Krav Maga - Martial art or the art of urban survival?
by Claudiu Manolache
I start this article based on the idea that in several fields of activity, especially in Krav Maga, it’s much easier to prevent than to treat; it’s easier to prevent than to confront danger.
We have to admit that the moment we leave our comfort zone, we can come across unpredictable situations in which an apparently a minor conflict can escalate very quickly, ending up in violence.
There are people among us that enter very quickly the red area who no longer think about what they are doing, the anger dominates them totally, the adrenaline is pumped into the body in large quantities, and aggressiveness finds all the proper conditions.
We all know that dialogue and communication are the keys to ending disputes among intelligent people or people with a certain degree of education; but we are talking here about a certain category of people, and we only have a few seconds to avoid verbal or physical violence.
You are not a coward if you avoid, if you pretend not to hear the provoking words, or if you leave the conflict area quickly. Trying to understand the behavior of such individuals and why they act in this way, to even empathize with these angry people, will help you to become detached and calm.
Lately, I read again a metaphor I liked a lot about the people who talk much and loudly, who like conflicts, and who are bad-tempered: “the emptier a horse carriage is, the more noise it makes.”
Yet there are moments when the conflict is inevitable and cannot be diffused verbally, or you cannot avoid being dragged into the conflict, and then the only choice we have is to defend ourselves! That’s where Krav Maga or the self-defense techniques come in.
There are some basic principles in martial arts focused on self-defense; once you know them and observe them, you can identify and neutralize the threat.
The first one is to be always on the watch (aware) and to quickly and attentively scan the environment and the place we are in. If we notice something out of the place or suspect people, an uninhabited area, or a street in the dark, we’d better turn around and get back.
If there is no way we can avoid getting into a dangerous (risky) place, it is better to avoid, as much as we can, anything that can trigger or escalate a dispute, to refrain from doing anything that can escalate a conflict.
The second principle is not to let anybody inside our safety area, to be more precise, not to let anybody to close in and be within striking distance.
If the danger is imminent, the aggression has already been started, we come across the third principle: fight or flight! If the time is right and if we are fit enough to run, it’s better to do it, but if we choose to defend ourselves and cope with the attack, we’d better fight tough, quick, without restraint, because our life may be at stake.
Basically, Krav Maga is an eclectic and non-dogmatic defense system.
It is eclectic because it brings together techniques from a wide range of martial arts, it includes techniques from: boxing, Muay Thay, Wrestling, Jiu-Jitsu, Karate. This is because it takes the most useful and easy to perform street fighting techniques or in any other places in which the life and body integrity are at risk.
It is non-dogmatic because this style is always updated and tuned to the variety of situations we could find ourselves in. In general, martial arts are dogmatic and can be rigid. We often see very spectacular techniques which are appreciated in a movie or in a sports ring, but they have no use or utility in street fighting.
Studies have shown that the most powerful fist punches come from boxing, and the kicks come from Muay Thai; Krav Maga is receptive of this; it overtakes and develops a system based on self-defense and acquiring automatisms proven successful in certain sports. The spectacular techniques which are difficult to perform are avoided, the focus being on simple strikes which originate from the natural movements of the body and can be easily performed by a regular person who has no sportive inclinations or who is not so fit.
I will end up by saying that martial arts, in general, and Krav Maga, in particular, represent a pleasant and useful way of moving your body regardless of age, of gaining stamina and physical resilience, of overcoming certain physical or mental barriers and increasing self-confidence.
OSS!
Claudiu Manolache