Your Elbow and Martial Arts
I know that there's no such thing as a rule in the martial arts... but that said, keep your elbow down. No, really, 99% of the time, you want your elbows to be pointed downwards (such that, should you bend them, your arms will be vertical, not horizontal). Why is this, my hypothetical reader asks? It's all about body mechanics and muscle groups.
When your elbow is down, you get to engage the stronger muscle groups in your arm and shoulder, helping connect your efforts to your whole body. In turn, this makes it easier to do whatever you're trying to do, be it a strike, guard, or push. When your elbow is pointed outwards, it uses smaller muscle groups, making your arm position weaker and therefore more likely to collapse. When you're trying to manipulate someone who outweighs you by 75 lbs, the last thing that you want is for your arms to fold.
Don't believe me? Good! Try it for yourself. Go find a wall to push against. Place your hands on it, fingertips pointing upwards and elbows pointed straight down (it might feel a little awkward, particularly if you place your hands too near to each other), get into a good stance and give that wall a good strong, stable push. Feel the muscles that are engaging in your arms, shoulders and back and how effectively you can push from your hips.
Now, try it again, but with your elbows out. Point your fingertips inwards a bit and lift and round out your elbows. Push against that wall again (but not so hard that you hurt yourself!), and again feel which muscles are engaging. I don't know about you, but I very quickly feel the strain in my deltoid in that sort of "keep doing this and something's gonna tear..." sort of way.
So, that's what I'm working on right now: keep my elbows down.
When your elbow is down, you get to engage the stronger muscle groups in your arm and shoulder, helping connect your efforts to your whole body. In turn, this makes it easier to do whatever you're trying to do, be it a strike, guard, or push. When your elbow is pointed outwards, it uses smaller muscle groups, making your arm position weaker and therefore more likely to collapse. When you're trying to manipulate someone who outweighs you by 75 lbs, the last thing that you want is for your arms to fold.
Don't believe me? Good! Try it for yourself. Go find a wall to push against. Place your hands on it, fingertips pointing upwards and elbows pointed straight down (it might feel a little awkward, particularly if you place your hands too near to each other), get into a good stance and give that wall a good strong, stable push. Feel the muscles that are engaging in your arms, shoulders and back and how effectively you can push from your hips.
Now, try it again, but with your elbows out. Point your fingertips inwards a bit and lift and round out your elbows. Push against that wall again (but not so hard that you hurt yourself!), and again feel which muscles are engaging. I don't know about you, but I very quickly feel the strain in my deltoid in that sort of "keep doing this and something's gonna tear..." sort of way.
So, that's what I'm working on right now: keep my elbows down.
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