The standard fist or seiken is one of the simplest, most recognized, and universally employed techniques in martial arts and fighting. There are many different variations on making a fist in both positioning of the hand and the striking surface. Although the act of making a fist may be simple, injuries can be incurred by those not well-versed in the anatomical structures of the hand or unaware of each variation’s formation and applications.
One of the primitive reflexes in newborns is the palmar grasp reflex, in which placing a finger or object into a baby’s palm elicits the baby making a fist to try and grasp the object. This reflex usually disappears sometime between 3-6 months, but is a clear indicator that the act of making a fist is something that is deeply innate to our species and often reflexively or subconsciously done later in life in response to a stimulus or threat. Those not trained in martial arts or who are not seasoned fighters will usually resort to striking with a fist rather than an open hand, because there is an implicit understanding that a fist can deal serious damage with a seemingly decreased risk of injuring one’s hand in the process.
However, as every experienced martial artist knows, open hand techniques can be just as (if not more effective) than closed hand techniques, and are perhaps even less prone to injury if executed properly. An improperly formed fist or unfavorable trajectory can result in injury to oneself if one is inexperienced or unlucky. Thus, although the fist may seem the most basic of techniques, it warrants examination. In this article, we will explore the anatomical formation and various applications of the fist as well as other closed and open hand techniques seen in traditional Shotokan karate.
Note: Before we start, I want to emphasize that improper formation and application of many of these techniques can result in serious injury to oneself. I am not advocating the use of any these techniques and personally feel that several are very impractical, highly specialized to niche applications, or have too great a risk/reward ratio to employ. That being said, the nature of combat is dynamic and often unpredictable, so it is never known when a technique may need to be modified or an unconventional technique be used. Martial artists seeking to maximize the versatility of their arsenal in combat should strive to be able to strike with most parts of the body.
A Very Brief Overview of Hand Anatomy
![By Mariana Ruiz Villarreal (LadyofHats); retouches by Nyks [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons](https://i0.wp.com/www.arjanhura.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/editedhandbonesfairusepublicdomainwikimediacommons.png?resize=406%2C391&ssl=1)
The two red dots indicate the knuckles used to strike when making a fist (image used under Public Domain).
The thumb is the only digit of the hand that lacks an intermediate/middle phalanx.
Although all of the bones of the hand and wrist are structurally relevant to the various techniques described below, it is important to make note of the heads of the second and third metacarpals – the parts of the metacarpals that articulate with the proximal phalanges at the metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joints. These are the two knuckles (indicated by red dots in the image) that are the primary point of impact when making a fist.
Seiken (“fist”)
In karate, learning how to properly make a fist is often the initial topic of instruction during a student’s first class. In fact, regardless of a student’s previous martial arts experience, if it is their first karate class with me, I always check to make sure they know how to form a proper fist.
Although proper formation of a fist might seem obvious to some, many beginners will make a fist by flexing their fingers over their thumb. This prevents the knuckles from forming a stable striking surface and places a large amount of stress on the first MCP and interphalangeal (IP) joint of the thumb (first digit). Instead, the fingers (digits 2-4) should be fully flexed with the thumb wrapping (flexing, adducting, and opposing) around the second, third, and partially fourth intermediate phalanges. Proper attention should be given to ensuring that there is tension throughout the muscles of the palm below the pinky/fifth digit (hypothenar eminence), but not so much tension that the fourth and fifth digits are flexed further into the palm than the second and third digits. The fingers should follow their natural cascade pattern with all fingers pointing to the base of the thumb (thenar eminence) when flexed.
A simple test to check whether or not there is adequate tension within the muscles at the base of the pinky/fifth digit that form the hypothenar eminence is to make a fist and then slowly and gently touch a flat surface with the knuckles (heads of the metacarpals) of the second and third fingers. No part of the fourth or fifth fingers should be touching the surface. Too much laxity in these muscles and/or improper trajectory of the punch is often what leads to broken hands/fingers when an unskilled or compromised person strikes a surface where the fourth and fifth fingers are the first to make impact. On radiographs, this is seen as the classic Boxer’s Fracture, a rather ironic name used to describe the pathology, as competently trained boxers and fighters know to strike with the second and third metacarpals in order to reduce the risk of injuring themselves.
Another important point often stressed when teaching how to make a proper fist is that there should be no adduction, abduction, flexion, or extension at the wrist. The hand should be in natural position and there should be a relatively straight line that forms from the head of the third metacarpal over the carpal bones and onto the forearm. Even if a fist is properly formed, punching with the hand out of natural position can result in injury.
