How to Knock Someone Out in 1 Move: An Expert Guide

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Learn to beat your opponent with a single punch
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In certain situations, like in boxing or for self-defense, you may want to knock your opponent out as quickly as possible—preferably, with a single strike. Generally, you knock someone out when you cause their head to snap to the side and make the brain hit the side of the skull, which triggers a blackout. Whether it's for self-defense or to win a fight, read on for tested methods and tips from martial artists and self-defense specialists to knock your opponent out in a single hit.

How to Knock Someone Out With One Hit

  • Temple punch: Position your left leg in front and right leg back. Hit your opponent's temple with a right hook punch.
  • Jaw punch: Aim for the jaw or the middle of the chin and strike your opponent with an uppercut or sideswipe.
  • Kicking: Plant your feet firmly and swing your right leg up to kick below their jaw.
  • Throat stab: Use your index and middle fingers to stab their throat.
Section 1 of 6:

How to Knock Someone Out With a Temple Punch

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  1. To throw a punch with your right hand, place your left leg in front of you and your right leg back. Your knees should be slightly bent. [1]
    • Self-defense specialist Derrek Hofrichter suggests taking a fighting stance where “your dominant side is in the rear and you take a slight step forward with your non-dominant side. A right-handed person would have their left foot out in front and the right foot behind. Then, you're going to add a slight 45-degree angle, so instead of your feet just being totally forward, you'll slightly angle them inward.” [2]
  2. Make sure your body is loose, which will increase your momentum and the force of your hit. Release any tightness you feel in your shoulders, arms, hips, and legs. This is called the “guard” position. Don’t hold your breath, but instead, focus on your breathing. [3]
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  3. To deliver a hook, keep your non-dominant hand in an upright “guard” position near your face. Then, bend your punching arm at the elbow slightly more than 90 degrees while keeping your forearm raised. Turn your torso, back leg, and heel at the same time you deliver the hook to the temple. [4]
    • This punch will cause the brain to swing violently against the skull lining, so your opponent experiences a blackout. The area is referred to as a pressure point on the head since hitting someone there disorients them.
    • A hook is a punch thrown to the side of your opponent’s body, including their ear, temple, or jaw.
    • The temple is the area on the side of a person's face, between the hairline and the eyebrows, at eye level. It’s located 2–3 in (5.1–7.6 cm) behind and just above the eye.
  4. Generate more force with a hit by twisting your hips while you move toward the target. If you want to put more force into your swing, be sure to use your hips as well as your arms. [5]
  5. 5
    Use your two largest knuckles to punch. Try to hit with just your two largest knuckles instead of the smaller knuckles of the ring finger and pinky. Many boxers make the mistake of hitting with all four knuckles and wind up with broken hands. Karate practitioners use and condition the two large knuckles to avoid that problem and concentrate all that force into a smaller area.
    • If you hit the ribs with all four knuckles, it dissipates the force. If you hit the ribs with just the two large knuckles, it concentrates the force and breaks the ribs.
    • Martial artist and self-defense trainer Adrian Tandez notes that “there is a big difference between punching with gloves on versus punching without gloves. The chances of you breaking your hands in a bare-knuckle fight are very high. When you throw a punch , it has to be safe, it has to be aligned properly, and you have to hit with the right part of your knuckles.” [6]
  6. It's sometimes easier to use the palm of your hand for hitting, but in this case, your fist will be more accurate. Aiming at the side of the person's face and hitting them from that angle is extremely hard to do with force when only using the palm.
    • When punching the temple, be careful because it can kill someone due to the brain being severely damaged. Only use the amount of force that is necessary.
    • Martial artist Tsahi Shemesh recommends always being the one to hit first in a fight. “You can’t avoid the fight and are going to get hit anyway. Do you prefer to be the one that gets hit or the one that hits first? If the fight is a fact, you want to be the one that has the element of surprise.” [7]
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Section 2 of 6:

