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Jai Ganesh

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Registered: 2005-06-28

Posts: 50,113

Fist

Fist

Gist

A fist is the shape of a hand when the fingers are bent inward against the palm and held there tightly.

To make a proper fist, start by extending all four fingers and pressing them tightly together. Curl your fingers so that the tip of each finger touches its base. Continue to curl your hand, clenching the tips of your fingers tightly into your palm.

Summary

Want to hit a punching bag? First you need to curl your fingers into your palm to make a fist, or a clenched hand.

You might make a fist and bump it against your friend's as a greeting, or use it to clutch something tightly: "She held the balloon in one fist, and an ice cream cone in the other." Fists are also used to punch hard, and a fist fight is a serious physical altercation. When we trace this word back to its origin, we find a closely related root meaning "five," for the five fingers of a hand.

A fist is a hand with fingers curled into the palm and thumb retracted, displaying the knuckles.

Details

A fist is the shape of a hand when the fingers are bent inward against the palm and held there tightly. To make or clench a fist is to fold the fingers tightly into the center of the palm and then to clamp the thumb over the middle phalanges; in contrast to this "closed" fist, one keeps the fist "open" by holding the thumb against the side of the index finger. One uses the closed fist to punch the lower phalanges against a surface, or to pound with the little-finger side of the hand's heel; one uses the open fist to knock with the middle knuckle of the middle finger.

Speakers of some English dialects may use the word "nieve" or "neef" to refer to a fist.

Physiology and neurology

Making a fist is virtually unknown among other primates. This is because while "most primate hands are long of palm and finger [and] short of thumb", the proportions are the opposite for humans.

At least one study has claimed that the clenching of one's fist can be used to recall information.

Some studies have shown that making fists can help humans to cope with stress or anxiety because the mind gets preoccupied with the tightening of the muscle to focus on the issue at hand.

Boxing

Formation of a fist for the purpose of punching is the most basic knowledge taught in the sport of boxing. Fists are taught in martial arts like karate, kung fu, and taekwondo for the process of punching and striking. Fight 100% says "more than 90% of the people actually don't know how to make a fist correctly", and adds that correct formation means the user "won't break [their] hand", "won't strain their wrist", will "be able to launch very powerful punches", and "be able to knock someone out in one punch".

Improper formation of the fist while punching or striking an object can cause bruising and broken small bones in the hand known as Boxer's fracture. Boxer's Fracture occurs when metacarpals or small bones in the hand break on the side of the pinky and ring finger. The name derives from the fact that such injuries are most common in boxers and practitioners of other fighting arts.

Other uses

The raised fist is also a symbol of rebellion, militance, resistance and unity.

Pounding one's fist on the table is often done when frustrated. In 1983, Don Francis was at a meeting with the CDC to discuss about the transmission of AIDS through blood transfusions.

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