IN MANY FIELDS of endeavor, people rely on deception to help them attain their objectives. In sports, such as basketball and football, players sometimes pretend to pass the ball in one direction in order to throw off opposing players before they execute the actual, intended play. During military conflicts, generals may send some troops to a particular region to distract the enemy while transferring other troops to a different region where they hope to surprise the enemy. The success or failure of such deceptive ploys depends upon the ability of the deceiver to lull the opponent into believing and acting upon the false action.
Deception can play an important role in successfully dealing with an opponent in empty-hand combat. Bruce Lee realized this and incorporated the idea of deception into Jeet Kune Do. It represents an integral part of Progressive Indirect Attack (PIA), another one of the five ways of attack that make up Lee’s art.
As with other elements of Jeet Kune Do, Lee adapted the concept of PIA from Western fencing. In the art of fencing, a player can deceive an opponent by moving the foil along a certain line of attack to draw an anticipated response from the opponent. When the opponent reacts in the expected way, the player can suddenly change the timing and direction of the attack to strike at a newly exposed target. For instance, a fencer can thrust the foil forward to induce an opponent to do a downward parry. As the opponent does this, the fencer quickly changes direction and thrusts the foil upward at the opponent’s face.
PIA operates in a similar way. You must first carefully note how your opponent responds to certain attacks that you aim at a particular target area. Your observations will tell you how your opponent tends to react. More importantly, it will reveal the target areas that become vulnerable to a strike when your opponent responds in that way. For example, you might observe that every time you throw a lead punch toward your opponent’s midsection, the punch is parried with the front hand. Moreover, you notice that, when your opponent’s hand drops to parry, it leaves the head exposed to a strike.
At a later point you can attack along the same line as before. This time, however, instead of completing the strike, you extend it only about halfway toward the target, just enough to make it appear that you are trying to attack that particular target. Because it seems that you are attempting to land the strike, your opponent responds in the same way as before. Then, while your opponent is in the process of reacting, you suddenly shift the line of your attack toward the target area that is exposed by the reaction to your false attack. Even if your opponent sees the change in your direction, your strike is way ahead of his or her ability to respond, so it succeeds it landing.
Using the same example as before, when you apply PIA, you throw your lead punch halfway toward your opponent’s midsection. As the front hand moves down to parry your punch, you quickly redirect your punch upward to strike the face, which is now unprotected.
PIA is a viable option against an opponent who is difficult to hit when you try to use Single Direct Attack or Attack by Combination. Such an opponent may have evasive footwork or maintain a tight defense against SDA or ABC. Because this opponent tends to respond well to any attack you throw, the feint or false attack can be used to draw the same response so that you can score on a different line.
Components of PIA
Each word in “Progressive Indirect Attack” describes a specific element necessary for the attack to succeed. The word “progressive” means that you gain distance toward your opponent as you launch the false attack. If your opponent is out of your attack range, you must close the distance with your feint by at least half. Then, your second motion only has to cover the second half of the distance. As an example, if you throw a fake low punch to the midsection to set your opponent up for a lead punch to the face, you must step in deeply enough so that the lead punch will be able to reach the face.
“Indirect” means that you gain time on your opponent. You accomplish this by misdirecting your opponent’s parry so that you can land the strike. Your movement should be ahead of your opponent’s reaction, so that he or she is always moving in an opposite direction to the attack. As a result, your second movement—the actual attack—runs ahead of your opponent’s parry, which is misdirected by your initial feint. Your actual attack should succeed in striking the target before your opponent has a chance to catch up to it.
Your initial feint or false attack must penetrate far enough and be held long enough to draw the opponent’s parry. Your second movement, the actual attack, must be quick and decisive, not allowing your opponent a chance to recover.
The word “attack” means that you move ahead of your opponent’s defensive responses so that you can land your intended strike. You should avoid allowing your opponent to make contact with your attacking limb. If he or she does so, your opponent can neutralize your attack, preventing you from scoring. By moving in the opposite direction from your opponent’s reaction, you can successfully hit the target area with your final motion.
Certain other elements must be in place in order for PIA to succeed. If any of these elements are not operating at their maximum, your chances of executing PIA can diminish. Therefore in training for PIA, make sure that these elements are in play and working together.
- Distance: You must advance the proper distance as you throw the feint or false strike, so that you will close in on your opponent in preparation for your actual strike. You must also ensure that you are within range to hit your opponent when you implement your second movement, which is the intended strike. Always be mindful of how your opponent adjusts his or her own distance. If your opponent retreats when you make your initial feint or false attack, then you have to advance a longer distance to ensure that you can land your actual strike.
