Tatsuo Shimabuku on the Vertical Punch or the Twisting Punch

Arcenio Advincula

When I first studied Isshin-ryu with Shimabuku Tatsuo Sensei, I was taugh the vertical punch and muscle blocks. Later in the early 1960's, Tatsuo Sensei allowed us to use either the vertical punch or twisting horizontal punch. If you used the vertical punch you also used the muscle block. Same with the twisting horizontal punch, you used the bone block.

 

The reason for the option was his senior Okinawan students did not want to change to the vertical punch.

 

Talking to several of his senior Okinawan students, they wanted to stay closer to what Tatsuo Sensei first taught them. Tatsuo Sensei according to several of these Okinawan said Tatsuo Sensei called what he taught, Chan migwa ti (after Chotoku Kyan's nickname). So Tatsuo's senior Okinawan wanted to stay with what they called the "Old style".

 

When Tatsuo Sensei said I could use either punch or block, I used both. In 1970 while on Okinawa, I asked Tatsuo Sensei which punch did he prefer. He said both were good. I asked again and he said again, both punches were good. I asked a third time and he said the vertical punch. Naturally! That was his creation when he created Isshin-ryu.

 

So I started to emphasize the vertical punch. In this case, as you can see, I used the twist punch.