Seven X Factors of IKI Krav Maga

I remember a long time ago when I first heard of Krav Maga I was prepared to go to any length just to find somewhere where I could learn and practice this style of self-defence and combat. Nowadays as Krav Maga gains traction the challenge now is choosing an organization and school to suit. In this blog I will run through the X Factors of our brand of Krav Maga.

1 – When you stop growing you start dying. The world that we live in is a much different place to what it was twenty years ago least of all the mid-20th century. Many Krav Maga systems still teach the original hand to hand and self-defence skills developed for the fighters of the fledging Jewish state. However, at IKI we see no point in teaching World War 2 era defences and our techniques often are reviewed to match the modern threat. Criminal behaviour, terrorism, drugs, weapons and modes of attack change and we at IKI Krav Maga endeavours to address the violence of modern society. There is a place for traditional martial art skills however this is not what Krav Maga is about.

2 – Complexity is the enemy of execution. Quoted from one of my favourite gurus, Tony Robbins. Many martial arts schools have choreographed defences that look good in a controlled environment. Often the defender would easily take down and disarm a knife wielding assailant without as much as a scratch. At IKI we know that grabbing the wrist of a knife wielding maniac is difficult because it requires precision and fine motor skills. Our defences are based on gross motor skills and simplicity. We are not here to teach new picnic skills to impress your friends and family but to save you from getting seriously hurt or killed.

3 – Military Krav Maga. There are those who believe they are learning a military or “special forces” style of Krav Maga. The head of our organization has trained military units, law enforcement and security teams in IKI Krav Maga. At IKI we know that there is no such thing as a separate military Krav Maga style. Anybody who thinks they are learning a special Krav Maga system only used by Israeli Special forces are either delusional, are being fobbed off, or both.

4 – Belief is a poor substitute for experience. There are people who believe Israel is an apartheid state who have never been to Israel. Then there are those ranting Jews are this or that who have never met or know any orthodox Jews or even secular ones. They can believe all they want but if they visit Israel and experience apartheid or meet Jews that confirm their presuppositions then they know its true. Like wise our Krav Maga is not borne from presuppositions and empty beliefs but from studying real situations not just in Israel, but places like South Africa, United States, Europe and Latin America. Our techniques are based on situations encountered by serving members of law enforcement and military globally.

5 – Repetition is the mother of skill. Our techniques are streamlined and simplified. However, knowing something cognitively is only a small portion of learning a defence. The defence needs to be understood by practicing it and emotionally engaging your brain. When you picture the gun in your face or the knife at your throat belonging to a sociopath intent on ending your life your physiology and emotional state undergoes a radical change. At IKI we condition your body to instinctively react to these situations by repetition of core concepts in a charged state to rapidly accelerate the learning.

6 – Tour and Train in Israel. Nothing can accelerate Krav Maga learning and understanding than doing a two-week crash course of all core defence concepts. Nothing can prime one emotionally and build understanding of the philosophy of what we teach than visiting the sites of battle for Jerusalem, maybe meeting a combat veteran, of taking in the sights and the feel of walking through the old city of Jerusalem, of the ancient ruins of Masada or witnessing the suffering and heroism at Yad Vashem of those who made their last stand against the Nazis in the Warsaw ghetto. If learning handgun and long gun defence has piqued your interest in guns we also offer firearm and counter-terrorism training. There are those who tell me they would like to go to Israel and train but they don’t think they can handle it, if you don’t think you can then it means you MUST. The experience is truly life changing.

7 – IKI family. The IKI organization is like an international family. My own school provides an opportunity to try Krav Maga for free. Whatever beliefs you may have about money, we at IKI believe money is simply an exchange of values. If you do not see the value in IKI Krav Maga then we don’t want to take even one dollar from you. We have no aloof hierarchical structure. Any IKI member can speak to the head of our organization directly about any Krav Maga technique or anything at all.