Ask Dethroner: How to Stop Pulling Punches?

Joel J. writes:

Every time I’ve ever been in a fight, even in the throes of rage, I’ve pulled my punches. I don’t know if it’s because I fear hurting the other person or hurting my hand, but it’s got to stop. How do I quit pulling my punches?

Get blindingly drunk. That’s the only time when I’ve ever been able to throw a punch with all my strength myself, the force of which was mitigated by my inability to aim.

Here are my ideas, but please take these as untested suggestions, not law:

• Find a punching bag – With practice, you’d at least know what an un-pulled punch feels like, which might help on the day when the bag is replaced with a douchebag.

• Imagine your target exploding – The power of your punch will be so strong that your opponent’s head will burst like a half-melted Cherry Mash. The power of visualization might short-circuit your need to pull a punch.

• Get training in the martial arts – Obviously, this would work. What it wouldn’t do is work quickly.

I did a fair amount of research about pulling punches—I could have sworn I’d read a scientific report about why we, by instinct, pull punches—but I can’t find any good information about why we pull punches. If I had that, perhaps I could do a better job figuring out how to avoid doing so.