FOOT SWEEPS TO PUT YOUR OPPONENT DOWN AND OUT!

What if I told you that you could learn a technique that will send your opponent crashing to the ground, regardless of that person's size or strength?

- NICHOLAS TORINO

Would you believe it if I said you could make it happen without having to throw a single punch?

If you think this sounds too good to be true, think again. The key to achieving this goal is to use a technique that's actually a fundamental part of karate. If you don't already know it, it's time to add it to your arsenal. Let's talk about foot sweeps.

 

ABOUT THE TACTIC

Foot sweeps can level the playing field by enabling you to take your opponent-any size opponent-off-balance. Sweeps fall into the category of ashi waza, which is Japanese for "foot techniques." Such moves that are designed to unbalance opponents can be found in many styles, including karate, judo and jujitsu.

Sweeps are sometimes categorized as kuzushi, or "off-balancing techniques." That term originates from the word kuzusu, which Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary (fourth edition) says is something designed to "destroy, demolish, pull down or level." This reveals that a technique in this category can serve a punishing purpose and do more than make your opponent struggle to maintain his posture.

Expanding on that notion, we can say that the purpose of a sweep is to compromise the integrity of your opponent's balance, then exploit and destroy his ability to maintain it. The following explains how a foot sweep does just that Your feet serve as the sole connection (pun intended) between your body and the ground. Based on the relationship between feet and ground, your brain sends signals to your body to maintain your posture and traverse the ground beneath you. By attacking this singular contact between human and earth, you can drop an opponent with ease.