How to Take a Punch ?

Tweet

Taking a punch is very important if you are fighting. If you can't take punches, you will more likely lose in a fight. Here are some instructions you can use to help you take a punch. Steps Relax mentally. You have to relax. If you fear that the pain will be more agonizing than what it actually will be, it'll hurt even worse. Breathe. When someone punches you in the stomach area, breathing out hard and swift will take all air out of your stomach so that they don't knock the wind out of you. Tighten your abdominal muscles; it will help protect vital organs. Try not to double up or bend over. Instead, stretch backward slightly if you can/if the situation allows it. Visualize getting hit hard. If you can visualize it, you can take punches a lot better. Don't panic! If you panic you will have a hard time recovering from a hard blow. You'll be suprised how fast your body will recover after a hard punch. Have a short memory. When you get hit, try not to think about it. Not thinking about it helps the pain go away. Remember that pain is temporary and there are worse situations you could be in. Tips If this doesn't help, try counter-attacking, dodging or blocking the punch. It's hard to flex your abdominal muscles if they aren't strong, so do this: just before the punch lands, shoot a short burst of air from your mouth or nose (breathe out very slightly and very quickly). Your abs will naturally flex very tightly, which will minimize both the pain and the damage to your vital organs. It may also unnerve opponents when they hit something rock-hard in your stomach, instead of the soft tissue they were expecting (even if you're skinny or fat, your abs are still very hard muscles, just not very defined.) Practice this technique a lot so that you find what works for you and it comes naturally in a fight. If you do get hit, remember to relax and stay calm. Try to "roll with the punch". If you can't avoid getting hit, move your body in the direction of the hit. This way the punch will be approaching your body slower and will make less of an impact when it lands (physics: relative motion). Try not to get hit while breathing in or holding your breath. This will only result in you "getting winded" or "getting the wind knocked out of you". When shocked like this, you simply can't respond in the following second or so. Another way I learned was this: right before the punch, take a deep breath in. Right before punch impact, breathe out. When you do this, let only about 1/4 of it out. Force the rest down into your stomach. This will create a sort of pocket for the punch to hit instead of your stomach. When done correctly, this is extremely effective. If a punch is aimed at your face or throat and cannot be blocked or dodged, the best thing to do would be to duck and take the punch with your forehead instead of your nose, neck, etc. Of course it will still hurt, but not nearly as much. Remember to keep your mouth shut, and your tongue well inside it, you wouldn't want to bite your own tongue involuntarily when recieving an uppercut. Also, your teeth shouldn't really be clenched tight. When punched in the head, particulary in the sides (cheeks), try to keep your head as stable as you can, if you jolt the pain will be greater. Warnings Following these instructions doesn't mean that you are invincible from all punches. Try to cover vital areas such as the eyes, throat and groin. This how-to is not intended to encourage fighting. Fighting should always be the absolute last resort in any situation. Even running away is preferable