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Hey everyone. I wrote this article for Krav Maga Maryland’s monthly newsletter, but I ended up thinking about it more than I anticipated. Any feedback would be helpful, whether it be about ideas I brought up in the article or about thoughts in general regarding the topic of training partners.
Choosing (and being) a good training partner
Coming from a background that included about 12 years of traditional martial arts training, there were lots of things that appealed to me about Krav Maga. But one aspect in particular is not one I often hear mentioned. From my very first class I was attracted to the idea of training in a self-defense system that relied heavily on partner-based training. This interaction comes in many forms. It could be holding pads, providing a choke attack, yelling motivational encouragement, or comparing notes after class. Being a highly extroverted person, this only embedded my enjoyment and desire to excel all the more to depend on other students for a challenging and positive training atmosphere.
Now, as an instructor, many of the ìa-haî moments I see students experience come partially due to training with a certain partner that changed the training dynamic. Unfortunately, many of the frustrations I hear from students come from the same source. So, how can we make certain we reap the benefits of good partner-training, while at the same time minimizing the obstacles caused by poor partnering? Here are some thoughts:
If you want to have good partners, BE a good partner: If you want someone to hold a tombstone or kick shield strongly for you, hold it strongly for them. If you want someone to attack you aggressively without compromising your training safety, do the same for them. Give your partner(s) positive feedback and youíll find them giving it back to you. Strong training is contagious; unfortunately, so is weak training-be sure youíre doing your part to push yourself and the other students in a positive manner. Itís a simple principle, but the Golden Rule applies even in self-defense training: ìTrain unto others as you would have them train unto youî.
Follow the instructorís directions explicitly, even if youíre not the one practicing: Any instructor will gladly give you specifics on how to attack your partners realistically or how to hold a pad safely. Be very attentive to how the instructor demonstrates not just the techniques, but also the training methods. Failure to do this will hinder your partnerís knowledge and practice of the training at least; it will compromise their safety in training at worst.
Communicate with your partner(s) If someone is attacking differently than the instructor directs, let them know. If you are a newer student and your partner seems to be going faster than you are ready for, let them know. If you think the way a person is doing something is either unsafe or unproductive, let them know. If someone partners up and does things in a really helpful way, let them know. Ask questions, make observations, but whatever the case, LET THEM KNOW!!!
Recognize the importance of variety Mixing up partners is really important. Since we all fall into training patterns without realizing it, changing partners is vital to keeping your training fresh. Training with students of all different shapes, sizes, skill level, athletic ability, personality, etc. will keep you on your toes during training. It will also help you understand first-hand how Krav Magaís streamlined concepts are effective despite changing factors in the attack.
If you have specific questions on how to train and be trained on specific techniques, or if you suspect that your partnerís non-realistic approach is hurting your understanding of the techniques, be sure to ask your instructor. Their role is to help you become able to make the defenses and combatives under stress, so utilize them as such! So next time you attend class, pay a bit more attention to the dynamic between yourself as a student and the folks you train with. I
That looks pretty good to me. To me having a good training partner makes all the difference in the world when it comes to practicing techniques and also adds greatly to your enjoyment in the class.
I can remember having partners whose hands felt like wet noodles around your neck when doing choke defenses. I would continously say \” choke me like you mean it\” – but often that didn’t help. It could get frustrating at times.
Then there was the guy that didn’t understand the instructor’s instructions and did not do the technique attack or defense the waqy the instructor said to do so. Understandably, he was an elderly Russian immigrant that didn’t speak English that well, so I took it in stride. None the less, it didn’t make for a very enjoyable class either.
Wow – very good article, I already forwarded a link to your post to a bunch of the guys at our school here in Columbus….
it’s interesting to see the reaction from students when you tell them that professional mitt holders are paid over $150 an hour….
Jeff that was a well written article.
My compliments on your article. It was a great read and you raise some great points on how to be a good partner.
But what of those who are not extraverts and have trouble approaching others to pair up? Or those who will only listen to instructor and not take input from a partner? Or the guy we have all seen who is just off the charts intense with training and is more likely to hurt someone than help them.
Perhaps your readers would benefit from hearing some practical approaches on how to not feel left out when everyone is pairing off with someone they know. Or whether or not to train with the person who does not want to hear input from you and how to deal with some one who is just going to far or being careless.
I have only been a part of Krav for a year but with all of the different personalities and situations that we encounter in training I am sure I am not the only one who has noticed or experienced difficulties like these. It sounds like you can really help people form a positive approach on how to respond to them. After all, it is not always easy to find a partner in a room full of people. Nor is it easy to deal with someone who is being careless. I can not imagine anyone wants to insult some one they will see regularly in training nor do they want to run to an instructor as though they were a child on a school yard when something goes a little to far.
Good points KravMD.
I especially agree that one shouldn’t work with the same partner all of the time. Unfortunately, this is something one sees very often, especially in advanced classes. Some people will always and only work with their same partner. While it’s nice to work with a person you know, it’s also important to work with people of different sizes and body types, because you’ll never know who is going to attack you.
Partnering up with someone who doesn’t seem to like you, or with whom you don’t get along well, can be awkward at times, but it can also be useful in a way, because you are likely not going to be comfortable fighting your real attacker either.
I’m more of an introvert, so I wouldn’t say that doing exercises with a partner is what attracted me to Krav Maga. It is however inevitable that you’ll have to do the exercises with another person, so it’s just something to get used to, although there are exercises you can do on your own as well, such as performing technique slowly while watching yourself in the mirror.
I think it would be good if the teachers supervised the partnering up somewhat, for example if someone is left over, maybe help him find someone to work in with if necessary. Or, on occasion, the instructor could order students to find people they have never worked with before to partner up for the class, just to break up the happy couples sometimes and give them some fresh blood to work with.
