Krav Maga Knife Defense Drills: Quick Observations

We’ve been focusing on knife defenses in Fight class for the last several weeks, gradually increasing the intensity of the drills by combining the defenses with higher levels of contact. One drill looked like this:

The knife-wielding attacker wore headgear, mouthpiece, and a body protector. He or she was restricted to upward and downward stabs with the right hand, but the assault was frenzied and relentless.

The defender wore headgear, mouthpiece, and a 16-oz glove on the right hand only. Ideally, he or she made a 360° Defense against the first stab with a simultaneous counter with ACTUAL impact, transitioned to a control position, and continued with combatives until the threat was neutralized or enough space was created to escape the room.

The defender performed the drill five times consecutively. Each iteration began with decreased space between the participants. The first began with enough space that the defender could use a Defensive Front Kick if he or she chose. The last began nose-to-nose.

Benefits and Lessons of the Drill

• This stuff is really difficult. It very quickly highlights any weaknesses in your technique. Is your 360° Defense a little sloppy or not correctly angled? You get stabbed. Is your Inside Defense a little slow or not “snappy” enough? You get stabbed. Is your initial counter punch not strong? You get stabbed more.
• Everyone thinks they can take a punch, but it’s quite clear how much trouble you’re in every time that rubber knife touches you. Or perhaps you’ve never been really punched or you have no experience with live firearms, but you’ve certainly cut yourself before and know the shock that sets in even when there’s no subsequent danger. This instantly heightens the levels of seriousness and focus.
• You must be explosive and vicious if you want to “survive.” Because the knife doesn’t need much space to maneuver and can change angles so quickly, you’ve got to smother the attacker and get control—or get the hell out of there—as quickly as possible.
• Other self-defense drills seem easy by comparison! Getting even reasonably proficient with knife defenses will make you more confident and more technical in your other techniques.

Shortcomings and Limitations

These are very general and could be applied to most drills and training as a whole…

• The balance between realism and safety is delicate. Protective gear, while necessary, was a hindrance more often than not. Even with gear, we couldn’t throw full-bore, rocket-propelled combatives that are essential to neutralizing the attacker.
• The defender knows what’s coming. Even when the angle and the timing of the attack are a surprise, just knowing you have to make a knife defense gives you much more preparation than you’ll ever have in reality. So long as we tread the realism/safety line, it is almost impossible to replicate the true surprise and the adrenaline dump that occur in an actual attack.
• The attacker knows what’s coming. This poses two opposite problems: A) The attacker anticipates the defenders actions and “cheats” around them and/or does not react realistically to the defender’s combatives; B) the attacker anticipates the defenders actions and is overly compliant, most commonly doubling over and offering up the attacking limb without making the defender “work” for it. This is another tough balance issue. Over-correcting either problem can lead to the other! You can find the happy medium through training and coaching, communicating with your partner and getting instructor feedack.

The Not-by-Any-Means-Exhaustive List of General Observations on Training Knife Defenses

• Knife attacks are terrifying. Anyone who disagrees has never done training like this. FULL STOP.
• Even trained knife fighters commit, however fleetingly, to a slash or stab. This is the opportunity to defend and counterattack.
• To inject a bit of statistical reality into this, the majority of attacks do not involve knives, the majority of attackers who use a knife are not trained knife fighters, and few if any trained or untrained attackers expect you to fight back with matching (preferably greater) ferocity.
• The initial Outside or Inside Defense is not only for the first attack. A common error I observed was someone making a solid defense against the initial attack, missing the transition to the control position, and then going into panic mode and throwing Krav out the window, trying to catch the in-motion knife hand in midair when the attacker continued the onslaught.
• While true of all Krav Maga defenses, it is especially true of knife that you must train from different distances and states of readiness.
• When the attack comes at extremely close range, it’s almost impossible to make a defense before you’re hit with the knife once, twice, three times… even when you’re expecting it! This is the nature of the knife as a weapon: it requires very little space or strength to change angles and cause tremendous damage.
• You must get your weight into the defense and counter. If there is time and/or space, burst forward with your feet to “attack the attack.” If there is not time and/or space to burst, get the mass of your upper body behind the defense as much as possible.
• The initial counter punch is every bit as important as the defense. KNOCK THE HEAD OFF. This is the best and perhaps only way to stop ensuing assaults.
• The counter feels very different when you actually make contact. In most classes we train to throw the punch with full extension over the shoulder. This is obviously important for safety, but also for developing a strong punch with recoil and for learning about your personal distance continuum. When you connect, however, the punch feels shortened, but your technique cannot change. Keep the elbow in tight to your body, fire at full extension, and recoil.
• The counter may very well knock the attacker down or create space. The head is not like a pad or focus mitt: it will move atop the neck when you whack it. If the attacker falls or backs up before you can move to control, rapidly assess the situation and decide whether you need to reengage or you can escape.
• Do not engage or reengage unnecessarily!
• Be aware of distance and your environment. Where’s the exit? Is there an old-timey jukebox directly behind you? Can you make it to the exit before having to engage? Can you stomp the advancing attacker in the chest with a Defensive Front Kick, or do you need to make a hand defense?
• Use your environment. What can you use as a weapon or a shield or a barrier?
• We were quite sweaty from training hard, which made it difficult to maintain control. A real assailant may not be sweaty, but there may be clothing or blood that will make it similarly difficult to control the attacking arm.
• Do not focus on disarms. The only reason you would ever need to perform a disarm is if you could use the knife as a force multiplier against other threats. [Insert use of force legal jargon here!] Disarms are important to understand should the opportunity present itself, but they are technical, fine-motor movements that leave you vulnerable if the attacker is not completely neutralized. Rather, make your defense, get to a control position, and rifle off combatives until the attacker drops the knife and is no longer a threat.
• Don’t be so eager to throw the attacker (with knife) to the ground. Yes, the control positions set you up perfectly to throw or dump the attacker, but unless you have a nearby exit, you’ve potentially created a ground fight with a knife! Think of the targets the attacker has within reach even while on the ground: feet, Achilles tendons, calves, femoral arteries, groin… Furthermore, there is always an inherent risk with takedowns that you could trip or get pulled down with the attacker.
• Even if you make an effective defense, there will probably be incidental cuts when transitioning to control positions and/or disarms. Some may be alleviated with improved technique, some are unavoidable.
• DO NOT STOP. Perhaps you’ve heard the quip “No one wins in a knife fight” or that a good knife defense means “the difference between going to the hospital or to the morgue.” This is not a nonchalant response to being slashed and stabbed, but an acknowledgement of the very high stakes in a knife attack. Being aware that you will most likely not walk away unscathed is not in any way preparation for such an assault, but it hopefully puts you in a mindset to fight tooth-and-nail for your life.

What did I miss? Comment below.

Photo credit: mirvana, on Flickr