The Jeffrey And Tracey Info Emporium

I just received an Email from a woman who has a child (3 year old) and about to have another. Considering my wife is in a similar situation, this question couldn’t be more relevant. This idea can be expanded to those of us getting older, injured or of smaller stature. Keep in mind, a little common sense goes a long way.

First of all, the life you used to enjoy has changed. You can not casually go to places you used to go. A woman, preoccupied with the safety and care of two children, let alone one, is a prime target for the pieces of sh$t who earn their lining taking advantage of this situation. So, how can you best prepare yourself?

First, pick your fights. Go to only very public, very safe places that are mother and child friendly. Going to malls in the evening or quickly running into the Laundromat with the kids in the car is probably not a great idea. If you can schedule a day to run errands child free, great, if you can’t, just ask yourself, if I came back and my child was missing, was it worth it? That’s it, it’s a simple as that. Once you start talking about, I can’t afford a sitter or I have no support- that’s your decision, but if you chose a Laundromat with a delivery service worth it? What’s it worth to you? Would you be thinking about the cost or inconvenience then? The point is you have to think in this way because the predators or banking on the fact you will play the odds and hedge your bets. All you have to do is be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Beware of people telling you, you will have no problems fighting with a child strapped on your back, protecting another while trying to escape a determined assailant. Those people should be arrested at the very least. I hear some of these experts talk and one thing comes to mind- this idiot has now idea what he’s talking about. Plus he believes his own B.S. Personally, I don’t care if you’re teaching how to levitate, move rocks with your mind or prove the nothingness of lute-fish. But as soon as you tell a mother of two in her forties that she will be able to handle any attacker after a one hour seminar, you should be arrested. Now, don’t get me wrong, people can be trained. It just doesn’t happen in an hour or two.

As I said before in previous articles, if you’re serious, really serious, take shooting lessons and be armed at all times. Next step would be push-daggers or finger-hole design knives; something that you can grab, squeeze and not let go. Next is pepper sprays and stun guns. Have these at the ready.

Strategically, the most vulnerable you will be is packing the kids in the car. If you are alone, have a system for packing the kids away while you have one hand on your weapon of choice. Your weapon if not in your hand should be at the tip of your fingers.

Practice: drill when you put the kids in the car in your driveway. Picture the assailant and draw your weapon. Do this during times of the loading process that you feel the most distracted.

Know your route, and pay attention to who’s following you. A few extra turns may smoke someone out. Driving to the police station is an excellent option. Plus, we all have cell phones.

Choosing the correct equipment is essential. We have one arm, one hand EVERYTHING, from strollers to car seats. Think about this when you make your next purchase…HOLD THE PHONES!!! Here’s your million dollar idea: The Tactical Tot Stroller. Hideaway compartments, pepper spray holders- stun gun caddy, .50 cal mount. You get the idea. Run with it. Put a stroller, a video. Hey, a magazine “Tactical Baby” is you child ready for the apocalypse? See what all the best dressed babies will be wearing in all the bunkers! PLUS, How to Burp you tot under fire…

Any way, what you want to do is be aware and plan ahead. People get jammed up because they don’t think a situation through. The idea is to realize when you’re getting in over your head. Don’t let your ego put you in a place that you can’t get out of. Be paranoid, be a little late. Plan and leave early. It’s been my experience, if you have kids, the world will wait for you. If not, screw ‘em.

So where do our videos and training fit in? As an absolute last resort. ALL HAND TO HAND is a tactical last resort. The training does two things: First, it gives you something to fall back on, second it gives you confidence and it awakens the part of you that doesn’t think tactically and defensively. Finally, our stuff works, but its still a last resort. Will someone trained fair better than the person untrained. ABSOLUTLEY. But like the man says, “You don’t bring a knife to a gun fight”. If you choose to end the fight with out a weapon, that’s YOUR CHOICE. I’d rather have it and not use it, than need it and not have it.

The person who doesn’t prepare for the absolute worst and thinks they are going to get out of every situation with just their empty hand is either very ignorant, very lucky or very dead.

Just like the sign says www.thetruthaboutselfdefnse.com

Maybe I didn’t sell a video, but I still have to look at my self in the mirror.

© www.thetruthaboutseldefense.com

Damian Ross is the owner of Zenshin and instructor of Tekkenryu jujutsu and Kodokan Judo. He started competing in the combative sport of wrestling in 1975 at the age of 7 and began his study of Asian martial arts with Moo Duk Kwan Tae Kwon Do at the age of 16 in 1984. In 1989, Shinan Cestari gave a seminar at Sensei Ross’s dojo. Sensei Ross has trained under Shinan Cestari’s direction ever since. In addition to Tekkenryu Jujutsu, Judo and Tae Kwon Do, Sensei Ross has also studied Bando. Sensei Ross continues his study of Judo under the direction of 8th degree black belt Yoshisada Yonezuka and Tekkenryu Jujutsu under it’s founder, Carl Cestari. Below are is a list of some of his title ranks:

Yodan (fourth degree black belt) Tekkenryu Jujutsu under Carl Cestari
Shodan (First degree black belt) Kodokan Judo under Yoshisada Yonezuka
Varsity Wrestling Lehigh University under Thad Turner
2nd Degree Black Belt Tae Kwon Do
http://www.thetruthaboutselfdefense.com

One of the great “unintended consequences” of learning about combat-based martial arts and self defense are the almost staggering fitness consequences.

