I selected 10 systems that I.docx

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I selected 10 systems that Ive practiced and found to be self-defense worthy. Its hard to say

just one art does it all. The best advice is to try them all and get in combat shape. Ultimately,

its not the art thats important; its the individual. Its not the technique that makes the

difference; its the delivery. A smooth stone that hits its mark is going to be more effective

than a .44 Magnum bullet that misses. Train with purpose; the more you sweat in the gym,

the less you bleed on the street.

Arnis

This Philippine art contains the most street-lethal knife skills available.

Kyokushin Karate

If you complete the 100 fights required for a black belt in kyokushin karate, you possess the

attributes required for self-defense.

Kobudo

A street-savvy warrior will take a weapon over his empty hands every time. When you

become an expert with traditional weapons, you have an advantage in real combat.

Krav Maga

The gun and knife defenses taught in krav maga are perhaps the best in the field.

Muay Thai

Muay Thais a realistic combat art with an emphasis on training and conditioning.

Kano Jiu-Jitsu

The forerunner of judo, this early 20th-century art developed by Jigoro Kano was more

streetwise than ringwise.

Gracie Jiu-Jitsu

Its been proved effective in street combat in the toughest cities in the world.

Extreme Self-Protection

It was designed by Mark Hatmaker to cover all ranges of combat.

Dirty Boxing


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While many fights end on the ground, almost all fights start standing up. Dirty boxing, aka

clinch boxing or trap boxing, prepares you for strikes that work in stand-up grappling and

moves that are illegal in the boxing ring.

Jeet Kune Do Unlimited

Created by Burt Richardson, its perhaps the most combat-efficient interpretation of Bruce

Lees method of scientific street fighting.

Kickboxing

Firstly, and this is true for all these entries, if youre on the street and a stranger attempts to

mug you, or worse, he most likely doesnt know any particular fighting style, other than

swing for the fences and keep moving forward.

There are quite a few offshoots of kickboxing, the most famous of which is Muay Thai,

which roughly translates to art of the eight limbs.

Kickboxing for self-defense concentrates on its version of punches, knees, and kicks: fast-

paced, distracting, and aimed at all available openings. If the attacker has a knife or gun, and

is within arms reach, he will use the weapon. The defender is thus armed with more

weapons, hands, feet, knees, elbows, head.

Simply walk toward the attacker (who has any weapon but a gun), and throw a front kick

straight up against his chin as hard as possible. Kickboxing thrives on this sort of move, and

teaches the practitioner to execute it with such extreme speed, faster than the attacker can

react, that it virtually rules out the risk of fancy kicks. Do it correctly and it will almost

always break his jaw, crush his larynx, shatter his teeth, force him to bite off his tongue, etc.

He will not fight after this. This sort of kick is well trained to the point that it can, in fact, be

delivered efficiently, that is, quickly and powerfully, without being telegraphed.

Alternatively, step to the side, grab the attackers weapon arm, and sling your forehead into

the his nose. This will not hurt you nearly as much as you think. The attackers nose, on theother hand, will shatter like a firecracker.
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Well trained kickboxers practice something called combat qi,which is the physical

conditioning of any part of the body through repeated damage, until it no longer sends

sufficient pain signals to the brain to bother the person. Kickboxers will roll a baseball bat

handle up and down the shin firmly enough to cause aching, for about an hour a day for 2

years. The tibia is repeatedly damaged and rebuilds itself stronger and thicker. Eventually, the

kickboxer can kick the baseball bat in half with his or her shin, and not feel pain.

9

Karate

Here, special emphasis is placed on attack deflection. Most punches or knife lunges are

performed straight toward you, not in an arc. Few fighters are stupid enough to try a looping

haymaker.

Thus, step to the side, creating a lateral line toward the attackers arm, strike the attackers

punch or knife hand, then quickly strike his lower side, belly, or back with your other fist.

This is very difficult to defend against, and most likely he will not be able to. Push forward

and throw a knee into his quadriceps. This hurts like crazy.

Strikes to the face and head are important, but the attacker will expect them, so instead, block

his right-handed attack with your left fist (or vice versa), and punch with your other hand

straight into the soft spot below his sternum as hard as possible, twisting the hips. This target

is the solar plexus, and will incapacitate him as effectively as a strike to the groin.

Or, if he charges forward, snap a front kick straight up with the ball of the foot planted as

hard as possible into his stomach or solar plexus, not the groin. If one of the former targets is

struck, the attacker will be forced back in agony, by means of his center of gravity. He is

leaning forward while charging, and a kick to his groin will cause him to lunge into you.

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Aikido

An interesting art that is immediately recognizable. It does have a few striking moves in it,

but for the most part, it is based on the principle that when an attacker strikes, he leaves some

part of his defense vulnerable. If you, the defender, do not attack him, you remain defensively

invulnerable.

Do not resist his attack. Use its momentum against him. Steven Seagal is the most famous

Aikido practitioner in the Western world. He may be a horrible actor, but he is a genuine 7th

degree black belt in Aikido, and his signature move is absolutely essential to any self-defense

arsenal: the kote gaeshi, or forearm return.

The attacker steps forward and throws a straight punch. You sidestep, snatch hold of his

wrist, and twist around in time with his punch. Do it right, and it will fling him completely

off balance, using his own momentum, while you whirl around, and twist his wrist toward the

outside. He probably will not flip over like the classic theatrics in a Seagal film, but his wrist

may well break. Hes unlikely to fight anymore after that.

Most critics of this art point out that it is nearly impossible for the average black belt to catch

a persons punch and turn fast enough to perform this move, but thats not true. Its actually a

very easy move to learn and perfect.

Aikido thrives on joint locks, which do not require much speed to perform, compared to the

kote gaeshi, and are extremely effective in immobilizing and incapacitating an attacker.

7

Wing Chun
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Wing Chun Kung Fu is the art that Yip Man taught to Bruce Lee, and which Lee rebelled

against as too slow and formal for self-defense. Thats quite misleading. He meant that it was

insufficient for him when fighting against professional martial art experts, like Wong Jack

Man, with whom he fought a famous duel.

Lee invented his own version of Wing Chun, which became entry #5, because of the

inadequacies he noticed in Wing Chun. With this method, he defeated Wong in 3 minutes,

when almost any other fighter in the world would have needed a lot more time, and would

have suffered much more injury.

He won by delivering Wing Chuns signature punches: they do not use the hips, but are

instead, very fast, rapid-fire left, right punches to the attackers chest, not the belly, not the

throat, but the sternum or solar plexus.

You block the opponents attack with one hand and respond with the other fist straight into

his chest, following with the other fist, again and again, walking into the attacker as you

punch. The forward motion of your whole body adds power, which, coupled with the arm

strength of the average 100 pound woman, results in about 300 pounds of force rammedrepeatedly into the attackers chest. The only thing left is to practice your speed in doing this.

15 punches before the attacker can react are not unheard of. These punches also have the

advantage of keeping the elbows close to the sides, preventing the attacker from grabbing the

punching arm.

Then theres the centerline defense versus looping attacks, like a haymaker or roundhouse

kick. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, so instead of picking up extra

power by swinging around and twisting the hips, youblock the attackers strike and

simultaneously throw a front kick straight forward into his belly. This will take almost

anyone off his feet the first time, if you kick as hard as possible.
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The closer range of this method favors a shorter person, like a woman defending herself

against a would-be rapist, etc. The closer the two people are, the easier it is for the shorter

person to invade the reach of the larger person, effectively penetrating his defense.

6

Jiu-Jitsu

This is the most universal style on this list. It is a true hybrid, incorporating elements of

grappling, hard striking, eye gouging, choke holds, biting, joint locks, as well as the

awareness of the defenders center of gravity versus the attackers center of gravity.

You throw your attacker by lowering your center of gravity under his, and jerking him over

you, or around you. Its simple and effective. If he attacks with a weapon, you trap this arm,

then deliver a knife-hand strike to his collarbone, while shoving him backward and down,

locking the weapon wrist and breaking it.

If he throws either a front or roundhouse kick of any kind, he must stand on the other leg.

You sidestep his kick, trap the leg, and deliver your own kick into his standing knee, breaking

it backward, then whipping him around by his raised leg. He will go down and will be

unlikely to be capable of much retaliation.

If he charges forward and grabs your shirt, you do not move backward. You move forward

and bend down, ram your hip into his midsection, grab one of his shoulders with one hand,

and with the other grab him around his back, and whip him over your own shoulder, shoving

upward with both legs. A 100 pound woman can do this very easily to a 250 pound man. You

can then trap one of his arms and lock one of its joints while he is down.

5

Jeet Kune Do
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Bruce Lee envisioned a style without style, which seems nonsensical. But try to understand

the concept of adaptation. Lee emphasized this above all: the worst thing you can do is to

anticipate the outcome of a fight. You ought not to be thinking of anything but his attack and

your response. Clear all other thoughts from your head, or they will slow you down.

Thus, you use one stance, the western fencing en garde stance. Remain bouncing on the

toes in order to switch from left forward to right forward foot, to retreat or to advance, to be

able to kick with either leg. Footwork is all-important in a real fight, as it determines how far

you are from the attacker.

Elements of Wing Chun include close-quarters trapping of hands and feet; no kicks higher

than the waist, since kicking higher than this leaves the groin and standing leg vulnerable;

and simultaneous attack/defense (see #1).

Elements of Jiu-jitsu include body throws and strike deflection. Emphasis is placed on the

speed of strike combinations, and well trained practitioners can strike the attackers throat up

to 10 times in one second.

4

Western Boxing
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Youve heard stories of would-be muggers picking the wrong old man to mug. The fighttypically ends with one swing. Thats all a boxer needs. In fact, boxers have been imprisoned

(wrongfully, in my opinion) for defending themselves from muggers, murderers, bank

robbers, etc., on the grounds that their hands are lethal weapons. Boxers throw punches

faster, harder and more accurately than any other trained fighter on the planet.

This is because boxers train on average for 4 years to do just that: punch properly. They are

not allowed to kick, so their hands are all they have. Consider that Rocky Marciano knocked

out Rex Layne with an off-balance, out-of-reach right hand, covered with a 16-ounce leather

glove. This punch knocked Laynes mouthpiece 10 feet across the ring, out of clenched jaws,

and sheared off four of his teeth at the gumline.

Boxers also toughen their bodies religiously, every day, to strengthen their muscles for

endurance and durability. They dont look as hulkingly large as bodybuilders, but their

muscles are as powerful and hard as a farmers.

