In martial arts and self-defense, the best defense against attackers comes down to the experience you get from sparring with a partner, forcing quick thoughts and reactions you would need in a combat situation. Having this paired with a vast catalog of the techniques from various styles can become a powerful and adaptable “lack of form” over time, cementing these techniques in your mind and needing no second thought to use the right move. To learn this system of application you’ll have to work on applying it while a sparring partner uses techniques you’re likely to encounter on the street or in another style. So when you don’t have the time or sparring partner, you’ll have to rely on unfolding every detail of every attack and defense with shadow boxing.

In the action of shadow boxing, you are imagining a facing mirror, or perhaps the form of some possible assailant, and using this as a reference to show how your movements work against an active target. For many it’s much easier to do this with their eyes closed, so find a wide open area that no one is likely to walk by and feel free to do this exercise with closed eyes. You are going to start with the basics for your imagined opponent, and picture mentally a punch being directed toward you, with a close enough distance to you to do some decent damage. Now you will take this punch and apply any technique you see fit. Depending on the type of punch you imagine, you’ll have numerous possibilities for defense or offense, many varying from style to style.

Of course this does not make up for the real thing, contact sparring with a partner, but it helps with the ideal use of a technique you want to consider a reflexive possibility. A great part of sparring is also of course the mental factor, which cannot fully be made up for in the serene fashion of shadow boxing, so preparing yourself mentally aids in effectively building that spirit. Bruce Lee himself said training should be approached with the same force you’d press against an opponent, so infusing this ideal into shadow boxing can be split into two segments. You will map out how to effectively apply a technique, and then pick up the speed, performing the action at the swiftness needed for fighting.

Just remember that if you are left with no other option but to fight, you must not show any wavering expression, keep hands ready to react in front of the chest, and don’t turn your back to your opponent unless for some reason you’ve got a backpack made of spikes.