This last point might seem like an obvious and trivial point to make, but I would like to take a moment to discuss it further, as I have seen senior level instructors propagate misinformation about alignment of the hand and wrist in variations on seiken. The most recent instance of this that I observed happened at a seminar where an instructor was explaining how to execute tate-zuki (“vertical fist”). In tate-zuki, the fist is formed in the same way as seiken, but it is turned vertically so that the dorsum of the hand faces away from the midline. The main striking surface remains the heads of the second and third metacarpals, but if you make seiken and alter nothing else except for orienting the fist vertically, you will clearly see that the plane of the knuckles has changed so that the heads of the fourth and fifth instead of the second and third metacarpals will be the first points of impact when striking a flat target. The mistake that can be made is to adduct the wrist just slightly in order to re-position the plane of the knuckles such that heads of the second and third metacarpals now reclaim their roles as first points of impact. From my experience, most students do not make this modification themselves, as they naturally understand the correct way of realigning the plane of the knuckles (or they are unaware that this is even something to consider modifying), but rather it is senior instructors who propagate this misinformation. The safer way of altering the plane of the knuckles is not to modify the alignment of the wrist, but to change the angle of the elbow. Just a slight reduction in flexion of the forearm at the elbow joint is enough to realign the plane of the second and third knuckles. In Shotokan karate, tate-zuki is often taught as a close-range technique, but if being executed at a target further away from the body or higher than modification of the angle of the elbow would allow, the modification should then be of the humerus at the shoulder (glenohumeral joint). Discussion on a minute detail like this might seem overly analytical, but in the same way that I would never punch a target with my wrist out of alignment (flexed, extended, adducted, or abducted), using tate-zuki to repetitively hit a potentially hard surface with the wrist adducted is not something I would risk.
Although tension through the muscles of the hypothenar eminence was discussed, it is worth mentioning how to tense the entire fist. You should feel like you are trying to squeeze something out of your hand, almost as if trying to make sure there is no air trapped within the fist. Rick Hotton explains and demonstrates this nicely here. All tension should be directed inward into the fist, rather than outward – the knuckles should not move away from each other.
Finally, maximal tension within the fist should occur just after/at the point of impact, not throughout the duration of the punch. Tensing the muscles throughout the movement only slows the punch down and dulls any potential last-millisecond acceleration to be transmitted into the technique.
Other Hand Techniques
Depending on what type of hand technique is used, the various joints of the wrist and hand can be manipulated to alter the striking surface:
Seiken (“fist”), uraken (“back-fist”), ura-zuki (“inverted-fist”, “undercut”)
Point of impact: the heads of the second and third metacarpals.
A second form of seiken perhaps most popularly seen in Gichin Funakoshi’s Karate-Do Kyohan and Masatoshi Nakayama’s Dynamic Karate involves keeping the distal phalanx of the second digit extended. Note that in this version of the fist, tension is lessened in the muscles of the hypothenar eminence and the fourth and fifth digit, and it is increased in the second and maybe third digit. Further discussion on this alternative fist can be found here.
In uraken, the contact points are the same and the fist is either rapidly snapped forward into the target or swung in an arc with minimal tension in the arm.
With ura-zuki, the punch is essentially inverted and the fist travels with the dorsum of the hand facing towards the floor just like an under-cut. Essentially, the final orientation of the fist is no different from that in hikite (“pulling hand”, often the hand held at the side of the non-striking limb).
Kentsui/tetsui (“hammer-strike”)
Point of impact: the lateral portion of the hypothenar eminence (the entire hypothenar eminence is highlighted in the second image). The fist is made just like in seiken or uraken, but as long as proper striking surface is maintained, the fourth and fifth digits can be curled further into the palm to maximize tension as the muscles of the hypothenar eminence contract even more.
Nakadaka-ken (“middle-finger knuckle fist”)
Point of impact: the head of the third proximal phalanx at the proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joint. The third digit is extended beyond digits 2, 4, and 5, and the thumb can rest on the head of the third intermediate phalanx to provide support so that the digit does not buckle on impact. The fourth and fifth digits are flexed further into the palm with tension in the muscles of the hypothenar eminence to allow for a compact fist.
Ippon-ken (“first knuckle fist”)
Point of impact: the head of the second proximal phalanx at the PIP joint. Digits 3-5 are further flexed into the palm with tension throughout the muscles of the hypothenar eminence, and the thumb is flexed into the lateral side of the second digit for support.
Hira-ken (“knuckle fist”)
Point of impact: the heads of the 2-4th proximal phalanges at the PIP joints. Digits 2-4 are fully flexed at the PIP and DIP joints and slightly flexed at the MCP joint. The thumb is also flexed.
Shuto (“knife-hand”)
Point of impact: as with kentsui/tetsui, the striking surface is the lateral portion of the hypothenar eminence. However, digits 2-4 are extended and adducted while the thumb is flexed.
