You start as a white belt, as in most martial arts’ systems, including the Israeli, and then: yellow, orange, green, blue, brown and ultimately the coveted black belt; in other words, six very distinctive and noteworthy levels of achievement. It is conventional wisdom, as with most legitimite Krav Maga systems, that once attaining a green belt (or level three) that one’s Krav Maga skills are starting to truly take shape; however, even from day one of your training, you essentially are a Kravist!
Category Archives: Classes
Can one train in limited space?
My school, the Blue Chip Academy, is a spacious, clean and well-equipped facility, with plenty of parking, cushioned mats for ground fighting, and some of the best training gear available. However, can one effectively study Krav Maga in the smallest of places? Your corporate office, home gym, kitchen, living room, etc., and even your car, can be productive training environments, as many attacks occur in these restricted settings, and you may just not have enough room for your jump-spinning hook kick, ala Jean Claude Van Damme.
Private Krav Maga training can be excellent!
There will always been the debate as to which method of Krav Maga training (or other martial arts, for that matter) is better: group classes or private instruction. Both have their distinctive advantages and yet each has its respective downside. The answer lies, of course, somewhere in the middle.
Early morning Krav Maga classes…absolutely!
Alarm clock rudely awakens, each morning at 5am. Who am I kidding? I still have imbedded the years and years of “nightclub mentality” from my music career, which may never truly go away. Still, it’s my professional desire to teach my Krav Maga classes with as much energy and enthusiasm as the usual noon or early evening sessions ubiquitous with the several other schools in Fairfax County and Northern Virginia.
How does one choose the right Krav Maga school?
Being an internationally successful touring/recording rock and fusion guitarist for many years, I also taught, literally, hundreds of students…numerous pros, and many with similar aspirations. One thing that I absolutely know is that most have some talent, but ALL process information slightly differently. Teaching Krav Maga is no different, and those of my Krav people who are also my guitar students see this very clearly.
How is Krav Maga different from other martial arts?
Krav Maga was designed and based upon the world’s best martial arts systems, including: Muay Thai, JiuJitsu, Taekwondo, Western Boxing, Russian Sambo, etc.; however, this is where any similarity ends. Because it is not a sport, many of our military’s lethal combat techniques have also been incorporated, proving that one can achieve competence based upon his or her simple desire to fight back, as anyone is vulnerable to certain types of strikes, chokes and disarms, no matter how menacing!
Why is Krav Maga perfect for women?
Krav Maga is especially perfect for women in that it relies on the “hard tissue versus soft tissue” principle. For example, any size girl can literally incapacitate any size man by an effective strike to his throat, as it takes very little pressure to do so. As well, a woman’s knees have the possibility of 25,000 pounds of force, enough to lift a car, and certainly enough to bring down the most aggressive of attackers, with a strike to the groin or sternum. Her elbows are similar, and will be trained to be a most effective, especially when grabbed.
