Pressure point fighting and focusing power re: Board breaking?

Question

What’s your stance on pressure point fighting and board breaking?

We’ve all read about or studied under George Dillman etc,
But do you really think that in real self-defence situations it can be achieved,
regarding focusing power,and actual pin point accuracy of pressure points
I realise I’ll probably be ruffling some feathers in the Korean Systems besides others.

I’ve noticed that during demonstrations of board breaking
Most students usually take about 30secs to focus/prepare before striking and breaking the board successfully, this is supposed to be as far as I’m led to believe be a demonstration of power and what can be achieved if needed to be used in self defence.

Real self defence is achieved second by second during a real fight and does not necessary last any great length of time as to allow the luxury of specific focusing

I’m not bashing pressure point fighting or board breaking.

I only wish to find out the general attitude amongst martial artists

Answer 1

1. Pressure point fighting is serious BS.... it only works on the cult like following that Dillman has made for himself. I have had people SEVERAL TIMES try to demonstrate pressure points on me... and they did nothing. It eventually starts to hurt because they have tried so many times in one area that they create a bruise! Go look at any video on those idiot Yellow bamboo guys or Dillman... you will see just how BS it is. "ohhh but your left toe was up, and tongue was on the roof of your mouth.... so that nullify's the effect...." give me a break.

2. Board breaking is for show. Power can be achieved at a moments notice too... but it doesnt take much to snap a human bone. It happens all the time in full on contact events.

I don't know what the guy above me is talking about but you can get huge amounts of power while fighting if your technique is there. In TKD they don't teach power moves, its all quick for point sparring. Other than the spinning back kick or a good round kick, all the other kicks are garbage, and you should NEVER kick to the face on someone that knows what they are doing, or you will end up on your rear end... FAST! Real people who fight rarely kick above the waist. Its just not practical.

There are a million things that can happen in a fight. Could you strike someone in a pressure point? sure maybe, but its about 99% more likely that you will have your *** handed to you first.

I don't see where I was disrespectful to anyone else on here to the guy below me... Just being realistic. America in general is too touchy feeley today if you ask me. Sometimes things need to be blunt. And to your comment about power from speed... please.... trying to compare MT kicks to TKD kicks is laughable.

Answer 2

I just wanted to point out while everyone is bashing the board breaking here. People break for two reasons... testosterone driven power breaks. Or, breaking for technique. I have rarely done "power breaking" mostly because I'm smaller (5'8) even though I'm somewhat built, just can't compete with giant meat heads. Also, I'm not interested in breaking my hand or fracturing a bone. I have done a lot of breaking though and always use technique and snap. It's used to develop speed rather than raw power. I can as much or more than most people. I just don't have to get geared up, breath, concentrate, focus, etc. I learned a long time ago to just hit the board without any theatrics. I also do quite a few breaks where you toss the board and then hit it unsupported in the air. That requires a lot of snap, all technique, no power. I learned the effectiveness of good technique the hard way a couple years ago. I got into a confrontation with a "cobra kai" type instructor. I hit him with a teisho to the temple, not as hard as I could, just hard enough to let him know we weren't playing. He started bleeding from his eye, nose, ear. Kinda freaked me out...

I quess my point is that breaking can be beneficial if you do it to help you with your training rather than for a pissing contest with others.

Answer 3

pressure points do work and if you get bruised?the person doing it has no idea what there trying to do.but common sense tells you they arn't any good in most self defence situations.it's situational like anything else.as for breaking boards well how does breaking boards prove power?all it does is prove that you know how to show off and impress white belts.the ooh ahh factor.thats where all the beginners or uninitiated go ooh ahh did you see that 10th dan break that fake pine board with one punch ooh ahh he must know what he's doing.and how many times do you expect to get attacked by a board or any other inanimate object?any way if i took half a dozen boards down the local shopping mall and broke
them one at a time throughout the day,how many students would i get to sign up?a few i'd say.and it would probably provide some entertainment and amusement for the ma who actually do a real style not train at mcdojos.
to get a really good insight into pressure points you need to learn both sides of it,how to hurt and how to heal and it wasn't until i learnt how to heal that i really believed and understood.and if you really need to break a board buy a saw or an axe.it's always a great source of amusement to me when i go to a bbq or a party and you get he man trying to break bits of timber or tree branches
with his bare hands.
PS.i have to agree with hood about the power/speed,mt/tkd comments.tkd has high kicks i dont know where anyone would get the idea that tkd has powerful kicks?

