Four corners blocking increases your power while providing the ultimate in self-defense protection.
Mark Bridges has been practicing and teaching northern praying mantis kung-fu under grandmaster Brendan Lai since 1974. Bridges currently teaches in Los Angeles, California. Class and contact information are available at www.bridges7.sstt-institute.com.
“Raising the elbow, not the shoulder, elevates the hands.
“Four corners blocking teaches you how to deal with a non-stop barrage attack.”
The northern praying mantis four corners blocking sequence is a basic two-person exercise that lets you practice four different parries or attacks in rapid succession in a continuous loop. Each move is executed in a smooth flow using the whole body as a power source. Using the body as the main engine delivers more power with less effort, allowing the arms to relax and go along for the ride while they do their specific job.
Four corners blocking also provides the experience of dealing with a non-stop barrage attack. Apart from the physical movements, this gets the mind used to constant high-energy hammering as a normal state of being that happens now and then.
As the mind grows accustomed to continuous input and can relax in the midst of it, the “yikes” factor drops and mental processing power that was used to run fear or concern loops becomes available to perceive and deal with the current situation.
Speed and Power
Use a relaxed horse stance. The legs and pelvis form a single arch that stays stable throughout the sequence. This is the lower carriage. The upper carriage consists of the yoke of the shoulders and the arms. Both carriages rotate horizontally around the vertical axis of the spine. By counter-rotating them, we generate fast, powerful movement internally, without excess visible motion.
In this exercise, the rotation is of the upper, shoulder carriage only, not the lower carriage of the waist and legs. The torso musculature, anchored in the lower carriage of pelvis and legs, rotates the shoulders. This carries the arms from side to side, driving each parry with the force of the body.
The pelvis moves a bit, but there are two reasons the arch of the lower carriage should not significantly twist out of shape in this exercise. First, large rotation of the pelvis will twist the body too far out of line to deal effectively with the next attack. There’s no time to rotate the whole body mass back into line before the next hit arrives. Second, the unmoving lower carriage is actively used to internally counterbalance the moving upper carriage. This allows the shoulders to quickly reverse direction without throwing the whole body around, letting all the body’s power be channeled into the arm and hand with minimum effort of the arm. Since the arm isn’t providing main power for the move, its power can be used to shape the incoming force in more detail.
All four parries are performed with the same hand, with the second hand assisting in one case. The rest of the time the second hand is in a guard position near the opposite shoulder. The exercise is done on one side, then the other, so that both sides of the body receive balanced training.
To speed up, you have to slow down. With any two-person exercise, don’t train at full speed or close distance until both you and your partner know what you’re doing or you may seriously injure yourselves. Power and speed are fun, but until we actually comprehend and can execute the intent of each movement, they only amplify confusion. Don’t waste energy and mind power filling up good memory with bad habits that just take more time and energy to flush out later.
Once basic understanding of the motions is attained, push the speed, but never practice so fast that effectiveness is lost. If you do, you’ll get hit in practice, but more importantly, you could get hit for real, because your form won’t be functional when you really need it.
The more relaxed you stay, the longer you can go. When the stationary exercise is mastered with an even rhythm, vary the timing of the attacks. When that is solid, add monkey stance footwork, both advancing and retreating, on both sides.
Remember, fast and strong don’t matter until you’ve got the functional pattern down. Focus on clean form and you’ll come to understand the most efficient shape for your particular body. Everybody’s different, that’s why we start slow, keep safe and get better faster.
To begin, assume the relaxed horse stance. The attacker has his fists ready at the ribs, while the defender’s arms hang relaxed at the sides. Both players’ shoulders must stay low and relaxed throughout the sequence.. Raising the elbow, not the shoulder, elevates the hands.
If the defender is working the right hand, the opponent attacks highline with his right fist.
The Attacking Pattern
This is simple and consists of two straight high-line punches to the center of the face with alternating hands, followed by two straight low-line punches, to each side of the navel with alternating hands. These are not hooks, but straight-line punches launching from the attacker’s ribs to the defender’s face or abdomen, powered by the rotation of the shoulder carriage. Keep the elbows tucked in directly behind the fists. The fists start palm up at the ribs and arrive either vertical or palm down at the target. The attacker should strike direct to target so the defender gets true experience of fists firing right at them, but stand away enough that they can’t actually hit the defender until both are confident in their skill.
