Tetsui-Tsuki is the hammer strike of Karate. It gets its force by binging the arm up and then swinging it down, just like a hammer. While it’s undoubtedly a punch, its used more as an arm block than a strike, and it’s unusable and unpractical in both sport Kumite and full-contact Kumite, and way dangerous in self-defense as it can be easily catched.
Traditional execution:
- Get in Heiko Dachi
- Close your hands
- Make a 1 meter step
- While going back to the starting position, swing up and bend it by 90° with the hand up
- Go forward 1 meter again and make the arm fall straight to your center with the blade of the hand
- Kiai! at maximum extention (optional)
- While retracting perform another move (e.g: another Tetsui-Tsuki)
Variations:
- This strike also has a variation where you do not swing and just start from the up position (Tetsui-Otoshi-Tsuki), which is even more weaker and pointless than the original as it doesn’t employ swinging.
Where to use (✅ - Use; ❌ - Don’t use; 🟨 - Last resource):
- Sport Kumite: ❌
- Full-Contact Kumite: ❌
- Self-Defense: ❌
Video examples: