A YouTube Debacle: How To Post A Comment With Gross Results…

How To Throw A Jab With Gross Results – These Boxing Technique Videos Don’t Suck Like The Others

I had watched this video by FightSmartTrav entitled “How To Throw A Jab With Gross Results – These Boxing Technique Videos Don’t Suck Like The Others.” I noticed something that was contrary to not only what I learned about the mechanics of a jab, but what I myself once doubted and had to confirm with a couple of physics professors regarding the soundness of the logic in the mechanics I was being taught. I did, of course, make the mistake of trying to point this out under the thread for the YouTube video I’m referencing, and was subsequently berated by those who did not understand what I was trying to say. Unfortunately, there is limited space with which to entirely explain a theory on YouTube, and it isn’t necessarily appropriate to go to that length on someone else’s thread…so I’ll try to do it here. I was also challenged to make a video of my own. I’m not going to take the time to make a video, nor do I think it is necessary…but I will try to better address the issue in this post. Keep in mind that I don’t claim to be a physicist, I may not always be using the proper semantics, and I’m merely trying to describe this as it was explained to me but in as readable manner as I can.

First, let’s break down two possible scenarios: One being that you are in range of the target and do not need to first take a step to close the distance; Second, you need to close the distance to establish range before throwing the jab.

In the first scenario, where range is already established, you do not need to take a step of any kind. It would be a wasted motion and would most likely do nothing but telegraph your punch. You will have both feet planted on the floor, most likely with your heels off the ground. You shift a higher percentage of your weight to your lead leg, shifting your center of mass forward over the base that leg creates, rotating your hips, swinging the shoulder forward as your hand is thrust in a whip like motion toward your target. You are using a shortened lever principle which accelerates the speed of your weapon (in this case ultimately either the first two, or last three knuckles on your lead hand) at the point of contact with the target. Force=Mass times Acceleration…so acceleration is key, as you only have so much mass to work with. This process shifts the mass and increases acceleration of the weapon in the most proficient manner. This is similar to how a bullwhip can break the sound barrier and thus create the cracking sound you hear. The whip starts with a slow but strong arc of the hand. As the force travels down the whip through the decreasing lever principle, acceleration is increased as you reach the tip of the whip…fast enough to break the sound barrier. The foot does not make the jab fast, the foot merely closes the distance to establish range. The proper mechanics of throwing the jab, and the decreasing lever principle make your jab fast (along with being blessed with a high percentage of fast twitch muscles, if you’re one of the lucky ones.) This is NOT what this video describes.

Okay, so what about the scenario where you need to close the distance to establish range? Well, again, there are two options here: First, you could take a step forward first (in whatever manner seems appropriate…step, hop, skip, slide, forward moon walk?) to close the distance and establish range, and then with your lead leg once again firmly planted, proceed with the mechanics described above; or Two, you could integrate the step into the mechanics of the jab itself. In the video listed, FightSmartTrav clearly says the important thing is that your lead foot hits the ground at the same time your fist hits the target. So we can clearly summize that FightSmartTrav is not talking about closing the distance to establish range first, and then proceeding with the lead hand jab. He is referring to a jab with an integrated step. For a moment, let’s consider another option. Maybe FightSmartTrav is implying that we start our jab first with our lead leg planted on the floor, with a slightly larger percentage of our weight on it establishing that base, then using the mechanics for a jab when range is already established as described above, you would start the rotation of your hips and moving your center of mass over your lead leg. Can you now lift your lead leg with the bulk of your mass moving over it in order to take a step? No, you cannot. So we can also exclude any argument he might be making that suggests you start the mechanics of your jab as above, and then move your lead foot mid jab, thus bringing it back down to the floor at the same time your hand reaches the target.

This leads us to two conclusions: One, we are talking about using a jab specifically where we need to close the distance to establish range; and Two, we are talking about a jab that integrates the step into the mechanics of the punch…and not prior to the mechanics of the punch.

This leads us to a discussion specifically about a jab that integrates a step into the mechanics of the punch. The mechanics behind this become that of a short lunge, such as in fencing. If you are integrating a step into your jab, you cannot be using your lead leg as a base as it is in the air at some point during the mechanics of the punch…and we’ve already established it cannot be lifted mid throw using the mechanics described previously. Therefore the movement of mass must begin with the rear leg as the base and a picking up of the lead leg, leading into the same rotation of the hips, extension of the shoulder and whipping out of the hand as described above. Those mechanics don’t change; otherwise you are just ‘pushing’ the punch into the target and excluding the decreasing lever principle from the equation.

The point of contention now becomes; Will you have more power in your jab (that incorporates a step into the mechanics of it) if your lead foot re-contacts the floor at the exact same moment your fist hits the target, or will you have more power in your jab (that incorporates a step into the mechanics of it) if your fist hits the target slightly before your foot hits the floor? I pointed out the latter, which is when people seemed to go nuts. I was not going to be so cliché as to mention Bruce Lee, but since someone else in the thread tried to use Mr. Lee as evidence I was wrong in my analysis; somewhat foreshadowing the conclusion, let me just quote the man here: “Remember, when advancing the foot must not land first or the body weight will rest upon the floor instead of being behind the punch – heel slightly raised and pointing outward” [Bruce Lee, Tao of Jeet Kune Do, pg 95]

