KRAV MAGA: The Martial Arts of the Israeli Defense Force

[danjapress]

krav maga isnt really applicable to anything in the real world. i have beat down a few krav maga masters pretty easily

hahah

im reminded of a quote by charles darwin
"ignorance more frequently begets confidence than knowledge does"

[MIKES3]

Ju Jitsu & Kickboxing all the way for me. Most people never see a reverse kick coming.

[GracieJiuJitsu1]

Honestly, it's overrated.
Unless you have a weapon, if you're surrounded you will get your ass kicked.

This. I train Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Judo, and My friend trains KM so we went at it,this dude came at me straight hay makers ate 100mph,so I shot in double leg,took his ass down mounted,he tried to gouge my eyes out while I was on top (Boom) basic armbar from mount. Grappling is the poop

[abrownBB]

[b]KRAV MAGA
The Martial Arts of the Israeli Defense Force[b]



Picture this scenario. You are walking down a quiet street, it?s night time and there is little light. You can see, but not well. Up ahead you see a small group of people, maybe 3 or 4, and they see you. Continuing your pace, you walk past them. One of them makes a sarcastic remark and then they surround you.

Your next choice is the most important . . .

Not all of us have come across a situation like this, though many of us have. Whatever the case, a situation like this is very possible and, when it happens, very real. Many of these types of attacks can result in various ways. It can be a simple robbing and slight assault or can escalate to something much more dangerous, even fatal.
Rape, stabbings, shootings and severe assaults are just some of the possible outcomes of such a situation. Many people are able to walk away after such attacks to live another day. Some aren?t so lucky.

Unfortunately there is no magic way to escape such a threat so easily. One may be lucky enough to have law enforcement come by quickly, another may be able to talk their way out of trouble and another may have other people intervene.
However, if none of these are the case, one must use the necessary skills and force to save and remove them self from danger. Krav Maga can teach you how.



WHAT IS KRAV MAGA?

Krav Maga (Hebrew: Close Combat) was developed in the 1930?s by Imi Lichtenfeld. Its main purpose was to protect Imi?s local Jewish community from Nazi gangs. It was soon adopted by the Haganah ?a paramilitary group before the State of Israel was created- and later the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). Today, it is the official hand-to-hand combat system of the IDF and the Israeli Security Forces. Every soldier in the IDF learns some level of Krav Maga, depending on their role in the military.
Krav Maga bases itself on the fact there are no rules in combat. It does not have limits, is not a sport, does not hold competitions and does not have a set uniform, although many organization members wear shirts depicting Krav Maga logos.
It teaches an individual to deal with conflicts in various types of environments, in different situations and holds no distinction between men and women.



WHAT ARE THE PRINCIPLES OF KRAV MAGA?

Krav Maga always assumes that an attacker will give no mercy in their efforts, so it teaches one to respond in the necessary way with necessary force.
The aim of Krav Maga is to:

? Recognize the threat
? Neutralize the threat
? Escape the situation

This is all carried out as quickly and effectively as possible. To achieve this, Krav Maga incorporates many crippling attacks to the body such as Eye Gouges, Groin Strikes and Head butts. While this may be considered ?dirty? fighting by many, it must be understood that in real life combat, one must do all they can to protect them self and others around them.
While the ?no-rules? principle applies, an individual must recognize the amount of damage legally acceptable in self-defense. They have been numerous cases where a person, although fighting in self-defense, has faced prison time due to them using more force than was needed.
Some of the Basic Principles of Krav Maga are as follows:

? Avoid confrontation and danger as much as possible
? Quickly and effectively neutralize the threat
? Always perform Retzev (See Below)
? Assume the attacker has a weapon, even if you can?t see one
? Assume there is more than one attacker
? Do not use more than 5-6 strikes at any one time
? Exploit all the body?s vulnerable points
? Use nearby ?everyday? items as weapons

Such principles apply to real-life situations though it must be stressed one must match the response to the danger of the attack. So for example, if an attacker was trying to punch you, you wouldn?t need to resort to Eye Gouges or Throat Strikes. However, if someone had a dangerous weapon or was choking you to near-death, such techniques could be applied.



HOW IS KRAV MAGA DIFFERENT FROM OTHER MARTIAL ARTS?