In fact, short bouts of intense sparring — even if for just 15 minutes — is one of the single best workouts you’ll ever get and can sometimes do wonders for your sex drive.

The reason why is because, when you spar, you are forced to focus on quick bursts of compound movements that work everything in your body at once. And not just your arms, legs, back, neck. But your internal organs — like your heart, lungs, and kidneys.

And during these short, intense sparring sessions…you naturally and scientifically turn on your body’s “built-in” fat-burning, muscle-toning and anti-aging systems.

It’s absolutely true.

In fact, your metabolism speeds up, your muscles burn unwanted fat and your body releases “human growth hormones” — which many experts believe not only boost your sex drive, but can also stop, slow down and even turn back your body’s “age clock.”

The result?

Within weeks — and I see this all the time in my street-fighting classes — you automatically drop weight, gain new flexibility and stamina, and look and feel like you’re “aging backwards.”

All from just 15-minutes a day of intense sparring 4 or 5 times per week.

And that’s why if you are not involved in some sort of self defense or martial arts program — whether it be in a classroom or even at home with a good home study course — then you are missing out on some truly spectacular health benefits you won’t find at the gym or by doing traditional exercising.

One of the most popular self-defense weapons in use today by the average citizen and police officers alike is the “Kubotan” (pronounced: ‘koo-bow-tahn’), or simply the self-defense keychain. The versatility of the this effective little item is that it lends itself well to being used in different ways by people with different martial arts backgrounds, as well as by people with no formal training in the martial arts whatsoever. In fact, this is perhaps one of the Kubotan’s greatest advantages and therefore strengths, in that it can be picked up and easily used by any martial artist, regardless of style or principle fighting method. Regardless of whether a practitioner has studied the techniques of Aikido, Jujitsu, Karate, Kung Fu, and, yes, Ninjutsu - the art of the Ninja - the self-defense keychain fits easily into, and increases the power of just about any technique.

As an example, a Karate-oriented practitioner who is trained in, and has a preference for striking techniques, can utilize the ends of the weapon for painful blows to soft tissue areas or disabling strikes to an opponent’s vital points. Conversely, a practitioner schooled in a grappling-based system like Jujitsu or Aikido, may feel more comfortable using the Kubotan for hooking, trapping, and pain compliance techniques, using the leverage and intense pain generated by the weapon to immobilize and neutralize an opponent’s ability to get at him.

Certainly, any school or practitioner that takes the view of having no preferential fighting method - that means that he or she is comfortable with both striking and grappling - will have even more options with this weapon. Composite styles, like ninjutsu and many other authentic warrior arts, find that the Kubotan, to them actually a simplified or modified version of what they call an eda-koppo stick, allows them the flexibility to go from striking-to-grappling and back again with no trouble whatsoever.

Even for those without experience in a formal martial art, the Kubotan provides an economical and easily-learned method of self-protection. This powerful weapon can, and should, also be a part of any good self-defense program. Its ease-of-use and relatively short learning-curve make it the ideal “first-weapon” for beginning students. It can be used to provide a level of comfort, security, and preparedness while the student is learning more scientific unarmed techniques, tactics, and strategies that naturally take more time to internalize.

For many, the self-defense keychain weapon is a tool of pain, pure-and-simple. Regardless of whether you’re using it to strike, dig into sensitive areas, or apply crushing pressure to small bones and joints, the fact is that you don’t need years of training to be good with it. You can practically, with little-or-no extensive training, pick one up and be ready to at-least hold-your-own against most common attackers.

Please note that I’m not saying that a certain level of training wouldn’t significantly increase your ability and chances of success, especially in a more aggressive situation, but for most of the assaults and types of attackers you’ll most likely encounter in Today’s world, it’s the perfect starting point for most new students.

As always, my advice is to find a qualified instructor, or a professionally delivered course, where you can be introduced to the weapon properly. Then, when you have the basic ideas and principles, combined with the fundamentals of unarmed self-protection tactics, you can go on to explore the full potential of both the weapon and it’s uses against a real-world assailant who might want to do more than slap you around.

Jeffrey M. Miller is the founder and director of Warrior Concepts International in Sunbury, Pennsylvania. He is the author of the “Foundations of Self-Defense Mastery” eCourse, which is available free of charge to subscribers of his self defense newsletter. You can subscribe to the newsletter at: http://www.warrior-concepts-online.com/newsletter-subscribe-self-defense.html He is also the creator of the EDR: Non-Martial Arts Defensive Training Program, author of the book, “The Karate-Myth” as-well-as the powerful, “Danger Prevention Tactics” video. Find out how you can get his book, FREE, when you order “Danger Prevention Tactics” here: http://www.warrior-concepts-online.com/self-defense-video-dpt1.html Additional information is available by visiting on his site.

There are as many approaches to self-defense as there are reasons why people study it.

What are YOUR reasons and what approach are YOU using? How confident are you that your efforts will produce the results what you want?

What is it about self-defense that interests you?

You must be looking for something or you wouldn’t be reading this, right?

Some people learn self-defense to defend themselves from the violent actions of others! Duh!!!) They want to satisfy the essential need for security and control.

Others are after self-confidence and an improved self-image.

Then there are those who don’t care much about “fighting” at all. They’re just looking for an enjoyable, functional and “cool” way to get into great shape.

Maybe you’re after “ALL OF THE ABOVE.” (like me Well then keep reading friend… because I’ve got some thoughts to throw at ya…

===== Two Approaches To Self-Defense =====

There are two broad categories of self-defense information. Whether they spell it out or not, all self-defense books, articles, classes and seminars are based on one or both of two “themes”… a MENTAL APPROACH or a PHYSICAL APPROACH.

The “Physical Approach” is based on “EFFICIENCY.” It pursues physical skill development as a self-defense solution. It involves learning punches, kicks, grappling and defensive techniques. Although avoiding a physical altercation is given “passing attention,” EXACTLY how to do that is often glazed over or not addressed at all.

Whether you enroll in a martial arts class, sign up for a self-defense seminar or join a boxing club, the focus is to teach you how to physically perform “fight-related” techniques.

“Fitness-based” training, such as Tae Bo, Cardio Kickboxing and Boxercise also fall in this category.

The assumption here is that your BODY is your weapon and the harder you train and the better you get at performing self-defense techniques, the safer and more capable you will be to defend yourself.

The “Mental Approach” is based on “Effectiveness.” It is focused on “PersonalSafety” theories, concepts and strategies.

This theory-based approach involves gaining an understanding of predatory situations; how they happen, how they can be anticipated and recognized, how they can be avoided and how to respond if you encounter one.

Your BRAIN is considered your most powerful self-defense weapon, and this training (hypothetically) makes you “SMARTER” and more capable of wise decisions in the stress and chaos of threatening situations.

“Efficiency and Effectiveness” What’s the Difference?

Perhaps the point I am trying to make will be clearer if we come to a common understanding of exactly what I mean by these two terms. Before you read on… think for a moment and come up with your own definition of these terms… Done? Here’s mine…

————————————————-
Efficiency Is Doing Things Right

Effectiveness Is Doing The Right Things

————————————————-

Can you see the difference? I hope so, because it’s HUUUUUUUUUUUUGE!!!! Here’s how those terms relate to self-defense training.

===== The Physical Approach To Self-Defense ======

The Physical Approach involves learning and practicing physical skills “efficiently.” The faster, more coordinated, more powerful your striking, kicking, grappling and defensive techniques are, the more “successful” you consider yourself.

There are many self-defense courses that deal exclusively with learning techniques, with and without training partners, as a TOTAL solution for all your self-defense problems.

Now don’t get me wrong… I’m not criticizing this approach in any way. I teach physical skills classes and seminars myself.

Learning physical skills can dramatically improve your odds of surviving and escaping a violent situation. It can even reduce the probability of being confronted or attacked.

If done properly, on a regular basis (which I highly recommend), self-defense conditioning and skills training like sparring or hitting a heavy bag, will provide a ton of physical, mental and emotional benefits.

BUT is the exclusive practice of techniques a sufficient “self-defense solution?”

===== Benefits Of The Physical Approach =====

Physical skills training is a GREAT way to get in shape and stay there. If properly done, ongoing self-defense training is a fun and functional, full-body workout.

The self-confidence, fitness, and athletic qualities gained through regular self-defense training will have a positive influence on your “victim profile” (behavior and body language) that you project to a potential predator. It can decrease the probability of being targeted. (Dirt bags don’t pick fights with people they perceive are likely and capable to fight back)

Unlike “single-exposure” self-defense training (where you learn a technique once and never practice it again,) ONGOING self-defense training is proactive.

Regular self-defense training “rewards” you in many ways, even if you NEVER have to defend yourself.

Regular self-defense training “defends and protects” you against more probable and legitimate “threats” to your life, your health and well-being. You are at more risk from poor lifestyle habits and a lack of exercise than you are from a mugger or rapist.

===== Drawbacks to a Physical Only Approach =====

If you limit your self-defense efforts exclusively to physical skills training, you also limit your response options in a volatile situation. You are limited to a “Fight/Don’t Fight” decision. There are more ways to resolve a volatile situations than that (there are 5 actually). Doing the “wrong thing” well (like fighting when you don’t have to) can get you injured, arrested or sued.