Answer 4

1st, they are 2 different things. Pressure point fighting is attacking specific points on the human body for maximum effect. Some points require extreme accuracy & are therefore not practical except for the most highly trained Artists. Others are larger & are more practical.

Board breaking is a demonstration of maximum power & is only indirectly related to self defense. In a real fight you obviously don't have the time to focus like you do when you break, so yo uwon't have as much power, but in training to develop maximum power, you develop more power in all your techniques.

Answer 5

I use pressure points if I can . There are a few that aren't that hard to take advantage of in a real fight . Most would be used to stop a fight before it really started .

Breaking boards and bricks is a trick , merely showmanship . In the words of Bruce Lee " boards don't hit back ".

Answer 6

I must agree and disagree with some of you. I agree that preassure points are real. But very hard to use. Some points that are easy ( and I have used them before to arrest people) to find are not so effective (like the radial nerve, the ulnar notch, etc). As far as breakings go it is as much a mental excercise as a physical excercise. It help you develope proper technique while striking something. It requires a lot of training and power once you get to the hardest stuff. A lot of mental control and a lot of training with your Makiwara. Yes there are other ways to develope that power and technique. As far as it's usefulness in self defense, not too many except that you are used to hitting hard stuff, but your makiwara or heavy bag could get you there too.

Now, I know that there is a lot of Tae Kwon Do Mc dojos out there, and I am a very hard critic of them. All other Martial arts school have MCDojos out too. I had train with many friends that practice MT and my power is the same or more than some MT guys. The opposite is true also, there is plenty of MT guys with more kicking power than me. When TKD students are tought properly the power is there. I personally seen plenty of knock out in olympic style TKD both to the head and body and was unfortunate to see a kid in a tournament nearly die due to trauma. I broken (not intentionally) guys arms and ribs with my kicks (I am not braging, just explaining that the power is there). I have also seen MT guys brake guys arms and legs with kicks. I respect all martial arts. I am of the thinking that any martial art properly train could achieve the intended power under the right circumstances.
As far as kicking to the head ( and I teach Tae Kwon Do as well as MMA) I wont recomend it in Self Defense, Too much at risk to miss.

Because all you guys have seen in TKD is MCdojos and point sparring it does not mean that is all that is out there. Open your minds a bit guys.

Answer 7

Although he is disrespectful to other arts, Hood-12 is correct on at least a couple of points.

1. It is difficult to use pressure point techniques due to the precision required. However, certain martial arts have taken this into consideration by adding 'set-up' techniques. They involve throwing punches or kicks with the intention that your opponent will react by blocking or moving and therefore providing the opportunity to use a pressure point technique. It is still difficult and requires years of training and discipline.

2. In a fight, you should never use high kicks. However, traditional TKD is very much about power. Power generated by speed, and power generated by force. Muay Thai is also known for very powerful kicks.

You are correct that fights last only a few seconds and you don't have time to concentrate on technique. Thats why you need hours and hours of training. So when the time comes, you just react without thinking.

Good luck.

Answer 8

When breaking boards (4 or more), you try to build up as much chi in your hand as possible minimize ones injury to there bones. When sparring you have time before the match to do so but in that case you distribute chi evenly. In fighting you don't have that luxury so there for you have to just have to "tough it out."

Answer 9

learn pressure points for the esoteric knowledge, not for self defense application. pressure points would be better utilised for healing and meridian realignments (if you believe in chi pathways...)

practice board breaking for show and tell, not to increase your chances of winning a fight.

Answer 10

What your saying is 'Boards?...Don't hit back'