Pat Horse Method - Yang's Kick Defense

There are two variations of this move found in Yang's Cotton Boxing style (now known as Taijiquan). After another round of kick defense training, I recalled the hand pattern preceding the moves. Here are the two variations from the 108 long form used as a kick defense.

High Pat on Horse. This is from Yang style Tai Chi, or Taijiquan, or Yang’s Cotton Boxing, and quite possibly/most likely, existed back in the Ming dynasty, as evidenced by General Qi’s manual in 1560 where he mentions 24 Throws of Pat Horse, and depicts this posture as one of the techniques in his 32 unarmed combat methods.

Seize Leg - Mantis Heel Kick Defense

I absolutely love this heel kick defense. My favorite one to practice, as you'll see in the video; thank you Thomas! There are two variations of this depending on the leg the opponent kicks with, and whether we end up on the inside or outside position.

Some clear distinctions:

Variation I (above) - uses the chopping hand to clear as we are cutting across the chest to get the sweep. 

Variation II (below) - uses Inverted Mantis Neck Hook. The chopping hand won't work here because of the neck angle, so the Mantis Hook is used to catch the neck and unbalance them for the sweep.

For some of my personal notes on Seize Leg and where it shows up in Mantis Boxing forms, check out my backer page. You get early access to videos, and exclusive content for joining.