WHAT MAKES SYSTEMA'S "BALLISTIC PUNCH" BALLISTIC

by Bratzo Barrena

Systema Instructor - Peru systemarusocf.wix.com/peru

July 1st 2022

Systema's "Ballistic Punch" (or "Ballistic Strike") is intriguing. It doesn't seem especially powerful —in fact, it looks pretty weak and without proper form— however, the effect on the receiver is deep and painful.

Most people who've never been hit with this type of punch think these reactions are fake, just an agreed theatrical exaggeration to impress the audience. Nothing further from the truth! When properly delivered, a Ballistic Punch can be extremely powerful... and painful!

But, the effect of the strike DOES NOT depend ONLY on the striker's ability to deliver it. It also depends on the receiver's physical and emotional ability to deal with the impact and pain. So, DO NOT expect the same response from everyone you hit with a Ballistic Punch (or with any strike, for that matter). Some will react dramatically; others will be able to handle it better; it depends on the pain tolerance threshold of each person. But everyone will feel that a Ballistic Punch is much more powerful than it looks!

There are several "technical" aspects to properly delivering a punch in Systema; however, in this article, I'll focus on one: what makes a "Ballistic Punch" ballistic.

Usually, when people hear Ballistic Punch, they immediately think of the ballistic trajectory of a bullet. But, no, we don't throw a punch and just let gravity and atmospheric friction take the fist in a parabolic path. Ballistic doesn't refer to that. So, what does it refer to, then? I'll try to explain it this way:

Let's imagine you tie a string to a bullet and fire this bullet into ballistic gel. Then, as it impacts and begins to penetrate, you pull the string and stop the bullet's motion before it can fully penetrate. In this imaginary scenario, some of the bullet's kinetic energy will be transferred into the ballistic gel. HOWEVER, some of its kinetic energy will be absorbed by the string. This means that NOT ALL of the bullet's kinetic energy will transfer to the ballistic gel; therefore, it won't produce the maximum damage it potentially could.

This is the equivalent of tensing up your arm (and/or body) as your fist makes contact with the person you are punching. By tensing up your arm (and/or body), you stop (or at least decelerate) your fist's momentum, preventing it from transferring all of its kinetic energy into the opponent's body. So, some of your punch's power will stay in your own body (and you can make it even less effective by pulling the fist back right after impact). This is NOT a ballistic punch!

Now, imagine that you fire the same bullet tied with a string. But this time, as the bullet impacts and penetrates into the ballistic gel, the string remains completely loose. As it keeps penetrating, ONLY the ballistic gel's resistance will make it come to a halt inside it. In this case, ALL of the bullet's kinetic energy is transferred into the gel producing the maximum damage possible.

This is the equivalent of punching and keeping your arm and body relaxed as the fist contacts the target —only with enough tension on your wrist to avoid breaking it—. ONLY your opponent's body resistance will stop your fist's momentum, transferring all of its kinetic energy into his body, producing maximum effect. This IS a ballistic punch!

A very interesting characteristic of this type of punch—as Vladimir explained—is the bouncing effect. Obviously, your fist won't punch through your opponent's body. It will bounce off it just far enough to create the necessary distance to deliver a second punch with the same arm from a very close distance, making it fast, hard to see, and very effective.

This is how I understand the Ballistic Punch. I hope you find this explanation helpful!