How do you ge trid of the right hand dominance?

Discussion in 'General Martial Arts Discussion' started by Rataca100, Apr 30, 2017.

  1. Rataca100

    Rataca100 Banned Banned

    As i have just started doing my patterns at home, i have come to the realisation i cannot for the life of me do the four directional punching left handed, nor do TKD punching left hand lead and i struggle to do blocking with the left hand now.

    I knew it was a problem to begin with but now it is annoying as i basically cant do it for the left hand. I can jab with it. Im thinking because i have done jabbing with the left and strong hits with the right its not helped that much.

    I also have this problem with my right foot for some kicks if i need to twist on it, the alt is fine and so are front kicks.

    It has only just annoyed me yesterday when i tried to do the white belt patterns and could do them with a left handed lead nor could i do power striking with my left hand leading.

    (i am right handed, also i am planning on going back soonish to a dojo for TKD) Not too sure if asked before.

    also a note i will splice in when i get back, i think i have made it habbit that i always strike with my right hand so i unintentionally always retract my left hand when wanting to punch with it.
     
    Last edited: Apr 30, 2017
  2. Mushroom

    Mushroom De-powered to come back better than before.

    For fun (yes seriously)

    I used to have me and my team mates in Pak Mei go southpaw/goofy, with our forms.

    You go from muscle memory to really having to think how the forms go.

    In BJJ, it's always good to train on "both" sides of the body. It doesn't fully get rid of you being single sided dominant. But it gives you better a better balance, I guess.
    Myself and I assume 99% of MAists, even if they train both sides, still go back to standard side.
     
  3. Unreal Combat

    Unreal Combat Valued Member

    Once you master something in orthodox stance. Then train it in southpaw stance. You'll be surprised at the opportunities being so flexible in your stance work can open.

    The only way to get good is to practice until it becomes second nature.
     
    Last edited: Apr 30, 2017
  4. Rataca100

    Rataca100 Banned Banned

    Its kind of odd because i think i can remember doing them left leading. Its really frustrating because i cant do the main things while consciously thinking about doing them.

    Is trying the left-handed things on a punching bag a good idea?

    Its like i have unlearnt how to do some things for other things. :p

    (TBF, its TKD principle anyway to learn how to do everything with both arms or both legs)
     
  5. YouKnowWho

    YouKnowWho Valued Member

    When you

    - was young, you want to train both sides equally.
    - get older, you want to master one side.

    Ideally, you want to be able to fight with both sides. In reality, your one side is always better than the other side. IMO, it's better to have 90% confidence on one side than to have 45% confidence on both sides. You can always develop different techniques for different sides such as:

    - right jab, left cross.
    - right side kick, left roundhouse kick,
    - right hip throw, left foot sweep,
    - right wrist control, left elbow control,
    - right hand hold gun, left hand hold pepper spray,
    - ...
     
    Last edited: Apr 30, 2017
  6. philosoraptor

    philosoraptor carnivore in a top hat Supporter

    I was doing kendo for a while and one of the most important principles to it was using the left hand for power. You use your right hand, you expose your wrist. Anyway, like all beginners, I was using far too much right hand, and my sensei recommended doing everything I did in daily life with my left hand and it actually made a huge difference.
     
  7. YouKnowWho

    YouKnowWho Valued Member

    In wrestling, you have

    - major/leading/upper hand that control your opponent's neck/waist.
    - minor/back/lower hand that control your opponent's arm.

    You also have

    - attacking/leading leg that attack your opponent's leg,
    - rooting/back leg that maintain your own balance.

    As far as I know, I have not seen any wrestler ever switch sides on wrestling mat yet.
     
    Last edited: May 1, 2017
  8. kandi

    kandi Valued Member

    I second this suggestion.

    Interestingly enough, teaching a class really helps, if you face the class. We tend to mirror the class so that their right is our left.... certainly makes you think and work on your non-dominant kihon.

    :hat:
     
  9. aikiMac

    aikiMac aikido + boxing = very good Moderator Supporter

    There's something to be said for being one-sided in a combat art, e.g. professional boxers, but if you want to be at least partially ambidextrous:
    1) brush your teeth with the other hand.
    2) The owner of my favorite skate shop advised that every day I skate, I do a few minutes with the opposite lead. He was right. It makes skating better. Translated, to martial arts, it means do a few minutes with the other lead in every class.
    3) Take up escrima/kali. You will have to use both hands.
    4) Take up aikido. You will have to do every technique with the other lead two different ways.

    When I was in 8th grade I broke the arm that I write with, and then as soon as I got the cast off I broke it again because I didn't appreciate how weak it had become in the cast. Not having full use of those fingers meant I was forced to write with my other hand for several months, and brush my teeth with my other hand for several months, and eat with my other hand for several months. I'm not saying go break your arm on purpose, but I'm saying from personal experience that it's actually not a big deal to learn how to use your other arm. You just pick up the fork/toothbrush/pencil/whatever and do it. If I could do it when I was an awkward 13-year-old, it's can't be a big deal.
     
  10. Tom bayley

    Tom bayley Valued Member

    Learn new stuff dominant side first. then once you have the hang of it (not mastered but understand what you should be doing) practice on the other side about 1/4 of the time.

    You will find that some techniques are actually easier to do with the less dominant hand.
     
  11. Rataca100

    Rataca100 Banned Banned


    Sorry to quote it all. But to get your next belt in TKD, you have to demonstrate the ability to do the pattern from both leads. For example the four direction punching is done with the right hand as a lead and then again with the left. Its established in it that you need to at least be semi-competent in your less dominant side for TKD anyway. Its good practice anyway. I think i need to get shown how to the pattern again and since i have mainly done punching and the like on my right and used my left as a support in punching i have learnt how to use it as a lead properly.