They punch, block, bob and weave going forward, and punch, block, bob and weave going

backward. They are drilled relentlessly with the maxim, Always protect yourself. The

hands stay on both sides of the head, the posture crouched so that the whole body is ready for

explosive power, and that the front of the torso is protected by the forearms.

Your target is the side of the chin, which will wrench the attackers head sideways and shut

off his brain by pinching the spinal cord in the neck. His strength and rage do not matter. He

will black out instantaneously.

3

Brazilian Jiu-jitsu
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This hybrid mixes Jiu-jitsus standing throws and strikes with ground fighting, which

emphasizes joint manipulation and overall control of the opponent, effectively ending a fight

very quickly. The larger the attacker, the more easily he can be grappled off his feet, using his

center of gravity against him, and forcing him to submit (or pass out).

Once on the ground, the first thing Brazilian jiu-jitsu teaches is to seize a limb and break it at

a joint: kneebars for snapping knees or ankles, armbars for snapping elbows and wrists,

chokeholds and the use of the powerful legs to immobilize the attackers torso while the

defender ends the fight with fists or elbows to the face.

2Keysi Fighting Method

Youll see it in Chris Nolans Batman films. It was developed by Justo Dieguez and Andy

Norman, based on Dieguezs street fighting experiences in Spain. Batmans method of

fighting is understood from the comic books to require the utmost efficiency, because Batman

is a genius at fighting crime, and will not waste time or effort in putting criminals away. Ten

or twenty bad guys at a time routinely attack him, and Dieguez and Norman have developed
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the style to defend against this many people. It sounds impossible, but after 6 or 7 years of

training in it, which is not too terribly long, anyone can perform all the necessary moves. You

become a self-defense machine.

Nolan looked around for a style of fighting never depicted on screen, something fast-paced,

close-quarters, but quick, dirty and brutal. Classical Tae Kwon Do is beautiful to watch, butterribly inefficient in terms of the street fight, in which there are no rules.

The Keysi Method has almost no kicks of any kind. It thrives on extreme close-quarters

combat using every weapon the body can quickly wield in such a small space: fists, head,

knees, and especially the elbows.

There is only one stance to know, and when you see it one time, you can do it: the thinking

man, with the hands clasped on the head, and the elbows raised to protect the head, neck and

upper chest. It looks like a man holding his head while deep in thought.

It is designed to strike with the sharp elbows, and lots of hammer fists, which are MUCHmore powerful and devastating than straight punches, because they employ the entire upper

body in bringing the firm, outside muscle, from the root of the little finger to the wrist, down

like a hammer against the target.

This is a hybrid style, using elements of grappling from Jiu-jitsu and Aikido, ground fighting

from Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, close strikes and centerline defense from Wing Chun, and trapping

from Jeet Kune Do. The Keysi Method teaches its practitioners to defend themselves against

any number of attackers, 5, 10, 20 and even more, with a 360 degree range of aggression, and

to observe all objects in the vicinity for their potential as weapons.

1

Krav Maga

It is Israels national martial art, developed largely by Imi Lichtenfeld, and dedicated to no-

holds-barred incapacitation for the purpose of street survival. No quarter is expected or given.

It incorporates Western boxing punches, Karate kicks and knees, Greco-Roman wrestling,

Brazilian Jiu-jitsu ground fighting, Jiu-jitsu throws and grappling, and most importantly,
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bursting, adapted from Wing Chun. This is a simultaneous defense/attack: instead of

blocking an attack and then delivering a response, you block the attack and deliver a response

at the same time, i. e., block with the left arm and push forward with the legs, striking with

the right fist to the throat, all simultaneously.

Also stressed are attacks to vulnerable body parts: the eyes, throat, and groin. Attackers canexpect testicular ruptures. Emphasis is also placed on disarming attackers with both knives

and handguns, and turning these weapons on the attacker. It also exclusively trains hand-eye

coordination, until defense becomes second nature and does not require thought. And a good

Krav Maga instructor can teach all of this to anyone, regardless of athletic prowess, in only 3

to 6 months.

bonus

Firearms

Its something of a joke, and out of regard for the popular definition of martial arts,

firearms were left off the list. They are, however, by far the most efficient method of self-

defense. Bruce Lee carried a .357 magnum everywhere once he became famous as the guy no

one could beat in a fight, because there are always stupid jerks who want to prove that wrong.

He had no intention of risking injury.

Chuck Norris is well known as a pro-gun advocate, and in response to a reporters ironic

question, If someone broke into your house, would you use your roundhouse kick? he

replied, No, Id use my 10 gauge.

The ranking of most of the entries on this list does not account for the length of time it takes

to master the given art. Krav Maga is #1 largely because it can be learned proficiently in only

3 to 6 months. But then, you can learn how to shoot the chest and head of a man-size

silhouette target from 50 yards (46m) in one afternoon. And most street violence occurs

within arms reach. No caliber smaller than the .380 (or .38 revolver) is recommended.

This list is in no particular order. I could have put krav maga, haganah and others in there,but when I got to 10, I stopped. This list will piss off many instructors, but they have to
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realize, for example, that with a system like kyokushinkai, which came fromgoju-ryu and has

many descendants like asahara, enshin, yoshukai and zendokai, they were not left out. Krav

maga, for example, has nothing that the Okinawan, Japanese and kickboxing systems do not.

If I were to include all of them, the list would go into the hundreds.

