Contact

Practicality dictates that if a student wants to learn martial arts then they need to learn how to hit things and learn how to be hit.  The first piece is obvious to most people.  Without feeling what it is like to make impact with a fist and a foot, then odds are high that if the student ever has to make contact, they will hurt themselves.

The second piece is often less obvious to students.  Why learn how to get hit?  Don’t martial artists develop supernatural skills to dodge all punches?  Sadly, no.  Everyone gets hit.  If a student has never been hit and then experiences contact in a self defense situation, they are liable to get hurt.

Does that mean we need to strap on the boxing gloves and beat the tar out of one another?  Not necessarily.  Learning can be done in small steps.  Just as we hit the focus pads to practice making contact, we can use the focus pads to swing slowly at one another to get some (light) contact – even with younger students.

Contact, giving and receiving, is a key part of martial arts.  Plus, nothing motivates students to keep their hands up like the threat of getting bonked in the head.

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