Krav Maga is a full-contact combat system that was developed in Israel in the 1940s. It explores how your body moves and reacts when attacked, and can be used for self-defense purposes. The training focuses on muscle memory, so it is highly effective even for people with little or no martial arts experience. In fact, despite its focus on physical defense training, Krav Maga has been designed to take advantage of an attack’s inherent weaknesses to end a fight quickly and effectively.
Who trained David?
Together with a team of highly skilled professionals, David Hahn has been developing Krav Maga for the past 14 years. He is a former Navy SEAL and U.S. Army Ranger and was a lead instructor at the first American Krav Maga Association (AKMA) academy in Virginia Beach, VA. In 2007, he was named as AKMA’s first National Director of Operations and served in this role for over three years. In 2010, he moved to Israel with his wife and infant son to teach at the first official Israeli Krav Maga program outside of Tel Aviv. He is currently the Director of the Krav Maga Alliance Israel.
What is Krav Maga?
Krav Maga is a system of self-defense that was developed in the 1940s in Israel when the threat of attack by neighboring countries was high. The need for an effective, efficient, and realistic self-defense system was great. Imi Lichtenfeld, a gymnast, and professional boxer at the time created Krav Maga based on improvisation techniques he’d used in boxing matches when he wasn’t permitted to use his hands.
The reality of the fighting styles used in the Middle East was that an aggressive, direct approach was preferable to any style involving martial art forms. Even when using weapons, an aggressive approach gave better results than trying to disarm someone. As the years went by, Krav Maga continued to evolve and grow faster than any other fighting system in existence.
Attack your attacker.
Krav Maga incorporates attacks to the most vulnerable parts of your opponent’s body, which can be done in a number of ways (takedowns, kicks, knee strikes). It follows that you should avoid exposing these vulnerable areas when fighting. Krav Maga training builds a deep, instinctive understanding of how to defend oneself from attacks.
How is Krav Maga different from other systems?
Krav Maga is designed for offense and defense, not just defense. In the real world, though, people who defend themselves often find that they must use their hands more quickly than they want to. Krav Maga’s goal of realism keeps this from being a problem. It also gives you the opportunity to work on your defense before you have an opportunity to resort to using your hands. Finally, it teaches you how to take advantage of the weaknesses of people who attack.
Why is Krav Maga so effective?
While many self-defense systems will teach you how to defend against a punch, others will teach you to grab and hold someone. This often leaves your less-defended areas—and your head, in particular—exposed. Krav Maga makes sure that you’re aware of where your weaker points are at all times and teaches you to avoid leaving them exposed by the specific moves it uses. It also teaches you to take advantage of those same weaker areas of your opponent’s body, making Krav Maga the most effective form of self-defense available today.
What is the difference between Krav Maga and other martial arts?
Most martial arts focus on specific movements. They may teach you how to punch, for example, but they won’t specifically tell you how your hands should be positioned or what you should do if they’re grabbed. Krav Maga teaches you to attack and defend with the use of your entire body and all of its available skills (and weaknesses). It teaches you to not only attack your opponent with physical attacks but also with words and hand signals. Finally, it teaches that “you can’t win a fight with one punch.
