Generally, I don't worry too much about hitting exact locations, especially when I'm striking with a stick. A solid blow with a cane can shatter any bone, and failing that, will hurt like the dickens. Therefore, my advice to beginners is to strike any part of the opponent's body that you can hit with vigour.

For the student who is gaining some precision and wants the most effective strikes with a stick or with their fists, there are many vulnerable points on the human body. We'll first look at easily identified targets that are universally effective.

Head

Most parts of the head are vulnerable, and cannot be reinforced with muscle or body fat. The only region that will be less effective will be the forehead, which is the thickest part of the skull. The other disadvantage is that most fighters instinctively cover the head, and the eyes cause a flinch reaction to fast incoming strikes, making good strikes difficult.

Getting a little more precise, the eye and the arch on the outside of the eye are fragile. All parts of the nose, from many angles, can be broken or made to bleed which can cause difficulty breathing when blood is swallowed, and shock with the combination of loss of blood pressure and the psychological effect of seeing a lot of your own blood. The ears are sensitive, and air forced inside can burst the ear-drum.

I have another post dedicated entirely to Knockout targets if you think I forgot about the jaw.

Use: palm strikes, hammer-fist, cane.

Neck

The trachea is the technical name for the windpipe which connects the mouth to the lungs down the front of the neck. This structure is brittle and can be collapsed, so only strike it when you're fighting for your life, because you may be taking the life of your attacker. The notch of the neck, where the trachea disappears behind the collar-bones, is a great place to shove a finger or the tip of a walking stick inward and downward.

Use: fingertip thrust, punch, hammer-fist, cane.

Collarbones

Striking down and forward on the clavicle or collar-bone can break it, and the location is easy to find midway between the neck and the shoulder. However, the hit will be ineffective if you strike from directly above, because the large muscle of the neck, the trapezeus, will protect it. But if you break it, the arm on that side will be useless for attack.

Although we're focusing on strike targets, pushing the fingers downward behind the collar bone is very uncomfortable and will bring the opponent to their knees.

Use: Hammer-fist, cane.

Forearm, wrist, hand.

Especially useful for disarms, strikes to the forearm and wrist can be painful and less lethal than our other targets. Be careful because the end of the arm is perhaps the most mobile part of the body and is a tricky moving target to hit. Therefore, don't worry too much about the precise location. Most parts of the hand are delicate, and are conveniently the part that an assailant will want to use for their own strikes and grabs.

Use: Hammer-fist, cane

Mark and the Diaphragm Band

It's not just the name of my Pugilism Rock band (which is itself a great name for a band, along with Dementia Pugilistica for a dubstep artist).

The Mark is one part of the vulnerable diaphragm band. Essentially, you can aim for the lowest ribs, or just below them. The Mark is the point at the bottom of the sternum or breast-bone which can cause the lungs to collapse and the victim to lose consciousness. Read more in my post

The diaphragm band can sometimes be difficult to locate underneath clothing, and that clothing may act as padding against strikes, so make sure to hit with as much force as you can muster.

Use: Punch, hammer-fist, cane

Groin

I avoid striking the groin area for several reasons. Firstly, any shift of the body will make a kick between the legs ineffective and possibly trap your foot (or cane). Also, some men and women will not be affected by a groin kick either because of adrenaline or being acclimated to hits there from sports, horseback riding, or children. On the other hand, the pelvis can be broken at this vulnerable spot, which will make standing and walking difficult immediately and for weeks afterward.

Use: Kick, cane.

Knees and Shins

The knee is an unstable joint, and many active adults have injuries that plague them for the rest of their lives from a twisted or weakened knee. The knee is a hinge joint, so it only moves in one orientation. If the knee is made to move in a different direction, especially under the full weight of the body on one leg, the joint will fail. A strike from either side should rotate the knee while injuring it, so that takedowns happen with very little effort because the victim is already unable to support their own weight.

The knee is also limited in its mobility, so that pressuring it straight ahead as if trying to bend it backwards will cause a fall. The kneecap is also sensitive, so that straight-ahead strike can be very distracting.

Below the knee, the shin is also a vulnerable target for strikes for the same reason: it is very painful to be struck on the front of the lower leg.

The advantage to mixing in these low targets is twofold:

If you don't look down to aim at your target, the kick will be invisible.
Even if seen, a kick to the knee or below is virtually impossible to block, so to avoid injury, the only reaction is to back away. This gives the attacker the advantage of forward momentum.

Use: Kick, cane.

Pressure Points

Thus far, we've gone over anatomical weaknesses of the human body without resorting to precise nerve strikes called pressure points.

In the chaos and adrenaline of a real fight, I think it is impractical to try to hit such tiny targets, especially since missing them means a greatly diminished effectiveness.

Here are the few that are important to know:

The occiput: where the back of the skull meets the neck.
The corner of the jaw just below the ear.
The upper lip, just under the nose.
The armpit.
The "funny bone" or "crazy bone" on one side of the elbow.
The side of the thigh, midway between knee and hip.

An Embarrassment of Riches

With so many options for strike targets, you should use your training time to quickly identify which ones are available in any given encounter. Many of our standard drills have a punch to the face or the mark, but you can choose to practice throwing those counter-attacks to any of these effective targets.

With a downward strike of the stick, don't restrict yourself to the top of the head, but deliberately target the collarbones or the opponent's forearm. Horizontal cane strikes can aim for the head, the floating ribs, the knee and other targets we've discussed. Bayonet thrusts for the throat and the mark are excellent, but don't neglect the eye and the armpit.

And when attacking with the crook of the cane or umbrella, try to hit the side of the jaw, and while hooking the neck to pull downward, make sure that it is simultaneously a strike to the occiput.

Intro Weekend

This Saturday, 13 July, is another opportunity to learn the essentials of Bartitsu at our 4-hour introductory workshop, Fight Like Sherlock Holmes. From 1pm to 5pm, learn the strikes of pugilism, the kicks of savate, the takedowns of jujitsu and use the walking stick or umbrella for self defense in the tradition of Victorian gentlefolk.

Head of Stage Combat at Academie Duello and certified Instructor with Fight Directors Canada. Head of Bartitsu at Academie Duello, the longest continuously running Bartitsu program in the world.
Read more from David McCormick.