    I will try just doing the straight punching until i drill it into my left hand as habit though. Really frustrating when you can do it much better on one side than you can the other.
     
  12. Late for dinner

    Late for dinner Valued Member

    If you want to be a bit esoteric you could try and work on forms from left hand dominant systems to see what it feels like to concentrate on the left hand first. Hung Fut is one as is Wing Chun. Personally, if I were you, I would try the Hung Fut forms out as they are more dynamic. Sometimes forcing yourself to think and react like you are left handed can do it and the form will help to force that attitude into you.

    :' )

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIuOPu7re8w

    LFD
     
  13. SWC Sifu Ben

    SWC Sifu Ben I am the law

    My tips:
    1. Practice weak side first - you'll be the most mental fresh
    2. Practice weak side equally if not more - your dominant side has the benefit of years of motor skill dominance while your left side needs to catch up
    3. Incorporate stepping through with the back leg to switch stances, as part of your normal footwork - this will force you to be able to fluidly switch sides in the middle of movements instead of thinking of the two as separate sides
     
  14. SCA

    SCA Former Instructor

    All it takes is practice. Alternate different speeds and timing. Sometimes you can practice for awhile without noticable improvement, and then things just click into place one day.

    I had to learn sword forms right-handed and I'm a lefty. Eventually I got better with my right compared to my left.
     
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  15. aaradia

    aaradia Choy Li Fut and Yang Tai Chi Chuan Student Moderator Supporter

    1. Practice with your weak side. Practice, practice, practice.

    2. Change your mental approach. Stop allowing yourself to say" I can't do this." Change it to "I am not good at this yet, but I will be." Seriously, you will be surprised at the effect a change of attitude will have on your physical abilities. (I am struggling with this very same attitude issue with developing my kicks right now.) Make up your mind that you will do whatever it takes to not only do it, but get REALLY good at it.

    3. Ask instructors and higher ranking students at your school for advice with this issue. MAP is a good place to ask, as you have done. But it doesn't replace asking instructors. They can see what you are doing and give feedback based on that.

    4. Just accept it takes time to develop your other side.


    I am left handed. I have had to learn forms in both CLF and TCC with my weak side first. In CLF, you use weapons with your right side for the forms. Period. Unless your right arm/ hand/ wrist is injured you have to use a weapon on your right side. It took me a lot longer to get certain moves down. Like the right power for our stick form. There is a "whoosh" sound that is an indicator you have the right energy going into the move. Took me YEARS to get it, but I did. I would try it on the left side and got the whoosh much more easily. Other lefties in my school have had the same experience. I still think my flowers aren't as good. I played with flowering with a weapon on my left side and it came SO much easier and quickly. But I have developed a lot of dexterity and ability with my weak side.

    But you know what? I look at it as a blessing. Since we don't learn forms with both sides in CLF, I have a strength right handed students don't have. I have, as I said before, developed my weak side. They have only reinforced their strong side.

    In TCC, we used to have to do the 24 form, the short gim, and a TCC fan form on both sides. Again, I started with my weak side. When others were struggling with their left side, I had already had my hard side down and was onto my stronger side! My school recently changed their TCC curriculum and deleted the requirement to do these forms on both sides. I have to say it is one of the few times I have respectfully disagreed with something my school has done. There is great value in doing forms on both sides. I still keep up on doing those forms on both sides, even though I don't have to. I worked long and hard to get that down. I don't want to lose it.
     
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  16. StooXex

    StooXex Valued Member

    Practice, then practice some more.

    Slow the techniques down to make sure you're getting them right, then add speed slowly.

    That's what I do.
     
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  17. Fish Of Doom

    Fish Of Doom Will : Mind : Motion Supporter

    My two cents (which are basically what StooXex posted right as I was writing this so I'm gonna make the post super long to compensate :p):

    Slow down and do the motions correctly first. When you can do them correctly, then repeat them until they are automatic. Only then start working on speed and power. You can't work a movement with speed and power if you can't consistently do it well; even if you do a fast and powerful motion, it won't be the motion that you actually want to do, and in order to do it well consistently, first you have to do it well once, then do it well again, and again, and again, many many times.

    Your cue for the movement becoming well ingrained will be that you can do "the movement" in question, rather than trying to do all of its separate parts, separately, at the same time. Let's say you're working on a basic stepping punch for maximum TMA shenanigans. Maybe with your right side you can do a lunge punch, and with your left you cannot, but you can step with your left foot, you can turn your hips to your right, and you can shove your left fist out in front of you just fine; you then need to focus on coordinating the compound motion of step + turn + punch until you're coordinating only two different motions rather than three (step-turn + punch, or step + turn-punch), and then eventually only one (step-turn-punch); when you can do that one movement that contains all the motions that make up the desired final technique, then you can add more oomph into it, because then you'll be doing, and adding oomph to, the whole thing, which itself now happens naturally rather than being disjointedly put together from unfamiliar motor patterns which would have been overridden by prior incorrect patterns when you tried to do them faster, and resulted in a wonky technique.
     
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  18. SCA

    SCA Former Instructor

    This is also along the lines of the learning process for any technique. Memorize/practice, master, and maintain.

    The repetition of something new is two-fold. You repeat to remember, as well as practicing for improvement. As you get better, add more speed and power. Then you have accuracy, incorporation with other movements, different timings, so on and so forth.

    The last, and most difficult stage, is maintaining a skill after mastery.

    Sometimes all you need is a little positive reinforcement to get through the grind. :)
     

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