For this lesson I’m going to be going over how to do a backhand for self-defense. When throwing a backhand strike, we’re going to start with our hand either at the hip and moving in an arc motion up towards the opposite shoulder area or we can start at the shoulder and move in an arc motion down towards the opposite hip area.
When we do this strike we’re hitting with the meaty part of our hand, like you would when doing a hammer strike. The reason that we’re hitting with the thick meaty part is so that we don’t hurt or break any part of our hand. When doing this strike, make sure to keep your other hand up by your face to make sure that you are protecting yourself in case your opponent tries to hit you.
Another thing to remember is that when you’re doing a backhand strike, don’t just hit to your opponent but strike through your opponent. If I were to strike someone then I wouldn’t just strike the head and stop, I would strike all the way through the head and that makes a huge difference.
The other thing when doing a back hammer is that you can choose to throw it like a jab, just a quick strike, or you can do it like an actual blow.
You can use a hammer strike if your opponent is standing up or if they are bent over you could strike them in back of the head.
This strike can be used in a lot of different ways and is another great strike to use instead of the basic fist punch. The reason is because it prevents you from breaking your knuckles or hurting your fingers because when you’re hitting with the meaty part of the hand you don’t have to worry about that.
Would you hit a wall right now with your fist? No. But, would you strike a wall with the side of your hand like a hammer strike would you? Sure, you could hit the wall as hard as you could and it wouldn’t hurt. If you don’t believe me then try it.
Another way you could use this strike in a fight is after you punch your opponent (or miss) you can follow up with this strike so never dismiss the idea of using a backhand in a fight because it can be a very effective strike.
If you have a heavy bag you can practice this strike. Make sure to practice both the short strike (like a jab) and also the full backhand strike building power from your body and swinging across your body. As you twist your body naturally wants to come back which helps add to the power of the strike.
CONCLUSION
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