Simple Krav Maga Solutions

The basis and foundation of Krav Maga, is to use natural and instinctive movements that we will naturally perform when threatened and/or assaulted e.g., we will naturally flinch, bringing our arms up to protect our head when a fast movement directed towards our face is detected, if somebody tries to choke or strangle us, we will instinctively grab the hands/arms that are restricting our breathing etc. Whereas with many martial arts the movements have to be learnt, with Krav Maga techniques are built onto our natural/instinctive responses i.e., Krav Maga is about what you will do when attacked, rather than what you may want to do; you might want to block in a certain way because you have trained to do so, but when a punch is thrown and you are caught unprepared it is highly unlikely that you will block in this way. Rather than trying to make you perform in a certain way which goes against how you will actually respond, Krav Maga works with your instincts and natural responses. This is one of the reasons why it is faster to learn and pick up than other martial arts and self-defense systems that require you to act and behave in an artificially prescribed manner.

The approach is designed to deal with real-life violence; there is no sporting aspect to it. In combat sports such as MMA (Mixed Martial Arts), Thai Boxing, Boxing and Judo there is a structured format to fighting, where fighters have time to prepare their mindset e.g., they no way ahead of time that they will be competing, they have time in the dressing room to get their head into the right space, when they climb into the ring (or cage) they are gearing up to fight, and a referee will tell them when the fight will start. In a real-life confrontation, you won’t have any time to mentally prepare yourself, and real-life fights are non-consensual without any format, structure, or rules etc. This makes them completely different to combat sports and requires a completely different mindset along with different fighting tactics and strategies etc. Krav Maga trains you for the realities of real-life violence, including how to deal with weapons (knife, stick, and/or gun etc.), and multiple attackers etc. Things which aren’t present and don’t have to be thought about when fighting in a ring or cage etc.

Krav Maga training also teaches you how to use the environment to your advantage, and where necessary to use improvised weapons. Violence doesn’t happen in a vacuum or a sterile environment, and things within it can be used to your advantage e.g., a chair can act both as a “shield” (“Magen” in Hebrew) and a set of sticks (“Makel” in Hebrew) to both block/shield and attack a knife wielding assailant, a car can be used as a barrier to block an attacker’s access to you etc. Having an awareness of how the environment can aid and assist you in a violent confrontation can give you a survival advantage against an assailant(s). Understanding your environment also means that you know where the exits are in order to disengage, and potential points of concealments, which may obscure other potential assailants etc. It would be wrong to restrict our thinking that real-life violence is going to resemble a clean, clinical one-on-one confrontation in an unobstructed and open environment such as a boxing ring or MMA cage etc.

As well as dealing with weapons, multiple assailants, and teaching you how to use the environment Krav Maga also teaches you how to survive all the potential dimensions of the fight e.g., when you are standing, grappling and/or on the ground etc. If you can imagine a scenario/situation during a fight, Krav Maga has a solution to it. Because there are so many potential threats and attacks, in so many different dimensions of a fight e.g., a knife attack may be experienced when standing, seated or on the ground etc., Krav Maga reuses common movements to deal with different threats and attacks e.g., the technique/solution to deal with a rear strangle is almost identical to the one used to deal with a knife threat where the assailant is standing behind you holding the knife to the front of your throat/neck, and we use the same block to deal with a stomp kick to the head when on the ground as we do against similar strikes when standing. By grouping similar techniques into “families” we can cut down the number of techniques/physical solutions that need to be learnt. This means that more time can be spent practicing techniques rather than having to learn “new” ones. This also means that when you are practicing one solution to a particular threat/attack you are also practicing solutions to others.

If you are interested in experiencing authentic Israeli Krav Maga you are welcome to attend one of our Beginner Krav Maga classes using the button below. This will take you to a page with upcoming dates, a description of the class and a registration form for it (if you are interested in learning more about our school/approach, please keep reading).

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About Krav Maga Yashir Boston

In 2005, Krav Maga Yashir Boston Head Instructor, Gershon Ben Keren, felt the need to distinguish the Israeli Krav Maga he taught from other more “commercial” Krav Maga systems, which were starting to emerge e.g., instructors were starting to be “certified” after only three- and seven-day courses etc., Eli Avikazar (Imi Lichtenfeld’s successor as Head of Fitness and Krav Maga in the IDF) had experienced a similar issue in Israel in the 1980’s, and had renamed the Krav Maga he taught to Krav Magen (meaning “Combat Shield”) i.e., Krav Maga under a different name. Unfortunately, a lot of Krav Maga programs in the US are ostensibly “Cosher Kravi” programs i.e., combat fitness programs with a few self-defense techniques thrown in e.g., people hitting pads and then performing push-ups and burpees etc. Whilst this can be a great fitness workout it does little to actually prepare people for dealing with real-life violence, and at worst can lead to a false sense of security, and/or embolden people in way that sees them escalate rather than de-escalate potentially violent situations etc.

Gershon is also a 3rd Degree Black Belt in Hisardut, and passed/completed the Hisardut Instructor program, directly under Dennis Hanover. Hisardut – meaning “Survival” in Hebrew – is a system of fighting and close-combat that is taught to elite units within the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces). Gershon’s experience of this system colors and influences the way in which he teaches Krav Maga, making it a fuller and richer experience, and one that is unique to Krav Maga. Krav Maga Yashir Boston teaches Krav Maga in the direct (this is what “Yashir” mean in Hebrew) manner in which it was intended to be taught. Our close connections to Israel, and Israeli instructors means that the system is able to evolve as new and better solutions and techniques are developed. If you would like to attend one of our Beginner Krav Maga classes to experience this for yourself, please use the button below to see the dates of upcoming classes, and to register.

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