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GiantkillerAnother point to watch out for is new students working with each other all the time. For those that have been to class for a little bit, it might not seem like a great workout, but its good to help get the new folks up to speed. In the long run this gets us more training partners which means we get more experience.
I wanna know where I can get $150 an hour to hold mitts, is there a union for that? 😆
agressive partner
it would be interesting if you mentioned something about agressive partners that can’t aim and hurt people. i’m not saying people shouldn’t be agressive, but they also have some control with what they’re doing.
i’ve partnered up with someone who has no control or aim and i’m afraid of her. i’ll get punched in the eye or face and i’ll try to say something, but nothing changes. i try to avoid her, but sometimes i just end up partnered up with her. someone i know quit the class b/c of her. i’ve mentioned it to the teacher. do you think at this point a teacher should say something?\”on occasion, the instructor could order students to find people they have never worked with before to partner up for the class, just to break up the happy couples sometimes and give them some fresh blood to work with.
\”Good point GK.
At the Krav classes I took in Georgia, the instructor would sometimes tell people to find an new partner. Sometimes if there was an odd number of students, the instructor would have us pair up in threes and run two on one drills. Often though, the odd person got the privlige of pairing up with the instructor. And in such cases, the instructor would often alternate and pair up with each student.Great article. We typically switch pads/partners during training. I have problems with the guys who don’t like to give resistance with the pad and it just gives way when I’m kicking or giving a knee strike. I’m still a newbie so most times I don’t know what to say so I usually just tone down my strikes. But reading the article, it makes more sense for me to say something to my training partner.
As has been said, some partners are a nightmare. I have different partners whenever my normal partner doesn’t show up, which is frequently, and one week I had trained with a guy who has been training for 18 months and he missed the pad on more than one occassion. My shoulder was hit and is still aggrevating me to no end. He wants to tell all of the new guys about what they need to do and doesn’t work on his own ethics. I think the article was great and will probably post it at class for others to read.
I usually try to make sure I have a good height and distance on the mitts, because that is my picky thing. I’m 6’3\” and when the mitt is to low it drives me nuts. I will usually try to mention it before hand and hope it works out okay. Myself and a couple of the more experienced students usually help the newbies so that they don’t have a bad experience, before they learn to enjoy the pain and misery.
Re: agressive partner
quote \”chickadee3bee\:it would be interesting if you mentioned something about agressive partners that can’t aim and hurt people. i’m not saying people shouldn’t be agressive, but they also have some control with what they’re doing.
i’ve partnered up with someone who has no control or aim and i’m afraid of her. i’ll get punched in the eye or face and i’ll try to say something, but nothing changes. i try to avoid her, but sometimes i just end up partnered up with her. someone i know quit the class b/c of her. i’ve mentioned it to the teacher. do you think at this point a teacher should say something?yes. the teacher should say something the first time s/he sees it.
Thanks for the feedback, everyone. I often learn best by externalizing my thoughts for criticism, and y’all helped me in that regard.
Chickadee-Yes, the instructor has a responsibility to say something to the person who does not have enough control.
BradM-If the instructor is holding pads for one person, how does she or he get around to give individual pointers to everyone else in the class?
GiantKiller- You’re right about the need for instructors regulating partnering. The good instructors I’ve seen and tried to learn from definitely do break up the partnering when it starts to hinder the training. I have noticed, however, that students tend not to take the hint, and the moment partners aren’t assigned, they naturally go back to whoever is most comfortable for them.
Jay99-All valid concerns that I didn’t address. I appreciate your suggestions.
blindfold- I appreciate the compliment. Feel free to share the thoughts to whoever you think might benefit.
KrabMDjeff
\”BradM-If the instructor is holding pads for one person, how does she or he get around to give individual pointers to everyone else in the class?
\”This did not happen that often and only then in the advanced class, never in the beginner’s class. Even then it didn’t happen the whole class. Usually it was with striking drills, sometimes using the Bas tapes. I think all the students enjoyed a chance to work out with the instructor (I know I did), it gave us a since of one-on-one with the instructor. Also, the instructor would stop periodically during the drill and observe what was going on in the class. It wasn’t like he ignored the other students.
Also, the instructor did not pair up with a student during self defense exercises. If there was an uneven number of students, the odd one left over would join in another couple making it a threesome. Sometimes the instructor would have the odd person work in the shawdows, so to speak, randomly attacking the other students. It was a surprise to them and a good drill because the other students never knew who the odd man out would attack next. Of course, in a situation like this, the instructor would have everyone switch partners periodically and give the odd man out a chance to pair up with someone.
I’m referring to the Krav instructor I had in Georgia. I feel he and the other instructor (the school owner), always provided the best instruction they could and a lot of varity. That’s why I was so disappointed when I moved and found the Krav instruction at my new residense to be lacking.
I think this is a good article. I have a lot of thoughts on this but I’ll get back to it later on.
in the Thai gyms the instructors tell you who to work with each round. They don’t give you a choice. And they give the advance fighters instructions for dealing with you. You end up working out with everyone. Like it or not. I really like that. Its natural for people to clique off and also the instructors are asserting control over the room. It also makes you have to deal with the power trip idiots as well as the 100lb girl and figure out how to get it done. You also are switching alot so you don’t have to really get stuck with someone who annoys you. I don’t really like talking to my partner during a drill as it always seems to lead to teaching or preference. I remember one time a partner getting mad at me for simply working on the form of something ,no power , cause they felt i was babying them, then bitch when i upped it to full power. Let me train and I’ll let you train. I think its the instructors responsibility to weed out the abusers and mine to not allow any abuse
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