Kyokushinkai Karate

It has a great history of physical toughness and conditioning, as well as an arsenal of leg

kicks, sweeps and knee strikes from the outside and from the pocket. Most K-1 champions

come from this style. Its weak on ground maneuvers, though.

Outlaw Tai Chi

It has an effective composition of quick strikes (cutting and tissue-ripping moves) to vital

areas like the eyes, ears, face, neck and groin. The emphasis in training is on pure

nonclassical maneuvers, as is seen in most other Chinese systems. However, this style isweak on structure and ground maneuvers.

Bando

Although strictly a weapons-based style, it lends itself to highly effective defensive

techniques (without weapons) from old-school monk tactics largely developed years ago in

Southeast Asia along trade routes. It contains bleeding techniques, head striking, low-level

flange kicks, drop kicks and farewell kicks not taught in other kickboxing styles.

Kajukenbo

Its a hybrid system that uses the best parts of other styles, from upright maneuvers to

grappling. It was designed strictly for self-defense, instead of adhering to traditional rituals or

sporting competition. Its weaknesses are a lack of movements to control the horizontal

relationship with assailantslike all stylesand always using the hands as the primary

means of defense.

Chinese Kenpo

It has a curriculum that encompasses all areas of self-defense. Practitioners learn a range ofattacking angles, realistic scenarios and methods for defending from any position with any

weapon. The main weakness is a lack of emphasis on ground maneuvers, along with limited

kicking and knee striking.

Okinawa-Te

The original system had a complete arsenal of weapon and non-weapon skills. It had the

perfect blend of old-school, pain-tolerance training with scientific skills that utilized the least

amount of effort and time to produce the maximum amount of damage. Its weaknesses are the

amount of time it takes to learn all the long animal forms (there are 36, with one having up to500 moves) and a lack of balanced ground maneuvers.


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Judo

Although it was created along the lines of a non-jutsu activity, which means it was designed

mainly for exercise and sport, the best bouncers Ive ever worked with were judo black belts.

Becausejudoka spend most of their time doing tug-of-war-type drills with partners on the

mat, theyre very successful in reality combat, even with their limited striking ability.

Aikijutsu

Its tactics for off-balancing an opponent before leveraging himas opposed tojujutsu, which

is more concerned with straight leverageis a good system to bridge the gap between the

sport/exercise aspects of the old-school (read: hard-core) jutsu forms and the free-flowing

sport forms we see on TV. Beware of the consumer atmosphere found in some schools

today and the lack of effective striking skills when practicing self-defense drills.

Kickboxing

This style can offer the very best of realistic, upright striking skills, hands down. If you learn

the old muay boran knees, the head butt, the bleeding and cutting techniques, and the old-

school takedowns, this system cannot be beat. Its weakness is a lack of attention to self-

defense as opposed to sport. The conditioning drills taught at most authentic schools make up

for any need to practice purely self-defense scenarios.

Boxing

Few martial arts teach these two defensive skills: Use the head to protect the head and the

body to protect the body. Instead, they use weapon-fighting tacticsusing the hands to

protect the head or the body. For self-defense from the pocket, it would be hard to defend

against a good boxer. Of course, his lack of elbow strikes, groin attacks and ground defense is

limiting, but for pain tolerance and conditioning, it cant be beat.

Self Defense and Striking Styles,Karate- First off, it's hard to characterize karate into one

single unit, as there are so manystyles. That said, we are going to go with generalizations

here. First, the karate styles, similar to the kicking based striking styles, tend to focus on

footwork or the ability to move into range, incapacitate an opponent quickly, and then move

out of harm's way. Obviously, in self defense situations this is important, as we want to inflictdamage while avoiding reciprocation. Further, the karate based styles also teach powerful

strikes that are necessary in order to incapacitate. In addition, they tend to be diverse or more

even-minded in their striking efforts. In other words, punches, inside fighting (or clinch

work), and kicks are all looked at as at least somewhat important. So practitioners may not be

as good with their kicks as let's say inTaekwondo, but are better with a wider repertoire of

strikes.

Of course, the fact that most fights go to the ground is not a strength of this style. In other

words, the karate basedmartial artstypes are highly limited in their takedown defense

instruction and grappling, so practitioners need to keep some level of distance in an

altercation.
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On the flip side, since karate is a striking style that focuses on incapacitating strikes, it can be

used against multiple attackers with a level of confidence. Also, street combat can often mean

the use of weapons or dealing with them. The karate based styles do tend to teach

practitioners how to both use weapons and defend against them.

Finally, the sheer amount of karate styles make it hard to talk about the generalities ofinstruction. For example, some schools may do full contact, which arguably readies a

practitioner more for street combat, than let's say a school that does this more infrequently.

Kyokushin karate, for example, is a full contact art.

And as will be said multiple times throughout this article,the instructormakes just as much

of a difference as the style in terms of self defense applicability.

Self Defense and Striking Styles, Kicking Based (Taekwondo,Tang Soo Do, etc.) - In self

defense, one wants to move in and out of harm's way quickly, incapacitating an opponent

along the way. This is especially true when up against more than one opponent. One also

wants to inflict damage and not be hurt; taking chances isn't always a good thing.

