
themselves knew what they were doing?
In this article I will attempt to give ONE possible explanation f or this
odd looking movement. Please understand that
there are as many more explanations as there are stars in the heavens.
This is not THE ANSWER for this rebounding motion, but instead it is MY ANSWER.
The Technique:
Observe a high ranking American
Kenpo stylist and you might notice this person will appear to slap themselves,
usually on the chest area, while performing the various hand techniques of the
art. One hand will go out to strike the opponent, then rebound off their
body and go out and strike the attacker again. This process gets repeated
at very high speeds for some of the following reasons:
*
To rebound the technique off the
body
· To
minimize the harm done to the attacker (training partner)
· To
indicate where the technique will land on the attacker by striking yourself in
the same spot
· To
ensure that the strike is given in a relaxed, whipping manner
Some
people I spoke with had not idea why they did this motion in their forms.
My Reason for Slapping Myself:
I tend to view the martial
arts from a TCM (Traditional Chinese Medical) viewpoint. I find value in
the theory of Chi (Qi, Ki, parna, life-force, energy). I believe that
there are several locations on the human body where the Chi can be affected.
These areas are commonly called pressure points and the art of manipulating
these areas can do by many names including: kyusho, dim-mak, vital point
applications, hyul-dul, and a host of other
names. It is from this tradition
that I draw the following theory in regards to slapping yourself.
Try this simple experiment with a
partner:
First, locate the pressure point called Lung One on yourself. This point is located where the arm and shoulder meet. It lies about one inch under the clavicle (collar bone) towards the arm. Press around with light, finger tip pressure until you find a painful spot. Now find the same pressure point on VERY LIGHTLY!!!! This strike is not a full cocked punch but instead more of a heavy push. Just give your partner a little tap and then ask them to remember the feeling as a reference point. Next Slap the same point and then rebound off their body, slap your hand to your chest and then strike them again.ount of pain they fxt step is now to strike yourself in Lung One with a slapping motion and then rebound
PLAY
NICE and go not hit them hard. Ask your partner to remember the
results of this strike and compare it to the first one. If you were on
target the effects of the second strike (with the self slap) should be much
greater.
This is
due to the fact you are doing several things with this technique:
·
You are maintaining a
“soft body”
·
You are executing a
whip-like strike
·
You are attacking a
pressure point on the body (a cluster of nerves in this case)
·
You are “programming”
in your mind the exact location of Lung One on your partner by first striking
there on yourself
Try this
out with several of your techniques to is if your results are not greatly
improved. Remember, this technique
is not for everyone or for every situation.
This movement is greatly telegraphed if the attacker can see you slapping
yourself or knows what you are doing. Only
use this technique when you have the attacker in a position where they can not
see you due to some obstruction in their line of sight or some movement of
deception you have preformed.
Here is
a good technique to try this combination on.
It is the classic “Delayed Sword: from American Kenpo’s curriculum.
Attacker
reaches out with the right hand to grasp the collar or lapel of the defender.
Defender steps back to perform a right inward block (strike) to the
attackers radial nerve area.
Defender
then steps into a cat stance and executes a low front snap kick
to the attackers exposed abdomen, bladder, groin, or femoral artery
region. This action will double the
attacker over, obstructing the vision, allowing the time needed by the defender
to perform the “self-slapping” motion before the follow-up strike.
The defender then executes the self-slap and strikes at a target of
opportunity.