# Feinting



## Flatlander (Feb 20, 2006)

The purpose of the feint is to deceive.  One must be trying to draw the opponent either into a block or parry, or into a counter attack.  Be sure to move while feinting, to take advantage of the ability to gain distance, and perhaps close the gap.  Any feint that doesn't draw a reaction is a waste of time, and energy.  One must force the opponent to move in order to be effective.

Consider: 
-depth: quick, tight; penetrating, committed
-cadence: consistent, varied, matching, off beat
-range: close the gap, gain inside/outside advantage
-horizontal/vertical deceptions

The ususal perception is that feinting should be done prior to engagement, and presupposes that one has time to execute the feint in a period of non-action.  Feinting can be included into any combination, as a way to "get around the block" and set up a trap, but to be done well, good sensitivity and balance are critical.  Generally, feints can be well used as a setup for a change in cadence.


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## Hwoarang_tkd26 (Feb 21, 2006)

Flatlander said:
			
		

> The purpose of the feint is to deceive. One must be trying to draw the opponent either into a block or parry, or into a counter attack. Be sure to move while feinting, to take advantage of the ability to gain distance, and perhaps close the gap. Any feint that doesn't draw a reaction is a waste of time, and energy. One must force the opponent to move in order to be effective.
> 
> Consider:
> -depth: quick, tight; penetrating, committed
> ...


Im not exactly sure of what a feint really is. It probably is something that I already use but never called it that, Im not exactly sure of it's meaning. Can someone give a couple of examples of a Feint so I can have a better understanding of what it is.
Thanks.


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## Gary Crawford (Feb 21, 2006)

Feint=Fake


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## Gary Crawford (Feb 21, 2006)

Attack by drawing is a good example of feinting. Not only a good example,but a great stratagy that I personally concentrate on.  I prefer my opponent be commited to an attack that I cause by feinting because I already know what his actions will be and I can counter effectively.  It's sort of like reading a crystal ball into the future. Bruce Lee once said something to the effect of: Two fighters of equal abilities,the winner will be the one with the best feints.


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## Hwoarang_tkd26 (Feb 21, 2006)

Gary Crawford said:
			
		

> Attack by drawing is a good example of feinting. Not only a good example,but a great stratagy that I personally concentrate on. I prefer my opponent be commited to an attack that I cause by feinting because I already know what his actions will be and I can counter effectively. It's sort of like reading a crystal ball into the future. Bruce Lee once said something to the effect of: Two fighters of equal abilities,the winner will be the one with the best feints.


Thank you Gary, that is more or less what I originally thought that it was, but I was uncertain. I do use these in my trianing, I just never used the term "Feint" for them. Thank you for clarifying that for me.


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## Hwoarang_tkd26 (Feb 21, 2006)

I have pretty funny story about Feinting, or at least I think it was funny.
One time me and a friend of mine were sparring, and while we were sparring I slapped my front leg to make him think that I was going to throw a kick, and when I did that it made a very loud "*SLAP*" noise which startled my opponent so bad that he literally jumped about two feet straight up in the air, then I ended up laying him out with a punch soon after.
of course this story would be funnier for you if you were only there to see it. I just about died laughing.
Anyway, I think that would fall under the catagory of being a successful Feint.


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## arnisador (Feb 22, 2006)

Gary Crawford said:
			
		

> Feint=Fake



Well...our "feints" in arnis are meant to hit if there's no block. It's just that we expect that a moderately competent opponent _will _block them, setting himself up for Plan B.


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## JPR (Feb 22, 2006)

A feint doesnt always need to draw a physical reaction, such as a block / parry / what ever, it can also simply be useful to draw attention away from your dedicated attack.  For example, throwing a finger jab (even from slightly to far away) can mask the low kick, while canting your hip forward as if you were about to kick can focus an opponent on the low line while you attack high with hands.

  With gloves, especially bigger boxing gloves, a feint can actually block your opponents line of vision to your true line of attack.


