The Anatomy of Martial Arts: An Illustrated Guide

Book Preface

For this book we’ve been limited to showing 50 techniques from as wide an array of martial arts as we could. Thus, we chose a number of hand strikes (including breaks), kicks, throws, weapon and grappling techniques, and rolls and falls. While a beginning martial arts student may find this book interesting, it will be most useful to intermediate and advanced practitioners of the martial arts.

Unlike most other martial arts books, this book assumes that the reader is already familiar with the techniques that are featured. We don’t teach any techniques; rather, we highlight and discuss the main muscle groups required for the technique to be performed and suggest ways to both strengthen and stretch those muscles to improve the technique’s quality. Because even basic moves such as a front kick can be taught a variety of ways depending on the art in which they’re used, we hope that by emphasizing the body’s fundamental structures, particularly the musculature and kinetic chains, the foundation of each technique might be reopened to discussion.

Even if you decide that the muscles highlighted are incorrect or incomplete, then at least we’ve accomplished our primary goal of getting you to think about each technique’s foundation. We hope that by reviewing your movements as to which muscles are being used, you can augment your training to improve the power and motion that actually drive the techniques.