Patching

Patching is the effort to make something work while sacrificing some aspect of functionality and fundamental principles for the sake of "making it work" when in reality it fails to work to its full capacity. Patching is when you fail to achieve proper distance so you lose body alignment and structure to lean a bit more forward to complete the technique. It might be ok to gain a point in point tournaments but in self-defense, fighting and combatives it means no force.

The idea behind posture, structure and other body mechanics is to achieve a state that even when encumbered by adrenaline effects along with fear or other emotional triggers we apply the waza properly and with full potential. If not, we end up staying in the danger zone receiving damage way to long.

How often do we allow ourselves to achieve a gaol with patching and do we fully realize the repercussions if we have to go beyond avoidance and deescalation into the heat of physical defense tactics? A good question, yes?