I've been training twice a week with John Aldcroft at his Krav Maga centre in Oxford Circus, London. I am now in my third month there and I have to say that I am very impressed with John's skill as an instructor and all round courteous manner. It's a pleasure to get beaten up in his company! He is the highest graded Krav Maga instructor in the UK (currently brown belt but going for his black belt) and yet he lacks the look-down-the-nose arrogance I have experienced in the past from other instructors (in various sports I have done).
John's down-to-earth practicality really reflects the way Krav Maga (as a form of civilian self defense) should work. Here is a modern form of defending yourself that focuses on the reality of the world we live in today. It teaches you to handle a street fight. A messy and stressful situation that boils down to finding an escape route ASAP. This isn't competition karate with a single opponent, this is about finding yourself facing multiple opponents who may be armed (with sticks, knives or guns) and doing whatever it takes to get away quickly or disable them so that they do not pose a threat anymore.
Krav Maga is a well rounded fighting system that appears to cherry pick from many different disciplines such as Jui-Jitsu, boxing, Muai Thai, wrestling (no, not the WWE form of wrestling!) and many others. Jack of all trades, master of none? Perhaps. But being a master of Krav Maga is no joke. For us civilians it's a great form of self defense. For the military and various special forces and police forces around the world it is the de facto fighting system to know. Especially for the military where they obviously take it to extreme lengths. I read that they even have defenses against grenades, which I can only presume is something along the lines of "quickly throw it back!"
So I am happy and proud to have completed my first level so quickly. I'm looking forward to working towards my next belt (orange) over the next three to six months. With John's excellent tuition, and the good humoured, welcoming company of the other guys and gals who train, I am in no doubt that I chose the right way to keep fit and learn life-saving skills!
Big Al
2 Comments
Mythbusters determined that a person throwing themselves on top of a grenade significantly reduces the risk of life-threatening injury to those around them. Therefore, it would seem if you're not sure there's time to pick up the grenade and return it, toss someone onto it and you'll be okay.
Hey you know AdGuy always gets the last word! ;)