Board Thread:Speculation House/@comment-7713314-20130602161859/@comment-10390252-20130604222857

It's simple: the thrust brake panels give the propulsion gas something to push against. Because, in this case, they're attached to the rest of the gauntlet, they pull Yang's arm forwards with much more force than her muscles alone would allow.

There is a degree of inefficiency because some of the energy is going to escape sideways. This is why we also see Yang shooting backwards as she jumps up onto the podium to tackle DJ-B3ar - more energy is focussed in the direction she wants to go.

I imagine that Yang has had to train and discipline herself to let her arms be entirely relaxed and limp during augmented punches so she doesn't rip apart her muscles and tendons from the sudden external force.