How to Knock Someone Out By Punching the Jaw

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  1. If you are going to strike with your right hand, then your left leg should be in front of your right leg. Keep your knee slightly bent and your left leg back. Feel a loose bounce in your stance. [8]
  2. 2
    Watch for an opportunity to strike. To throw a knockout punch, you have to be good with your timing. Martial artist and self-defense trainer David Engel states that “after your opponent has thrown a strike is when they're most vulnerable. If you can slip or bob and weave an opponent's punch, their jaw will likely be in the air, and their shoulder will be down instead of protecting their jaw. That would be the best time to throw a knockout punch.” [9]
  3. Remember to breathe ; this will focus your body and tighten your muscles, which releases more power . Also, it keeps you calm, which will help in the event of a continued confrontation.
  4. Uppercuts and sideswipes are the 2 best punches to use when hitting your opponent in the jaw or chin to cause a knockout. For an uppercut, target the jaw by coming straight up with your fist and minimizing any lateral movement. Ideally, you want the recipient's head to snap straight up after you hit them with an uppercut. To sideswipe the chin, target the jaw with your fist by coming in from a side angle. After you hit them, you want your opponent’s head to snap to the side (and hopefully cause a blackout).
  5. Pull your right elbow in close to your body with your fist clenched as if you are about to punch. Your body should be facing toward the right. Then, twist your upper body to face your opponent. This will give your punch more force. [10]
  6. Remember that you will generate more force with a hit by twisting your hips while you move into the target. Baseball players also use this strategy to generate more force when they swing the bat. [11]
    • Martial artist Danny Zelig believes you should hit areas in the body that your opponent will find difficult to block. “If you have an option to strike to the stomach or strike to the groin—and the strike to the stomach will give you a 40% chance to stop the attacker, but the same attack to the groin will be 41%—go with the 1% more. Work on specific targeting, like groin, poking the eye, throat, and areas that give you a better chance to stop a bigger, stronger attacker .” [12]
  7. 7
    Follow through with your entire arm. Your goal is to clip your opponent’s jaw from the bottom or the side. If performing the sideswipe, make sure your range of motion is a bit curved. You want the path of your punch to be more circular than linear.
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Section 3 of 6:

How to Knock Someone Out By Kicking

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  1. Get into a solid stance position to kick. Place your feet about shoulder-width apart and plant them firmly on the ground.
  2. Bend your elbows and keep your elbows locked. Then, put up your fists so that they are guarding your face.
  3. Lift your right leg upward and swing it in a semi-circular motion. What you’re doing is “hooking” your leg around your opponent’s head to strike their jaw—specifically, aim for the area of your opponent's face just below the jaw. Your entire body should spin along with your kicking leg as you strike their jaw with force.
    • This is called a hook or spinning hook kick.
    • Expect that your opponent will snap their head back and fall off-balance. Be careful, this can cause the other person to lose consciousness.
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Section 4 of 6:

How to Knock Someone Out With a Throat Stab

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  1. This method can be severely damaging to a person's windpipe. Only use it as a last-ditch effort, or in life-or-death situations. [13]
  2. You can use your index finger and middle finger to "stab" your opponent in the throat. To get your fingers into position, pretend that you are making the peace sign with both fingers on the same hand. Then, bring the fingers together so that they are touching each other. Afterwards, firm up your fingers and prepare to strike.
  3. More specifically, aim for the dent located between their left and right collar bone at the base of their neck.
  4. This will cause their pharynx to cave in, preventing them from breathing. Throat slabbing is severely dangerous and painful; use it only in life/death situations. Be prepared to take responsibility for your actions.
    • Only use the throat stab method if you are physically unable to do anything else since little body strength is needed. Also, only do it if you have no other choice.
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Section 5 of 6:

Other Methods to Knock Someone Out With One Hit

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  1. 1
    Push your opponent’s head forward using a chokehold. A good trick to use if you fear for your life is to grab your predator's arm behind them in a chokehold , then push their head forward as hard as possible. This could kill someone, so be careful.
  2. 2
    Perform a solar plexus jab. Another great knockout is a quick jab to the solar plexus, right beneath the sternum. Remember, don't hit too hard, or it could seriously injure and possibly kill them.
  3. 3
    Use a thumb strike on the rib cage. Give them a hard thumb strike on the side underneath the rib cage. It won’t knock them out, but it will disorient your attacker long enough for you to escape.
  4. 4
    Deliver a blow to the forearm’s radial nerve. A strong blow to the radial nerve on the forearm can overload the motor center in the brain, causing disorientation or even unconsciousness, giving you a chance to escape.
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Section 6 of 6:

