Customer Reviews

Deadly Karate Blows: The Medical Implications (Unique Literary Books of the World)

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4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Brian Adams takes far too optimistic a stance on the medical aspect of martial arts.

Deadly Karate Blows assumes a knowledgeable role, describing the horrific results of a well-placed strike; however, with the way Adams set it out, it would appear that this is what happens EVERY time a blow is landed in real combat. He fails to explicate how it is that blows landed in this manner during sparring sessions do not involve these violent conditions, yet in street fighting, all of a sudden one's victim is prone to all manner of post-trauma malady. While Adams had done his research, and cites an impressive array of sources, he does not seem to grasp that many of these effects require a great amount of strength, and very specific conditions to reach. These "medical implications" may be plausible in isolated situations, but it is not feasible to suggest that it is the probability.

Granted, softer targets will more frequently yield the described results, but harder targets (the shin, ribs,et cetera) are much less susceptible to trauma. Again, these areas require more than normal force, and very specific conditions; a kick to the shin with the side of the foot will not "easily fracture one or both bones." Fortunately, he does seem to realize that the clothing worn plays a role: a hard-soled shoe will do more damage than a bare foot.

My last disappointment with this book was evident from the start: he is redundant to the point of nausea. He feels it necessary to repeat almost everything he says; this does not strengthen his point, it only makes people tired of hearing it.

Overall, do not purchase this book if you wish to become a deadly opponent. It is good, I think, in the medical respect, and it offers some insight into biomechanics, but the approach is not strong enough to merit real interest to a martial artist.

This doesn't have much deadly karate but it certainly does blow...

What a huge disappointment! This premise holds much promise but the breadth and depth of this particular rendering is very shallow indeed. It's only 117 pages and mostly pictures. The illustrations unfortunately are marginally well done and the photos have very bad contrast so between these two shortcomings the techniques are not well illuminated. Since the text is not very descriptive either, the total package is very incomplete for the few applications they actually cover. There are hundreds of traditional karate techniques that are not covered at all.

I have no idea why the practitioners in the photos have their shirts off. It is not helpful in showing what they are doing technique-wise. Neither model has much physique to speak of so I can't imagine they're trying to show off what great shape they are in. You'd think a book about karate would at least show folks wearing traditional karate uniforms yet only one of the two has gi-style pants (with no obi) while the other wears half a tracksuit. Both wear shoes. Since they are not really doing karate techniques in every case, I guess this is irrelevant but I do find it annoying.

As mentioned previoiusly, there are a huge number of techniques not discussed at all (such as locks or chokes along with several types of strikes). Furthermore, many that are discussed have significant errors. For example, when it comes to an eye strike the author shows fingertip rakes across and into the eye describing the effects as a collapsed "bulb of the eye" or a lacerated eyelid. That's okay so far as it goes, I suppose, but a "torn eyelid from the effect of a sharp finger nail piercing an eyelid that has blinked at the last instant before it has struck" is sheer nonsense and not truly a medical implication. I don't remember reading the term "bulb of the eye" in any medical textbooks either, come to think of it.

In real life, the most common eye attack is a rake. The second most common is a gouge. The gouge is almost never successfully performed with the fingers. Instead, it is performed with the thumb while the fingers contour the side of the head, which is why that version is the most common bunkai. It works best when the opponent's head is supported against the ground, a wall, or with your other hand. When you do that the eyeball is displaced and popped out rather than collapsed or crushed. The book not only does not talk about displacements at all, but it also focuses on ruptures, something that is virtually impossible to do with an unsupported finger jab as shown in the text.

I really don't know why the set-ups for the various techniques were chosen in the way they were. For example, the groin strike shows the defender caught in a two handed choke with the attacker's thumbs pressing into his throat before the counterattack. Get real! You'll never be "caught" in a two handed front choke. Unless you are completely oblivious no one is going to walk up and choke you, at least not upright when you are both standing. Perhaps you'd slap the attacker's hands aside and react with a groin kick when he tries to choke you but that's about it. I've witnessed, interceded in, stopped, or prevented more than 300 real-life fights and I've never seen anyone trying this silliness on the street let alone successfully applying it. Chokes require significant disruption before you can successfully apply them. Oh, and the author doesn't even describe the medical implications of chokes either... lame, lame, lame. Speaking of lame, the eight pages on "principles of first aid and pain reduction" appear to be a last minute filler. I was expecting first aid for each technique shown but it is just some general first aid 101 stuff.

All in all I'm hugely disappointed in this book. This is a great topic and I'd really like to see someone with a medical degree do it well. The execution in this book, unfortunately, isn't at all what I was looking for. It is a pathetic, misguided attempt to cover an important topic.

Don't waste your money.

Lawrence Kane
Author of Blinded by the Night, among other titles

How many times have you told a student to do a combination and not known what the result of their actions will be.How many off us know what dammage we can do.This book covers max to minimum dammage, in a well illusrated and easy to follow book.Next time I teach a strike to the throat I can explain what can happen, we all have an idea but do you really know.As an instuctor you should know what you are teaching a student and if it lands what could happen.

Any serious and experienced Martial Artist will recognise the seriousness of this book, and rather than strive to use the techniques explained, they will like myself, be more aware and strive towards not using the techniques. As the title quite rightly states, this book describes in detail how it is possible to kill someone and therefore informs the reader, what NOT to do.

The majority of all techniques shown within this book will need an experienced understanding of a Martial Art in order to perform them (so if you want to read this book and you are not a Martial Artist, then there is not much point in reading it).

This book opened my eyes and taught me a lot, escpecially the medical implications which i think is very important to know and understand what the consequences of such deadly blows can cause. If you haven't read this book, i would recommend it.