Let’s look at a different type of scenario for a minute. Let’s say that FightSmartTrav is standing on the roof of his house. He has potential Energy. He’s depressed with his career and….Oh my god…, he jumped. Now it’s kinetic energy. Energy is the movement of a Force through a Distance. We can assume the Distance from the roof to the ground is the same on all subsequent leaps. You should already be aware of the law of conservation of Energy, so we’re not going to allow any mysterious acquisitions of Energy which is unaccounted for. We can also assume that FightSmartTrav neither ate nor took a piss between jumps, so his Mass is also constant. Since Gravity is also constant at that specific point on the planet, we can assume the Force of FightSmartTrav’s drop is his constant Mass x Gravity minus some coefficient of friction (also constant) in all jumps (The Kinetic Energy thus also being the same)…let’s call this Force X. Let’s also assume the Area of the soles of both of his feet are the same, thus creating another constant (left foot =A/2, right foot = A/2.) Now, on the first jump, FightSmartTrav lands exclusively on his right foot. Force X is now distributed to the ground through the Area of the sole of his right foot, A/2. Thus all the Force is distributed in half the total possible area. On the subsequent jump, FightSmartTrav lands perfectly balanced on both feet, the Force now being displaced at two different points through twice the area (A/2 + A/2). Since we cannot create Energy, and the Force is constant on every landing…that Force must now be distributed between the soles of two feet and the ground, at two distinct points with twice the surface area. Thus the Force which the left foot exerts on the ground, and the ground exerts back, is X/2 (because again, he landed with perfect balance, knowing FightSmartTrav) and the Force which the right foot exerts on the ground, and the ground exerts back is also X/2. X/2 + X/2=X. The Force did not double, the Energy did not double…the Force at each point of impact was halved, the total Force remaining the same. Adding the left foot into the equation decreased the Force with which the right foot impacted the ground. Pressure is Force per Unit Area…so we can also look at this as a Pressure calculation. (5 pounds of pressure from a flat weight sitting on your chest is entirely different than 5 pounds of pressure behind a knife poking into your chest. This is also why we punch with knuckle groupings and not the area of the flat phalanges at the front of the fist.) Thus, each foot distributes half the total pressure on the ground, each foot accounts for half the total Force.

Now, let’s go back to our jab with an integrated step. With the lunge, as you are pushing off the floor there is a small force component moving up vertically from the push and an opposing force of gravity, and a force component moving forward toward the target, with a force from the floor due to a high coefficient of friction opposing it. The total Force vector may be something like 20 degrees from horizontal towards the target. At the point before impact you have 2 Force vectors which will be added to arrive at the total Force applied to the target. One is vertical F1=Mass times Acceleration (or negative acceleration from the vertical pushing off of the floor) of Gravity the other is F2=Mass times Acceleration due to the decreasing lever principle toward the target…resulting in a subsequent total Force comprised of two Force vectors. If your lead foot hits the ground at the same time as your fist hits the target, it distributes the total Force between both the target and the floor, much like FightSmartTrav landing on both feet on the ground distributing the Force between the soles of two feet instead of one. You’ve hit the floor and the target at the same time, dividing the total Force between 2 areas of impact. For simplicity, I guess you could think of it as removing the vertical Force vector from the equation, though mathematically that might not be precisely accurate. (You may ultimately be striking the target with one Force vector pointing away from the ground or a vector returning to the ground depending on the exact timing, while the other is always moving horizontal toward the target. It would also be theoretically possible that you impact the target at the exact moment that the vertical acceleration is 0, making that Force momentarily moot.) Remember, for those of who you just don’t seem to understand (i.e. Max Loh)…we’re not talking about a step to establish range and THEN throwing a jab with the lead leg as the base…so you can’t argue the power comes from the lead leg being on the floor in this scenario. We’re already through the mechanics of this particular jab which create the total Force before the lead leg is on the ground either at or just after the moment of impact on the target.

The final conclusion would appear to be; If you make contact with the target before your foot hits the ground, the total Force is going into your target and not just the horizontal component of it… making for a more Forceful jab when incorporating a step into the jab. If your foot hits the ground at the same time as your fist hits the target, you are dividing the total Force between multiple points of impact.

Also, for those idiots who keep saying that a jab is not supposed to have power and is merely meant for ”this” or “that” purpose (maintain distance, setup a combination, a feint, etc.) …THE PRIMARY PURPOSE OF A JAB IS TO HIT SOMEONE. The other uses of a jab are merely derivates of that primary purpose. If the purpose wasn’t primarily to hit a target, the subsequent derivative uses of a jab would cease to have any effect on your target. They work because the target is either being hit or trying not to be hit. It’s just that simple. Knowing this, no matter what the ‘use’ of your jab at any given moment…with all other things being equal, if you don’t want more power in your jab while sacrificing none of the following (speed, balance, precision, timing), then you’re just f’n ignorant.

Now, if there are physics professors out there who can either restate what I’m trying to say with better scientific semantics, or can show that the previous professors that went over and verified the mechanics of this were wrong in their analysis of the information I had found…I’m as willing to accept new logically sound information as anyone else. Again, this is not my idea. I do not take credit for thinking of it. I found this information from a few sources, and subsequently confirmed the logic behind the mechanics of this with physics professors instead of adopting the info without question.

The other thing I want to mention is that I only questioned this one very distinct thing in FightSmartTrav’s video. I’m not questioning his overall skill or knowledge of martial arts. He’s also very funny and his videos are well worth watching. Had they not been, I would have never bothered to comment on his video in the first place. I wish the guy well, I admire what he’s doing and I respect anyone that is attempting to share knowledge they may have with others.

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