While Krav Maga has adopted techniques from several different styles, it has altered them to further fit real-life situations. The founder, Imi Lichtenfeld, was trained heavily in Boxing and Wrestling. Krav Maga, itself, takes techniques from Boxing, Muay Thai, Judo and Jujutsu, altering them so that further principles can be applied. For example, Jujutsu is an excellent ground-based martial arts but focuses heavily on a single opponent. Krav Maga has altered such Jujutsu moves to focus on multiple attackers.
It also stresses fighting under various situations including fighting from disadvantaged positions. Such examples are fighting multiple opponents, protecting another person, with distractions around, fighting with injury and against armed attackers.

The training of Krav Maga also separates it from other martial arts. One such rule is not to severely injure your partner. However, it is emphasized that one must not be easy on their partner and that a high amount of force may be used, but must be controlled. Near full force is often used when the partner is ?padded-up? which usually includes groin and mouth guards, torso padding and a martial art head guard / helmet.
Various practices are included in Krav Maga training that few other martial arts use. These include the use of loud music, fog machines, strobe lights, scattered objects over the floor and near-darkness to bring on distraction and teach an individual to stay focused under these conditions.
A great aerobic and anaerobic workout can be achieved in Krav Maga. Another technique is working the student to exhaustion and than having them train in various combat situations.



WHAT IS RETZEV?

Probably the most unique aspect of Krav Maga is Retzev (Hebrew: Continuous Motion). Retzev is the application of techniques in one continuous motion. This is highly effective as it teaches the student to go directly from defending to attacking, giving the opponent no chance to recover. Retzev flows in its movements so that no pause is located between strikes. Once the attack starts it does not stop until the threat is neutralized.
As mentioned above, one principle is the 5-6 strikes at any one time. This is not to say stop after this but it is meant to apply that after 5-6 strikes either the threat should be neutralized or the defender should stop for a second to assess the area around them. This principle is based on the fact that spending to much time on one opponent may leave you open to attacks from other opponents.
An example of such a case can be applied to someone defending a straight punch. The first move would be to defend the punch than immediately follow up with strikes to the face, knees to the torso or groin and throws to the ground in a flowing, break-less motion. This can happen in 5-6 strikes and then the defender would quickly look around to see if there are more attackers.



CONCLUSION

Krav Maga is an excellent self-defense system applying effective, fast and realistic techniques to dangerous situations. It has been described by some martial arts masters and instructors as ?the most devastating art on the planet?.
It assumes no distinction between men and women, or one?s own strength, focusing on techniques that are simple. In other words, anyone can do Krav Maga.
Whether you are looking for one of the best self-defense systems in the world or just a great aerobic and anaerobic workout, Krav Maga is the way to go.
I suggest looking for a class that is under the International Krav Maga Federation (IKMF). Krav Maga Worldwide (KMW) is also a good organization.

I wish you all the best in your endeavors and your training.

- 1_COR_16.13

There is a Krav Maga School near my house and my gym. I have recently been looking into a martial art to supplment my workouts (or vice versa). Would you recommend Krav Maga to someone (such as myself) who has never taken a martial art before?

[cnote602]

There is a Krav Maga School near my house and my gym. I have recently been looking into a martial art to supplment my workouts (or vice versa). Would you recommend Krav Maga to someone (such as myself) who has never taken a martial art before?

Strong BUMP

[DCSpartan]

yes. Its simple and effective. Very few other martial arts really teach combatives like weapon defense, 360 defence, etc.

Thatbeing said, not all KM schools are created equal. To really advance inyour mastery you will need to do sparring, ground combatives, etc.

[Clean]

yes. Its simple and effective. Very few other martial arts really teach combatives like weapon defense, 360 defence, etc.

Thatbeing said, not all KM schools are created equal. To really advance inyour mastery you will need to do sparring, ground combatives, etc.

Weapons defense training Is honestly garbage most of the time. Ive done MMA, im a 1 stripe blue belt im BJJ and im a brown belt in the Marine Corps Martial Arts System which is basically just like Krav Maga and to pull off some of those disarm or weapons techniques would literally require you to train everyday and a whole lot of luck. Reason BJJ, boxing,in a reaMT, judo, sambo, and MMA in general works is because they emphasize heavy sparring utilizing gross motor skills by large bodyparts (aka punches, kicks, takedowns, etc.). Fine motor skills (like grabbing the slide of a gun, blocking a knife, gouging the eyes which are a small target) are the first things to go In a real fight. Goodluck trying to grab a gun or disarm a knife im the middle of an all out fight.

