 hips and legs — the gestalt.
Now if he ventures into distance and initiates an attack (F2), I zone in on it as the highest priority. After defending it, I might look to strike his nose (F3).
Remember your focus is constant but not static. It darts around and awareness with it.
When a punch rises, pay most attention to the arm. If a kick shows, glance towards the leg. At the same time, keep his other limbs as well as your subsequent attack targets in your peripheral vision.
Similarly, against multiple attackers, look at the closest opponent while tracking the others.
Some say to look into the other person’s eyes. This is useful during conversation but not in Self-Defense when words fail. Eyeballs cannot hurt you! Speaking of which…
How To See
You look with your eyes. You see with your brain. Seeing is believing.
But only if you’ve trained it! These are three vital factors to see:
- Distance (z axis)
- Side (x axis)
- Height (y axis)
First, see whether your opponent is within striking distance. Either he is too far to attack you or close enough for you to attack him!
Second, see which limb he is going to use. Obviously, there are at most four choices: left or right arm or leg.
Third, see the attack height. This also tells you where he is planning to hit you.
Beyond striking distance, the opponent can do you no harm. Within striking distance, you can do him much damage.
And if you succeed in doing so early enough, neither side nor height matters. You preclude these variables. That’s why seeing distance is the foremost.
But if you hesitate, then it is necessary to see if he is striking you from the left or right, high or low. For instance, in the second picture above, he is likely approaching your left jaw with his right punch. That’s my educated guess based on what I see.
Because of your experience, your seeing gets more acute and rapid. Like a chess grandmaster, you can recognize nascent patterns. In other words, whereas a novice may still be looking, an expert will have seen what is unfolding long ago.
Look To See
Some may claim it is necessary to include the tactile sense in the Read. I agree that this is possible when your timing is late, which we examine in Combat Classes of the IAW curriculum. However, it’s imperative not to solely or even preferably rely on feeling.
So, reading is a dual skill of visual (looking) and cerebral (seeing) interplay. This eye-brain coordination takes practice via perceptual learning. Like using picture flashcards to memorize vocabulary, repeated simulation of Self-Defense situations will burn the images in your mind. You can then draw from that database in emergencies.
If you become a speed reader, you can universally absorb a broadband of information. But you are also able to pinpoint meaningful essentials by quickly filtering out irrelevancies. You are looking to see valuable signals in distracting noise.
You are reading the present, not predicting the future. Even psychics can’t do that perfectly. Indeed, a skilled attacker is harder to read. Or your opponent may throw a feint. But if you see him out of distance, you’re safe. If he comes into reach, you’re dangerous!
Looking is searching out. Seeing is finding out. Looking gathers everything indiscriminately. Seeing identifies something specifically. You need both proficiencies to read with depth and breadth, accuracy and precision.
In Part 4, we will conclude this series by discussing the Deed. Hint: it’s all about attack.