Little Guy Vs. Big guy

[Twisting Root]

Hey all, i am new to the forums here,,been looking at alot of posts in the threads and soaking stuff in. the training section seems to be the best here in my opinion.
I would like to ask a question of the more seasoned martial artists here. but before i do id like to bring up a few thoughts that pertain to my question.

I go to the gym,,i work out and lift weights on a regular basis, i also do cardio and of course i have had a little experience in western boxing and now i am taking hsing i (at the reccomendation of a friend who says it will, calm me down). anyway,this may sound a bit attitude'ish but i am kind of a big guy,,not fat,,but big,,and in these martial art classes i see these littler guys(some of them look down right out of shape,skinny) and they practice thier routines well and all,,but i cant help thinking to myself "i could stomp them like a bug".
look i know i got some ego behind me and i am sorry for that,,but with my strength level,,and not having as much experience in the martial arts department as some ive seen who are way smaller and less well built than myself and some of my work out partners at the gym, is it going to help them really against someone who is built like an nfl football player?
look i dont want to get down on these guys,,they have heart and i respect that,,but are these guys who dont go to the gym regularly and seemingly dont have a well built body really have a chance against someone who is alot bigger and who doesnt have as much expereince doing forms and such?
i mean i work out all the time and i have done a little boxing(3 years) and the hsing i i am doing has been about almost a year now(it has calmed me down a bit)

so in essence my question is: " Can a smaller guy who has more experience in forms and such successfully defend himself against a guy who is bigger in size and strength? (i try not to think about the movies and the stories there because movies are fantasy and i am trying to think realistically)

Twistin tha Roots.

[SevenStar]

size will always be a factor. However, it can become less of a factor as skill levels become further separated. I'm a big guy too, but let's assume I'm little, and I am not very skilled. You would most likely eat my lunch. Now, let's assume that I start fighting, gain more experience, etc. and you do not. Now, your size is less of a factor. It's still a factor for sure, but skill can compensate somewhat.

The problem here is what we define as skill. you said specifically, "Can a smaller guy who has more experience in forms and such successfully defend himself against a guy who is bigger in size and strength?" No, someone more experienced with forms may not be able to. Someone smaller with more fighting experience though? sure. You are a big guy who boxed - can you take out de la hoya? How about mayorga? Hopkins?

[TonyM.]

A guy with a hundred pounds on me asked me the same question in a HtoH class in the 2/75th. A single gab to the lower abdomen took him to the ground.

[IronFist]

All else being equal, the bigger/stronger guy will win.

But all else is rarely equal, so...

And I wonder what would happen if all else was equal, but the smaller guy was stronger (powerlifter) than the bigger guy. Hehe

[AndrewS]

As the heavyweights congregate. . .

the short answer to your question, as a 250lb guy with a good bit of time in doing contact sports is 'yes, there are little motherf*cker's out there who you don't want to try and take without a scoped rifle'. The usually didn't learn to be that way from a martial arts class, or in a boxing gym though- they're guys who needed to be that way, and found some places to let them become it- if that makes any sense.

I've been genuinely owned by people giving 100lbs to me, though that's rare.

The one thing I'd say is that 'sport' rules make smaller guys with skill do better against bigger and more powerful ones. A little guy can move on you boxing or kickboxing and you can't clinch him, and usually won't be allow to unload as much of what you've got on them as they'll dish out to you. Grappling, smaller folks can tap you but will hang in positions where they'd eat a lot of shots were it a MMA fight, or where a well-applied slam would change the momentum of the encounter.

The closer you get to NHB, IMO, the more strength and size matter, though when you start talking about 'streetfighting' smaller guys tend to have become more innovative and vicious by necessity (a bro of mine- judo bb, kyuoshinkai bb, former semi-pro boxer, 150lbs down from 200 when he was a juicing bodybuilder, used to serve warrant for a living- is still banned from one club on the Strip 'cos he bit a chunk of a bouncer's face off. We were out at a diner with toasters at the table one night and a guy was starting to hassle us- I unscrew the top of the pepper, surreptitiously, my bro starts the toaster heating, while palming a knife. He's the same person who came up with the 'pan of boiling water' shoot defense.)

