Monday, July 17, 2006

Defending Against a Knife - Protecting Your Targets

One of the greatest fears involving defending yourself against an assailant armed with a knife or other bladed weapon is...

...the fear of being cut.

And, while this is a serious concern, it's important, as with everything else involving self-defense, that you not let the fear immobilize you. Doing so will only make you a proverbial "sitting duck" for the attacker's slashes, stabs, and cuts.

As every one of my students who has gone through knife-defense training knows - the one thing that you can count on in a knife-defense situation is...

...you WILL be cut!

As harsh as that sounds, to believe otherwise, would be foolish. But, just because that's the reality, doesn't mean that you are doomed.

Not by a long shot.

The important thing to remember is that there are only so many really good targets on your body. By that I mean that there are only a few that, by themselves, will cause you to shut down very quickly if they're hit.

Every other target either requires more work on your attacker's part, or isn't important in the overall scheme of things and will not hinder your defense or escape attempts.

Your High Priority Targets

So, just what are the targets on your body that will require your utmost attention? Good question. The good news is that, there are only a few. They are:

  • The Neck
  • Insides of the arms
  • Torso below the ribs (stabbing-only), and...
  • Insides of the legs


These specific targets are locations on your body where the organs, major vessels, or "air pipes" can be accessed directly. These are what we call the "life-sustaining systems." Protect these literally with your life. Because, to allow one to open up to your attacker's weapon, increases your chances of being shut down almost immediately.

It's virtually impossible to show how to position your body relative to your attacker using only the printed word. That's why I've just produced and release a great new video called "The Cutting-Edge: Surviving a Knife Attack." It was designed to get to the point (yes, pun intended!) and teach you the most important lessons for dealing with an attacker armed with a knife or other bladed weapon. Here's the link:

http://www.warrior-concepts-online.com/knife-defense-video.html

The most important thing to remember when facing an assailant threatening with a knife, is to take up a position that will allow you the greatest cover for your primary targets. A good position would involve "blading" your body (angling it) toward your attacker and lifting your forearms from the elbows so that they cover both your lower torso and your neck. The forearms themselves should be turned in so that the backs of your hands point at the assailant.

For those of you familiar with the Ninja's defensive kamae, this the Hoko no Kamae of the Koto-Ryu school of Koppojutsu.

From this posture, you are better positioned to take cuts to exposed areas without the fear of taking life-threatening damage. This isn't to say that you want to take a lot of cuts, just that you will have minimized the damage you will take as you work to disarm or escape from your attacker.

Of course, anything that you can do to further minimize his ability to get at you, like wrapping a jacket or other material around your forearms, is always a good idea, if...

...you have time and material available.

I'll continue with this topic over the next week, but until then, check out the new video. Here's the link again:

http://www.warrior-concepts-online.com/knife-defense-video.html

This topic is such an important one that I'll be dedicating the next several issues to at least some part of the realm of knife-defense. In the meantime, you can get a free knife defense technique video clip, as-well-as a couple of unarmed defenses by going to this page:
http://www.warrior-concepts-online.com/self-defense-videos.html




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Until next time...

To the Successful Achievement Dreams!,



Jeffrey M. Miller, Shidoshi
Founder & Director
Warrior Concepts International
Self-Protection & Personal Development

Check out my latest book "The Karate-Myth" at http://www.warrior-concepts-online.com/self-defense-karatemyth.html

and the re-release of the most important safety video you could ever own, "Danger Prevention Tactics" at http://www.warrior-concepts-online.com/self-defense-video-dpt1.html

"Real Training for Real People in a Real World!"

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