Theres a reason why MMA and the other martial arts I listed are seriously used in competitiom and in a sport while Krav Maga is still one of those "magical, end all be all" martial arts that cant be used in competition (aka, real fights, just sanctioned) cus its so "dangerous" like Kung Fu or Karate.

[ZombiesTT]

Started a few months ago. It's pretty good. The only downside is you have to restrain yourself vs your sparring partner.

[Zenshi]

Theres a reason why MMA and the other martial arts I listed are seriously used in competitiom and in a sport while Krav Maga is still one of those "magical, end all be all" martial arts that cant be used in competition (aka, real fights, just sanctioned) cus its so "dangerous" like Kung Fu or Karate.

^^^ agreed

I think like any of the other martial arts, Krav Maga gets exploited for the "brand imaging" of the name rather than the actual art. To be honest, regarding most every martial art, the movements are often quite similar (grappling, striking, throwing, locks, takedowns) whether BJJ, MAA, Wrestling, Judo, Karate, Muay Thai, Kung Fu, JKD, Krav Maga, TKD, Boxing, etc. And most martial arts will say, rather than worrying about which Martial Art is the best, to become proficient at the movements you are doing. The balance, speed, power and reflexes to do a move comes from practicing it over and over and over and over and over....ad nauseum until you are good at it. To be able to throw a good punch is far more important than whether the punch is from Karate, Boxing, Kung Fu, or Muay Thai for the majority of people in society.

Unfortunately, like anything else, the "name" often becomes more important than the art itself. People are so worked up over become a "master" and making sure they have the "best art" that they spend more time "increasing rank" than "improving". Gyms that understand this as human nature for the majority of people out there exploit this and provide the "I can make you into a killing machine in 16 weeks". This sort of slogan has been around since the days of "I can make you a man in 7 days". Because Krav Maga originated in the Israeli Special Forces, there is this positioning that "I can make you a special forces level fighter in x weeks" that is placed on Krav Maga. This makes absolutely no sense since regardless of the art, the demand and requirements of the Special Forces are so high that less than 1% of the military can participate. So it should be obvious to the average couch potato that becoming a "soldier level fighter in just xx weeks" is impossible, especially to someone who is over/underweight, underpowered, no stamina, no agility and the only past fighting experience comes from the latest version of Code of Honor on their console/PC. But because the desire is higher than the common sense, people continue to flock to it. So long as people pay money for it, there will be a "Krav Maga" school at every corner of the neighborhood, scheduled into session just behind "zumba".

As you mention, the best way to get better at fighting is to practice in tough, dangerous real time sort of situations. However, since people do not want to do that but want to feel like they are the next bad*ss at their local bar, the pseudo-MA (McDojo) industry will not only survive but will thrive. Krav Maga the art is fine. Krav Maga the industry that has blossomed in the US is questionable unfortunately and like all the other arts, people need to do their due diligence to find a good school and then practice the art for MANY YEARS before one can even say they are somewhat good at it.

JMO

[sethiele]

Krav Maga is the GOAT for self defense, If i get in a fight with some dude who starts going JJ on me I'm gonna laugh he's trying to submit me, Krav maga my end goal is to seriously hurt you, not saying JJ is worse than KM they have different goals to accomplish.

[FitCross]

While I like the article, I feel krav maga is overtrompetting itself waaay too much these days.

I do not consider it a good system for self-defense, because despite all its claims, it actual application is as a warzone system, it's a case to kill your opponent or be killed. It certainly does not give you a superhigh victory chance over other arts like it often claims.

In case you didn't know, self-defense is described in the law, look it up and be surprised what you can't and can do. Even the civilian version, which is very watered down still teaches stuff like throat strikes to solve a simple bar fight. That **** is not self-defense, that's attempted manslaughter. My trainer finally realized this after one of his student got a huge jailtime for something similar, I will not go into detail to protect the guys privacy. He has adapted the "street"-version to be more in line with the law.

