Practice Targets

 Greetings,

A short note about practice targets that I noticed...

1. People's brains are obsessed with hitting the middle of a target, or target areas where delineated. Point a dot on a target and people will try and hit the dot.
2. The target needs to be identified to serve a particular purpose, or sections for particular purpose if multipurpose in design. The trainer and trainee both need to understand this purpose before they begin.
3. "Body Targets" need to account for the position of the weapon, thus Lines, or recognise that they are absent.
4. The target size needs to be proportional; a) to the skill of the combatant, b) to the target being sought, c) to the height of a "normal" thrust of the combatant.

These are just some quick points to consider when designing and using targets. They need to be considered when training students, especially when training them for a particular technique. Are you training them to strike a particular target, or use a particular technique? The target you use will affect the training that you use, and the result. Is the target you are using the most effective for the result you want? 

Cheers,

Henry.

Like this post? You will find more posts like this, and more in-depth studies of fencing, along with some of my other writings on my Patreon.