- This topic has 24 replies, 21 voices, and was last updated 19 years, 1 month ago by
.
-
Posts
-
Just curious as to why you wanted to learn how to defend yourself? To get in shape? Prevention? Past experience? What motivated you to want to do Krav?
easy answer
well, personally i have known about KM for about 8 years or so, and when i started instructing police officers in self defence 7 years ago, i kept going on about how the police system was too complicated and too prescriptive to be of any use. i have always championed KM as the better alternative, especially in light of the number of law enforcement agencies worldwide that have adopted it.
Over the last few months i made a list of things i wanted to do with my life, and i wanted to start a self defence class, mainly for my own peace of mind, and after reviewing several different forms, i decided that KM really was the best for me, so joined my local club and haven’t looked back.
now i’m KM driven, i am more confident when out and about, i train in the gym more efficiently, i advise on my self defence classes with more authority, and i have made a whole heap of new friends, so overall a good move.
Foxy
Several yrs ago I took Taekwondo for a little while. But then as an avid fan of the show Alias I have often said I wish I could fight like Jennifer Garner. But I have been also looking into personal safety and self defense and one day i happened across something on the internet I think that said J-Lo was trained in KM for the movie Enough. That sparked an interest…along with the fact that its origin is the Israeli army. Mh husband has been to Israel and on the army base. And also that its not considered an art with rituals. All around it just seems to be the best for me. Now if I could just get a school around here to start teaching it !!
JamieI’m sure I’ve said this before here, or some other message board….
I’m a long distance runner, therefore I am out at odd hours in isolated areas, and usually alone. Krav compromises my training (slow twitch vs. fast twitch etc.), but I feel somewhat safer. At the very least I am more aware about potential risks, and hopefully with time I’ll be more effective in case of something happening.
Google the terms for more info, this is my understanding….
There are two main types of musle fibers, slow and fast twitch. People are genetically disposed to a certain portion of each (but it’s always pretty close to 50/50), you can build more long twitch (endurance) muscle or short twitch (sprint) depending on the type of training activities you do. A world class sprinter is never going to be a champion marathoner and visa versa, genetics is too big a factor at the elite level. For normal people like us, it’s not that big a deal, but I know that my strength has always been endurance, even in middle school swim team, so I generally pick endurance sports.
Krav contains a lot of fast explosive direction changing motions, this builds fast twitch. Long Distance running (or swimming or cycling or…) builds slow twich muscle with LOTS of repetitive motion that’s the same. General wisdom in the running community says run, do limited cross training, sport specific pylometrics/weight training, and nothing else.
Triathalons are a good example of how training in more than one sport is \”bad.\” Ironman winners marathon times are really slow compared to straight marathoners. Only one female in the last 5 years has gone sub 3 in an ironman, while winning even local marathons requires at least a 2:45 for women.
Really long answer to really simple question-sorry.
I started training Krav due to the fact that it is a very ‘up in your face and don’t back off until the deal is done’ type of martial arts…and the fact that it utilizes a number of different disciplines that work best in any given situation….and I had just wanted something that made sense on the street…simple answer….
I considered a lot of different systems because 1) I work in a sometimes dangerous environment (and now it seems I live in one too!) and 2) I needed to ramp up my exercise to keep losing weight after my dog developed heart disease — I can’t take her for long walks anymore 😥
… and I chose krav over the others because 1) it doesn’t take eons to grasp in a way that might be useful on the street (vs spending 10 years getting a black belt then only knowing how to kick in bare feet) and 2) it’s something that women can do, but it’s not limited to women only. The history of krav influenced me there — with universal conscription, the Israeli military would be training men and women equally so I felt confident that the women’s pictures on the website weren’t just marketing ploys. When I went to an intro session 1/2 of the people there were women, and the teacher was a woman, but I partnered with a man and it was no big deal. After that, I was sold! 🙂
I started Krav because a friend of mine opened a school. He left the TKD school where he helped teach because he was dissatisfied with what he was learning. He called me, knowing that I was feeling the same way. As soon as I tried KM I was hooked. It’s an intense workout, and the self-defence is straightforward and effective. I have met a lot of great people through practicing Krav. At the end of a class I feel much more satisfied than I did after a typical TKD school. Not to bash on TKD, I’m sure a better instructor would have made a huge difference.
Many of my reasons were catalyzed by September 11th.
Basically wanted to know how to throw a punch, take a punch, how to operate under life-threatening stress, and also how to defend against something as ridiculously simple (yet diabolical) as a box-cutter.
Now I mostly do it because of the people involved. I consider many Krav Magistas, like tha NC,KC, PA, Chatsworth, and Rohnert Park crews, to be like family, if not closer.
I started KM because my current boyfriend had taken KM before, and he recommended it to me. Several years ago I was in a domestic violence situation and even though I came out of it on top, with my batterer in jail, the whole thing left me feeling quite helpless.