Applause, applause. Somebody gets it. Unfortunately, most folks would probably be butt-hurt to know that self-defense is not what they want it to be. I am surprised nobody here has jumped down your throat yet.

Advice for everyone - save your money and spend more time thinking of ways to NOT get involved in a violent encounter in the first place. It is not inevitable and if you think it is, you are doing something very wrong.

[tonewood]

Theres a reason why MMA and the other martial arts I listed are seriously used in competitiom and in a sport while Krav Maga is still one of those "magical, end all be all" martial arts that cant be used in competition (aka, real fights, just sanctioned) cus its so "dangerous" like Kung Fu or Karate.

Karate is the best base for MMA striking, because the stances and footwork are designed to keep the practitioner on his feet. Machida (shotokan) has proven this.

Few people use it because they get involved in quick sparring styles like boxing and MT, learn to bang and at that point the finer points of balance and movement are incompatible with their striking style. Boxers and MT guys have really bad tdd.

Shotokan trains you in stances and footwork for five years before you even think about serious sparring.

[Zenshi]

Nice to see a fellow Shotokan practitioner. To be honest, the choice of strike depends on the style of fighting. Karate tends to keep the shoulders square and strikes from the hip while pushing off the heels of the back leg. This tends to give stability and help avoid putting yourself in a position for an uppercut, hook or even a tackle or sweep. Boxing tends to maximize the swing by putting both the hip and shoulder motion into the punch (kind of like a golf swing). This may increase the force of the punch but it also as you say tends to put you in a lower balance and can be a target for a hook or uppercut.

On the other hand, boxers practice bob-and-weave and this tends to give them the ability to duck away from a punch even during this less balanced situation. Karate tends to be more "back and forth" full body motion with the use of distancing (ma ai) so the stability is important. I have sparred with boxers and believe me, they are really hard to hit. Of course they are very easy to kick. But compared to a Karateka the Boxer really is good at ducking away from a punch in close combat.

If you put the boxer swing along with just a Karate distancing move, it is not the best combination. But it can work well when combined with boxing defensive moves. For each style, there are advantages and disadvantages and how these advantages and disadvantages will affect the fight will depend on all the circumstances of the fight (environment, style of fighting of opponent, whether you are fighting for your life or just needing to stop a small confrontation, etc). As you say, for MMA the stance may be good since it gives better stability in case you are fighting a grappler. Also for a head shot and many body shots, even the Karate strike is enough to knock someone out as can be seen by the high level JKA kumite competitions. However, the strike of a boxer is very effective and their way of avoiding hits are very very impressive. I guess this is why MMA can be effective since one can try combining the styles from different martial arts to see if one can get a more favorable fighting skill for each person's style. Unfortunately like other arts, the quality of the MMA depends on the effective teaching of the school and the hope that you do not enter another McDojo whose main purpose is to quickly raise some student's rank in order to keep them interested and paying.

[Kohlchinski]

How about a totally brutal and effective workout? The body is a machine but with so much of the American population unfit and bored to the couch and TV, what abbot something totally different? The gym is so overrated and most people only start martial arts study for self-defense but never finish. Failure of these two options can leave you broke, frustrated and sitting on the couch watching TV...
Combine endurance exercise with Krav Maga. Build the body and mind with raw strength, power and a natural endurance to harsh, physical forces with the power of the World's best hand-to-hand combat systems! Powerful, fit men and women, is the road to world peace. Shalom, Shalom.
Picture this scenario. You are walking down a quiet street, it?s night time and there is little light. You can see, but not well. Up ahead you see a small group of people, maybe 3 or 4, and they see you. Continuing your pace, you walk past them. One of them makes a sarcastic remark and then they surround you.

Your next choice is the most important . . .

Not all of us have come across a situation like this, though many of us have. Whatever the case, a situation like this is very possible and, when it happens, very real. Many of these types of attacks can result in various ways. It can be a simple robbing and slight assault or can escalate to something much more dangerous, even fatal.
Rape, stabbings, shootings and severe assaults are just some of the possible outcomes of such a situation. Many people are able to walk away after such attacks to live another day. Some aren?t so lucky.

Unfortunately there is no magic way to escape such a threat so easily. One may be lucky enough to have law enforcement come by quickly, another may be able to talk their way out of trouble and another may have other people intervene.
However, if none of these are the case, one must use the necessary skills and force to save and remove them self from danger. Krav Maga can teach you how.