Regular self-defense training makes you feel great. You’ll feel confident, energetic and fit. (so how is that a drawback?) Don’t make the mistake of over estimating your potential of defeating an attacker and end up over your head in an encounter with someone who is tougher, meaner and more malicious than you are.

Don’t think that your weekly cardio-kickboxing class has turned you into a “trained killer!”

Even the “best” fighter will be dropped like a bag of dirt if he or she doesn’t develop appropriate awareness and avoidance skills and is caught off guard. Physical skills don’t protect you from unanticipated acts of violence.

===== The Mental Approach To Self-Defense =====

The Mental Approach addresses the “big picture” of predatory situations. In my self-defense system for example, there are “SEVEN” separate and interrelated aspects of a comprehensive personal safety or self-defense system.

The intent of this mental approach is to make you “smarter” and more capable of avoiding, diffusing and responding EFFECTIVELY by doing the RIGHT THINGS in a volatile situation. By the “RIGHT THINGS,” I’m referring to the most effective response strategies to successfully resolve a threatening or volatile situation.

Fighting back with physical self-defense techniques is only part of staying safe.

===== Benefits Of The Mental Approach =====

An accurate understanding of the dynamics of predatory situations increases the odds of anticipating, avoiding, recognizing and responding to them. The “best” result to a violent encounter is not when you manage to fight your way out of it. It’s when it doesn’t happen in the first place!

Not all volatile situations can be solved by fighting. Effectiveness in a self-defense situation allows you to assess and evaluate the circumstances and select the most effective response strategy to implement to gain or regain control.

A sense of control that accompanies proper mental training decreases the stress and fear associated with volatile or predatory situations. And that increased sense of control and self-confidence can reduce the potential of being victimized.

===== Drawbacks To A Mental Only Approach =====

An “information-only” approach does not significantly change the body language that you project to a potential assailant. Although some self-defense instructors imply that you can “fake” non-victim body language by walking briskly, standing straight, and “pretending to be confident.” That will only go so far. Pretending to be coordinated, strong and physically fit is easier said than done.

Knowing the best response option in a given situation, be it running away or fighting back, is of little value if you can’t successfully pull it off. If you haven’t developed your skills and fitness levels by ongoing self-defense practice, how likely are you to out-run or out-fight an assailant?

===== One OR The Other Is Incomplete =====

You’ve probably figured out by now that ONE OR THE OTHER of these two approaches is an incomplete approach to being able to defend yourself. An optimal strategy is to combine and balance your ability to make smart, effective decisions with the ability to carry those decisions through to a successful conclusion. BOTH mental AND physical elements are required for optimal self-defense success.

Be effective first, then be efficient. A medical equivalent might be to “Diagnose First The Perscribe.” To successfully resolve a volatile situation, you need sound judgement to decide on the best course of action AND the physical skills and ability to implement your game plan.

The degree to which you pursue each approach has a lot to do with your capabilities, limitations and the goals you have in relation to your study of self-defense.

If you are smaller, weaker, older for example, your emphasis should lean more toward personal safety strategies and be supplemented with physical skills training. If your self-defense goals are simply to avoid victimization and to stay out of trouble, then learn everything you can about the dynamics of volatile situations.

On the other hand, maybe you are fit, athletic and skillful. Perhaps you already train regularly and feel capable of “holding your own” if you have to defend yourself. If thats the case, here are a couple pieces of advice to consider:

There’s always someone tougher and meaner than you are! Even highly skilled fighters and martial artists need awareness and avoidance skills. Physical techniuqes are of little value if you are set up, sucker punched, or ambushed. NOBODY wins a fight. You may defeat your adversary and “still” be injured yourself. Also, just because you didn’t instigate the confrontation doesn’t mean that you won’t find yourself being criminally charged or civilly sued for defending yourself.

The point I’m trying to make is that the BEST approach to self-defense training is to learn to do the right thing by learning everything you can about the dynamics of predatory situations AND engage in regular self-defense training so that you can “do things right” by developing the skills and conditioning to carry out a desired self-defense strategy.

===== Two Approaches? Two Resources! =====

The questions I get by email and in person, can be divided into two clear categories… “What-Should-I-Do-If…questions” and “How-Do-I…questions.” Or in otherwords effectiveness and efficiency.

It is because of these different but complimentary aspects of self-defense that I’ve decided to “split” the focus of my web sites so I can address each in greater detail.

I’m in the process of restructuring of my web sites to assist you in finding the information you are looking for.

http://www.ProtectiveStrategies.com will continue to be “home base” for my self-defense articles and newsletter. The site will maintain a “Get Smart Focus” by dealing with the Big Picture of personal safety concepts and will address all seven components of self-defense:

=> Self-Defense Psychology
=> Self-Defense Intelligence
=> Victim Selection
=> Predatory Recognition
=> Self-Defense Response Options
=> Prevention and Avoidance
=> Self-Defense Training Methods

My new site, http://www.ToughenUp.com/ takes the “Get Tough Focus” of the seventh component: Self-Defense Training Methods to the next level. It provides specific “how-to-train” resources and advice for people who want to incorporate ongoing self-defense training for a variety of reasons.

