Strike (attack)

A strike is a fast hit.

You can hit with your hand. You can hit with your foot. Some people use it in sports.

You can use a fist to punch. You can use a toe to jab. Some people use their elbows too. A kick uses the leg.

Many arts use these moves. Some sports use only grappling. People use strikes to move fast.

A strike is a forceful physical attack.

You can strike with your body or a tool. Many people use strikes in martial arts. Some use them in combat sports.

You can hit with your hands. A punch uses a closed fist. A jab uses a fingertip. You can also use your palm. A palm strike can be very strong. It may even have more power than a punch.

Some people use a knife hand. This is like a karate chop. You can also use a ridge hand. This uses the side of your hand. A spear hand uses your fingertips.

Other parts of the body can strike too. You can use your elbow or your shoulder. You can even use your head.

Some people use an extended knuckle. This hits a small area.

Legs are also used for strikes. A kick uses the foot, shin, or knee. A front kick uses the ball of the foot. A side kick uses the heel or the edge of the foot. A roundhouse kick is very common in sports.

Some arts use many of these moves.

A strike is a forceful physical attack. It is a directed movement of the body. You can strike with a part of the human body. You can also strike with a handheld object. These moves are meant to cause trauma to an opponent.

Many different types of strikes exist in the world. A punch uses a closed fist for impact. A jab uses a single fingertip. A kick uses the leg or the foot. A headbutt uses the head to strike.

People use many body parts for different strikes. You can hit with your palm or your knuckles. An elbow strike uses the bones of the forearm.

Some people use a shoulder strike to hit an opponent. This is often used in the martial art Bajiquan. You can also use a hammerfist. This uses the bottom of a clenched fist. It works like swinging a heavy hammer. This move is helpful because it does not hurt the bones in your hand.

Some hand strikes are very special and require practice. A knife hand is often called a karate chop. It uses the side of the hand near the small finger.

A ridge hand uses the side of the hand below the first knuckle. This is also called a reverse knife-hand. A spear hand uses the very tips of the fingers.

This can increase your reach by a few inches. An extended knuckle strike uses one finger moved forward. This concentrates force onto a very small area. These moves are often for advanced students in arts like Kung Fu.

Legs and feet are also used for powerful strikes. Kicks are a huge part of many different martial arts.

Taekwondo and Karate use many kinds of kicks. A front kick uses the ball of the foot. You can also use a side kick. A side kick uses the heel or the outer edge of the foot. The roundhouse kick is very common in combat sports. It is also known as a turning kick. Some people use the shin to strike during a roundhouse kick.

Strikes are the main focus of many sports and arts. Boxing and Muay Lao use many types of strikes.

Other arts like Taekwondo and Wing Chun use them too. Some sports like wrestling do not use strikes at all. They focus on grappling techniques instead. Some forms of karate focus on pressure points in the joints. This shows how many ways people can move their bodies. Every strike has a specific way it works and a specific goal.

A strike is a directed and forceful physical attack. It can involve a part of the human body. It can also involve a handheld object, like a melee weapon. The goal of a strike is to cause blunt or penetrating trauma to an opponent. There are many different varieties of strikes used in various contexts. Some people use strikes in combat sports. Others use them in martial arts. Some sports, such as wrestling, do not use strikes at all. Instead, they focus on grappling techniques to control an opponent.

Hand strikes are a major category of physical attacks. A punch is a common strike using a closed fist. Within punching, there are different methods like the jab, the straight lead, or the backfist. A palm strike uses the bottom part of the hand. This area is where the hand meets the wrist. Some studies show a palm strike can produce more energy than a punch. It also carries less risk of injury to the striker's own hand. This is because a relaxed palm is easier to throw than a clenched fist.

Other hand strikes require specific techniques and high levels of conditioning. A knife hand, or Shuto, uses the side of the hand near the little finger. This is often known as a karate chop. A ridge hand, or reverse knife-hand, uses the area below the first finger knuckle. This technique is considered highly circumstantial and is often seen as obsolete in some martial arts. A spear hand uses the very tips of the fingers. This can increase a person's reach by 3 to 4 inches. However, it carries a high risk of breaking the fingers.

Advanced students often learn specialized hand techniques. An extended knuckle strike, or Ippon ken, moves one finger forward. This concentrates force onto a very small area to hit pressure points. This technique comes from traditional Kung Fu. Another option is the hammerfist. This strike uses the bottom of a clenched fist. It works like a swinging hammer. It is useful because it does not compress the knuckles or metacarpals. This helps avoid breaking the bones in the hand during a fight.

Strikes can also involve the arms and shoulders. An elbow strike uses the bones of the forearm and the humerus. These can be linear or circular movements. Elbow and knee strikes are often seen in Southeast Asian boxing styles like Muay Lao. A shoulder strike, or shoulder butt, uses the front part of the shoulder. This is a common move in the martial art Bajiquan. While it may not have knockout power, it can be used to help break a joint. It can act as a fulcrum for joint hyperextension in jujitsu.

Legs and feet provide significant power in many combat systems. A kick is a strike using the foot, shin, knee, or thigh. Many martial arts rely heavily on kicks. These include Taekwondo, Karate, and Muay Thai. A front kick is often delivered using the ball of the foot. Practitioners may thrust their hips to increase reach and power. A side kick is delivered sideways to the body. The heel or the outer edge of the foot is used for impact.

The roundhouse kick is perhaps the most common kick in combat sports. It is also called a turning kick. In traditional arts, the instep is often the striking surface. In Muay Thai and mixed martial arts, the shin is used instead. This variety of movement shows how strikes are integrated into different systems. Whether through a simple punch or a complex leg technique, strikes are defined by their direction and force. They remain a central element of many human physical disciplines.