WHAT IS KRAV MAGA?

Krav Maga (Hebrew: Close Combat) was developed in the 1930?s by Imi Lichtenfeld. Its main purpose was to protect Imi?s local Jewish community from Nazi gangs. It was soon adopted by the Haganah ?a paramilitary group before the State of Israel was created- and later the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). Today, it is the official hand-to-hand combat system of the IDF and the Israeli Security Forces. Every soldier in the IDF learns some level of Krav Maga, depending on their role in the military.
Krav Maga bases itself on the fact there are no rules in combat. It does not have limits, is not a sport, does not hold competitions and does not have a set uniform, although many organization members wear shirts depicting Krav Maga logos.
It teaches an individual to deal with conflicts in various types of environments, in different situations and holds no distinction between men and women.



WHAT ARE THE PRINCIPLES OF KRAV MAGA?

Krav Maga always assumes that an attacker will give no mercy in their efforts, so it teaches one to respond in the necessary way with necessary force.
The aim of Krav Maga is to:

? Recognize the threat
? Neutralize the threat
? Escape the situation

This is all carried out as quickly and effectively as possible. To achieve this, Krav Maga incorporates many crippling attacks to the body such as Eye Gouges, Groin Strikes and Head butts. While this may be considered ?dirty? fighting by many, it must be understood that in real life combat, one must do all they can to protect them self and others around them.
While the ?no-rules? principle applies, an individual must recognize the amount of damage legally acceptable in self-defense. They have been numerous cases where a person, although fighting in self-defense, has faced prison time due to them using more force than was needed.
Some of the Basic Principles of Krav Maga are as follows:

? Avoid confrontation and danger as much as possible
? Quickly and effectively neutralize the threat
? Always perform Retzev (See Below)
? Assume the attacker has a weapon, even if you can?t see one
? Assume there is more than one attacker
? Do not use more than 5-6 strikes at any one time
? Exploit all the body?s vulnerable points
? Use nearby ?everyday? items as weapons

Such principles apply to real-life situations though it must be stressed one must match the response to the danger of the attack. So for example, if an attacker was trying to punch you, you wouldn?t need to resort to Eye Gouges or Throat Strikes. However, if someone had a dangerous weapon or was choking you to near-death, such techniques could be applied.



HOW IS KRAV MAGA DIFFERENT FROM OTHER MARTIAL ARTS?

While Krav Maga has adopted techniques from several different styles, it has altered them to further fit real-life situations. The founder, Imi Lichtenfeld, was trained heavily in Boxing and Wrestling. Krav Maga, itself, takes techniques from Boxing, Muay Thai, Judo and Jujutsu, altering them so that further principles can be applied. For example, Jujutsu is an excellent ground-based martial arts but focuses heavily on a single opponent. Krav Maga has altered such Jujutsu moves to focus on multiple attackers.
It also stresses fighting under various situations including fighting from disadvantaged positions. Such examples are fighting multiple opponents, protecting another person, with distractions around, fighting with injury and against armed attackers.

The training of Krav Maga also separates it from other martial arts. One such rule is not to severely injure your partner. However, it is emphasized that one must not be easy on their partner and that a high amount of force may be used, but must be controlled. Near full force is often used when the partner is ?padded-up? which usually includes groin and mouth guards, torso padding and a martial art head guard / helmet.
Various practices are included in Krav Maga training that few other martial arts use. These include the use of loud music, fog machines, strobe lights, scattered objects over the floor and near-darkness to bring on distraction and teach an individual to stay focused under these conditions.
A great aerobic and anaerobic workout can be achieved in Krav Maga. Another technique is working the student to exhaustion and than having them train in various combat situations.



WHAT IS RETZEV?

Probably the most unique aspect of Krav Maga is Retzev (Hebrew: Continuous Motion). Retzev is the application of techniques in one continuous motion. This is highly effective as it teaches the student to go directly from defending to attacking, giving the opponent no chance to recover. Retzev flows in its movements so that no pause is located between strikes. Once the attack starts it does not stop until the threat is neutralized.
As mentioned above, one principle is the 5-6 strikes at any one time. This is not to say stop after this but it is meant to apply that after 5-6 strikes either the threat should be neutralized or the defender should stop for a second to assess the area around them. This principle is based on the fact that spending to much time on one opponent may leave you open to attacks from other opponents.
An example of such a case can be applied to someone defending a straight punch. The first move would be to defend the punch than immediately follow up with strikes to the face, knees to the torso or groin and throws to the ground in a flowing, break-less motion. This can happen in 5-6 strikes and then the defender would quickly look around to see if there are more attackers.



