Unarmed Self Defense Training

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Phineas Dregg

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I would love to learn how to defend myself in an unarmed encounter, but I'm not fully convinced that traditional martial arts (or even the newer ones) are for me. My mom enrolled me in tae kwon do when I was getting beat up by bullies in the fourth grade. It didn't help. I started taking tae kwon do again as a teenager. It just didn't seem very practical. I have talked to people who study MMA. They spend a lot of money and attend class every week.

I want fighting to save my life, not become my life.

The cynical part of me is concerned that if someone makes a living by teaching me martial arts and charging me every month, the best way to continue making a living is to string me along and convince me that I will be killed if I quit taking his/her class. Are there no unarmed self defense courses that are set up like firearms courses where I can train for a few days, learn a ton and then practice on my own? It seems that if the military can give troops a decent crash course in a few months, there should be something that someone can teach a civilian without requiring years of martial arts at $90 a month.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

PS, sorry if I offended any. I'm sure I must have, I just don't have the time or money to devote a significant portion of my life to martial arts.
 
Go to a boxing gym that trains amateur boxers.
You will learn far more here than at some damn strip center dojo or some barefoot chicken wire fight center.
Also since I boxed in the late 60's and early 70's look into my former trainers youtube films.
Just click in Kenny Weldon on the youtube screen.
 
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Just my two cents, but I have formal training in Tae Kwon Do and Shorinryu Karate. I also received periodic training in Brazilian Ju Jitsu, or whatever variant the Army purports to teach these days (Army Combatives). I have little respect for Army Combatives, as the entire system seems to be built on fighting in a microcosm without regard for the realities of the battlefield.

For self defense purposes, you need to end the threat as quickly as possible. "Shoot to stop" applies to unarmed defense as well, at least in philosophy. BJJ or MMA are not appropriate for combat or for self defense, as they assume too many variables not in evidence. You simply do not have the time to execute a submission hold in most violent encounters, and the possibility of multiple attackers completely negates any advantages that MMA might confer to you. Last, but not least, the only thing needed to win most grappling contests is a folding knife that you've practiced drawing... or one on each side if you're worried about your dominant arm getting pinned.

Shop around, go to different schools, and ask a lot of questions. Don't be discouraged by traditional martial arts, as there are often extremely good self defense techniques taught along side kata.
 
Phineas..Check out what I mentioned.
It makes a lot more sense than getting into a grappling contest that needs to be handled by a knife.
We are not talking a battlefield here.
I will definitely go on record here that knowing what is taught in a boxing gym as well as wrestling holds and throws along with Jui Jitsui,which in many ways resembles boxings leverage,balance,speed,etc. will get you through very very well.
Unfortunately what is too many times not mentioned is one must pratice an art to be truely effective in this venue.
I have not had a fight in the ring since 1981 but even though I am no longer young and in the shape as I was in my 20's I still know how to cut a guy off,maneuver,and punch.
Some my scoff at my post but I am saying boxing fundamentals,some wrestling holds and throws,along with several Jui Jitsui moves can help a person tremendously on the street.
 
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Just a suggestion, but one can often find Judo taught for a reasonable price, (or even free)and its techniques are quite relevant for self defense. Check the YMCA's or the local colleges
 
"Wrestling works", as long as you know how to hit, too.

And the US military can't/doesn't teach people to defend themself without weapons in a few months. Army and Marine combatives are taught as aggression exercises, and to get completely untrained and inexperienced people over the shock of having a stranger touch them violently. BJJ-based arts are used in the Army partially because people are less likely to be injured in practice, compared to a striking art.

John
 
Honestly, I never looked at it that way. I got more out of the bayonet assault course and pugil stick fighting than I did from Combatives, but I was already an intermediate-level martial artist before I joined. I can certainly see your point about aggressiveness and breaking social barriers.
 
