Fighting the Flinch

I was doing some MMA training with a student of mine today who is still finding his feet (and fists!) in his stand-up game. One trouble most people encounter when they're new to sparring is dealing with strikes to the face. Inevitably these people flinch at incoming blows, making it difficult for them to defend.

The best way to learn to fight the flinch reaction is to do drills that involve hits to the head. I like to exchange jabs with a partner, practicing a different defense against each incoming jab. I switch between using a parry, a slip, or simply dropping my chin and taking the blow on my forehead (where the head is strongest). This was a drill introduced to me by my coach.

While doing each of these defenses, I force myself to keep my eyes wide open in order to fight the flinch. I do this by actively raising my eyelids as I do the drills.

This is a good way to train yourself not to flinch, an important skill to learn in order to train yourself not to get hit in the face. :P