by Rick Caudle
July 13, 2005

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Speed is an art unto itself, and Bruce Lee was a master of that art. Although Bruce had more natural talent than ten men put together, his affinity for analysis gleaned him many drills and exercises designed specifically for one thing; building hand speed. I have just released an instructional DVD entitled "Fast Hands" and I would like to share with you three keys to speed.

The first thing you must do is to learn to RELAX.
How many of us are normally carefree and easy when a confrontation arises? Relaxation is the first and most important key to speed, because a tight muscle must loosen before it can fire off a punch. If you are already loose, you don't have to wait for your brain to tell your arm to strike. It just happens. You want to practice going from total relaxation to exploding into your strike, then immediately relaxing again. Repeat this over and over, and soon you will have a quick-firing punch that shoots like an arrow through the centerline. Practice this punching method until you develop a very powerful strike that travels a short distance. Try to keep your hand loose until about the last two inches of the strike, just before the fist lands. Tighten your hand just prior to impact and your fist will be like a rock.

Be sure to exhale your breath as you strike. The other benefits of being relaxed are that you can conserve your stamina and not "burn-out" as quickly as you would if you were tense. Also, you are less likely to get knocked out or injured if your body yields to the blows It goes back to the old Chinese saying about the Oak tree versus the Willow tree. Because of the strong and solid nature of the Oak, the branches can be broken by the wind, while the Willow bends and sways and goes with the flow to survive the storm.

The second key to speed is based on how you RESPOND.
Bruce Lee tapped into a natural phenomenon called the "Startle Response" It is part of our Fight or Flight Syndrome and Bruce figured out how to harness it. These movements are hardwired into our brain to act as a defense mechanism. This is what happens when someone jumps out of the bushes and scares you, or sneaks up behind you and pokes you in the ribs. Your hands shoot up abruptly, protecting your face and head automatically. It is this jerking motion that makes it so blindingly quick.

With this energy, Bruce learned to fire his punches and kicks from a loose position, to an explosion into his opponent. As one who has seen footage of Bruce punching, I can honestly say that at times, on the old 8mm, it is so fast it looks like a glitch in the film. One of the best examples of this is the film from Ed Parker's Long Beach Internationals where Bruce was first introduced into the American martial arts community. When filming such movies as "Game of Death", Bruce actually had to slow his techniques down so that the camera could capture the movement.

The third key to speed is RECOIL.
Although we want to go through the target, a "snapping", whip-like punch will do more damage and set you up for another quick strike. Too much follow through, or even worse, leaving your fist extended, will make you vulnerable for a counter attack and restrict your ability for a fast second strike. I tell my students, "Punch at 50 miles an hour and pull it back at 55".

When speaking of famous fighters, Mohammed Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard come to mind as boxers with extremely fast hands. Of course, Ali and Bruce were friends and did exchange information about there fighting abilities. Sugar Ray had a tremendous career but never knocked anyone out with a single punch. I recently watched one of his fights from the old days and was impressed with his knack for throwing a flurry of combinations to take his opponent out. Knowing exactly when to press his attack, his strikes were fast, furious and well placed.

Even hand speed requires a concerted effort of your whole body. For maximum speed, learn to relax from head to toe, explode outwardly using the "Startle Response", and snap your punches back for maximum damage, leaving your options open for additional strikes. Speed is a difficult art, but with time and practice, you can develop lightening fast punches and kicks. For more information on how to develop hand speed, purchase my instructional DVD, "Fast Hands - How to triple your Hand Speed", right here at www.KaliJKD-U.com.