How to Dominate a Taller Opponent in Sparring

First, let's talk about what doesn't work...Going toe to toe with me.  Hopefully that's obvious.  You never want to trade kick  for kick with someone that has 4 to 6 inches on you.  There is a zone that everyone
has.  I call it your red zone- red symbolizing "warning".   Everyone's red zone is
different and it's size is determined by the reach of your kick. 

Taller people have a larger red zone that most.  This also means, if you're
shorter than me, you enter my red zone before I enter yours.  In other words,
while you're trying to get close enough to get a kick in, I am already scoring on you.
Next, you may want to try and overwhelm me with speed.  Not a bad idea, but not
the best either.  Whenever I would get into the ring with someone shorter than me,
I'm assuming their going to be lighting quick.  The first thing I do is create some
distance, then I hang out for a little bit.  I study how fast they can really move.  I
note how fast they can close the gap between us.  After I see how quick they really
are, I simply adjust my gap so I can begin scoring. 

The bottom line is this, speed is good, but when it comes to a taller opponent, they'll
simply compensate with distance.  Against a taller opponent, too much distance is
your enemy.  Your opponent has a stride that is mostly likely 1 ˝ times yours. 
After you make 2 steps forward, your opponent is already 3 steps away, then
WHAM... they'll let you have it with a roundhouse kick.

So, what is the best strategy?  If you want to dominate your taller opponent in
Taekwondo, you must use a method called B.T.C.  This stands for Bait, Trap,
Counter.  Pay attention, because this is the ultimate Taekwondo scoring method
against taller opponents, and I hate it!  Of course, only when it's used against me.
Here's how it works...

When your Taekwondo match begins against a taller opponent, you WAIT.  In fact,
you wait in a high defensive mode.  Be ready to whojin (slide back) and unleash a
spin hook kick or back kick if your opponent is overly aggressive.  Other wise, wait
a moment, then we begin the strategy of B.T.C.

Slowly, we're going to creep closer to our opponent- making sure not to over
commit too soon.  This technique is known as baiting.  We're basically making
ourselves susceptible to an attack with the main objective of counter attacking
before they ever have a chance to score. 

The best time for you to Counter is during the Trap.  The split second your opponent
misses you is known as the trap.  As a side note- this is why it's super important to
kick and bring that leg down to the floor immediately, so you don't get caught in the
trap.  The taller the opponent, the longer it takes for them to bring their leg down. 
This makes for an easier trap.  During this trap, that's when you unload your
counter attack.

If your strong suit is a back kick, then you'll bait in an open stance (belly's facing
the same direction), and try and draw out your opponents roundhouse kick.  If your
strong suit is a spin hook kick, bait in a closed stance, and try and draw out your
opponents fast kick (skipping front leg roundhouse kick).  If you are truly one of
those shorter, fast fighters, then you can lateral step and do any sort of counter
you want, just after the Bait. 

Okay, what happens when your opponent figures out what you're doing?  Well, you
bait even closer, at least to the point where you're still successful at getting the
counter attack.

When that has run it's course, you disguise the B.T.C. by move aggressively around
the ring.  Move aggressively, then quickly bait, thus making your opponent panic
and hopefully attack.

Strength and conditioning

Do you have problems with your strength and conditioning? Do you ever find yourself not able to last a round in sparring? If so, I found a great strength and conditioning program that would help you solve that problem. Click Here!

I actually have the same problem and I found this conditioning program to be useful for me. In fact this conditioning program is even used by professional MMA fighters. So if your interested in finally seeing improvements in your conditioning, Click Here!

Dont miss out on the opportunity to actually dominate a sparring match from beginning to end. This offer will not last so check it out before its too late.

Saving Energy

This topic is also something that I have asked my instructors a lot. During a sparring match, there are times when you need to conserve your energy especially if you don't have a good stamina to last the whole match.  The key is timing as in knowing when to attack and when to get away.

Good timing in attacks and counterattacks can help in conserving energy. To improve your timing, carefully observe your opponent's posture, stance, distance, habitual movements, and feints to gain an understanding of your opponent's attack methods and rhythms. Using variety of feints will create changes for attacks and induce attacks from your opponents. The more you know about your opponents, the better you will be able to time your attacks and counterattacks. So it is very important to develop the ability to read an opponent accurately.

Eyesight During Match

Many new at sparring almost always ask the question - where to fix their sight during a sparring match. I know I have asked my instructors about this a lot when I first started. Should they look at the opponent's lower body in anticipation of a kick attack? Should they watch the eyes to get a sense of their fighting style? These questions show the importance of sight during a match.

Depending on the opponent, watch either the eyes or the attacking part of the lower body. Also, watch the posture and motion of the opponent. Reading movement in this way will help you discover your opponent's reaction. Excellent taekwondo athletes can see opponent's movements that occur in the periphery. They read muscular changes, make instant judgement, and react accordingly.

Deadliest Kick

Dont try this move at home or during sparring. Enjoy!

Agility

Today, I will be talking about agility and why it is important in taekwondo sparring. Agility is the ability of a fighter to control the body while maintaining power and speed. Step sparring is used to improve agility and reflexes. Other activities for improving agility are running in place, zigzag running, speed kicks, sideways running in small steps, paddle sparring, and sports such as soccer and basketball. Yes, you heard right, I said basketball. I actually been playing basketball to improve my own agility.

Without agility, effective attack and counterattack skills cannot be performed with speed. Agility is the ability to move quick, shift weights, and move back and forth and side to side as necessary in the ring. When an older athlete decide to compete in a younger age class (local tournaments), they are often surprise to find that their agility and and reaction times are somewhat slower than the agility and reaction time of their younger opponents. Agility and speed changes as athletes get older that is why there are different age divisions in a taekwondo sparring tournament.

The video above are drills to improve agility. It was demonstrated by master Sang H. Kim. For more information check out his video Ultimate Kicking Drills.

Warming up and Stretching

Lately we have been talking a lot about kicks that are useful in sparring. Today, we will be talking about warming up and stretching because it is very essential. Taekwondo sparring requires flexible actions of joints that may not be typical movements. An agile athletes can execute taekwondo attacks and counterattacks at a higher level of skill because the muscles and joints move smoothly. This flexibility, connected with explosive power, is vital for success in sparring match. Be careful of overstretching because muscle damage could result. As with aerobic conditioning, flexibility needs to be developed gradually to avoid injury.

Stretching raises body temperature before exercise, increasing the effectiveness of a workout while helping to protect against muscle injury. It is also important to stretch after exercise, when muscles and joints are loose, in order to improve flexibility.

Before stretching, a preparatory aerobic exercise such as jump rope, line drills, or no contact sparring should be performed. After the preparatory exercise, relax the muscles with stretching and then move on to the main practice. The main practice should begin at a simple level and progress to the more strenuous drills. Using gradual scale of exertion will help prevent injury. After finishing the main practice, cool down and stretch in order to return major muscle group to a rest state.

The video above are some stretching drills by Sang H. Kim. If your interested in learning more about taekwondo stretching you can check out the dvd below.