- Rhythm: In musical terms rhythm is a succession of beats within a specified period of time, or within a measure. For example, in a typical fourcount measure, you have four evenly spaced beats that are counted as one, two, three, four. Rhythm plays a significant part in Jeet Kune Do in general and in PIA in particular. In order for PIA to work, you must stick to a specific rhythm, which involves actually hitting on the half-beat.
In an evenly timed attack combination, your first strike would be considered the first beat, your second strike the second beat, and so on. If your opponent successfully parried each of those strikes, then none of them would land. In PIA your initial feint or false attack, as well as your opponent’s attempt to parry, is considered the first beat. You speed up your second movement to land ahead of your opponent’s next reaction. In other words, you hit in-between the first and second beats—that is, on the half-beat.
- Timing: To make PIA work, you must time your movements in accordance with your opponent’s reactions. If you try to hit your opponent with your intended strike before your opponent has even tried to parry your feint or false attack, you may find that the target area is still closed. This results either from initiating the feint or false attack too quickly or from not holding it long enough to give your opponent the chance to react.
On the other hand, if you are too slow with your movements, then your opponent can keep up with you. In that case you will also find that, when you try to hit your opponent, the intended target area is closed. Because your movements are too slow, your opponent is able to react to them in time, and you are unable to land your strike. - Economy of Motion: Each of your motions must be delivered with minimal movement. There should be no retraction of your limb after executing the feint or false attack, prior to the launch of your actual strike. If the same limb delivers both the feint or false attack and the actual strike, then the intended strike should start from where your feint or false attack ended. For instance, if you fake a low lead punch at your opponent, your lead arm should move forward half the distance. If you intend to strike with a lead backfist, then that technique should cover the remaining distance without first retracting your lead arm.
Similarly, if one limb launches the feint or false attack, and a different limb delivers the actual strike, the limb executing the feint or false attack should not retract before you begin delivering the intended strike with the other limb. For example, if you fake a lead finger jab at your opponent’s head and follow with a lead hook kick, you should not retract the lead hand before launching the kick. - Deception: For PIA to work, your opponent must actually respond to your initial feint or false attack. You have to effectively sell your feint or false attack to persuade your opponent that the strike is real, so that he or she parries in the desired manner. Otherwise, the intended target area for your actual strike will remain covered. Therefore, you must make sure that your initial fake or false attack is thrown far enough and with body language that will convince your opponent that you are executing a real strike.
Categories of PIA
PIA can be classified in terms of outside lines, inside lines, high, middle, low, front, and rear. Each category contains numerous techniques that you can use, depending upon how your opponent responds. These are as follows:
- Inside to Outside: This type of PIA involves throwing a feint or false attack along an inside path toward your opponent to draw his or her hand away from an outside target area. As you draw the parry, you suddenly shift to strike your opponent at the outside target. For example, you fake a lead punch toward the face to draw a rear parry. When your opponent’s hand moves to protect against the lead punch, you shift to a lead hook punch to the side of the head, which is now exposed.
- Outside to Inside: In this category of PIA, you begin by faking a strike along an outside line to draw your opponent’s parry. When he or she responds, you switch to a strike on an inside path to hit a target that is now exposed. To illustrate, suppose that you fake a lead hook kick to your opponent’s side to draw the rear arm down to cover. When your opponent responds, the head is left open, and you can finish with a lead finger jab to the eyes.
- High to Middle: You can fake a strike along the high line toward your opponent’s head to draw a reaction. As your opponent moves one or both arms up to protect against that strike, you can suddenly shift to a strike to the midsection, which has become vulnerable. For instance, you can fire a lead finger jab toward the eyes, which causes your opponent to raise both arms for protection. As the arms move away, you shift to a lead punch to the sternum, which is now exposed.
- Middle to High: In this situation you fire a strike toward the middle of your opponent’s body. When this draws your opponent’s hand down, you shift to a high-line strike at the now exposed face. For example, you execute a lead punch to your opponent’s midsection, which draws a fronthand parry. As the front hand moves down, you shift to a lead backfist to the face, which is now exposed.
- High to Low: This category involves firing a fake high-line strike to the face to draw your opponent’s arm or arms up. With your opponent’s attention focused on protecting his or her head, the lower body is vulnerable, so you follow with an actual kick to a low-line target. To illustrate, suppose that you fire a lead straight punch toward your opponent’s head. As the arms move up to protect the head, you can follow with a front snap kick to the groin, which is now vulnerable.
