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80% of Self Defense Takes Place on the Ground - But Only If You Cant Fight!

80% of Self Defense Takes Place on the Ground - But Only If You Can't Fight!By Christopher Roberts

Since the early nineties, when cage fighting, no holds barred fighting or sparing and the mixed martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) became popular, there has been a lot of misinformation spread around that 80% of all "real" fights end up on the ground and the only way to be able to truly effectively defend yourself on the street was to spend years learning ground fighting.

OK, first of all, even if that were true, I still would have to say that ground fighting or sparing in a ring or cage is much different than ground fighting or sparing on the streets. In reality you have to take other factors into consideration, like your opponent pulling and using a gun or knife, or just the fact that people tend to have friends who would probably kick your head in if you put their buddy in an arm bar. But that is another subject for another article.

What I want to contest today is the myth that one needs to become a ground fighting or sparing expert to survive in a self-defence (the means of defending oneself from physical attack; the right to protect oneself against violence by using reasonable force, especially when used as justification in a murder charge) situation, as well as discuss the reason why 80 percent of real fights are decided on the ground.

OK, most fights in the cage "tended" to go to the ground in the early days of mixed martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) because the boxers and kick boxers of the day simply didn't know that ground fighting or sparing existed!

They were trained to stand up and punch and kick and, should the two fighters clinch, or physically grab each other, the referee would come and create distance between the two fighters so they could continue punching and kicking from a distance. Should one of the fighters slip or fall, the other fighter would be stopped and the referee would give the fallen fighter a odds to stand up again. Now, all of a sudden, the ground fighters came and clinched, which the kick boxers were totally unfamiliar with and just held onto the stand-up fighters until they were able to wrestle them to the ground!

Fast forward about fifteen years and we see that the tide has changed. These days, the stand-up fighters know what the deal is and are prepared to knock an opponent out before he can get close enough to clinch. If the ground fighter does cinch with his opponent and try to take him down, the kick boxers of today can avoid falling, break the clinch and then go back to punching and kicking. These days, where the kick boxing stables specially prepare their fighters to defeat jiu jitsu fighters, it seems that the ground fighters don't have a chance.

Now, let's compare that to street violence. Anyonewho has seen a real fight will probably say that its true that many, if not most street fights end up on the ground, however why is that?

Well, what did one or both fighters do to end the fight standing up? Most likely nothing. Neither of the two fighters probably even tried to land any strong blows and, if one did, he didn't hit in the proper target areas to cause immediate damage. Because one of the fighters was being hurt, however not damaged, he got scared and moved in so he would be too close to be hit effectively. That means that they just clinched until one or both fell to the ground.

Well, let's see what they could have done.

If they were standing up and one of them was able to land a blow to an effective target area, then it would not have gone to the clinch.

If it did go to the clinch, one of the fighters could have used headbutts, crushing the larynx, pressure against the eyes or parts of the throat or even extremely close-quarters kicks to the knee to damage his opponent before things went to the ground.

OK, however you do need to be able fight on the ground, because it is possible to end up there, even if you just trip over a curb or on a patch of ice, however that doesn't mean that you need to formally learn a system for ground fighting.

What you need to know for ground fighting or sparing in self-defence (the means of defending oneself from physical attack; the right to protect oneself against violence by using reasonable force, especially when used as justification in a murder charge) is:

-How to land safely, which looks completely different from that which is usually taught in the martial arts.-How to defend yourself while on the ground against a standing attacker and strike effectively from the ground.-How and when to stand up again, without being struck in the process.-How to hurt an attacker while on the ground, which has nothing to do with chokes or armbars, rather pressure to and crushing of vital points.

Christopher "Bob" Roberts is an ex-soldier who relocated to Europe and now earns his living as a tactics and close-combat instructor for military, police and private security companies.

For more information and details about armed and unarmed self-protection, subscribe to his free newsletters at www.extreme-measures-institute.com and receive access to an exclusive video interview series, where he explains the fundamentals of truly effective self defense.

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Proven in Combat - Head Kicks Really Do Work For Self Defense!

Proven in Combat - Head Kicks Really Do Work For Self Defense!By Christopher Roberts

Most people who consider themselves to be trainers in realistic self-defence (the means of defending oneself from physical attack; the right to protect oneself against violence by using reasonable force, especially when used as justification in a murder charge) will tell you not to kick someone in the head. Many say that kicks don't have any place whatsoever on the roads and the streets and the few who do believe that kicking has merit say that you should only kick to the groin or legs.

I'm of a slightly different opinion. I teach my students that they shouldn't kick above knee or groin level, however not kicking above knee or groin level doesn't necessarily mean that they shouldn't kick someone in the head on the street.

I witnessed an example a few of months ago while watching a cage fight. I know, I know, I'm always saying that combat sports and even cage fighting or sparing or mixed martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) are not always good systems for self-defence (the means of defending oneself from physical attack; the right to protect oneself against violence by using reasonable force, especially when used as justification in a murder charge) because they are still sports and not the harsh reality of unexpected street violence, however sometimes you do see something that you can use on the street. For instance, the last fight of the evening, where I witnessed an example of how not to use head kicks and how effective they could be in the same round of the same match.