Some of theKoreanstriking styles like Taekwondo and Tang Soo Do, both of which are kick

heavy, teach practitioners to do just these things. Further, they teach very powerful strikes

designed to incapacitate. Beyond the kicks, which let's face it are stronger than punches, are

strikes that hit vital organs with the hands.

weapons That said, if we believe the old adage that most fights end up on the ground, than the

kicking based styles have a significant weakness. Further, the kicking styles are great from a

distance, but in close, though they certainly teach the use of punches, etc., they do not tend to

focus on this type of striking as much as karate or especiallyMuay Thai, for example, where

insideclinchwork is key.

So the strength in self defense via the kicking styles is in having distance to fight- sometimes

the scenario won't allow for such- and being able to keep good distance. I have also come to

realize that the kicking styles are not like Krav Maga, for example, which teaches how to

survive in the street from day one. In other words, in order to be able to use such instruction

in the street, one must be very, very good. But when one is, the kicking styles are difficult to

deal with because they are so athletic, powerful, and uncustomary.

In addition, since the kicking styles primarily involve standing up with an opponent, they are

more applicable in a self defense situation against multiple attackers than let's say a grapplingbased art. You do not want to go to the ground when faced with multiple opponents. They

also teach the both the use of weapons as well as defense against them.

And finally, yes, Tang Soo Do usually uses their hands a bit more than Taekwondo does, but

that's not what this article is about. And remember, the teacher, as much as if not more than

the style, is key.

Self Defense andStrikingStyles,Kung Fu- Inmartial artscircles, kung fu refers to a ton of

Chinese martial arts substyles. Thus, it is very difficult to generalize about. That said, we'll

give it a whirl.
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First, kung fu is primarily about striking. Thus, the majority of styles within this realm teach

incapacitating strikes to vital areas. This is a good thing in a self defense situations, as speed

is key. What's more, kung fu does teach a lot about distance control and moving in and out of

harm's way effectively, which limits the damage that can be done to YOU, the practitioner.

Striking tends to be diverse; lots of kicks and punches, including unorthodox ones.

In terms of grappling, most of the kung fu substyles tend to be meager in their teachings. And

considering that ground fighting is important in self defense, this is a noteable flaw. Further,

kung fu stylists have had significant difficulty in major sporting events likeMMA. This has

left many wondering about its effectiveness in self defense.

That said, there are A LOT of practitioners out there that sing kung fu's praises. Further, high

level practitioners are difficult to deal with in part because their striking is somewhat

unorthodox.

And like every other style noted in this article, the choice ofinstructoris just as important, if

not more than the style.

Self Defense and Striking Styles,Muay Thai- Muay Thai is known to be a very effective

art in all circles. It has proven itself quite well in competitions likemixed martial artsand

kickboxing. It teaches diversity instriking, in that kicks, punches, elbows, knees, kicks and

more are taught very, very well. Theclinch, or inside fighting on the feet is focused on to agreat extent. So when someone comes in and tries to turn a self defense situation into a

grappling match, which let's face it happens very frequently, Muay Thai has an answer, at

least before the fight hits the ground.

That said, Muay Thai is not a grappling art, per se. And since the majority of fights end up on

the ground, this is a weakness.

Muay Thai has morphed into a sport for the most part. This is good in that practitioners are

constantly going full go against one another, albeit with gloves, so a self defense situation

that involves practitioners going against one another in full combat won't be surprising. Then

again, when something is sports oriented with gloves, it doesn't perhaps focus enough on

avoiding damage, or at least not as much askaratewhere every strike that lands is frowned

upon. Also, weapons based work, which is applicable in self defense situations, is not focused

on as a result of the sports concentration in this art. Finally, since Muay Thai focuses on

strikingit can be at least somewhat effective against multiple attackers. But dealing with such

situations is not practiced to the same extent as it is in the karate world.

Again, as is the case with all styles, the instructor makes all the difference in the world. And

certain things may be focused on more depending on the teacher.

Self Defense Styles andKrav Maga- Self defense situations tend to happen very quickly

and without much warning. This is Krav Maga's specialty, in that they literally practice

surprise situations all the time. This Israelimartial arts styleis wholly concerned with self

defense and dealing with high pressure situations. From day one, practitioners are immersed

in self defense, not forms, not line work, but rather self defense. Further, today's practitioners

work both on groundwork and striking, though striking is still most concentrated on (perhaps

because many believe that self defense is best done on the feet).
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16/23

That said, it's not unheard of for Krav Maga schools to bring in people with aBrazilian Jiu

Jitsubackground, in that they are an evolving art.

Simply put, Krav Maga practitioners tend to practice against weapons to a great extent, prefer

incapacitating strikes to vital organs, and look toward simplicity in movement.

What about weaknesses in regard to self defense? Well, there's not a lot. That said,

groundwork, though improving within the art, is still a relative area of weakness. Further,

given their focus on simplicity and self defense, higher level techniques (side kicks, things

that are unusual) are not very focused on. So they may have trouble surprising a high level

practitioner in the street.

Self Defense and Throwing Styles (Aikido,Judo,Hapkido) - The throwing styles are

characterized bytakedowns. In the three major ones- aikido, hapkido, judo- the movement

from aclinchof some sort to taking a person down is concentrated on. Thus, when it comes

to in close fighting, all have advantages. Further, if thrown to the ground, throwing style

practitioners are experts at falling. Thus, they are good at avoiding injuries as a result. Onceon the ground, or sometimes while still standing, all of these styles practice joint locks and

choke holds to varying extents. Thus, practitioners are capable of fighting where the majority

of self defense situations go. All of these styles work on stopping opponents with weapons.

