In bare-knuckle fighting, "toe to the line" is the starting point, and fighters must be three feet apart. A set area must be crossed before physical contact occurs. The "Irish stand down" was a classic bare-knuckle combat that depended on punching and "taking" punches.

Unlike the "stand down," Chen Taiji has the saying, "If you can hit me, I can't hit you; if you can't hit me, I can hit you." Chen does not trade punches. It uses hand, leg, arm, and body maneuvers to gain the appropriate positioning to deliver power.

However, there is a sensitivity that judgment of distance practice creates concerning the "sucker punch." It promotes a keen unconscious awareness of the approach and use of deception or distraction by those who might throw an unprovoked attack without warning.

Think of it as a physical and emotional vibration sensor that detects small vibrations caused by disturbance, like anger, or intentional footsteps. It essentially "listens" for subtle changes in emotion and motion rather than directly seeing them. This sensitivity triggers an alarm or other action when detecting a certain vibration level. How the student develops this sensitivity is discussed under Peng for pushing hands.

Note:

This sensitivity saved my life. The situation wasn’t an altercation, something much more subtle. I had a stroke and I was alone. I internally felt it first, then my toes went numb on the left side and my vision blurred for a second. I picked up the phone called 911, walked down the stairs and opened the front door, so the response team would have break it down. I sat on the stairs until they came, which quite fast. They took me 5 blocks to the hospital, and within 2 hours I had the medication that dissolved the clot. I survived with 95% of my health intact. While most practice Taiji for health or “the confrontation,” I didn't know mind/body sensitivity would be what I needed.