All that being said- every little guy who's made me nervous has been someone who trained rigorously and with contact at some point. If your buddies are just doing cooperative stuff with little conditioning, they probably aren't going to get much self defense benefit.

Andrew

[gfx]

The answer is simple ---- no.

By your description of the guys you are talking about, they wouldn't stand a chance. A person may be small, but they cannot be weak. They must have the means of deal enough damage, and be able to out-think and out-manuver the larger person to come out on top. Not to mention be able to take sufficient amount of punishment. You just simply don't get this kind of stuff from doing only forms.

[5Animals1Path]

As was said, size only really gets into the picture when both combatants are equals in all other fields, be they grade schoolers or seasoned fighters. Personally, I try to pay more attention to the density and tightness of the body, and the way they move, then the height and width of it. As you get further in your training, you'll start to see who can really use what they've been training in how they move. Not just in forms and drills either. Most "fighters" have that certain quality to them, be it the way they walk, the way they watch their surroundings, or just the way they speak. Once you learn to recognize it, it's very hard to hide totally.

Good luck in your training. Don't deny the possibility of everything, but don't be spoon-fed either.

[Ford Prefect]

Like most others said, size makes a difference and the bigger/stronger guy will win if all else is equal. As greater the discrepency in skill, the greater the discrepency can be in size/strength for the smaller guy to win.

[PangQuan]

Size deffinately matters. In both directions you must remember. Take my sifu for instance. He is pretty short, but put him in a tank top and you wont doubt his strength. He is small but very strong. Also in addition to being small he is increadably fast, faster than say...someone one foot taller than him (on average of course). But at the same time he has all of the required strength to damage any sized individual.

In my opinion, these fellow students of yours that you feel are out of shape...well...frankly, they probably are. There is nothing that says small people cannot weight train and gain strength.

Likewise someone with an extra 50 lbs. of bone and an extra 50 lbs. of muscle can seriously hurt someone smaller. If the smaller individual does not make use of thier strengths, such as quick movement, and easy of evasion due to a small frame.

Large people have more weight, more strength and a longer reach.

Small people have less weight (lighter for movement), generally can be faster and have the ability to excell at in fighting due to shorter limbs.

Its all in relation.

[PangQuan]

In summary, if your little DO NOT grapple with the big guys, unless you got some serious skill.

[Twisting Root]

I dont discount the brothers out there like La Hoya and Hopkins. Hey they are some of my respected idols when it comes to just boxing. Those dudes have alot of skill because thats what they train for. they may be small compared to me but they are in better shape,way better shape than some of the dudes i am playin around with. When you have alot of strong muscle,,it also acts a protector of the body,,you can absorb alot ,,,my abs are big,, if you punch them im not going to feel it too much,,and by that time ive got you in a bear hug and slammin you to the ground. Now a kick is different,,that can hurt,,i know ive been kicked square dead in the stomach before and it hurts,,it pi$$ed me off is what it did,,i got mad and really tightened up and the other dude got knocked out.
Get this,,the other day one of the other students wanted to try something out on me and he just said to do whatever i wanted,,,im like "okay man." so i start jabbin', thats all im doing is jabbin right at his face and he gets ****ed because im not doing what he thought he wanted me to do. he couldnt do his thought out thing with the "Anything i was doing".
Hey i like hsing i alot,,its like western boxing but with some deep rooted stuff in it.
but some of these guys need to get to Gold's or something.

Thanks for the responses all. I will keep in touch.
Darren. Twisting tha Roots

[PangQuan]

Just remember, muscle will only help your knees so much. That is a key point for little guys to attack on big guys if its a real fight. You kick the knee and you kick it hard, and you kick it till it breaks.

Im just lucky im not too small and im not too big, just like the ladies like em'

[SevenStar]

It sounds like what they need is not size, but experience.

[SevenStar]

It sounds like what they need is not size, but experience.

[Ford Prefect]

You can say that again. Oh wait. You did.