The Academy will be closed for summer break Saturday July 3 through Friday July 9. Classes will resume Saturday July 10. These dates are marked on the Class Schedule.
Have a safe and fun break!
MacDonald Academy of Martial Arts
Kenpo Karate, Krav Maga, and Fitness for the Boston / Watertown area
By Patrick
The Academy will be closed for summer break Saturday July 3 through Friday July 9. Classes will resume Saturday July 10. These dates are marked on the Class Schedule.
Have a safe and fun break!
One of our Phase B instructors, Pete Hardy of STW Krav Maga in San Antonio, derided and warned us against ever using the phrase “all’s you have to do is [fill in the blank]”. As in, “if someone tries to attack you, all’s you have to do is apply the Vulcan nerve pinch.”
Sounds ridiculous, right? Sure, my example uses a much-lampooned chop-saki-type move, but it’s not too far off from the reality of claims within the self-defense community. There are many “systems” and many “experts” out there that assert themselves as The Ultimate Self-Defense Solution in disabling an assailant with one technique for which there is no defense. Don’t get me wrong, I fully believe in the power of pressure points and strikes to sensitive areas. (A lot of the more esoteric George Dillman no-touch knockout stuff, however, is a leap a bit too far for me.) But anyone claiming that something of the sort is the singular key to walking confidently down a dark alley is selling you a bill of goods.
Krav Maga, for all its effectiveness, is not The Ultimate Self-Defense Solution either, but it has also never claimed to be. It is easy to learn and implement, but you still must constantly train. Its techniques are comprehensive and can be applied to multiple scenarios, but you must be able to see within the fight to the next “thing”. This is where most other systems fail, relying on one technique to end a fight.
Will a swift kick to the groin demolish the will of most attackers? Yes. But what if it doesn’t?
Will our rotating defense defeat a choke up against a wall? Yes. But what happens when the attacker pulls his arms free and throws a punch?
Fighting is dynamic. Don’t fall into the trap of believing that once you’ve learned a technique for a specific scenario that an altercation would immediately end upon the technique’s successful execution. Admittedly, this can be a slippery slope to 27 ninjas, but not if you stick to the see-within-the-fight concept and hard training.
I will offer one possible exception: In many instances “all’s you have to do is” have situational awareness. It must always be stressed that by being aware of your environment you can avoid most dangers. Being able to read a person’s body language and verbiage, you can hopefully avoid or deescalate a tense situation. Or at least surprise them with the Vulcan nerve pinch.
Krav Maga Worldwide black belt instructor Marcus Kowal will be fighting on the Strikeforce Live card tomorrow night, June 16th. From the Strikeforce website, it looks like the fight may be on the undercard, so it may not be televised on Showtime.
Danelle and I saw a glimpse of Marcus’ power and explosiveness as one of our Phase A instructors. And that was two years ago. He’s since been training professionally with the likes of Febricio Werdum, who fights none other than Fedor on June 26th.
Marcus relates Krav Maga and MMA on his blog:
This is the main difference yet similarity between Krav Maga and MMA:
I’m preparing for a battle—the battle that we at Krav Maga Worldwide hope to be able to avoid. Yet, I’m doing everything I can to prepare so that I can go home safe.
Here’s Marcus’ tongue-in-cheek prediction for the fight:
One Minute with Marcus: Prediction for his fight on June 16th
Good luck, Marcus!
Our instructors are highly trained and certified in their respective disciplines. Brian … Learn More
We're proud of our achievements as a school and in the community. Awards: We've been voted "Best of the Best" Martial Arts in Watertown - from 2003 through 2013! MSA and GKM are survey … Learn More
MacDonald Academy of Martial Arts
6 Riverside St
Watertown, MA 02472 · USA
phone: 617.923.4248
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