Krav Maga Lessons: A Primer on the Martial Art of the Israeli Defence Forces

 There are many self-defence systems in popular use, but mostare primarily for fitness or sporting competitions. Krav Maga, on the other hand, has been used for decades by the Israeli military as its main hand-to-hand combat, and is now a favourite of law enforcement organisations throughout the world. However, Krav Maga isn't just for soldiers or the police. Many civilians find it the most effective personal self-defence system available. So what do you need to know if you're looking for Krav Maga classes?

What Is Krav Maga?

 Krav Maga, a Hebrew name roughly meaning "contact combat", was developed in the 1930s by wrestler and boxer Imi Lichtenfeld, initially to train Jewish communities in Eastern Europe to resist attacks by Nazi groups. When Lichtenfeld emigrated to Israel, he introduced Krav Maga to the military there. Initially, Krav Maga consisted only of a combination of European fighting styles. Subsequently, however, elements from other worldwide self-defence techniques have been incorporated, notably judo, karate and aikido.

The Basic Principles of Krav Maga

 As a system that has always mainly focused on actual combat situations, Krav Maga emphasises the importance of incapacitating your opponent as quickly and efficiently as possible. Like other martial arts, the student is taught to avoid combat where possible, but Krav Maga has none of other systems' restraint when fighting.

Significant elements of Krav Maga's fighting philosophy include:

• Maximum physical aggression, while maintaining emotional calm and awareness of surroundings.
• Combining attack and defence simultaneously.
• Immediate pre-emptive attacks.
• Targeting the most vulnerable parts of the body.
• Easily repeatable strikes, which may include improvising with objects.
• Continuing the fight until the opponent is incapacitated.

 Krav Maga also teaches how to recognise and understand potential threats, and to defuse them where possible.

Techniques of Krav Maga

 Krav Maga is an eclectic system of self-defence, recognising the effectiveness of many existing techniques. These have been brought in and adapted into the fighting philosophy explained above.

The five main groups of techniques are:

• Strikes — these are principally adapted from boxing and karate and designed to incapacitate opponents.
• Take-downs and throws — largely taken from wrestling, judo and aikido and designed to neutralise opponents.
• Groundwork — using techniques from wrestling and judo to control opponents when they are down.
• Escaping from holds and chokes — using techniques from wrestling, judo and aikido to prevent opponents from incapacitating you.
• Empty-handed defence — mainly from aikido, to neutralise attacks on you and allow yourself to counterattack.

 While it's vital to learn these techniques thoroughly, however, Krav Maga emphasises the importance of reacting instinctively to the situation, bringing learnt techniques into the fight as needed.

How Do You Learn Krav Maga?

 Much of the worldwide teaching of Krav Maga is aimed at military or law-enforcement organisations, but you don't have to be a soldier or police officer to learn it. There are civilian organisations that teach Krav Maga, either for serious self-defence or for competition. However, many people who have qualified as teachers through either these organisations or the original Israeli military training have established themselves as private Krav Maga tutors. Register with TutorExtra to find a Krav Maga tutor near you.