And in some cases, this is a real strength.

Along with this, however, none of these are striking based. Thus, the throwing stylists can

find themselves at a disadvantage prior to clinching with their opponent. These styles are also

not necessarily great at dealing with multiple opponents.

Of course, putting aikido, judo, and hapkido in the same category of self defense isn't really

fair. Aikido works a lot on wrist locks and would be good against weapons. That said, it is

soft on ground submissions and may be the weakest against striking of all the throwing styles.

Judo as a whole can be the strongest with ground submissions, depending on the teacher and

style of judo. Hapkido is an evolving art. With the advent of Combat Hapkido and lots of

subsets, the style can be heavy into submissions and self defense, or much lighter in these

arenas, depending.

And as much if not more than the other styles noted in this self defense piece, the teacher

matters. Style by itself is never enough to tell you how good a school is in terms of teaching

self defense.

Self Defense Styles andBrazilian Jiu Jitsu- The reality is that the closest thing to a one on

one self defense situation we have out there in terms of competition is contemporary mixed

martial arts (MMA). Speaking of MMA, back when it first started in 1993,Royce Gracie, the

son of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu's founderHelio Gracie, dominated every competitor. Yep, back

when stylists were pure, when there wasn't a lot of cross training going on, a 170 pound

Gracie took people down, put them in joint locks or choke holds, and generally defeated

everyone-catch wrestlers,karatefighters,taekwondocompetitors,Tang Soo Dostylists, and

even boxers. He proved the old adage that most fights end up in grappling encounters, and

being able to survive under such circumstances was paramount.

In the end, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu does not teach a fighter how to be a good stand up fighter. Itdoes, however, teach people to avoid being hurt on their feet, take others to the ground, and
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then apply asubmission. Further, through the use of leverage, it also teaches practitioners to

take on bigger opponents and fight from their back via the use of theguardposition.

From a self defense perspective, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu has proven very, very strong in one on

one fights. That said, there are self defense situations where combatants will not want to go to

the ground, such as when facing the possibility of multiple attackers. Putting yourselfpurposefully on the ground under such circumstances isn't very appropriate, which is a

weakness. Beyond that, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu can be somewhat slow moving towards a

submission, which could be viewed as a weakness depending on the situation. Though the

style can be very effective versus weapons, as the art it emanated from,Japanese Jujutsuis

great under such circumstances, this is usually not an intense focus of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

In the end, as usual, the instructor makes a world of difference.

Self Defense andJapanese Jujutsu- Most fights land on the ground. Guess what, Japanese

Jujutsu teaches how to deal with that through the use ofsubmissions, which include joint

locks and choke holds. Weapons sometimes need to be dealt with in self defense situations.Japanese jujutsu practitioners are often very good at disarming would be attackers wielding

such things. Further, they are also adept at dealing with those trying to take them down, and

have a repertoire of takedowns as well.

Japanese Jujutsu practitioners do practice a level of striking to vital organs as well as defenseon their feet. That said, their striking skills are not on the level of a karate practitioners, for

example, so that could be viewed as somewhat of a weakness. Along with this, Japanese

Jujutsu is not necessarily great against multiple attackers, as it is primarily a close contact art.

Again,the instructormakes as much of a difference as the style does. Choose carefully.

thoughts:

-upgrade standard taser to "Blast Knuckles" or flashlight stun gun

-make sure any sword purchased is battle ready and not replica

-rather than purchasing a sword, consider purchasing a couple machete instead -- any survival kit

should have and they're cheaper without worrying whether they'd hold up in a home defense

situation; and you'll likely be used to carrying and swinging them if you use them regularly as a tool

while camping, etc.

-instead of sword/machete, a one handed battle axe/tomahawk/lightweight hatchet might be a

suitable replacement

-consider bear strength pepper spray over standard

*any of two of above can be wielded in combination
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18/23

two handed weapons

-halberd or poleaxe is a good defensive weapon in hallways and suitable for fighting in large rooms --

but it's size has limitations, even if you reduce the size of the handle down to 4 or 5 or 6 feet

-high-velocity hunting slingshot

-crossbow

*a flashlight can be mounted on both crossbow and slingshot, and one or the other should be

included in most survival kits as well

other options worthy of consideration:

-steel baton

-throwing knives

-incapacitating noise devices w/ or w/o a stobe light function -- make certain you have ear

protection

-baseball bat, preferably little league sized for easier use

As with any home defense, it's important to identify before attacking -- the last thing you want to do

is bring harm to your family!

katana and similar sized swords are too long for in-house fighting. As buckeye mentioned, a machete

or gladius sized sword (the gladius is the sword the romans used). Wakisashi or tanto

A short, stout blunt object, like a steel baton or wooden bat, is another option. Not that someone

who gets stabbed is going to instinctively fight back, but the business end of a good baton will put

stars in someone's eyes for a moment, hopefully enough for a second swing. Repeat as necessary.

In all cases, however - "no gun" is a home defense scenario I wouldn't want to be in, outside of a

Home Alone movie.

What about an axe or a hatchet? Almost everyone has either one of those (or both), and they

are pretty effective. Hatchet is even usable in smaller spaces and if you don't get a "clear" hit,

the momentum will still give quite a blow.

