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I thought I already posted this, but it’s not showing up. So:
I’ve just started Krav, and while doing working on punching targets and bags, I’ve found that my knuckles are getting pretty beat up. The problem though is that my smaller knuckles, the second set, seem to be taking a lot of damage. I’m apparently not hitting correctly with the first two BIG knuckles on the fist.
When I make a fist and try to keep my wrist straight, I find that my lower knuckles stick out a bit. And that these are probably hitting the bag at the same time, or even before my big knuckles. Any idea as to what my problem is, or what I’m doing wrong? And does anybody have any drills so I’m punching properly with the two BIG knuckles on my fist? Thanks.
Are you hitting with a Horizontal fist (palm facing down) or a vertical fist (pinkie towards the floor)? Vertical fist help prevent this.
Try pushups on your first two knuckles. If you can, do them on the floor, or just do against a wall. Pay particular attention to the alingment of your first two knuckles and be sure they are in line with the bones. “Wrist straight” may not be knuckels in line, it’s is not wrist square on the end of your arm. In fact the wrist may feel cocked a little to line the knuckels up.
Badge54
Some arts use the bottom three knuckles, some use the top two. The key is to align the wrist with the knuckles. To use the top two, think of your index finger and radius as one long bone rather than two. I develop this on one of these
http://www.martialartsmart.net/2040.html
that I attach to a tree with a belt (I use a small one). The makiwara is also good for this. For krav purposes, maybe use a heavy bag and work on the right alignment with straight punches, hooks and uppercuts (and overhands if you do them).small knuckles
Many times when you are leading with the smaller knuckles, it’s because your elbows are coming up away from your body. Take a look in a mirror to see if this is happening. A way to correct this is, stand next to a wall and punch. If your elbows hit the wall, it’s self-correcting. Hope this helps!
A helpful drill taught to me was – make sure your elbow and pinky are parallel to the floor when you throw your punch. If you start slowly you will be able to see where your knuckles are actually landing on the target and than adjust accordingly. That drill helped me a ton! I hope it offers the same to you.
maybe you’re arching the swing as you make contact with the pads?
What type of protection are u using? Wraps or gloves? If gloves, are they tight enough to prevent friction inside?
Errr, I think you’ve all misunderstood my post. Make a fist, there are four knuckles in a line. The knuckles that are being bruised are NONE of those, they are the knuckles (joints) further down your fingers. I do no have trouble hitting with the left TWO vs the right THREE knuckles, but the top two, vs the middle two on your finger. It’s a problem of up and down, not left and right.
I’m doing horizontal punches btw. It’s as if I’m not tucking my fingers in far enough.
Aha! I have ONLY had this same thing happen to me when punching a bag at the gym. I was surprised because I never had this at class with a tombstone (or with focus mitts since).
I was left with the idea, when I asked someone about it like you are now, that it is probably a worn out bag. I was using the harbinger gloves at the time, as I used in classes at the time. It was the first time I had ever done anything to those knuckles. There were bloodied and took some time to heal (because of course we break them back open instead of waiting for them to heal). I have only used that bag a few times, and I have never had the same issue otherwise.
Might want to check the equipment,
Dave
Interesting. Infact I do thing the bag was a little worn out, but now that I think of it, are the middle joints of my fingers hitting anyway? It just seems right when I look at my fist from a profile view.
quote jjk:Interesting. Infact I do thing the bag was a little worn out, but now that I think of it, are the middle joints of my fingers hitting anyway? It just seems right when I look at my fist from a profile view.Your wrist is probably bending backwards. Your fist and forearm should be flat, with no angle at the wrist. This will make the correct knuckles line up.
The wrist and forearm is definitely flat. If I were punching at a downward angle, the proper knuckles would hit. But if I were punching at head level, the middle joints would contact first.
quote jjk:If I were punching at a downward angle, the proper knuckles would hit. But if I were punching at head level, the middle joints would contact first.I’m just trying to make a fist where my middle joints strike first and everything else is flat (wrist/forearm). The only way i can do it is to improperly make a fist where either my index and middle finger are tucked too tightly, or index and middle finger cover my thumb.
Definitely one of those cases where visual would help.
I’ve never been one of those people who can use just the first two knuckles. Landing squarely on those two forces me to put my wrist at an awkward angle (bony middle knuckle). What I’ve always done is use the last three, trying to land flat using as much of the whole fist as possible. Placing my fist loosely against a wall, I have full contact from middle joint to knuckle on the last three fingers.
I’m sure ppl will disagree, but it has been field tested at plenty of bars and works well for me. 🙂
quote vwr32:I’m just trying to make a fist where my middle joints strike first and everything else is flat (wrist/forearm). The only way i can do it is to improperly make a fist where either my index and middle finger are tucked too tightly, or index and middle finger cover my thumb.Definitely one of those cases where visual would help.
I’ve never been one of those people who can use just the first two knuckles. Landing squarely on those two forces me to put my wrist at an awkward angle (bony middle knuckle). What I’ve always done is use the last three, trying to land flat using as much of the whole fist as possible. Placing my fist loosely against a wall, I have full contact from middle joint to knuckle on the last three fingers.
I’m sure ppl will disagree, but it has been field tested at plenty of bars and works well for me. 🙂
I believe this is how Ken Shamrock advocates punching.
Ryan is correct. Almost every time a student complains that they are damaging the bottom knuckles (redness between the fingers) it is because the elbow are coming out or up while you are punching. If you hold your arm out in front of you and have your elbow parallel to the ground, you will notice that if you send your fist forward, the lower knuckles will strike the target first. Keep your elbow down/in until you are about to strike the target, then rotate the fist at the very end to 45 degrees. This should fix the problem.
Good advice and all, but I think it’d be clearer with some visuals.
http://www.ehow.com/how_12859_make-fist-karate.html
Take a look at the picture above. We can see that if he were to strike a target, the top knuckles and the middle joints would hit the target at the same time. You’ll notice that however, the angle of his arm is punching down. If he were to punch higher, say at face level, the middle joints would strike the target first. I think this is the problem I am having. I do believe I am keeping my elbows parallel and in, and that I am executing a jab and not a hook.
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