The Defending Pattern
First Parry
Attacker delivers a straight right punch to the face.
Body Motion: Defender’s right shoulder rotates forward, left shoulder back, about eight inches. The advancing right shoulder drives the forward reach and backward draw of the right hand. The left shoulder rotates out of the path of the attack, pulling the left hand up into guard position. Waist does not rotate on any parry.
Right-Arm Motion:
The open right hand reaches out toward the attack, palm up (1). As the wrist touches the incoming arm, the hand rolls over palm down on the attacking arm, catching it in the bend of the wrist, but not pressing downward. This roll of the wrist, backed up by the body force delivered with the shoulder rotation, forces the punch off line (2). The elbow bends, point down, and the hand pulls back in front of the left shoulder, guiding the punch past by just a couple inches, still on the high line (3).
This is a drawing back motion. Don’t push out to the side or you’ll open a midline target, and you won’t get back in time to make the next parry. The fingers are cocked toward the opponent. If the fingers point backwards he can get his hand free sooner, and it amplifies a tendency to rotate and pull back too far, slipping off the end of his arm.
Left-Arm Motion: When the attack starts, the left hand rises up and takes a vertical open palm guard position in front of the right shoulder. This is our insurance hand, in case we miss a parry. It remains here until needed, then returns to this position.
Second Parry
Opponent withdraws the punch and attacks straight to the face again, with his left fist.
Body Motion: Defender’s right shoulder rotates backward, left shoulder forward. The right shoulder pulling backward drives the forward reach and backward draw of the right hand, and rotates the right shoulder out of the path of the attack.
Right-Arm Motion:
Right hand again reaches forward, now palm down from the first parry (1-2). As it contacts the incoming punch, it rolls over palm up, catching the punch in the bend of the wrist, again without pressing down (3). The hand remains flat, palm up, the elbow bends down and draws the hand back to a few inches in front of the shoulder, guiding the punch just past the shoulder. The fingers are pointed toward the opponent’s face, and the upper arm and elbow end up braced against the rib cage (4).
Left-Arm Motion: Remains on guard at the right shoulder.
Third Parry
Mark Bridges has been practicing and teaching northern praying mantis kung-fu under grandmaster Brendan Lai since 1974. Bridges currently teaches in Los Angeles, California. Class and contact information are available at www.bridges7.sstt-institute.com.
“Raising the elbow, not the shoulder, elevates the hands.
“Four corners blocking teaches you how to deal with a non-stop barrage attack.”
The northern praying mantis four corners blocking sequence is a basic two-person exercise that lets you practice four different parries or attacks in rapid succession in a continuous loop. Each move is executed in a smooth flow using the whole body as a power source. Using the body as the main engine delivers more power with less effort, allowing the arms to relax and go along for the ride while they do their specific job.
Four corners blocking also provides the experience of dealing with a non-stop barrage attack. Apart from the physical movements, this gets the mind used to constant high-energy hammering as a normal state of being that happens now and then.
As the mind grows accustomed to continuous input and can relax in the midst of it, the “yikes” factor drops and mental processing power that was used to run fear or concern loops becomes available to perceive and deal with the current situation.
Speed and Power
Use a relaxed horse stance. The legs and pelvis form a single arch that stays stable throughout the sequence. This is the lower carriage. The upper carriage consists of the yoke of the shoulders and the arms. Both carriages rotate horizontally around the vertical axis of the spine. By counter-rotating them, we generate fast, powerful movement internally, without excess visible motion.
In this exercise, the rotation is of the upper, shoulder carriage only, not the lower carriage of the waist and legs. The torso musculature, anchored in the lower carriage of pelvis and legs, rotates
the shoulders. This carries the arms from side to side, driving each parry with the force of the body.
