There’s a military saying that goes, “Two is one, and one is none.” The idea is that if you have a mission-critical item then it will inevitably malfunction, get misplaced or get smashed into a million pieces. So you need a backup. This is really a corollary of Murphy’s Law, namely “Whatever can go wrong will go wrong”. Once you involve Murphy you can’t have a single … [Read more...]
BJJ vs Boxing
A question came up on a recent Instagram Live Q&A I did about a streetfight video in which a 'boxer' beat up a 'jiu-jitsu guy'. This was a great entry point into a really interesting discussion about the street applicability of BJJ, the importance of cross training in today's martial arts environment, and specific drills BJJ guys should be doing if they want their art to … [Read more...]
5 Mistakes Grapplers Make When Striking
If you’re a grapplers that wants to learn boxing or kickboxing then there are several very common mistakes that you’re probably going to make. This is because each style of fighting (grappling vs striking) trains you to use your body slightly differently which can set you up for failure in the other art Here's a video showing 5 common mistakes for grapplers when they start … [Read more...]
The Worst Problem with Martial Arts Training
In martial arts training it's very common for the person in the attacker role to lunge forward with a single punch and then stand there like a statue with the arm outstretched. The defender can now do all kinds of fancy counters including multiple strikes, jointlocks, takedowns and cool finishes. This type of training makes you feel like you've reached John Wick levels of … [Read more...]
Kicking from the Ground – How to Do It Properly!
Many self defense systems teach that if you get knocked down to the ground you should get into a defensive position on your side. From there you should then lash out at your opponent with sidekicks to keep him away. In this article and video I'll show how staying on your side when you're knocked down is mostly an outmoded technique and that there are much better options … [Read more...]
Wing Chun Trapping in Self Defense
This is bound to be controversial, but I don't think that trapping works in real self defense situations. At least not the way it's normally taught and trained. Here's my video on the topic, along with a few examples of where some of these techniques might actually be useful... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rxl5ukLDICM What is Trapping Hands? Trapping hands is an … [Read more...]
The Perfect Head Positioning for a Headbutt KO
The headbutt is an incredibly vicious and effective way to KO someone in a self defense situation even though it's illegal in most martial arts. But if you use it incorrectly you can hurt yourself as badly as your opponent. So it's worth thinking about how to do it properly! How NOT to Headbutt! The wrong way to land a headbutt is forehead to forehead. This video of … [Read more...]
A Great Ground and Pound Drill
Here's a really interesting MMA drill with a TON of applications for self defense... It's features Greg Nelson who has coached 3 different fighters to UFC championships (Dave Menne, Sean Sherk and Brock Lesnar) and has also done a ton of work with law enforcement and the military. Anyway, here's video I think you should watch. The ground and pound section is mostly in … [Read more...]
A Great Reaction Time Drill
Everybody wants faster reaction times. The best fighters in the world make their opponents look like they're in slow motion, and a large part of that is having the ability to choose exactly the right technique at exactly the right time. Those reflexes aren't magic. They can be trained, drilled, improved. Today we're going to cover a great reaction time drill that'll teach … [Read more...]
Pressure Points for Self Defense
In more than 35 years of training I've been hurt many times by pressure point attacks. Instructors and training partners have poked, prodded, gouged, and pressed their way into many nerve clusters all over my body. These pressure point attacks hurt like hell when someone shows them to you, but you'd be a fool to rely on them in a real fight. Here's a video in which I … [Read more...]
Martial Art Ranges for Fighting
There are many different ways to classify martial arts ranges, but one relatively simple method way to divide all combat up into 5 distances... Projectile range (guns, javelins, arrows, thrown rocks, etc.) Handheld weapons range (sticks, swords, handheld spears, knives, clubs, etc.) Striking range (punches, kicks, elbows, knees, headbutts, etc.) Clinching range … [Read more...]
Which Martial Art is Best? Why Context Is Everything…
"Which martial art is best?" Ah, the old argument that never dies... I really like what Dan Inosanto told me once. Back when he was a paratrooper with the 101st Airborne there was a lot of rivalry between the soldiers who trained in the martial arts. Some thought that boxing was the best, others argued for the supremacy of karate, others for judo, others for … [Read more...]
BJJ Punch Defense Using a T Shirt Grip
I've said it many times... BJJ is a great sport, a fun fitness activity and a fantastic way to make friends, but at it's core it's a martial art! And one of the things that 'martial art' means is being able to defend against punches. And one of the most important places to defend punches from is when you're on the bottom, in the guard. Why the Guard? On the ground it's … [Read more...]
19 Ways to Counter the Right Cross, and the ‘Triple H Formula’ for Punch Defense
The right cross to the face is one of the most powerful attacks in boxing and kickboxing. It's relatively non-telegraphic but still has the power to knock you out and leave you drooling on the floor. So you absolutely need to know multiple effective counters to the right cross. Boxing and kickboxing coach Ritchie Yip has a formula for defending punches that I would … [Read more...]
Does Training in Kung Fu Forms and Karate Kata Actually Work?
I trained in a LOT of traditional systems back in the day, including some forms of Karate and many styles of Kung Fu. (Hung Gar, Northern Shaolin, Wing Chun, Southern Crane, Tai Chi, Hsing I, and Shotokan Karate to name a few.) Kata and Forms were important components of that training, sometimes to the exclusion of nearly everything else. In these pre-arranged … [Read more...]