The most misunderstood part of BJJ is that it takes a while to execute a submission. The only reason the submission seems to take a while, is in practice you give your oppoent an oppertunity to tap instead of breaking his appeandage. It's not the ideal go to for multiple attackers, that I'll acknowlege, but I'll also point out that unless you find your self with plenty of room to keep multiple attackers aligned to a single direction of engagment, or can escape quickly, or don't get just out right knocked out..your going to the ground, you'd better know what to do when you get there. Otherwise it's curtains. A knife is very valuable in self defense, and knowing how to use it even better. Most martial arts have their + and -'s personally I found Muay Thai and BJJ to be the best for me.. but as somebody else said it did become my life for a while. Not because I was worried that if I stopped taking the class I'd become helpless but rather because I enjoyed them so much.
The advantages to BJJ is you can practice full strenghth against a fully resitant partner, even yes multiple attackers and be relatively safe if everybody agrees to cease their attack when one submits (taps out) this is very usefull because you know your strong areas and weak areas intuitively and have no doubt about the reliabilty and application of the techinques. As opposed to many supossedly "more leathal" martial arts that teach you how to gouge eyes and break necks hundreds of other techniques you can't actually practice on anything other than air, or the occasional dummy.
It's not just about submissions though, BJJ was built on postitional advantages in a fight. What will be most adventageous to the practitioner. Take the "mount" postion if seated correctly and securely it's devestating, mostly because you have the reach advantage and take away the counter striking power from your opponent. Yes BJJ is an investment of time, but thats because moving effectivly on the ground doesn't come naturally. It takes time to learn, but BJJ is also good because it's emphaisi on technique over brawn, unlike freestyle wrestling which has minimal emphasis on technique and trains strong atheletes instead. BJJ was created by Helio Gracie from old Japanese Ju Jutsu what he did was focus on techniques that allowed him to defeat larger stronger oppents. His basic rule was if it didn't work on biger stronger people it wasn't worth practicing. BJJ might not be what works for you.. what works will be what you stick with most and can apply the best. Good luck.
 
I'll second the suggestion on Krav maga. It was developed to be taught quickly to anyone. Obviously, as with anything, the more/longer you practice the more you learn. But you can get pretty proficient pretty quick. It takes a lot from Muay Thai and BJJ, as well as some boxing and wrestling. It's worth looking into if you have somewhere in your area that offers it.
 
You must learn the basics of grappling and striking and spar consistently to become comfortable. However always remember that you must adapt these arts for real life self defense situations and integrate the with weapons training.
 
A standing grappling and ground grappling base as delivery systems and a way to save your butt when things go wrong is mandatory IMO. As John and Koz also said you need to know how to hit, take a hit, and deal with weapons. No one "system" will offer everything. It's up to you to combine based on goals, ongoing instruction, and ability.

People often confuse BJJ or grappling in general with a strategy. It is not. It is a way of dealing with an issue that comes up in a fight and being able to thrive in a less than ideal circumstance. Because that circumstance (being grabbed or pressured physically in a standing or grounded orientation) could be considered fundamental to fighting, you can go right to the source of the best way of dealing with that and become a considerably more formidable fighter for doing so.
 
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JKD or Krav. The problem is that it's difficult to practice or prepare yourself for strikes like eye gouges. But they are extremely effective. BJJ is great if you are strictly looking at one-on-one, but the problem is that if you are facing multiple adversaries, going to the ground is a problem.

Also you can break your femur doing BJJ....ask me how I know...
 
The Army Compatives program uses lessons and skills from multiple disciplines it is hard to keep track of what they use across 4 levels. I do know it uses some Hopkido. Many MMA and Combatives fighters who go pro start with BJJ as a base to build off of.

Hand to hand training is a great addition to carrying a firearm. I am level 3 certified Army combatives and have had to use unarmed tactics in order to get to my firearm overseas. To me knowing how to use your body as a weapon is almost as important as knowing how to use your firearm.

Krav is good but there are very few "real" instructors advertising their services. I have seen "instructors" who claim they taught Krav but it was really just a bastardized version of Sambo. If your Krav teacher starts by speaking with a Yiddish or Hebrew accent, they are on the right path.
 
Whether Army Combatives is decent or horrible depends to a large degree on the instructor. I've heard instructors suggest deliberately going to the ground (horrible advice for someone in full "battle rattle", especially), and I've heard instructors say, "whoever's friends get there first, wins". The second statement is a lot closer to reality.

