Karate Wrist Attacks

This is because this type of strikes target soft or vulnerable part of your opponent's body.

Study and practice these wrist strikes till you master them.

I have also included a couple of special hand strike for your consideration.

• Back Wrist
• Bent Wrist
• Chicken Head Wrist
• Outside Wrist
• Shoulder Pinch
• Heel of Palm
• The Choker
• Ox-Jaw Hand

Back Wrist

With the palm facing you, curl your hand into a fist and bend it inward.

This is an effective defensive position and will thwart most of your foe's attacks.

Bent Wrist

This is strictly a blocking position. Use it accordingly.

Chicken Head Wrist

Don't you go thinking that you'll be just hitting people left, right and centre without getting touched yourself. You'll get hit. The question is really: how do you react to an attack?

Often it is not necessary to repel a foe with a swift, painful blow.

If a roughneck tries to push his blubbery weight around, smart defensive tactics might make him look awfully silly.

By adroitly blocking his blows, you can deflate any bag of wind.

The Chicken Head Wrist is an excellent blocking position and will make a "turkey" out of many an opponent.

Use it often.

Karate Outside Wrist Attack

Then you pound with the side of a clenched fist.

If somebody's home, you can rest assured that knocking will bring him a-running!

In Karate the Outside Wrist blow brings results too.

How do you perform this karate wrist attack? You simply strike sharply with the outside edge of the wrist joint.

Be sure to keep arm rigid when delivering the blow.

You can hit downward, sideways, upward or forward.

The Outside Wrist motion can also be used defensively (as in a block) or offensively.

Shoulder Pinch

In Karate a person's weapons are his/her hands, feet, elbows and legs.

This is not a karate wrist attack technique, but I've decided to include it in this section because it can prove very useful in disarming your opponent... should you need to resort to physical contact!

The purpose of the Shoulder Pinch is to immobilize your opponent's arms and hands.

And if you can temporarily "paralyse" you're opponent's limbs, you're the winner!

You can apply the Shoulder Pinch two ways: from the front and from behind.

Just dig your thumb into the hollow under the collar bone; press your fingers into his back and squeeze like an enthusiastic accordion player!

If done properly, your opponent will give up, and you'll be free to go.

Heel of Palm

The Heel of Palm is formed by arching the hand back, almost to a 90° angle.

The fingers should be bent and slightly spread.

Use this position when attacking the face, nose, chin or jaw.

The Choker

It will make him think twice and then turn the other way.

The striking point of this position is the area between the thumb and forefinger.

Ox-Jaw Hand

A swift smash to the neck or collar bone does the trick.

Just a word of caution here: Use this hand attack only in emergencies.

If you hit a person strong enough on the neck, you can cause serious injury, and you may be criminally liable.

As usual, even if you know all the existing karate hand strikes and karate wrist attacks, the best form of self defense is avoiding conflict.

Remember that at all times.