Jeet Kune do Punch

It is time to go to basics of Jeet Kune Do punch and introduce something modified as well.When Bruce Lee came up with JKD he studied mechanics of the human body, perfected it and implemented his knowledge in every aspect of hand to hand combat. When it comes to JKD punch also known as straight lead hand punch, Bruce utilized economy of the motion and body mechanics to create it. Shortest distance from point A to point B is a straight line and that is why this punch is so effective.

Since Bruce Lee was right handed he used his strongest side as a lead hand to punch and advised that others do the same. Since I'm right handed and for the purpose of this tutorial I will talk about the south paw stance. Other reasons for using your right hand is because it is closest to your target, it requires less time to reach it, it is more accurate then your cross and in Jeet Kune Do we use straight punch 90% of the time to attack. With the proper body mechanics such as relaxation which brings speed, weight shift to front leg before punch lands, turn of your feet and hip will increase the power produced by the straight punch. Look at the image above to see which areas of your knuckles to use while executing the punch. Notice that only first 3 knuckles are used while executing Jeet Kune Do straight Punch. Those are your strongest knuckles in your fist and by properly executing this punch, it eliminates the chance of injuring your hand.

Now lets talk about modified punch. This punch is actually nothing new, I've just added it so it can work better for women in self defense. When Bruce Lee was teaching these techniques, martial arts were still new in United States and not many women were interested in learn this as they are today. Today we can see  women fight in mma competitions. Once more, nothing is different when it comes to executing this technique except when you punch you do not use your fist to cause damage but open palm. This punch is also known as palm heel. Your fist will be open, fingers facing upward just like when police tells someone to stop while driving but your thumb is tucked in and pressed tight to your fingers. You will use your cushion part of your palm for striking. This eliminates potential injuries of knuckles and or wrist while punching. This  punch is more suitable for womens self defense then regular way of punching. To illustrate this better, please check out the image on your left.

Many people will dispute that traditional punch is a lot stronger then palm heel because you use your knuckles. However, this statement is not true. It is not the knuckle that causes the damage, knocks someone out and so forth, it is the proper body mechanics that lead to creating power punching. To prove my point check out this video. Guy gets knocked out while playing slapping game. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvHZTrwVKEY They were using nothing but palms, yet consequences are the same as regular punch. 'Till the next time, have a great day.