About two minutes into the second round, one of the fighters launched a high shin kick. Although such kicks often land and sometimes hurt the kicker's opponent, they rarely end the fight immediately, which should be the criteria you use to decide whether or not a technique would be of value in a real self-defence (the means of defending oneself from physical attack; the right to protect oneself against violence by using reasonable force, especially when used as justification in a murder charge) situation, where your life or that of a loved one is on the line. What happened to the kicker demonstrates my point, when I say that you shouldn't try to kick higher than the waist. His opponent rushed him, smothering the kick (he got too close to be forcefully struck and didn't even have to block it) and they both went to the ground, with the kicker on the bottom. My buddy standing next to me, a judo expert, saw the top fighter position himself by grabbing both of the grounded kicker'sarms and said "here comes the armbar." What happened next? Simple, the top fighter apparently didn't want to end the fight with a submission hold, he just wanted to control the kicker's arms so that he couldn't defend himself before he stomped on his head. One stomp and the top fighter let go of the poor guy's arms and walked away, because he knew that he already had won. You see, there is no mixed martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) commission here in Germany, so Pride rules are allowed.

So, what did we learn from that? First of all, don't try to kick a standing opponent in the head. It just won't work every time and a real fight is too dangerous to use a technique that won't work at least 99 percent of the time. Second, and more important, is the fact that kicking a downed, however still combat effective opponent in the head, before he has a odds to get up and try hurting you again is a very effective and reliable technique.

Imagine what would have happened if the winner of that fight had let his opponent stand up again and try another head kick? Maybe it would have worked the second time. Should he instead have tried to hold the kicker on the ground and apply a lock or choke? Absolutely not, maybe the kicker was a better grappler than a kick boxer and would have won.

We'll never know, because the winner of the fight that night took the first odds he had to end the fight, using the most very strong and effective technique he could, and didn't expose himself while delivering it.

Like I said, even cage fighting or sparing is just a sport, however the thought process that this particular cage fighter used is well worth keeping in mind when winning and losing means the difference between life and death.

Christopher "Bob" Roberts is an ex-soldier who relocated to Europe and now earns his living as a tactics and close-combat instructor for military, police and private security companies.

For more information and details about armed and unarmed self-protection, subscribe to his free newsletters at http://www.extreme-measures-institute.com/h2h_opt-in.html

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Wanna Learn to Fight? Watch NHB Videos and Never-Ever Use Those Techniques to Defend Yourself

Wanna Learn to Fight? Watch NHB Videos and Never-Ever Use Those Techniques to Defend YourselfBy

Christopher Roberts

I've talked pretty badly about the mixed martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) (MMA) as a form of self-defence (the means of defending oneself from physical attack; the right to protect oneself against violence by using reasonable force, especially when used as justification in a murder charge) in the past, however always promised to talk about its good points someday. This time I'm going to discuss the technical problems inherent in learning a martial "sport" and trying to adapt it for use in real combat, however I'll also show you what we CAN learn from modern or contemporary (belonging to the present time) MMA.

In the beginning, there was Vale Tudo in Brazil and Cage Fighting in Russia. The only rules were "no biting or eye gouging." That was almost the real deal, however even then I told people that one of the greatest techniques for getting out of chokes, neck cranks and many holds on the ground had to do with the proper use of pressure against the eyes of your opponent. But still, it was "almost" the real deal, technically-speaking.

Then came big business. They tried (especially in the USA) to gain acceptance from the commissioning authorities in order to be allowed to be shown on cable TV, which necessitated increasing the rules and number of "prohibited techniques." The end result was that modern-day "No Holds Barred" fighting or sparing has barred so many holds that the modern or contemporary (belonging to the present time) sport of mixed martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) has almost nothing to do with a real street fight, much less with the sort of battlefield combat that a soldier or LE guy will have to face.

But modern or contemporary (belonging to the present time) NHB can help you survive a violent encounter!

How?

Simple--just do what they aren'tallowed to do. Specialize in it.

Eye gouges are against the rules? Then you know what to do when attacked!

No striking the throat or the cervical spine region of the neck (just under the back of the head)? Now you know where to hit an opponent trying to take your life!

No kicking an opponent on the ground in the head? That's the only time anyone will see me kicking someone in the head!

"Small joint manipulation," aka bending and twisting the fingers is against the rules because they are small and fragile and can easily be broken, even accidentally. If you have to control someone's arms without seriously hurting him, that's a very good alternative to a standard armbar!

No stomping kicks to the knee joint--those techniques end fighters careers, while Muai Thai low kicks just result in bruises and cramps. Threaten my life and see which kick I use!

No headbutts, elbows, groin strikes,...

Learn those "dangerous, unsportsmanlike techniques"--they can and will save your life on the street!

Christopher "Bob" Roberts is an ex-soldier who relocated to Europe and now earns his living as a tactics and close-combat instructor for military, police and private security companies.

For more information and details about armed and unarmed self-protection, subscribe to his free newsletters at http://www.extreme-measures-institute.com and receive access to an exclusive video interview series, where he explains the fundamentals of truly effective self defense.