The Science of the One-Inch Punch
Forget all those broken boards and crumbled concrete slabs . No feat of martial arts is more impressive than Bruce Lee's famous strike, the one-inch punch . From a single inch away, Lee was able to muster an explosive blow that could knock opponents clean off the ground. Lee mastered it, fans worldwide adored it, and Kill Bill "borrowed" it . But if you're like us, you want to know how it works. While the biomechanics behind the powerful blow certainly aren't trivial, the punch owes far more to brain structure than to raw strength. Biomechanical Breakdown To understand why the one-inch punch is more about mind than muscle, you first have to understand how Bruce Lee delivers the blow. Although Lee's fist travels a tiny distance in mere milliseconds, the punch is an intricate full-body movement. According to Jessica Rose, a Stanford University biomechanical researcher, Lee's lightning-quick jab actually starts with his legs. "HI...