Knock Someone Out With One Hit FAQs

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  1. 1
    Can you get knocked out by one punch? It’s possible to knock someone out with one punch, depending on the target you hit and the force and speed with which you hit. When you hit the head or jaw, it causes the head to move enough that the brain “rattles” in the skull. When you hit very fast and hard, this only increases the chances of your brain rattling, which leads to a blackout. [14]
  2. 2
    How much force is required to knock out a man? The general weight range it takes for someone to take someone down by knocking them out lies between 144 pounds (65 kg) and 186 pounds (84 kg). Keep in mind that knocking someone out has a great chance of causing brain trauma and other complications for the other person. [15]
  3. 3
    Is it possible to knock someone out with a jab? If you throw a jab using good form and proper timing, it’s possible to knock your opponent out as they’re moving toward you. The upward jab, cross, and uppercut are the most likely types of jabs to knock out your opponent. [16]
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  • Question
    How can I knock someone out quickly in a match?
    David Engel
    Muay Thai Instructor & Self Defense Trainer
    David Engel is a Muay Thai Instructor and Self Defense Trainer based in the San Francisco Bay Area. With over 15 years of martial arts instruction and training experience, David runs California Martial Athletics with co-owner Joe Chernay. He has created and maintained martial arts programs at Rise Combat Sports in San Francisco and Round 5 Martial Arts Academy in San Leandro, with a mission to provide students with a level of comfort and competency that manifests both within and outside the martial arts context. He is also a registered cornerman for amateur and pro competitors under the IKF (International Kickboxing Federation). David was the youngest apprentice instructor of the Thai Boxing Association of America under Ajarn Chai Sirisute (2009), and was a top-ranked amateur competitor in his weight class (127-130 lb) in California between 2013 and 2015.
    David Engel
    Muay Thai Instructor & Self Defense Trainer
    Expert Answer
    You have to be very good with your timing. Your opponent will be most vulnerable after they've thrown a strike, so if you can slip or bob and weave an opponent's punch, their jaw will likely be in the air and their shoulder will be down. That would be the best time to throw a knockout punch like that.
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    Why does getting hit on the chin knock you out?
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    This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
    wikiHow Staff Editor
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    A hard blow to the chin or jaw causes a sudden movement of the head and neck, which in turn causes the brain to move and make impact with the inside of the skull. This trauma to the brain causes you to lose consciousness.
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    Can someone die from a single punch?
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    This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
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    Staff Answer
    Yes. Knocking someone out with a blow to the head or neck is very dangerous and can cause a severe concussion or other serious injury. Don’t try this unless you need to knock someone out in self defense or you are being supervised by an experienced coach or trainer.
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      Tips

      • Keep your focus on the opponent. If you take your eyes off them, you will be defeated. If you have to strike first, watch their eyes and strike when they blink; it will give you the edge you need to end a fight quickly.
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      • Always be prepared to counter and defend if the opponent attempts to attack first.
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      • In life-threatening situations, aim for the eye of an opponent. It can cause him to be blind, and the damage can be irreversible. A knee to the sternum is also effective.
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      References

      1. ↑ https://www.englandboxing.org/news_articles/boxing-activator-enables-teaching-of-basic-boxing-skills/
      2. ↑ Derrek Hofrichter. Self-Defense Specialist. Expert Interview. 26 January 2021.
      3. ↑ https://www.pcycnsw.org.au/news/pcyc-insights/boxing-strategy-tips
      4. ↑ https://www.infighting.ca/kickboxing/boxing-basics-how-to-throw-the-perfect-hook/
      5. ↑ https://www.pcycnsw.org.au/news/pcyc-insights/boxing-strategy-tips
      6. ↑ Adrian Tandez. Self Defense Trainer. Expert Interview. 24 July 2019.
      7. ↑ Tsahi Shemesh. Self Defense Trainer. Expert Interview. 17 Sep 2019.
      8. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LViFS7EMdi4
      9. ↑ David Engel. Muay Thai Instructor & Self Defense Trainer. Expert Interview. 5 May 2020.
      1. ↑ https://www.health.harvard.edu/exercise-and-fitness/punch-up-your-exercise-routine-with-fitness-boxing
      2. ↑ https://evolve-mma.com/blog/the-3-best-knockout-targets-in-boxing/
      3. ↑ Dany Zelig. Self Defense Trainer. Expert Interview. 13 August 2019.
      4. ↑ https://www.health.harvard.edu/exercise-and-fitness/punch-up-your-exercise-routine-with-fitness-boxing
      5. ↑ https://www.zmescience.com/feature-post/health/mind-brain/why-we-get-knocked-out/
      6. ↑ https://baysideboxing.com.au/the-science-of-a-knockout-in-boxing/
      7. ↑ https://evolve-mma.com/blog/the-3-best-knockout-targets-in-boxing/

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      To knock someone out with one hit, first, get into position by placing your left leg in front of you and your right leg behind. In this stance, relax your body and keep your knees slightly bent so you can gain momentum when you swing. Before you take your shot, aim for your opponent’s temple, which is on the side of their face, between the hairline and the eyebrows. To get an accurate and strong hit, clench your fist and twist your hips as you swing your arm. If you do it right, your punch should cause your opponent’s brain to swing inside their skull and make them blackout. For more tips, like how to knock someone out with a kick, scroll down.

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