Randy LaHaie

Protective Strategies

Randy LaHaie is the president of Protective
Strategies and has been teaching reality-based
self-defense for over 30 years. He is the author
of several “Toughen Up Combative Training Guides”
(http://www.ToughenUp.com)

Subscribe to his FREE SELF-DEFENSE NEWSLETTER at
http://www.ProtectiveStrategies.com

In recent years there has been an influx of information in
the martial arts media concerning pre-emptive striking and
whether you should use it as a part of your self-defence
training or not.

This media frenzy generated a lot of interest in the subject
(for and against) so this article is going to provide a slightly
different approach to the issue and bring into the equation how
this affects martial art teachers from the perspective of adults
AND children.

==========
ADULTS
==========

O.K., first of all, should we teach hitting first at all?
I think, yes, we should. However it is obviously not as
simple as that, even when only taking into account adults.

Where adults are concerned, if you choose to teach them
pre-emption, you need to make it clear that it is a last
resort! Also you need to make it clear that they MUST be
in fear for their safety for it to be acceptable.

They need to be sure an attack on them is imminent
essentially.

Of course, you must have faith in your students to suggest
such a direct course of action - you must trust they won’t
abuse such knowledge!

If in ANY doubt DO NOT teach it at all!

============
CHILDREN
============

Where children are concerned hitting first, and teaching such
strategies, is in my humble opinion a big NO NO! You cannot
really compare situations a child and an adult might find
themselves in (perhaps many of you will disagree?).

Indeed I actually think to teach hitting first to children as
part of a martial arts class is irresponsible and dangerous.

It would be highly likely to create situations at school and
home where the child could justify his hitting people first
by saying his or her martial arts instructor said it was
acceptable!

Obviously there may be the rare occasion where it would be
in their best interest to do so, BUT I feel this is
outweighed by the potential problems it could cause.

While teaching children I think the best course of action
is to focus on building strong character traits through
structured physical training and avoid the ‘nastier’ side
of the arts until they are older with a little more life
experience.

==============
CONCLUSION
==============

It is (obviously) hard to make a concrete conclusion about
such a subject.

I feel for those (adult) students you trust totally,
highlighting pre-emptive strikes as a viable option when they
have no other option is acceptable.

For children I think, as stated above, it is not necessary and
the time is better spent developing their characters and physical skills.

After all, they grow up fast enough, and showing the grittier
aspects of the arts only serves to unnecessarily speed up
this process.

(c) Tim Webb 2005

Tim Webb is a fitness instructor, Ju Jutsu instructor, and competitor. His site http://www.JuJutsu-Training.com offers inspiration through articles and product recommendations that can boost your mental focus and physical fitness for martial arts!

This is such a powerful tool that it should leave no question unanswered for you and allow you to create an infinite number of techniques and drills. As this is a principle rather than a technique based system, here are the principles:

PRINCIPLE1: you get what you train for

PRINCIPLE2: if you want a specific answer, ask a specific question

What’s the problem with martial arts and artists? Why do they argue so much? Why cant we find one style that is the best? After all we all only have two eyes, two arms, two legs and one head. (Except if your from a “close community”). Never mind Dragon style, Tiger style, Twisted Badger, Irrational Donkey style… what about “human style”?

The problem is this:

you can’t just fight. It hurts. Bits of you will break. That’s why its called “fighting” not “hugging” or “tickling”. You’re trying to hurt each other. The only way to learn it is to do something dangerous and painful- its a double bind.

That is why one of streetfightsecrets.com ’s prime objectives is to get as close to reality as possible as safely as possible.
How do you do that?

Flying a plane is dangerous and potentially very expensive. Solution: Flight Simulators.

You must have a certain number of hours virtual “flight time” before you can competently do it for real.

We haven’t yet got the technology to create a virtual reality simulator for hand to hand combat. Though we do have them for firearms training. Hand to hand is such an involved, complex, multi-sensory experience it could be many years yet before we do develop the technology to accomplish this objective satisfactorily.

Until then we must do the best we can. It is this aspect of out training that is the MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR in determining how proficient we are in reality (in the “street”!).

That is why the main focus of this manual is principles and drills. There are pictures and descriptions in the manual of techniques and options, but you should by now have seen all these before.

What would you have a hi-tech virtual reality fight simulator do? What scenarios would you focus on? What ranges?

Imagine that. You could practise for anything. What would it be?
Can you get close to that in real life? In my experience the answer to that nine times out of ten would be: yes.