The pelvis moves a bit, but there are two reasons the arch of the lower carriage should not significantly twist out of shape in this exercise. First, large rotation of the pelvis will twist the body too far out of line to deal effectively with the next attack. There’s no time to rotate the whole body mass back into line before the next hit arrives. Second, the unmoving lower carriage is actively used to internally counterbalance the moving upper carriage. This allows the shoulders to quickly reverse direction without throwing the whole body around, letting all the body’s power be channeled into the arm and hand with minimum effort of the arm. Since the arm isn’t providing main power for the move, its power can be used to shape the incoming force in more detail.
All four parries are performed with the same hand, with the second hand assisting in one case. The rest of the time the second hand is in a guard position near the opposite shoulder. The exercise is done on one side, then the other, so that both sides of the body receive balanced training.
To speed up, you have to slow down. With any two-person exercise, don’t train at full speed or close distance until both you and your partner know what you’re doing or you may seriously injure yourselves. Power and speed are fun, but until we actually comprehend and can execute the intent of each movement, they only amplify confusion. Don’t waste energy and mind power filling up good memory with bad habits that just take more time and energy to flush out later.
Once basic understanding of the motions is attained, push the speed, but never practice so fast that effectiveness is lost. If you do, you’ll get hit in practice, but more importantly, you could get hit for real, because your form won’t be functional when you really need it.
The more relaxed you stay, the longer you can go. When the stationary exercise is mastered with an even rhythm, vary the timing of the attacks. When that is solid, add monkey stance footwork, both advancing and retreating, on both sides.
Remember, fast and strong don’t matter until you’ve got the functional pattern down. Focus on clean form and you’ll come to understand the most efficient shape for your particular body. Everybody’s different, that’s why we start slow, keep safe and get better faster.
To begin, assume the relaxed horse stance. The attacker has his fists ready at the ribs, while the defender’s arms hang relaxed at the sides. Both players’ shoulders must stay low and relaxed throughout the sequence.. Raising the elbow, not the shoulder, elevates the hands.
If the defender is working the right hand, the opponent attacks highline with his right fist.
The Attacking Pattern
This is simple and consists of two straight high-line punches to the center of the face with alternating hands, followed by two straight low-line punches, to each side of the navel with alternating hands. These are not hooks, but straight-line punches launching from the attacker’s ribs to the defender’s face or abdomen, powered by the rotation of the shoulder carriage. Keep the elbows tucked in directly behind the fists. The fists start palm up at the ribs and arrive either vertical or palm down at the target. The attacker should strike direct to target so the defender gets true experience of fists firing right at them, but stand away enough that they can’t actually hit the defender until both are confident in their skill.
The Defending Pattern
First Parry
Attacker delivers a straight right punch to the face.
Body Motion: Defender’s right shoulder rotates forward, left shoulder back, about eight inches. The advancing right shoulder drives the forward reach and backward draw of the right hand. The left shoulder rotates out of the path of the attack, pulling the left hand up into guard position. Waist does not rotate on any parry.
Right-Arm Motion:
The open right hand reaches out toward the attack, palm up (1). As the wrist touches the incoming arm, the hand rolls over palm down on the attacking arm, catching it in the bend of the wrist, but not pressing downward. This roll of the wrist, backed up by the body force delivered with the shoulder rotation, forces the punch off line (2). The elbow bends, point down, and the hand pulls back in front of the left shoulder, guiding the punch past by just a couple inches, still on the high line (3).
This is a drawing back motion. Don’t push out to the side or you’ll open a midline target, and you won’t get back in time to make the next parry. The fingers are cocked toward the opponent. If the fingers point backwards he can get his hand free sooner, and it amplifies a tendency to rotate and pull back too far, slipping off the end of his arm.
Left-Arm Motion: When the attack starts, the left hand rises up and takes a vertical open palm guard position in front of the right shoulder. This is our insurance hand, in case we miss a parry. It remains here until needed, then returns to this position.
Second Parry
Opponent withdraws the punch and attacks straight to the face again, with his left fist.
Body Motion: Defender’s right shoulder rotates backward, left shoulder forward. The right shoulder pulling backward drives the forward reach and backward draw of the right hand, and rotates the right shoulder out of the path of the attack.