Can of mace and a baseball bat and perhaps an attack dog.

am very comfortable using katanas and other swords and the belief many have about the amount of

force/length of swing required to yield deadly force is a bit exaggerated. A sword can be used with

little more then the flick of a wrist

It's always been less about firearms and more about a prepared mind that's ready to act when the

moment of deadly danger comes into being.


19/23

Firearms, edged weapons, impact weapons, chemical-based (OC) weapons, tazers/stun guns, and

improvised weapons - it really does not matter.

Transfer the necessary energy into your target via the most efficient means available at the time

within the confines of the proper use of force and/or rules of engagement.

I also want to add that it is tremendously important to study the human body and the effects

produced by the variety of weapons you might use against vital points as well.

You might be surprised at the amount of damage the body can take before it hits the wall of mobility

impairment, hypovolemic shock, unconsciousness, and/or incapacitation.

With all that said, my choice outside the use of a gun for home defense would be an edged weaponin a commonly available size, if readily available and accessed when in crisis.

Check out the FBI stats on the dangers posed by edged weapons. They are common, popular, and

effective tools. You just might be facing a violent criminal actor with an edged weapon if your home

is invaded as well.

With a modicum of regular training with an edged weapon, you would be putting another serious

survival skill set in your defensive tool box if you are mentally primed to engage in close quarter

confrontation.

Plus, are you more likely carry a pocket folder around the house or your firearm anyways.

Edged weapons tend to be everywhere.

As the saying goes...If it's not in your hands or on your belt - it's not in the fight.

I believe the best home defense weapon is an attack trained dog. A dog is a huge deterrent to

anyone wanting to commit a crime on my property. I am in the process of training my new German

Shepherd and hoping to get her through to a Schutzhund 3 title. Using a bladed weapon is just not

realistic for me personally and having a trained dog means I don't have to be on guard since

(hopefully) the dog is. For a woman, this makes the most sense in home protection. I still have a

loaded Glock close by though!

5 acres within 45 minute drive from Chattanooga Tn. (where my day job is) i will be providing my

own food by gardening and rabbits and chickens and goats and aquaculturing catfish. cheapest

piece of crap house i can find with the most land i can afford


20/23

Sorry folks, but laughed my ass off at the thought of me taking on a home invader with a samurai

sword! I really think that is a bad idea on many levels unless you've had training in closequarters sword fighting (LOL) with wives, kids, dogs, gnomes or what ever running around in a panic

while you try to take on the bad guys.

Same with crossbows BTW. Not a good option as you will have to draw back string and load, find

target, aim, shoot, and pray to god you got it right.

I keep a 6 D cell MagLite (skull splitter) by my bed (w/glock) and wife has police grade OC-baton

(w/S&W .38 crimson trace grips). Other than the maglite and OC, I have a fish club in the garage and

an expandable baton (ASP) in the den.

For ease of use, I'd encourage ASP and/or maglight, though both require close contact with enemy.

The martial arts are among the best and most natural physical exercises you can do. Theyrehealthy, fun, and they teach self defense. I believe that pretty much every man and woman

should be competent in martial arts and combat.

If youre looking for a martial arts style, the most important thing is to find one thats right

foryou and what your goals are.

For example, some martial arts styles are heavily focused on tradition and philosophy. Some

of these may be labeled soft styles. Whether hard or soft, some of them dont practice

regular full contact free sparring. This may be ideal for some, but if youre looking to get a

great workout and learn how to really fight, theyre probably not your best bet.

The Key is Full Contact Sparring

I dont care how many punches you throw, or how many bricks you can break, or howbeautiful your kata is; if you havent been in several open fights, how can you know how

effective your technique is? Does a soldier become effective through the classroom, or the

battlefield? Im sure any soldier would say that you dont really learn until youre in the

trenches.

As far as Im concerned, the same is true for hand to hand combat, or grappling. You learn

how to fight when you start fighting. Doing choreographed responses to attacks can prepare

you in certain ways, but youve got actually use them in random and free-flow trials.

(Ok, if you learn eye-ripping or ball-hitting in your style, Ill grant that you dont get a good

chance to practice this and I dont want to fight you in a dark alley. But you know what Imean.)


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For example, when I was training in a combination of karate, kickboxing, submission

grappling, and MMA, our progression went something like this:

1. Learn the philosophy and basics of the style.

2. Join the community and enjoy meeting new people.

3. Get solid cardio and strength workouts in high-intensity classes.

4. Start learning the basic katas.

5. Buy protective sparring gear, and start doing simple drills with a responsible partner in a

safe environment to get accustomed to punching and being punched, but without any

uncertainty yet.

6. Learn grappling moves and locks when your partner lets you do them to him/her.

7. Do some point-based sparring. With sparring, it means opponents try to land a hit on

each other, and when they do, the fight is reset and they start over. It builds speed and

technique. This is where some martial arts styles or schools stop.

8. Finally, do real fighting. Two people, protective gear, and go! Try to land punches, kicks,

and not just individual ones. Land combos of several heavy hits in a row, knock your

opponent down, get drenched in sweat, get the wind knocked out of you, and learn how to

really fight. Same with free grappling; two people try to submit each other. The opponents

adjust their intensity based on the rank of their opponent to ensure safety and a good learning

experience. The higher the ranks, typically the more intense the match will be. And in

tournaments, intensity is 100%.

Without actually being in a free fight (with reasonable protective measures like proper gear

and a watchful instructor), you cant really know how youll do in a real self-defense

situation. Engage in hundreds or thousands ofmatches, and youve got an idea of how you

can really fight.