Game Theory

Imagine we had that kind of technology. What kind of games could we develop to teach kids (and adults) how to fight? I had an idea for a DOOM type game. In DOOM your first level attackers are really slow and use one attack over and over again, but your options are also crappy because you haven’t picked up many weapons yet. Could we adapt that for street fighting? Yes. Is there a way of simulating it in the real world? Yes. But you need good training partners.

Here are a couple of ideas for games you could play for beginners learning to cope with multiple opponents.

level1. person who is “on” stands in middle of 5 opponents, she has to break out of the circle, opponents must keep her in without using their arms. (principle being developed is breaking the circle)

level2. person who is “on” wears gum shield. 5 opponents wear heavy gloves. They may attack her only with big, slow haymakers. They may hit her in the back of head. She must stay in arena without being hit for 45 seconds. (principle being developed is positioning so multiple attackers get in each others way and spatial, peripheral and rear awareness.)

level3. person who is “on” wears a gi top. All 5 attackers wear belly shields. The attackers objective is to drag her to the floor using gi. She may only defend with front kick strikes to belly shields. (develops use of front push kick to defend, coping with being pushed and pulled, maintaining balance under duress etc)

These are just some ideas for games or drills. You get what you train for. You are only ever as good as the games you play.
My advise would be to keep these drills specific. Drill for a particular principle or technique.
top of page
Or…

You can use the FIGHT SIMULATOR as a means to answer questions. A really fun, creative thing to do that always creates a buzz with students is to present them with a problem and let them find their own solutions.

If a student has been attacked in a certain way or is worried about being attacked in a certain way or by a certain type of person work to create those circumstances and find a solution.

eg: one of my female students had been thrown up against a wall and pinned with a one handed lapel grab whilst being threatened with a glass in the assailants other hand. I got everyone in the class to do it with a partner and a water bottle as a prop. They came up with as many solutions and escapes and counterattacks as possible, we analysed some of the best ones and everyone experimented with them.

This works well because it causes the mind to think in a proactive, creative, solution finding way as in a real scenario. You must be able to think for yourself and think on your feet.
From the best solutions we took from the class we then did a live drill. A live drill is like engaging in a section of a fight. Just for a few frames of the film. It should be very intense, but short lived (no more than 10 seconds, this is not sparring, unless you compare to three step sparring).

One of the counterattacks was as follows:

1. A slams D into wall. Left hand at lapel, right hand brandishing water bottle.

2. D drops weight and hips down and into wall, goes into an ambush response position: bends knees, curves spine, hunches shoulders, tucks in chin whilst simultaneously, raising both hands and setting her right foot against crease of where wall meets floor. right hand swings loose from outside in and up in anticlockwise direction (wouldn’t break grip of larger stronger attacker but brings right arm back into play.)

3. Left hand reaches for attackers elbow crease to cover weapon wielding arm, right hand hooks attackers left collarbone. Springing off from wall with right foot, stamping down with left foot, straightening her spine, pushing her hips forward to drive a big knee into the groin whilst simultaneously yanking collarbone down and in towards her and clawing the forearm muscle points and pulling attackers right arm in and down. Depending on attackers position she gives a stun strike with her forearm, or head butt or a simple shove and then makes her escape or repositions herself to continue assaulting attacker.

Whole drill is less than 5 seconds when done at full speed.
Run it slow first. Attacker should wear a groin guard and defender should not strike at full power.

Defender should wear a gi so attacker can really grab at full force.
The most important thing again is the principle. The defender is growing accustomed to being grabbed and shoved violently, going with that force and responding immediately and viciously.
Try it.

And work through all the “what ifs”. What if attacker immediately tries to use the bottle as a weapon? Can you cover it, work your counterattack and still escape or does something else present itself? Try it and find out!

What if he jerks his hips back to avoid the knee to his groin? Well, you have still caused a reaction which can be capitalised on, so what is the next best step? Would it be to pull his head down and into the wall?

…Whatever- if you are doing this as a teacher with your students avoid the temptation to always provide solutions. Let them find them…

*Excerpt of a chapter from my manual FROM THE CAGE TO THE STREET

Training provided by Richard Grannon. Martial Arts Instructor to Doormen and Bodyguards for over 7 years. NLP Master Practitioner, Consultant Psychologist and Author. Over 15 years of study in martial arts and five years of active work as a bouncer, bodyguard and security consultant. This E-manual represents a distillation of years of study of many styles, technique, experience and quality online coaching. You cannot get this information anywhere else.

This is our last installment on “defining” the parameters of COMBATIVES.

The point, I am sure, will be missed by some but it must be emphasized that this material is historical fact and is accurate in substance and detail. It is an objective view of combatives and NOT a subjective opinion or personal “definition” designed to fill an agenda of one sort or another.

The Battle of Britain began in early July 1940. England was isolated, cut off and alone. The miracle retreat from Dunkirk and the German “Blitzkrieg” across Europe, including the crushing tactical defeat of the famed French “Maginot Line” proved the Third Reich war machine to be virtually unstoppable. Hitler’s plan for the invasion of England, named “Operation Sea Lion” was a daily focal point of danger and concern for the British.