CONCLUSION

Krav Maga is an excellent self-defense system applying effective, fast and realistic techniques to dangerous situations. It has been described by some martial arts masters and instructors as ?the most devastating art on the planet?.
It assumes no distinction between men and women, or one?s own strength, focusing on techniques that are simple. In other words, anyone can do Krav Maga.
Whether you are looking for one of the best self-defense systems in the world or just a great aerobic and anaerobic workout, Krav Maga is the way to go.
I suggest looking for a class that is under the International Krav Maga Federation (IKMF). Krav Maga Worldwide (KMW) is also a good organization.

I wish you all the best in your endeavors and your training.

- 1_COR_16.13[/QUOTE]

[DCSpartan]

Weapons defense training Is honestly garbage most of the time. Ive done MMA, im a 1 stripe blue belt im BJJ and im a brown belt in the Marine Corps Martial Arts System which is basically just like Krav Maga and to pull off some of those disarm or weapons techniques would literally require you to train everyday and a whole lot of luck. Reason BJJ, boxing,in a reaMT, judo, sambo, and MMA in general works is because they emphasize heavy sparring utilizing gross motor skills by large bodyparts (aka punches, kicks, takedowns, etc.). Fine motor skills (like grabbing the slide of a gun, blocking a knife, gouging the eyes which are a small target) are the first things to go In a real fight. Goodluck trying to grab a gun or disarm a knife im the middle of an all out fight.

Theres a reason why MMA and the other martial arts I listed are seriously used in competitiom and in a sport while Krav Maga is still one of those "magical, end all be all" martial arts that cant be used in competition (aka, real fights, just sanctioned) cus its so "dangerous" like Kung Fu or Karate.

The way you spar for an MMA fight (circling, finding your range, having a nice smooth surface you can shoot your takedowns on, having a ref to prevent cheap shots) isntthe way a real fight is gong down. krav emphasizes that fights areny going to be fair, you shouldnt be fighting fair either.

I think you have not been taught the weapon techniques effectively based on your description of them. They ar far less technical than the judo/sambo/bjj stuff you preach, all of which will get you disemboweled in a real fight in about 3 seconds.

enjoy.

[Shane0801]

I have been doing krav on and off for about 2 years. I think abig part of it as with anything is the instructor
instructor. Im not saying each martial art doesn't have its place but honestly how many give you it in realistic terms? MMA for example creates all round fighters but it doesn't cover weapons, multiple opponents and different environments. I have tried 3 on 1 sparring, under pressure knife defense & fighting in a pub where there are tables/a bar to consider and it really throws you out oppose to a ring. I'm not saying krav is perfect but it trys to give you a fighting chance of what differentials there could be.

Just my opinion anyway.

[DCSpartan]

clean makes some good and solid points, to be honest, and these should all factor into picking a good Krav instructor.

At the higher levels you need to spar. No bones about it.

The disarms should be "real" Krav disarms - they should rely on gross motor skills and you can execute then under duress or surprise. I wrapped up a 3 hour seminar yesterday with Moshe Katz and he had us drilling gun disarms with closed eyes and.or off balance - which really forces you to use those sweeping movements and not try to finesse the moves.

[Shane0801]

As DC said disarms are usually simple straight forward movements the 360 block or a c grip covers most forms of block for edged weapons or firearms. Usually immediately followed (if not in the same motion) a counter or move to clinch.

[badclams]

Krav Maga is the GOAT for self defense, If i get in a fight with some dude who starts going JJ on me I'm gonna laugh he's trying to submit me, Krav maga my end goal is to seriously hurt you, not saying JJ is worse than KM they have different goals to accomplish.

Good point.

[michaelmendyka]

been ''training'' martial art since I was 6 years old... Came across Krav Maga when I was 16... Best decision I have ever made to start training Krav... best Self defence/Martial art ever!

[lily0710]

Cool