Tips On Effecient Evasion With Andre Zeitoun
Make Them Miss!
In combat sports, at least on the striking end, it is commonly said that there are three ways to defend against oncoming strikes. The most conventional and done a vast majority of the time is simply blocking the strike by placing something, usually a part of your arm, in between your opponent’s strike and their target. This is a solid defensive option, but there is still some impact absorbed by the target as well as the body part that you’re blocking with.
The second is parrying, where you misdirect or push off your opponent’s strike so that it misses its target. This is generally considered a safer option to blocking as it negates any damage done to your opponent’s target and your limbs but it can also put you out of position and open to any follow up strikes. This option can also be used by your opponent, as they can feint to draw out a parry reaction and strike off of it.
The third option is considered the safest option, but it is limited in that you won’t always find yourself in a position to do it. That third option is dodging, where you completely move your opponent’s target out of the way of their strike, so that no contact is made.
This type of defense is the one that famous French Muay Thai coach, Ajarn Andre Zeitoun, goes over in this video. The video starts off by talking about the advantages that dodging has over blocking that we just went over and then goes to show two very popular dodging techniques commonly seen used by Muay Thai fighters.
These two techniques involve completely moving your opponent’s target away from their strike . The first technique is a sway back, a common defense to a head kick in Muay Thai. This dodge is basically the same thing that you see fighters like Floyd Mayweather do in all of their fights. You simply lean back from your upper body and let the kick pass over you and then return to your stance, you can also add in a back step with your rear leg to bend back further if needed. You can see this technique most recently done by Rafael Fiziev in his match against Marc Diakiese where he impressed everyone with this technique.
Duck, Dodge, Dip, Dive and THRIVE! Click learn More!
Be careful not to bend back too far as you can injure yourself if you like spine and low back flexibility, which if you plan on using this technique a lot, you might want to work on.
The second dodging technique that you Ajarn Zeitoun shows is a dodge to a low kick aimed at your lead leg. Once again this technique is pretty simple, you just need to pull your leg backwards and set up into the opposite stance, which will protect you from any low kicks. Ajarn Zeitoun points out that it is important to not drag your foot along the floor, but to pull it back with just enough elevation to slide a piece of paper through, so you can move quickly.
The last dodging technique that Ajarn Zeitoun goes into is one for body kicks. This one has you pushing back your hips and throwing your arms forward to keep your body clear from any strikes.
These dodges will keep you safe from any damage and even possibly put your opponent in a bad position that you will be able to capitalize on.
Keep in mind that these dodges have similar weaknesses to parries, in that if your opponent picks up on you using them too often, they will be able to read it and work to counter it. Dodges also require more space than the other types of defenses, so you won’t be able to do any of these techniques if you are against a barrier, so keep that in mind.
Learn More Muay Thai Tips today! Muay Thai Building Blocks is available TODAY!