In a fight, punching is not entirely the best weapon but your mind is. Be smart, whether you like it or not getting a hit is inevitable. Sometimes it is even better to run away from the bad guys and call for help.
Okay, so, if you want to improve your defense you must have a sparring partner for this. Doing this alone would be pointless, the idea is that you make your muscles to remember your training. Having a sparring partner also helps you to try out your ideas or techniques before using it in a real fight.
When the fight begins, start by observing the opponent and remember to relax. You must avoid getting all tighten up, it will just slow your movements. When you are relaxed you can easily react to your opponent's attacks.
Remember not to take your eyes off of your opponent as soon as the fight started. Most of the deadly hits are those punches you did not expect to come. During a fight, there are four ways to receive a punch. You can block, dodge, absorb and parry the punch.
Not all of the punches thrown are solid, you can block the punches which you think are manageable to block. And if you think the punch is too powerful don't hesitate to dodge it, you might get yourself in trouble when you get a solid hit.
Parrying is the most effective way of defense in fighting, it is like combining the block and dodge to redirect the punch away from you. You don't need to take huge step-backs, you just need to move a little and tap the opponent's punch away from you. And once you have parried the punch, you have two choices to make:
The first one is to push your opponent away from you while you block his feet from behind to take him out of balance and run as fast as you can.
The last one is to land a counterattack, after the parry you can step in and make a quick straight punch to the face and body. Don't take a wide punch, it will just give him the time to recover from the parry and block your attacks.
If you think that the punch is unavoidable you can absorb the punch with your body. Absorbing the punch is effective when there is nothing you can do with the incoming punch. It is better to absorb the damage than not doing anything, at least you can lessen the damage you will take and avoid a fatal blow. You can twist your head or body to the direction of the punch to reduce the force.
Don't panic if you have taken a solid hit, it will only make the situation worse. Stay calm and remember your training, don't get caught up to his pace. Make the fight be at your own pace.
Thank you for taking the time to read. I hope this will be of help to you, if not now then maybe in the future.
"You can only fight the way you practice"
—Miyamoto Musashi