# How to train yourself to reduce blinking



## Glycerine0160

I ordered all the fighting methods books and chinese gung fu. Been reading them (actually all at once, cause everytime a new one comes in, I can't put it down and i get half way through, and then another comes the next day)

but bruce mentions to train yourself not to blink while getting hit.

I've probably mentioned, my establishment I attend doesn't really spar much. Sometimes we do light sparring. 

the only two alternatives I can think of during class to fix this:
1.) start talking to some of the other kids, see if they would want to do some beneficial, healthy sparring (outside of there)
2.) ask my partner during drills to throw a few at my once in a while at random


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## jarrod

on human weapon when they were in thailand, one of the traditional teachers had them stand in waist deep water & look down while chopping the surface of the water with their hands.  i've never tried it, but it makes sense.  but more sparring is always good, provided it's done safely.

jf


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## MA-Caver

> The average time it takes for a complete human blink is about 300 to 400 milliseconds or 3/10ths to 4/10ths of a second.  Of course this is an average only and can differ from person to person.


We blink because we need to keep our eyes moist. Blinking is an involuntary reaction to dried eyes. Blinking also is an involuntary reaction to getting hit as a protection of our eyes. 
Lee was brilliant but he wasn't always right. 
Save your eyes, let do what your body does naturally.


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## Nolerama

I agree with Caver. You have to blink... Just don't keep your eyes closed when you get hit. It's very easy to do that. You're getting hit. Your eyes close, and you feel momentarily comfortable not facing the problem at hand: someone hitting you... At least on a subconscious level.

Maybe try to make an effort to exhale (like a hiss sound) when you do get hit. It gets you actively anticipating/preparing for the hit. You'll notice that your eyes are open more and you're actively guarding yourself.


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## Jimi

I agree w/ jarrod. Back in the 80's when I first started in Muay Thai & Bama Lethwei, I heard that trainers on the coasts would do that same drill in the ocean or sea water. Being on the coast, the salty water can sting a bit like sweat in the eyes. It can help, but I do not think everyone is willing to try this. I would be sure to rinse my eyes well after to keep the possibilty of eye infections at bay. If inland in Thailand, be sure you have had the correct shots before going, their fresh water can have bio effects on you. When you return to the states I would be sure to check in with a physician. I saw a TV special about infections that can be contracted while traveling abroad, A mountain biking enthuseist went biking somewhere and riding thru a stream he later found he had contracted some type of worm parasite in his eyes. Took months of treatment to safely take care of it. Not against this drill, just be aware.


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## kaizasosei

Blinking is due to dry eyes, but not only.  The other reason is not mechanical but has to do with subconcious levels of communication and energy.  
I believe that if you train seiza or yoga in the right way then you can go for ages without involuntarily blinking if not completely expell it.  Sometimes, you may need to simply move the eyes around a bit, or if truly dry then by all means do blink, but to blink involuntarily is seen by many, excluding myself, as a weakness.  Don't ask me why???  I think that that particular belief is a weakness in itself, but it doesn't change the fact that it is so.  I would think though, that it does have to do with energy and nerves.  How about the old staring contest? stupid game or is it more than that??

If one gets hit or about to, on the other hand, then it may be very important to blink or close eyes to avoid any further eye damage. 
Seeing is important too, so it wouldn't be good to keep the eyes closed for too long unless you can avoid attacks proficiently without visual aid.


j


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## mook jong man

I don't believe you can stop the blink reflex from happening when you are actually hit but you can train it so that it doesn't happen when fast strikes are buzzing around your face , because the one that hits you is the one you didn't see and that might be because you had your eyes closed .

 Find a partner with great control , you have your hands down relaxed by your side or even behind your back , have him throw various strikes at your face , complete with an angry face . 

He is to stop short of your face by a few inches and you just remain calm and relaxed and not blinking when the strikes are coming in ,you are not staring at one point but looking at his whole body with your peripheral vision .


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## Skpotamus

Try squinting a bit when you're sparring.  Keeping your eyes squinted a bit actively engages the muscles that you blink with.  It gives you a bit more control over the blink reflex when you see a strike coming towards you.  

As you get more comfortable with sparring and having strikes coming at your face, you'll flinch/blink less and less.  

At least, it  helped me, YMMV.


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## K831

Blinking is fine - natural as others have said. It's FLINCHING you need to train yourself not to do. There is a difference.