Practicing Krav Maga has helped me become, well, not helpless. When I started Krav Maga, I was pretty much defenseless or at least I thought I was. I didn’t think I was capable of hurting anyone, and I had no idea how to throw a punch or what to do in a bearhug (which happened to me). Even though I don’t feel helpless anymore, I am still in KM because I need an outlet for my desire to beat people up. Just kidding, actually, it’s as simple as the fact that I like KM. I can’t really explain it. Maybe I’m addicted.
I’m a very non-confrontational kind of guy with a good sense of humor & slow to get angry.Since I don’t drink & do the bar scene;I’m not put in many situations that require defending myself.I hadn’t been in a fight since second grade.
That being said,I know that in this crazy world,there may come a time when
circumstances will not permit de-escalation.I would hate to be out with my wife & not be able to defend her.I could live with me getting beat-up,but not her.Since 9/11 ,there are too many places prevent you from carrying even a pocket-knife.
I wanted the basics of self defense (& attack) without the foo-for ah of uniforms,katas,& term memorization.
Now,if I am overwhelmed,I want the police to have an easy time identifying the assailant by to smashed nose,hoarse throat,& busted spleen.
Who knows,I may do well enough to point then out myself.
\”Yes Officer,He’s right over there,…….& some over there….& ewww,some there too.I entered the K on a whim.
I entered the K on a whim. I went a few times and liked the intensity of fitness classes and the self -defense classes. I didnít tell anyone I was taking the classes especially not my family. I liked the classes but I was embarrassed for taking them. As a younger person, I would have been made to feel silly for taking self-defense classes. I didnít realize this until I found myself never mentioning the classes. Also, I really didnít think I needed the classes for defense but In the past, I have aloud myself to be handled roughly. I have been attacked twice, once very badly so it should have been pretty easy for me to justify taking self defense classes. I think the fact that I was embarrassed must have to do with the way I was raised or the culture I raised in. The reason doesnít matter so much as the fact that I realized I had to change the way I thought/think. Thatís what I tell myself. Krav class has helped me realize this. It helped me realize that I have let people walk on me physically or other wise. Crazy as it sounds, I once believed that being strong meant the ability to take abuse and go on day to day without blinking an eye. Realizing that this way of thinking is unacceptable has been pretty valuable information to me. I donít exactly know what to do with this new found info but I know that itís good to know. Physically I am sure that I can protect myself at least I wonít end up the only one physically hurt. (thank you Krav instructors) I am still working non-physical stuff, which by the way for me, is almost more important than the physical because it has to do with how I view myself. I never put myself in questionable situations. I doubt I will ever have to use Krav but I am going to stick around the classes.
I started taking Krav after I took a rape prevention seminar in NY with a Female black belt named Katrina. She amazed me at her talent and coming from an abusive marrage needed to learn to defend myself and I felt this is the only system that really deals with real life situations and solutions. 😀
I was looking for something aerobic to do, but with a point. I hated the idea of kicking into empty air or doing a lot of tae-bo type stuff that leads you nowhere. I get bored easily, too (I am not proud of that…) A lot of doing the same thing makes me unhappy.
So I entered \”women\” \”self-defense\” and my area into a search engine and started to wade through all of the rape-prevention classes that popped up. I have nothing against these classes at all, it is just that they are oriented to a specific goal, and are conducted over a short interval. I was looking for something that would be ongoing, and more generalizable.
I came across the national KM site, and it rang a bell. I remembered hearing something about it a while back, and read more about the history of KM on the site. I have been very interested in the Holocaust since I read \”The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich\” back in high school, and read a lot more about Nazi Germany, including about the underground resistance movement. I was fascinated and deeply moved by Imi Lichtenfeld’s story, and his determination to not just fight but also to teach others to fight, especially those who were so vulnerable.
So I checked for KM in my area, and found Carol Middleton’s school in DC. I don’t know much about martial arts, but I knew enough to be impressed by her years of experience in teaching and amazing level of expertise in martial arts. It was like having the opportunity to attend a World Politics 101 class being taught by Henry Kissinger. I thought I would have to be an idiot to not at least try the intro classes.
For reasons I do not understand I found that I was as excited about the intro classes as a kid is about Christmas. I was literally counting the days. When I went to the class and saw how hard a woman could hit and kick with this method, I almost started to spin around I was so excited! Plus, it was so incredibly affordable…
That’s why I started. But I stayed because the teachers at KMDC make it so accessible. I took some masters-level education courses and know a little bit about how people learn. KMDC instructors are always well-prepared, they never make anything seem too hard, like you can’t learn it. Their patience seems endless. They are always willing to break things down into smaller and smaller components until you get it. They must go over this stuff a million times but they never seem bored with the material – in fact, they always seem jazzed about it. They relay the information verbally, visually, and will even manipulate your body until you experience the right position for yourself and know what you are aiming for.
I guess most importantly, they treat everyone exactly the same. They must have favorites but you would never know it. Women are treated the same as men, young people the same as those who are older, the physically talented are treated the same as the not-so-physically talented…Everyone gets the same level of treatment, everyone is treated respectfully. Yet simultaneously, personal achievement is always acknowledged, and instruction is individualized in each class.
The end result is that you come out of each class feeling as though you have gotten a little better and a little more confident, not just physically, but also mentally and emotionally.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
