Real Self Defence for Real People
When confronted with deadly threat IKI Krav Maga deals with what is probable rather than what is possible. It is possible that one can kick the assailant in the head with a spinning wheel kick and knock him out cold; it is possible that one can apply a wrist lock and strip away the weapon whilst taking the attacker down but there is a high likelihood that these approaches will fail. When my life or the life of my students is in jeopardy I focus on what is the probable outcome in any given situation and only teach defences that are simple, real and can work in even challenging conditions.
Many systems teach self-defence like its child’s play. In my time in martial arts I have seen the more traditional styles teach beautifully choreographed “self-defence” involving spinning heel kicks and jumping side-kicks and joint locks as if catching and grabbing a wrist of a knife wielding homicidal maniac was effortless and simple. Many of the so called self-defence techniques taught are choreographed to emphasise the style’s various esoteric skills and at best only work under very specific conditions. They look great in a demonstration but have very limited practical use.
The life of our students is important to us at IKI and that is why we aim to only teach tactics and skills that are easy to learn, easy to apply and easy to remember. Recently I have come back from a three day seminar with the head of our organization, Moshe Katz. What separates the IKI from other organizations is that our techniques and approaches are a little different and we are able to explain why we practice the way we do. At the seminar Moshe would show a defence and show how it used to be done in “traditional” Krav Maga and how the approach has been modified by IKI to make it even more practical.
Having trained with Moshe in Israel, the attendees at the seminar would ask me whether Moshe was a spiritual leader or a rabbi. This brings me onto another facet of IKI which appeals to my taste; the head of our organization rather than being an instructor with an Israeli accent and aloof demeanour, Moshe often brings up glib anecdotes of his own training, attack and defence scenarios as well as his own take on the history of Krav Maga, the Middle East and the nation of Israel. I recommend his blogs on http://www.your-krav-maga-expert.com/krav-maga-blog.html and book which is available on Amazon.
In the three months since I started offering Krav Maga classes there has been a steady growth in student enrolments and enquiries. Krav Maga is a passion for me because too many times I have seen gimmicks in martial arts. I will never forget some time ago when I ordered a video course from Black Belt magazine by SCARS, supposedly a Special Forces programme with the promise of dramatically increasing fitness and power in any martial arts style. What I received was a body building instructional video showing characters in military fatigues demonstrating the correct way to squat, bench press etc. Fortunately I was able to quickly get my money back. Black Belt magazine classifieds also had something resembling a plastic handle marketed as a self-defence weapon for the new millennium. In reality it was nothing more than a plastic knuckle-duster keychain. With the myriad gimmicks exploiting the gullible consumer I am proud to say that with all honesty I deliver that what I pledge; no gimmicks but real self-defence skills for real people.