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## Dancing Dragon (Feb 22, 2006)

Very true JPR, the goal of feinting is to simply draw a reaction of any kind, mental or physical. The only thing about feinting is that some people do it too much without a follow-up attack and wear out their ability to startle their opponent, and then the adversary loses the initial fear and begins to expect fake-outs. 

Feinting is beautiful but you *have* to make sure it looks real and you *must* follow-it up with something to make it effective. Personally, after taking a few 'quick stinging jabs' to the face I would become more prone to flinch if my opponent even remotely signaled that he was going to jab, so that would give my opponent the edge, and he would probably get an excellent reaction out of me because of his previous successful attacks. So you also have to make sure to demonstrate to your opponent that you aren't afraid to hit him, and that those hits are going to hurt. So tag him a few times and then try to feint him. It works for me everytime.


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## Turbo (Mar 11, 2006)

A Fake is with the tool...jab, cross...what ever

A Feint is with the body...lunge forward, bend the knees etc..

Hope this helps.


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## still learning (Mar 18, 2006)

Hello, The Tao book written by the Master Bruce Lee talks about feinting thru out the book.  This is practice by all martial arts! and other sports.

Make you opponent  think you are going to do one thing by faking and do something else.  Didn't we learn this from the game of chase and tag your it as kids?  dodge and dart around? 

Feinting is up there as one of the most important techiques we can learn!  .......Aloha


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## bladenosh (Mar 20, 2006)

Deception is always a good idea. Feinting during a fight will vary according to the opponent. However, you are occupying a limb for a false attack which could trigger an immediate attack from them, on that side. While this doesnt hold true with speed, normally in Feinting you'd try to make the attack predictable and obvious. It is also most useful when fighting someone actually trained in stand up martial arts, unexperienced fighters generally wont even see the attack coming. While this as something to keep in mind, the use of a feint will still be very useful. Don't waste strength, even on a sure knockout, you never know whos coming next.


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## bladenosh (Mar 20, 2006)

Alright, I was corrected by the fake/feint difference. Change feint to fake in the above... There are certain balance and centraline disadvantages to a feint, but minimal... I'd say more if I had time.


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## still learning (Mar 27, 2006)

bladenosh said:
			
		

> Alright, I was corrected by the fake/feint difference. Change feint to fake in the above... There are certain balance and centraline disadvantages to a feint, but minimal... I'd say more if I had time.


 
HuH?  Same difference? ....You can fake with your hands and feint with them too?  Same for the body..ever heard of fake body?  and feint of heart?    

I  am confuse TWO?   When do you fake and when do yo feint? and can they be reverse?  Will the bad guy know the difference?  UM?  

Just having fun here?   ......Aloha


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## Turbo (Mar 27, 2006)

NO... you cant!  Why not just use one term for them both then?


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## Hand Sword (Mar 30, 2006)

Kind of a moot point from a self defense point of view. Neither comes into play unless your squared off in a boxing/kickboxing range. I haven't seen much of this, and what I did, didn't last for more than a second. It's usually two people going right at it, ending up in a grappling match almost instantly. Or a surprise attack occurs, where you just react and don't try to strategize much. I say, for myself, I don't waste energy flinching, or flicking. If I'm going to hit, I hit. (justmy 1 cent--I'm a little short this week)


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## Jimi (Mar 31, 2006)

I believe using a fake/feint for sport is much more of a strategic skill being used through a match or compitition to show skill, knowledge, control etc... In the street, a fake/feint seems to be used for a set up in intitiative at the start to land a sucker punch or rush the engagement to your own advantage. On the street, a shoulder fake/feint in an attempt to fool some-one that your jab is coming instead of the true attack (cross, leg kick etc...) may only cause the engagement to become the typical clash into grappling/wrestling we see all too common in street fights. Such a fake/feint may help the deciding strike to land, though I believe the latter is more likely. Some people can make great effect of a fake/feint and some can not. Most of the time it is still a dice roll, we can all come up snake eyes. Just my opinion.


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