With that being said, here are five of some of the best martial arts styles if you want to learn

some good moves for self defense.

Best Martial Arts Styles for Self Defense

What does it mean to be practical for self defense? While this list is non-exhaustive, the oneshere are generally rather linear and hard styles, and theyre widespread enough that one can

generally find a teacher. I want to be clear that there is no best martial arts style. Its all

relative to what your goals are.

1. KickboxingKickboxing is one of the most intuitive and practical styles, and its widespread enough to

find a good teacher. Learning how to swiftly block punches or kicks, and counter with your

own powerful and quick moves, is a timeless and universal skill. Kickboxing is great for free-

sparring, and is an excellent cardio workout, especially because it often alternates betweenrest and high blasts of intensity.


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The downside is that if you get into a ground-wrestling situation, its not going to help much.

I would have also mentioned Karate on this list, except that when Karate students put on gear

and do some free-sparring, the result is pretty much kickboxing.

2. Submission Grappling

Jujitsu and Brazilian Jujitsu are excellent groundfighting styles. They focus on takedowns,controlling the opponent, and ultimately submitting him or her. Kickboxing is great, but in

real life, whether its a high-school brawl or a bar fight, it usually involves headlocks, being

slammed against the wall, or being grabbed and pulled in some way. Thats where Jujitsu

really shines. You can feel comfortable to know how to avoid being taken down, how to take

down your opponent, and how to safely disable him.

The key downside is that you actually have to get in close and grab the person before your

style becomes effective. A second downside is that its not usually good for multiple

opponents. If youre fighting two people, its generally a terrible idea to take one of them

down and get on top of him to focus on him, because the other opponent now has free range

to assault you.

3. Krav MagaIn my martial arts training, there was an element of honor involved. No groin hits, no

strikes to the eyes, knee-caps, or throat, no fish-hooking, and no direct hits to the spinal cord.

In Krav Maga, the focus is on doingthose things. This is because Krav Maga is designed to

be a real-world combat system, and there are no rules when youre being violently attacked.

The purpose is simple: no mercy, neutralize the threat as quickly as possible. Its used by the

Israeli Defense forces, is taught around the world, and emphasizes a combination of blocking

and striking, weapon-disarming, and dirty strikes to quickly end the fight.

There is low-emphasis on ground-fighting and complex kicks, but students are often taught to

deal with such events.

4. Wing ChunWing Chun is a form of Kung-Fu that, according to legend, was founded by a woman. Its a

very linear style, and much like Krav Maga, the emphasis is on moves that are

simultaneously defensive and offensive. No energy is wasted, and it combines a very flexible

and fluid stance with hard and linear strikes. The goal is to get in close to the opponent, keep

your forearms connected with him tofeelhis movements rather than just see them, and then

to swiftly end the fight with a series of effective strikes and low-kicks.

A downside is that free-sparring is somewhat rare. However, chi sau is used as a drill, where

opponents keep in contact with each other, and flexibly move their arms to try to defend and

find weaknesses in their opponents defense.

5. Muay ThaiMuay Thai is a practical martial art for a very straightforward reason: practitioners emphasize

strikes with the knees and elbows rather than the fists and feet, although they do incorporate

both hands, both feet, both elbows, and both knees, into the science of eight limbs. Its not

intuitive to those that have not hit hard things, but let me tell you: striking something hard

(including a skull), with a bare fist, can potentially break your fist. You can punch someone

in the face, and potentially break both their face, and your fist. If theres a second opponent


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ready to fight you, then youve got a problem! Punching in real life is a lot different than the

movies, where the action hero can just keep punching things without hurting his hand.

Thats why, in Muay Thai, striking with the elbows and knees is preferred. Its very hard to

truly injure an elbow or knee when they are bent into a striking position. An elbow strike to

the face can be more damaging than a punch, and its far less likely that an elbow will beinjured from the impact than a fist. So the purpose of Muay Thai is to be able to take down as

many opponents as possible without injuring your own body parts.

Bonus: Mixed Martial ArtsSome of these styles have strengths and weaknesses. For example, kickboxing is great in a

stand-up fight, but useless on the ground, and Jujitsu has the opposite issue. Learning how to

fight with strikes and with holds and submissions is an excellent set of complementary

moves. Learning Mixed Martial Arts is usually a smart choice, because you can get the best

aspects of multiple fighting forms.

Honorable mentions to this list include Karate (where takedowns and grabs, along withstrikes, are useful, but where free-sparring often looks like kickboxing anyway), Jeet Kune

Do (which was developed by Bruce Lee and is really a Mixed Martial Art inspired by

multiple forms, including fencing, Wing Chun, and Jujitsu), Aikido (which has very fluid and

useful elements but often does not do free sparring), and Kali and Keysi (which are much like

Krav Maga in that they focus on real-world scenarios, but have fun trying to find a teacher for

those)

Conclusion

Martial arts are seriously some of the most natural and useful physical exercises you canlearn. But when you pick a style, it all comes down to what your goals are, and your goals

should be clearly defined. Do you want pure self defense training, a useful workout, or the

whole philosophy and tradition behind it?

If youre into the self defense aspect of it, Id strongly recommend learning a martial arts

style in a school that lets you practice freely with an opponent. This can include kickboxing,

submission grappling, and other forms of open combat.

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