Right-Arm Motion:
Right hand again reaches forward, now palm down from the first parry (1-2). As it contacts the incoming punch, it rolls over palm up, catching the punch in the bend of the wrist, again without pressing down (3). The hand remains flat, palm up, the elbow bends down and draws the hand back to a few inches in front of the shoulder, guiding the punch just past the shoulder. The fingers are pointed toward the opponent’s face, and the upper arm and elbow end up braced against the rib cage (4).
Left-Arm Motion: Remains on guard at the right shoulder.
Third Parry
This uses both hands to deflect the first low-line punch. Opponent withdraws his left hand and attacks low-line alongside the navel with his right fist.
Body Motion: As defender’s hands dive down, the right shoulder rotates forward, left shoulder backward. The advancing right shoulder drives the right hand down with a pushing force. The retreating left shoulder drives the left hand down with a pulling force. The right hand delivers more power. The left is also strong, but is still the insurance hand. The snapping down of each wrist just before contact has its own power, but more importantly, it gathers and focuses the arm and body power into the attacking arm in a single instant..
Hand Motion:
Both hands are now on the right side near the shoulder and chin. As the low punch starts in, both hands tip down so the fingers point toward the attacking arm (1). They dive down across the body from high right to low left at the incoming arm (2). Just before contact the fingers snap up, snapping the cutting edge of each palm down into the attacking arm to blast the punch down and away (3). Cross each hand 45 degrees over the attacking arm. If they’re parallel, the attack may slip between them.
Fourth Parry
Opponent withdraws his right hand and attacks low-line with a left punch to the abdomen.
Body Motion: Right shoulder rotates backward, dragging the right hand through its capture sequence. The left shoulder rotates forward, driving the left hand back up to guard position.
Left Hand Motion: Rises back guard position at the right shoulder.
Right-Hand Motion:
The right fingers are still pointing upward with the elbow bent. The shoulder rotation draws the right hand around the body in front of the belly (9). Just as the wrist contacts the incoming punch, it drops and curls into a hook formation, cradling the attacking arm in the crook of the wrist (10), guiding it past the body.
Return To First Parry
The shoulders rotate back again, driving the right hand up and out from position four to repeat the first parry. On the way, be sure to flip the hand open, palm up, ready for the first rollover again. Repeat the sequence continuously until tired. Switch hands, then switch attacker and defender positions.
This uses both hands to deflect the first low-line punch. Opponent withdraws his left hand and attacks low-line alongside the navel with his right fist.
Body Motion: As defender’s hands dive down, the right shoulder rotates forward, left shoulder backward. The advancing right shoulder drives the right hand down with a pushing force. The retreating left shoulder drives the left hand down with a pulling force. The right hand delivers more power. The left is also strong, but is still the insurance hand. The snapping down of each wrist just before contact has its own power, but more importantly, it gathers and focuses the arm and body power into the attacking arm in a single instant..
Hand Motion:
Both hands are now on the right side near the shoulder and chin. As the low punch starts in, both hands tip down so the fingers point toward the attacking arm (1). They dive down across the body from high right to low left at the incoming arm (2). Just before contact the fingers snap up, snapping the cutting edge of each palm down into the attacking arm to blast the punch down and away (3). Cross each hand 45 degrees over the attacking arm. If they’re parallel, the attack may slip between them.
Fourth Parry
Opponent withdraws his right hand and attacks low-line with a left punch to the abdomen.
Body Motion: Right shoulder rotates backward, dragging the right hand through its capture sequence. The left shoulder rotates forward, driving the left hand back up to guard position.
Left Hand Motion: Rises back guard position at the right shoulder.
Right-Hand Motion:
The right fingers are still pointing upward with the elbow bent. The shoulder rotation draws the right hand around the body in front of the belly (9). Just as the wrist contacts the incoming punch, it drops and curls into a hook formation, cradling the attacking arm in the crook of the wrist (10), guiding it past the body.
Return To First Parry
The shoulders rotate back again, driving the right hand up and out from position four to repeat the first parry. On the way, be sure to flip the hand open, palm up, ready for the first rollover again. Repeat the sequence continuously until tired. Switch hands, then switch attacker and defender positions.
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