The subject of vital/vulnerable points and how to strike them is a very serious matter and one that should never be taken lightly. I personally am very leery about teaching people about them and usually only give a generalized description of them. There are two books that attempt to tackle this subject, both of which I currently have in my own personal library. One of them is Brian Adam's, "Deadly Karate Blows."

Now before I get started on writing the actual review of this book, I am going to take this opportunity to give you a bit of insight into my reviewing process. I will rarely if ever give a bad review. This isn't meant to imply that I think that everything is good, it's just that if I don't care for a particular book or DVD that I have, I simply will not do a review on it. What I primarily look for in an instructional book or DVD is its ability to teach me solid relevant information on the particular topic being addressed, which should be the primary focus of the material being presented. Unfortunately, this isn't always the case.

Now depending upon your own personal knowledge on the subject, and your own personal perspective, you will either love this book or revile it. While I myself readily question some of the material presented in this book, I do find a lot of it to be very informative in both a positive and a negative way. Rather than dwelling on the negative aspects, I will instead focus on the positive aspects of this book.

The basic format for this book starts out with two to three photographs with captions and two subjects demonstrating a particular technique whose attack is focused on a particular vital/vulnerable point. This is followed by some pretty good illustrations and really basic descriptions of the various possible injuries that can accompany a blow to the particular vital/vulnerable point being discussed. Each section starts out with the weapon used, the target (vital/vulnerable point) attacked, and the possible medical implications of an effective attack. The only real detractor to this is that it should be updated to provide more current and relevant information.

One could easily argue that a lot of the information provided is sketchy at best and not very detailed at all. This is a legitimate point. However, and this is just my opinion, I think the author was just trying to give the reader an overview of the subject, rather than a detailed analysis.

During the introduction to this book, the author is adamant about making it clear that, "...I have just barely scratched the surface of a subject that will continue to regain its status in the martial arts." The author also makes it very clear that, "One must remember that whenever the human element is involved, there is no such thing as absolute perfection. This is why in many of the sections it is indicated that there is more than one possible result, because the blow may be slightly off target or because of other existing conditions which might be hindered by unforeseen circumstances."

Although this book is definitely not an "authoritative" piece, it still holds value especially when combined with another book called, "Gray's Anatomy."

Having practiced Karate for 20 years, many of the deadly blows
he speaks of are not truly deadly.We practiced a full contact style, and occasionaly sparred with the Kyokushin.Most karate-ka have not trained to strike hard enough, and many people who are in good shape can withstand many of the blows he deams deadly.
Overall, it does contibute to understanding the body and how it functions.The reality is, the human body is a lot tougher than he seems to give credit for.It (the book) has an air of caution, that would entice "point system" fighters to wear their protective gear. "Full contact" people or even street fighters would view it with tongue in cheek.That's my opinion, and thank you for the opportunity to say so. Paul.

When I purchased this book, I was actually looking for ways to _avoid_ killing someone in a fight, so I was expecting a comprehensive listing of all the ways _not_ to hit someone, unless you wanted to kill them; well, it's a fairly small book, so I really expected principals rather than specific details. What I found was an excellent collection of case studies of specific blows with severe consequences.

Within its scope, this is an excellent book, but it is a small book and its scope is similarly small. It is really a book of _potential_ consequences: worst case scenarios when one is hit a certain way. It makes little mention of the probability that damage will occur, and especially it doesn't seem to remark on how likely such damage is to occur accidentally. Also, there doesn't seem to be any real mention of principals of damage, just specific cases.

All that said, I would recommend it to any serious practitioner of karate, or other similar martial art. I don't know what textbooks fight doctors use, but I would cautiously suggest it to them as well (in ignorance of similar resources). If you buy only one book on karate, this should not be it, but it makes a fine addition to a small library of martial arts textbooks.

This is a great referance for people with previous Martial Arts skills. I like the explanation of medical complications, which can occur from the result of one's use of the described techniques. The book doesn't only teach you what damage can be done, but it also explains what could medically occur in the Best and the Worst case senerio. If you don't have any Martial Arts training, this book may not be for you, but with any skills this is a great reading material to further your Martial Arts knowledge. I didn't like the moves demonstrated in the case of attack and defence. Eventhough, they might be helpful, they are not always the best moves and might be missleading to the reader, but overall the book is amazing and deffinetly worth reading.

I agree with those reviewers who say that it would generally take very powerful karate blows to cause the injuries featured in this book (review based on 1969 edition). Virtually every part of the body as target is featured in this work.

As an example, consider a hit to the throat. It could crush the windpipe, causing asphyxiation. But asphyxiation could also be caused by a blow that stimulated the laryngeal nerve. The epiglottis could close and not reopen. Similar effects could occur with a blow to the vagus, hypoglossal, or phrenic nerves. A blow to the neck blood vessels can create a hematoma (internal accumulation of blood) that could cause asphyxiation by pressing against the trachea.

Now let us consider kicks to the abdomen. They can cause liver lacerations or peritonitis. [My pastor, as a boy, got punched in the stomach by another boy, causing peritonitis that almost killed him]. A kick just above the groin, although missing the genitals, can cause a ruptured bladder, either directly or from the broken end of the pubic bone.

One limitation of this work is its lack of elaboration on "Combat KI". Martial arts practitioners with developed "Combat KI" can take powerful blows to sensitive parts of their body, such as the throat and groin, without experiencing either disabling pain or injury.

Also, quantification would be helpful. There are studies now available on the forces produced by martial-arts hits and kicks. These could be combined with estimates as to how much force to body parts it would take to actually produce the kind of serious injuries featured in this book.

Book was as described. It was used and in good shape. Will be using the book as I progress through Kung Fu.