- Low to High: In this type of PIA, you throw a low-line kick to draw a downward parry. When your opponent reacts in the expected way, you suddenly shift to a high-line hand strike. For instance, you can fake a front snap kick to your opponent’s groin, which your opponent seeks to protect by lowering the front hand. This exposes the head for a lead straight punch to the face as your actual intended strike.
- Front to Rear: For this category you fake a strike with a lead limb to draw your opponent’s parry. As your opponent responds, you follow with a rear strike to the newly exposed target area. For example, you can fire a fake lead hook punch to the head, which draws your opponent’s rear hand outward to block or cover the side of the head. This can expose the face to your rear cross, your intended strike.
- Rear to Front: In this situation you fake a rear strike to draw your opponent’s parry. When he or she responds accordingly, you throw an actual strike with a lead limb to the target area that becomes exposed. To illustrate, suppose you fake a rear cross to which your opponent responds with a rear-hand parry. Because the rear hand has moved away from the side of the head, you can follow with a lead hand hook punch along the outside line to the head.
In addition to these, there are other ways to classify PIA that can prove useful in learning and memorizing this type of attack. These broad categories have to do with the specific tools that are used and the order in which they are employed. Some specific examples of each of these are as follows:
- Hand to Hand: This category covers all the various types of PIA involving a fake hand strike followed by an actual hand strike.
• Foot to Foot: This category covers a myriad of situations in which you first throw a fake foot strike to draw a reaction from your opponent. You then follow with an actual foot strike to the newly exposed target area.
Fake front snap kick to lead hook kick: In this example you first fake a front snap kick to your opponent’s groin area to draw your opponent’s rear-hand downward parry. With the rear hand occupied, there is nothing protecting your opponent’s left rib area. You follow with a lead hook kick to your opponent’s ribs.
Fake lead inverted kick to lead shin kick: Your opponent faces you in mismatched lead. You fake a lead inverted kick to the groin area, which draws a front-hand downward parry to protect the groin. You then shift to a lead kick to the front shin, which has become vulnerable as a result.
Fake lead hook kick to middle to high lead hook kick: You begin by faking a lead hook kick to the middle of your opponent’s body, to draw a rear-arm parry. The lowered arms leave the side of the head exposed. You follow with a high lead hook kick to the head.
- Hand to Foot: This classification covers the many situations in which you fake a hand strike to the high-line area, in order to draw an upward response by your opponent. This leaves the lower body vulnerable to a lead kick as an actual strike.
Fake lead finger jab to lead hook kick: In this example you fake the lead finger jab toward your opponent’s eyes. Your opponent’s arms move up to protect against the finger jab (see Figure 15-3), thereby exposing the lower body. You then follow with a lead hook kick to the thigh, shown in Figure 15-4.
Fake lead straight punch to lead side kick: In this instance you fake the lead straight punch high toward your opponent’s face. As your opponent raises both arms to protect the face, the midsection is exposed. You follow with a lead side kick to your opponent’s midsection.
Fake lead backfist to lead inverted kick: In this situation your opponent is in mismatched lead. You fake a lead backfist to your opponent’s face to draw the arms up. This response exposes the groin area to your actual strike, a lead inverted kick.
• Foot to Hand: This type of PIA employs a fake kick to draw your opponent’s parry downward. You follow with an actual hand strike that lands on an upper-body target.
Fake lead hook kick to lead straight punch: This example involves faking the lead hook kick to draw your opponent’s downward front parry. When your opponent reacts in this way, it exposes his or her face to an actual strike. You follow by executing a lead straight punch to the face.
Fake lead side kick to lead backfist: In this instance you lift your front knee as if to execute a lead side kick. When your opponent’s front hand drops to parry, you launch a lead backfist to the face, which is now exposed.
Fake lead inverted kick to lead backfist: This situation involves your opponent facing you in mismatched lead. You fake a lead inverted kick to the groin area, which draws your opponent’s front hand down to parry the kick. With the face now exposed, you follow with a lead backfist to that target area.
When used judiciously, PIA can be a very powerful and effective tactic for attacking your opponent. It can be the best strategy against an opponent who defends well against other types of attacks, such as Single Direct Attack and Attack by Combination. In PIA you are able to take advantage of the quickness of your opponent’s responses to your strikes. In reacting to your attack, your opponent must move his or her hand from one area to another, which exposes an area for your actual attack.
