The Strategy of Distance in Martial Arts and Self Defense

A strategy is a set of ideas that you can apply to a seemingly chaotic situation to bring order to it. By so doing we begin to limit some of the variables that could go wrong. The Strategy of Distance develops a practical sense of the three-dimensional space around us in the application of self-defence techniques. This strategy can also be applied to other, less violent, situations in our lives, such as somebody entering or violating our personal space, or sexual harassment in the workplace. Another application is: becoming aware of the distances between you and other people. For instance, on a crowded train platform, in order to avoid an accident or being pick-pocketed. By gaining a sense of distance, we can take advantage of an opponent who has less sensitivity to it and so gain the advantage in a conflict situation. Its application relies upon the skills developed in Meditation, Chi Kung and Martial Science, and our perception of two main factors: time and distance.

The underlying principle of the Strategy of Distance is that for an assailant to attack you, he must move towards you, and as he moves towards you, he must cross over finite distances to physically reach you. As the distance decreases between you and your opponent so too does the time available to you for counterattack. These distances can be seen as concentric circles (as you can be attacked from any direction) emanating out from your centre. For each distance there are corresponding techniques, for example, kicking techniques at kicking distance, punching techniques at punching distance, and so on. If the wrong technique is used at a particular distance, for example, trying to punch someone at kicking distance, then a strategic error has been committed. If your opponent commits a strategic error, you should be able to bring the conflict to a swift and favourable resolution by employing the Strategy of Distance correctly. It is possible, through practice, to develop one's sense of distance to a very high level, and this development is essential because our ability to judge time and distance is severely disrupted in conflict situations. However, before embarking upon a study of the various significant distances and their accompanying techniques, we need to understand where one best needs to be 'placed' within oneself in order to gain an exact sense of distance.

Our ability to judge time and distance precisely is directly proportionate to the stability of our centre. A stable centre, as developed through Meditation and Chi Kung, allows us to stabilize ourselves in the three-dimensional space. As your centre stabilizes through your presence, your sensitivity will increase, via your senses, to any object moving within the three-dimensional space in relation to the concentric circles outlined earlier. The increased sense of ourselves in relation to the three-dimensional space allows us to 'draw a line in the sand', stop moving around and make a stand in a particular place; for example, we stop backing away from an aggressor. This results in two immediate effects: it creates a subtle force that goes back towards the aggressor and it allows us to judge distance with precision. The force that is projected back towards the aggressor is a balance between Yin and Yang; it is neither aggressive nor passive. If you are intimidated, your awareness and sense of self contracts, and you will start to withdraw inside yourself by looking or backing away, or engaging in internal conversation; this is an instinctual form of defence and, because it involves contraction, is classified as a Yin reaction. A Yang reaction, on the other hand, would be to meet force with force, in other words, if you sense that you are being aggressed you will respond with aggression back. Both of these reactions are dangerous: a Yin reaction means that we will not be aware of the aggressor's attack, which tends to make the aggressor feel powerful and so they will continue their attack (this is often the cause of long-term abuse within the family unit); a Yang reaction, on the other hand, will tend to start a physical confrontation where there does not need to be one -it tends to 'wind' the aggressor up, causing an escalation and thereby increasing the chances of an argument 'blowing up in your face', or of being injured or killed. Most people fall into one or other of these categories, but the Intelligent Warrior learns how to cultivate a balance between these complementary opposites. This allows the Intelligent Warrior to stand still in front of an aggressor, unmoved by their violent intentions, challenging them with their presence (Yang) and yet at the same time opening and receiving all the subtle and not so subtle clues that they are manifesting as to their intentions (Yin). The awareness of the Yin and Yang principle in this situation allows us to judge distance with more precision. Bringing the body to a point of stillness means that there is only one moving variable (the aggressor) instead of two (both you and the aggressor), which makes the judgment of distance from the point of stillness much easier. Our heightened perception of this, plus our sensitivity to their movements, allows us to decisively employ, via the correct techniques, the Strategy of Distance.

When we 'still' our body in front of an aggressor, it is essential that we put it into a form conducive to the execution of our techniques, and this shape is dependent upon their mode of attack. There are two basic ways that someone will attack you:

1. The aggressor will try to intimidate you with their voice and gestures, closing the space between you with their hands down or at least not in a striking posture. In this case, use the Trigger Position.

2. The aggressor will come directly at you with their hands or feet 'winding up 'for a strike, grab or kick. In this case, use the On-guard Position.

In both these positions, the focus point developed in Meditation now goes between your opponent's eyes, just below the level of the eyebrow. This protects against looking directly into their eyes, which would have the tendency to distract us by eliciting emotions of a personal nature (making you feel that the aggressor does not like you and wants to hurt you). Having found this focus point (specific sight or Yang) you then open your peripheral awareness nonspecific sight or Yin) to take in their whole body, making sure you include their five points of coordination. This allows you to perceive their body as a whole unit. This awareness will then alert you to subtle clues in the body mechanics they are about to employ for their attack and allows you to intercept their strike at an early stage. For example, if they begin to clench their right hand, contort heir face and widen their eyes whilst beginning to step across kicking distance, we can sense their intention to employ a right-hand punch, and can prepare a more appropriate technique for this range (the Front Kick) to cut their strike off at kicking distance, rather than waiting for their punch to come into punching distance and blocking it. The use of time and distance as a weapon was extremely important for Bruce Lee, so much so that he named his style Jeet Kune Do, which translated means 'the way of the intercepting fist'. By this, he meant your fist intercepts your opponent's attack, and ends it at the earliest opportunity.