Dunkirk had decimated the British forces and moral was at an all time low. Two recently returned veterans of British colonial rule in Shanghai, China approached the War Office and offered their services at this desperate time. William Ewart Fairbairn, retired as a ranking officer of the Shanghai Municipal Police force and his partner Eric Anthony Sykes, a private arms dealer who served as a “volunteer” in the SMP and who headed the “sniper” unit of the famed Shanghai Riot Squad promised the War Office that their training and methods could in short order make “any one man the equal of ten”. After the debacle at Dunkirk this was a MOST important and dramatic statement. Initially dismissed, these two men went on to PROVE the veracity of their words and convinced the power that be as to absolute effectiveness of their methods. If that meant that an over middle aged W.E. Fairbairn had to place several young bucks in the hospital to prove his point in an impromptu, but VERY realistic “demonstration”, so be it. Those who “tested” Sykes fared NO better. So the methods that these men had developed during decades of very dangerous work in Shanghai now became a highly valued and integral part of training for all British forces and Special Operations personnel.

The attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 coupled with the Imperial Japanese military’s coordinated assault on all American and British forces across the Pacific Rim pulled the United States firmly in this world wide conflagration. We were now fully at war with the Axis forces. Fairbairn who was now in Canada, assigned to the infamous “Camp X” (where along with “unarmed combat” experts WEF and George de Relwyskow was a BRAZILIAN JUDO/JUJUTSU EXPERT, Hmmm…….Colonel Carl Eifler was ALREADY undergoing training here) was ordered to assist the US government agency known as the “The Office of the Co-coordinator of Intelligence” the precursor of the OSS. Eric Anthony Sykes remained in England and found the need for his services in great demand. He also found himself working under the auspice of the British covert force known as the Special Operations Executive.

The history of these men from the early days of Shanghai, up to and thru the war years is an entire story unto itself and beyond the scope of this article. However it must be clearly understood that the contribution of these men had a profound effect and influence on close-combat methods, tactics, and techniques for DECADES after the war. Despite the often heard “argument” that we have somehow “evolved” beyond these methods, we will in future articles put this notion to rest. They were however, certainly NOT the only “experts” involved in this field! An example (one of many) would be A.J. Drexel-Biddle who studied and trained extensively in boxing, Savate, jiu-jitsu, swordplay, knife-fighting and various bayonet methods.

As the United States geared up for war, a major factor began to be publicized. Both here and in Australia the press made a great deal about the superiority of the Japanese fighting man. Part of this was, to be sure, rooted in fact. The Battle of Port Arthur, the turning point in the Russo-Japanese war, several decades earlier, had shown the world the tenacity and ferocity of the Japanese soldier, particularly in the area of close-in man to man combat. Much was made of the large Russian soldier finding abject defeat at the hands of his smaller Japanese adversary when engaged in hand to hand combat(hence a very obvious boost for the creation of Sombo). Jiu-jitsu was given world-wide attention and notoriety in this regard. The Japanese conduct of their war in China also showed the world a seemingly invincible and unstoppable force. A force that was brutal and deadly in the extreme.

So much attention was given over to the training of US and Allied forces in methods that would enable the average soldier to meet the Japanese fighting man on a somewhat equal footing. EVERY branch of the Armed Services began an intensive physical training program designed to meet these needs. Much of the “expert” instruction needed, particularly in the arena of close-quarters man to man combat, came from the civilian quarter. Men with tremendous and varied life-long experience in all forms of “combatives” were tapped to create training programs that would give the Allied soldier sufficient means by which to engage their enemies at close-quarters. The Axis did the same of course, Japan being the obvious factor in this regard, BUT even Adolf Hitler proclaimed the absolute need for boxing and jiu-jitsu in military training as it imparted courage and daring to the average soldier to close with his enemy!

In the US there were a PLETHORA of varied methods and training systems. ANY attempt to narrowly define the methods extant in this era is FOOLISHNESS! Though the contribution of Lt. Colonel Fairbairn is GREAT, as is the influence of Colonel Applegate, there were DOZENS upon DOZENS of different close-quarters battle systems developed. From wrestling, boxing, savate, judo, jiu-jitsu, Chinese boxing, and even football and rugby methods were NOT only drawn upon, but entire “systems” were advocated based on these individual methods. It may come as a surprise to many, but here in the US, even Japanese KARATE was used!

Many of these “unarmed combat” courses were highly complex and technical as they were rooted in the favored methods of the men tasked with their “creation”. Wrestlers tended to rely on that method, Judo men on that system, Boxers on their expertise and so on and so on. Each method also could claim stunning success in actual combat! True after action reports showed that ALL of these methods had merit and COULD be used effectively in the rigors and stress of real battle. However, as the war progressed two major factors began to influence and change these training protocols. One was the fact that more and more men from ALL sorts of varied backgrounds being were drafted into military service, the other was that as demands for more and more replacement troops began to rise the amount of training time became by necessity reduced and limited.

