3 videos you need to watch for self-defense.
Self-defense training is inspirational to some people and it’s intimidating to others. Krav Maga Worldwide understands that. Our self-defense training and self-defense classes were originally created for the purpose of helping every person develop a baseline level of skills for personal safety.
Krav Maga’s initial development was for military purposes. At the end of WWII the creator of Krav Maga, Imi Lichtenfeld, was asked to train people with no hand-to-hand combat experience to become soldiers for the newly formed nation of Israel.
This lead Imi, an experienced fighter in the Nazi resistance movement, to design Krav Maga with an eye toward efficiency and simplicity. The result is a proven, effective, no holds barred, self-defense system that is both easy to learn and easy to recall under stress.
It’s this logic and efficiency in Krav Maga Worldwide self-defense training that makes it appealing to people who are inspired to jump into new challenges. It also makes our classes very beginner friendly. For those who find self-defense training intimidating, the systematic approach of Krav Maga self-defense classes lowers that barrier of intimidation. Everyone CAN do it. Everyone CAN learn it because that’s what it is designed for.
Krav Maga Worldwide’s Chief Instructor, Darren Levine, earned his black belt in Krav Maga from Imi Lichtenfeld himself. Darren’s connection to Imi is really what helped establish Krav Maga Worldwide. Our training and our system come directly from the creator. What Imi wanted was for every person to have that baseline level of self-defense training and, in Imi’s words, “ to walk in peace.”
When you consider what a baseline level of skills should be, the possibilities and combinations become very broad. Striking skills like punching, kicking, using knees, and elbows are a must for self-defense. The only real way to become effective with these skills is consistent training in self-defense classes.
Some people would argue that a baseline level of skills would need to include grappling skills, submission skills, mastery of weapons defenses, and more. Ultimately, all of these considerations are correct because the more you know and the more skills you have, the better prepared you will be.
Krav Maga Worldwide teaches all of these skills in various Krav Maga levels. Students progress through a Krav Maga belt system that systematically builds, and reinforces skills, while also increasing the level of intensity and complexity.
We’re able to do this because of the way Imi Lichtenfeld conceptualized self-defense. One of the main principles of Krav Maga is to always address the immediate danger as quickly and effectively as possible. This is something that everyone who is interested in self-defense training has questions about. More often than not there’s a feeling of “IF X happens…what do I do?” that makes people feel uneasy and vulnerable.
Understanding the immediate danger in situations can be a little difficult for some people at first. However once someone has that knowledge, they can begin to understand how to effectively defend themselves. They become empowered to act in their own best interest.
One of the situations that students ask our instructors about is “What if I get grabbed and….?”.
The term “grab” has a lot of different definitions and variations when we think about it in relation to self-defense. We could be talking about getting grabbed at the arm, grabbed around the neck, grabbed from behind, from in front, etc. Whatever the case, the fear of being forcibly put in some sort of hold by another person, is something that motivates people to want to learn self-defense.
The three videos below explain Krav Maga Worldwide self-defense techniques for use against three really common ways that someone might be “grabbed”. Knowing what to do in these situations is essential if you want to have the baseline level of self-defense skills Imi originally envisioned for every person.
Simply knowing what to do won’t replace the skills and abilities that come from consistent self-defense training. However having a better understanding of these situations, of the immediate dangers involved, will make you more prepared.
Wrist releases.
Getting grabbed at the arm or wrist is something that might not be incredibly dangerous in and of itself, but it’s an indication that bad things are happening.
The immediate danger here is the attacker’s grip. Getting out of a grab at the wrist comes down to working against the weakest part of that grip, which is the thumb. Utilizing a wrist release on its own still affords the defender an opportunity to deescalate a situation and possibly avoid a fight. However if there is serious danger, the defender can use these techniques along with punches, elbows, or groin kicks, etc. to damage the attacker and get away.
Headlock from behind.
This is one of the assaults or attacks that is a main concern of many people. With good reason. It’s a variation of a “grab” that comes on from behind so there’s no chance to avoid it. It’s an ambush and it’s targeting the neck. There are many many possible, dangerous, outcomes here. From a blood choke, to an airway choke, to simply being controlled or abducted by the attacker.
The immediate danger is the arm looping around the defender’s neck. It’s super important to protect your neck by tucking your chin, and to then find the attacker’s hands. The looping arm is the immediate danger. However fighting that arm below the attacker’s wrist doesn’t provide enough leverage to release pressure on the neck. Plucking to the attacker’s hands will manipulate that looping arm.
Recognize that the neck is in danger because of that looping arm, but you have to pluck the attacker’s hands. Don’t go straight to your own neck. Find the attacker’s hands to begin to fight your way out.
Unlike a wrist release, there’s no considering deescalation when dealing with a headlock from behind. A serious and dangerous assault is already in progress. We must turn in to start fighting back. We have to cause damage to the attacker explosively and aggressively in order to get away.
Bear hug from behind.
A bear hug is another form of being “grabbed”. It’s not a limb or the neck but the whole body. Realistically a bear hug itself isn’t super dangerous. That is to say, there’s not a great deal of damage to the defender from the bear hug itself. The real danger is what happens after the bear hug. Something like being slammed to the ground or being moved someplace you don’t want to go.
The immediate danger here is the control that the attacker has over the defender’s body. To counter that control, students learn to “base and space” against a bear hug. If you drop your center of gravity or your “base” you become more difficult to lift and to manipulate. From this based out position you can start to fight back and create space from the attacker so you can get away.
Similar to the headlock, there’s no doubt that the attack in progress is beyond deescalation. The defender has to start fighting back immediately. They can’t do that from an upright position while caught in the attacker’s “grab” or bear hug. The defender has to base out and fight back from that lower, heavier, position. From there, create space, turn in, continue to cause damage, and get away.
Train at a Krav Maga Worldwide certified training center.
These videos present critical concepts that have to be understood in order to build self-defense skills. Knowing what to do is valuable, being capable of doing it is really the goal for self-defense training.
There is simply no substitute for consistent self-defense training if you want to be able to defend yourself. You simply can’t get better at something that you aren’t practicing.
Whether you jump into challenges like self-defense training, or you need to ease into things and go a little slower, the best place for self-defense training is a Krav Maga Worldwide certified training center.
Our mission is to help every person become safer and stronger. The Krav Maga self-defense system was designed to accommodate every person. It brings people to a high level of proficiency in self-defense in a short period of time.
Krav Maga Worldwide certified training centers are staffed by expert instructors who have dedicated their lives to training, and to helping others. Many of our certified training centers will let you take a trial class for free so you can see what we’re all about.
If you’re interested in “krav maga near me” click on this link to find our searchable map, which will bring up the certified training center closest to your zip code. You can also give us a call at 800-572-8624 and we’ll help you find the certified training center closest to you.