Seiryuto (“ox-jaw”)
Point of impact: just like with shuto, the striking surface is the hypothenar eminence. Digits 2-4 are extended and adducted while the thumb is flexed, but the wrist is also slightly abducted.
Keito and boshi-ken (“chicken head”, “thumb fist”)
Point of impact: the head of the first metacarpal or the first metacarpal entirely. The thumb is flexed, digits 2-4 are extended at the MCP joint and slightly flexed at the PIP and DIP joints, and the wrist is adducted.
A similar technique is boshi-ken, which involves making a fist but still striking with the head of the first metacarpal to the vulnerable areas of the face.
Haito (“ridge-hand strike”)
Point of impact: lateral side of the second metacarpal and/or the second proximal phalanx. Digits 2-4 are extended and the thumb can be in various points of flexion/abduction/opposition to stay clear of the target.
Haishu (“back-hand”)
Point of impact: the heads of second, third, and fourth metacarpals. The thumb is flexed and digits 2-4 are flexed at the MCP joints enough so that the proximal, intermediate, and distal phalanges of the digits make zero to minimal contact with the striking surface. The fingers are also adducted so that they do not separate or slip on impact.
Nukite/yonhon nukite (“spear-hand”/”four-finger spearhand”)
Point of impact: the apical tufts/ungual tuberosities or processes of the distal phalanges. The thumb is flexed and digits 2-4 are almost fully extended at the MCP, PIP, and DIP joints. Enough flexion and adduction of the digits should be in place such that the digits do not buckle or separate on impact.
The risk of injuring one’s fingers and hands while executing this technique is high if the movement is not well practiced, the hands and fingers are not conditioned, or if a hard surface is struck. This technique is best reserved for the softer points on an opponent’s body, such as the eyes, throat, or solar plexus. Depending on how strong one’s hands and fingers are, and how well-conditioned the opponent’s body is, other anatomical areas can be targeted as well.
Ippon-nukite (“first/one finger spearhand”)
Point of impact: the apical tuft/ungual tuberosity or process of the second distal phalanx. Digits 3-5 are extended at the MCP joints, moderately flexed at the PIP joints, and fully flexed at the DIP joints. The second digit is almost fully extended at the MCP, PIP, and DIP joints. The wrist is usually slightly adducted.
Nihon-nukite (“two-fingered spearhand”)
Point of impact: the apical tuft/ungual tuberosities or processes of the second and third distal phalanges. Digits 1, 4, and 5 are flexed while 2 and 3 are almost fully extended and slightly abducted. Often used to strike the eyes.
Teisho/shotei (“palm heel strike”)
Point of impact: the base of the palm (hypothenar and thenar eminences). The wrist is extended and digits 2-4 are extended at the MCP joints enough so that they don’t make contact with the target. If used to initially strike the jaw, digits 2-4 can be flexed just after impact to target the eyes.
Koken/kakuto & washide (“wrist joint strike”, “eagle hand”)
Point of impact: the carpal bones (wrist). The wrist is flexed with digits 1-5 in mild flexion and digits 1-4 in opposition with the fifth digit. Lack of opposition will allow for less tension and greater hand speed. Sometimes used to strike soft surfaces.
The same hand position (with opposition) with more tension in the fingers is used to make the technique known as washide. With this technique, the apical tufts/ungual tuberosities or processes of the distal phalanges become the striking surface.
Kumade (“bear-hand”)
Point of impact: the palmar surface of the hand and digits 1-5 as flexed. Digits 1-5 are slightly flexed at the MCP joints and fully flexed at the PIP and DIP joints. Often used to strike the face and head. The fingers can be extended to strike the eyes after initial impact to the face.
Yubi-hasami (“scissor fingers”)
Point of impact: the surface between the first and second digits. The thumb is abducted while the rest of the digits are adducted and slightly flexed. The hand is positioned as if it were going to be used to choke someone.
Ude or kote
Point of impact: the distal radius and ulna. Employed in soto-ude-uke and uchi-ude-uke.
SUPPLEMENTAL READING:
Standard disclaimer: Any time I list references to other reading, I am not endorsing any individuals or organizations, nor am I verifying or vouching for the content. Usually I will highlight what I feel are examples of good karate demonstrating the principle or concept I am discussing. My goal is for this article to be an asset to you and your training. My sensei would always say that sometimes all it takes is another person articulating or demonstrating what you have already heard a 1000 times for the light bulb to go off and for something to finally make sense. Hopefully these resources supplement what I have written. Let me know if you come across any other good explanations or videos and I will update this article to include them. Happy training!
- Rick Hotton describes and demonstrates the feeling of squeezing something out of your hand when making a fist, in addition to explaining the feeling behind several hand techniques during execution: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lx9pnGwy5oE#t=09m30s
-
- Alternate fist reading: http://www.fightingarts.com/reading/article.php?id=215