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## MantisSeiji

Have you ever read Jin Jing Zhong? It's a book written by shaolin in 1934. One method is "Suspending A Golden Coin". I downloaded it off the internet (the actual book is EXPENSIVE). The title of the book is: Training of the Shaolin. I got it from the website www.morefreeebooks.net, their martial arts books section is incredible.
You get a heavy coin, like a quarter, or buy a coin with a hole in the middle, then tie it to to a string. Tie the string to something above you, and it will be like a pendulum. Hold it next to your eye, and let it swing back and forth. As long as you don't touch it, it won't hit you.
To the guy who said flinching is bad, I think you're wrong. A flinch is the body's reaction to get away from something dangerous quickly. A guy can punch you in the face, or you can move back an inch involuntarily.
As long as you can see, you have a better chance.


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## Semper Fi

I flipped my eyelids out so I no longer have to worry about blinking.


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## usmax

I've tried clothespins but they always come off when I get kicked in the face


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## SA_BJJ

You can keep your eyes closed or tape them open...Seriously though if you have to blink just blink.  There is a difference in blinking and shutting your eyes becuase youre getting the crap beat out of you.


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## zDom

I think it IS important to train to NOT turn your head and look away when taking strikes to the face and/or head. Very important.

A momentary blink isn't a problem; eyes closed for more than the milisecond it takes to blink IS a problem.

Moving the head backward isn't a problem  as long as you keep eyes locked on target. Flinching by turning head away IS a problem.

I remember well training the detrimental reflexes out of myself while sparring kwangjang. Unpleasant, but well worth it in the long run.


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## Sukerkin

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## The Shaolin

As others have said, blinking to clear your eyes is perfectly fine. However, in the martial arts, it is definitely a good idea to try and reduce blinking as a reaction to incoming attacks (or even defenses). This kind of blinking prevents you from seeing an opponent and correctly reacting to them. A good exercise to stop this habit is to try to not blink when you are doing pad drills with a partner. When your partner is kicking the pad, try and remain perfectly calm and not blink. This will slowly and steadily stop you from closing your eyes during sparring.


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## Xue Sheng

Glycerine0160 said:


> I ordered all the fighting methods books and chinese gung fu. Been reading them (actually all at once, cause everytime a new one comes in, I can't put it down and i get half way through, and then another comes the next day)
> 
> but bruce mentions to train yourself not to blink while getting hit.
> 
> I've probably mentioned, my establishment I attend doesn't really spar much. Sometimes we do light sparring.
> 
> the only two alternatives I can think of during class to fix this:
> 1.) start talking to some of the other kids, see if they would want to do some beneficial, healthy sparring (outside of there)
> 2.) ask my partner during drills to throw a few at my once in a while at random


 
I have had a few Sifus trained in and from China and not one has ever tried to train me to stop blinking. I have only seen one Dachangquan teacher that has a DVD that had training to stop blinking but it was more to training one to stop blinking to soon other that to stop it completely and I do believe his training method was a bit dangerous, one mistake and you could get a pretty painful eye injury.

You are much better of training to trust your abilities; blocks, strikes, etc. and learning how to read your opponent than trying to stop a necessary involuntary function of the body. Basically spar more with more people.



MA-Caver said:


> We blink because we need to keep our eyes moist. Blinking is an involuntary reaction to dried eyes. Blinking also is an involuntary reaction to getting hit as a protection of our eyes.
> Lee was brilliant but he wasn't always right.
> Save your eyes, let do what your body does naturally.


 
What Caver said


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## Sukerkin

Xue Sheng said:


> What Caver said


 
Aye, I agree.  Clear and to the point ... oh ... and right too .


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## dungeonworks

I wish I had more to offer on this, but staying relaxed helped me for kickboxing.  I noticed I blinked or had a tendency to close my eyes when I saw an incoming punch or kick to the head, especially with guys that hit hard and I knew they hit hard.  Staying relaxed and coming to terms with the fact that getting hit hurts with them open or closed.  Shaolin's advice was another way I got over that.

Wing Chun/Tsun training on the otherhand, well, the hands are so fast it becomes sensory overload for me and more of an untrained reaction and less worry from actually being hit.


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## suicide

i think theres a diffrence between blinking and closeing your eyes , of course your gonna blink your eyes when somethings coming at you - but to keep them closed for longer than they have to be would be a very serious mistake :shooter:


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