The approach that seemed MOST feasible and useful was one that COMBINED the “best” or most effective, efficient and quickly learned methods as well as those most well RETAINED! The rudiments of boxing and wrestling were made part of an overall general physical conditioning program and “unarmed combat” became a specialized block of instruction. These courses in “unarmed combat”, “hand to hand combat”, “combat judo” and so forth again sought to COMBINE the most advantageous holds, throws, trips, locks, strangles, blows, strikes and kicks from all the varied methods available. The ONLY truly limiting factor here was the TIME element. Other considerations were also important. The O’Neill (another Shanghai veteran and ranking Kodokan Yudansha) method is a classic example of a system specifically tailored for both the training environment available as well as the NATURE of the combat engagement expected. There were even attempts made to instruct the military in actual Koryu Jujutsu systems here in the US! However the MOST effective systems still sought to MIX ALL the varied methods of physical combat.

As the war progressed more and more after action “intelligence” gathered from the reality of actual battle helped shape and determine training priorities. Many methods of close-combat began to be “trimmed” down to those fundamentals that proved MOST effective OVERALL and most applicable to ALL TRAINEES across a wide and varied spectrum of physical attributes and skill.

Applegate was perhaps the most vocal of these advocates owing to his exposure in the INFANTRY JOURNAL and the publishing of “KILL or GET KILLED”. And he was NOT without his critics, as was Fairbairn.

Some courses were so short in duration that they involved ONLY SEVERAL HOURS of instruction. Others were quite involved and very complete in their syllabus content. Many are familiar with the Navy V-5 programs and the training at Benning, but lesser known is the very EXTENSIVE training at places such as Fort Meade and at the Hawaii Jungle Warfare complex, just to name two! Here at these locations, and such training was conducted from Brooklyn to California, a very complete and MIXED program of “combatives” was taught. From the CIC training center in Chicago to the Army training camps in Colorado, from Parris Island to the Ranger/Commando schools in the Hawaiian Islands, from the training bases in England prior to D-Day to the “Killing” school in Palestine, the METHODS taught ran the FULL gamut of man to man tooth and nail “combatives”. From the complex to the “instinctive kill” (a method designed to take FULL advantage of so-called natural “animal” killing instinct) ALL these methods, systems, and approaches FALL under the definition of COMBATIVES! Even the OSS personnel training at Area B were shown the methods of SIAMESE boxing (read Muay Thai)! From Anglo Boxing, wrestling and grappling, French “foot-fighting” (including Assaut Vite savate), Indian Varma-adi/Varmannie, Chinese boxing, “Roman” boxing, Japanese Judo/Jujutsu and Karate, Siamese boxing, Burmese boxing-Bando (remember the CBI), western fencing, Filipino edged weapons and ANY and ALL other systems (including almost every weapon known to man) deemed effective in DISPATCHING one’s enemies to the hereafter were STUDIED, RESEARCHED. IMPLEMENTED and TRAINED! One WWII era US hand to hand combat manual makes reference to INDONESIAN “methods”!

This IS the legacy of COMBATIVES! This is the TRUE DEFINITION of COMBATIVES! And to those who need to “pigeon hole” others into the “box” of “only” doing World War II “combatives”………………………..well, applying the above definition based on the TRUE historical RECORD, then HELL YES!…………………I do follow the LEGACY of WORLD WAR TWO “COMBATIVES”!

Note: If there is sufficient interest we will also be pleased to cover ALL of these topics in FULL detail based on OBJECTIVE historical facts.

Future newsletter articles will go into depth on history, training and method covering armed and unarmed combat as well as topics on various subjects from Shanghai to “Shangri-La”(for those still wandering around in La-La land).

©2005 www.thetruthaboutselfdefense.com

Carl Cestari began his study of the martial arts with judo at the age of 7 under the direction of Yoshisada Yonezuka. During the past forty plus years Carl has dedicated his life to studying the martial arts, hand to hand combat systems, history and religion. What makes Carl unique is his combination of martial arts, law enforcement and military and real world experience. Carl has been exposed to a multitude of people with a wide variety experience. The following is a list of some of Carl’s ranks and honors.

Shinan (Founder) Tekkenryu jujutsu
Ryokudan (6th degree) Koshinkai Karate under John Burrelle
Godan (5th degree) Jujutsu under Clarke of the World Jujutsu Fedaration (now defunct)
Sandan (3rd degree) Nippon Kempo under Narabu Sada
Nidan (2nd degree) Judo under Masafumi Suzuki
Shodan (1st degree) Judo under Yoshisada Yonezuka
Shodan (1st degree) Shukokai Karate under Kimura, Kadachi and Yonezuka
Shodan (1st degree) Daitoryu Aikijujutsu
Instructors Certificate- Charles Nelson System of Self Defense under Charlie Nelson
http://www.thetruthaboutselfdefense.com