John
 
Martial Arts takes lots of practice.

Take a Krav Maga class or similar self defense class and a month later you will be trying to remember what they taught you. Also, when things start happening fast you have to react without thinking, that takes lots of practice and muscle memory, timing for punches, blocks and kicks takes sparring practice. Watch un-trained people fight, it's usually kind of comical, haymaker punches that will only land if the opponent is too drunk to move and wrestling moves that would make any high school wrestler laugh out loud.
If you want to learn self defense take the time. Sit and watch as many different schools as you can then narrow it down and go watch the ones you like again. You will be spending a lot of time and money there so don't be in a hurry to pick a school. one year and you will start to get it, 3 years and you may be pretty good. Or you can not do it and 3 years from now you still won't know self defense.
 
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Another suggestion...

You could put an ad on Craigslist or Backpage asking for self-defense/workout partners. Fighting ain't rocket surgery or brain science :), but it does require regular, realistic, training.
Punch 'em in the nose, kick 'em in the balls, throw them on the ground and rip their arm off.....
 
Whether Army Combatives is decent or horrible depends to a large degree on the instructor. I've heard instructors suggest deliberately going to the ground (horrible advice for someone in full "battle rattle", especially), and I've heard instructors say, "whoever's friends get there first, wins". The second statement is a lot closer to reality.
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Yes and No. The only time we were encourage to go to ground was for sparring. The goal of Level 1 and 2 is to buy time fighting with an opponent until your buddy shows up. 3 and 4 are more about permanently dealing with the target either by incapacitating or killing. Practicing in full kit just makes it 10x more exhausting.
 
Whatever you do, start lifting weights or engage in some other form of strength training. It can make all the difference, especially in a grappling match.
 
Do some conditioning drills too. You want some speed and last. Crossfit and gymjones have some good free workouts tailored for ufc/mma fighters that are brutal.
 
Krav Maga. Trust me, if someone comes after you with a rubber gun or wooden knife, they'll totally regret it. :p
 
The Army stopped issuing bayonets some time ago. Instead of a 7" blade puncturing someone's vital organs, we teach combatives, so we can practice rolling around on the ground trying to choke each other instead of charging bayonet dummies. For some reason, in the 1st WW, nobody had thought of combatives.
 
My understandin about army ground combatives is that if your on your feet trying to box/ whatever your more likely to be hit by a bullet, as opposed to dealing with your opponet below fields of fire.
I'd like to add that strengh training isn't as important as conditioning. I'm not talking jogging and just cardio, but muscular endurance combined with cardio.
 
I teach Unarmed Self Defense (USD), Law Enforcement Weapons (LE) and Combatives. I have an MP SRT (swat) background along with many others that I learned in and out of the Army to include:muay thai, pancrase, krav maga.

My thing is there is no be all to end all way, no one thing that will get you out of every situation.

Each time I go to a course or school I attempt to forget all things I'm already trained on and full learn what I'm being taught at the time. After I figure out where what I just learned fits me and my mind set. USD in Army LE which has been a big part of my life for that last 10years is primarily based of Aikido. Everyone I've had to use this on had no clue what I was doing to them and they reacted as such= very effective. I've had students (soldiers) that do not feel the pain of pressure points= not effective. So I've blended a lot of different things into my personal way of USD.

I respect that fact that you said "I want fighting to save my life, not become my life." I am the testament that you don't have to master anything to be effective @ 5'6" 170lbs. But fighting has become a big PART of my life. I'm forever a small guy and many strangers have tried me and failed, I guess I seem to be easy to pick on because I'm smaller. My Soldiers say I'm the scariest little man they have ever met.

I guess my point is train at a few different things and make that work for you.

Using BJJ when you are out numbered leads to a trip to the ER (need boxing/kickboxing and cardio), Using boxing/kickboxing against someone who wrestled all their life will get you put on your back(need wrestling/bjj). Then there is always the case were someone pulls a knife or gun on you (need krav maga or carry a gun with that skill set).

Be well rounded, be prepared, be polite and have a plan to kill everyone you meet.
 
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