Open or closed hands whilst fighting or sparring?

[Dirty Dog]

I can attest to it lovely hurting if you chop somones kick (dont do it)

Those of us who have trained and therefore know how to do this correctly can attest that it's no worse than a closed hand strike. That's the thing with doing stuff without training. You do them wrong.

Second, i belive for most people open hands move faster than closed, if not everyone.

Whatever you may personally "belive [sic]", unfounded in any actual training, experience, or education, there is absolutely no physiologic reason why this would be true.

 

[isshinryuronin]

I always urge beginning students to keep their hands in fists. At this stage they are thinking about keeping knees bent, posture, how to execute the basic moves, etc. There just isn't enough body awareness left over to deal with open hands and the risk to fingers and wrists. Even at an intermediate level, fingers are subject to getting jammed, sprained or broke, especially vs. kicks. I know from painful experience (I remember, back then, many experiences were painful - but also well learned.)

As one gets more advanced (and aware of hand position) open hand benefits outweigh the risks. Parries, grabs, speed, and overall relaxation are among the factors facilitated by open hands. But, even then, there are times when fists are called for. Against certain opponents you just want, or need, to deliver a knuckle sandwich and forego the subtleties. Nowadays, I generally fight with open hands - but always cautious working with wild beginners.

 

[skribs]

I always urge beginning students to keep their hands in fists. At this stage they are thinking about keeping knees bent, posture, how to execute the basic moves, etc. There just isn't enough body awareness left over to deal with open hands and the risk to fingers and wrists. Even at an intermediate level, fingers are subject to getting jammed, sprained or broke, especially vs. kicks. I know from painful experience (I remember, back then, many experiences were painful - but also well learned.)

As one gets more advanced (and aware of hand position) open hand benefits outweigh the risks. Parries, grabs, speed, and overall relaxation are among the factors facilitated by open hands. But, even then, there are times when fists are called for. Against certain opponents you just want, or need, to deliver a knuckle sandwich and forego the subtleties. Nowadays, I generally fight with open hands - but always cautious working with wild beginners.

One of the things about learning anything is you learn the rules first, and then you learn how and when to break them. The rules are there to protect you from overwhelming yourself during improvisation.

I think this is one of the reasons beginners shouldn't cross-train, but advanced should if they are comfortable.