Hello again, welcome to the blog of Interception Martial Arts in Hull. This week we’re looking at grappling and self-defence. If you’re new here, we run self-defence classes in Hull training in Paul Vunak’s Rapid Assault Tactics & Bruce Lee’s Jeet Kune Do Concepts.
This week I want to look at grappling and self-defence. Everyone seems to have an opinion on it, here is my five pence worth.
Stats, stats and more stats about grappling and self-defence
64.34% od stats get made up on the spot*
Every martial art instructor seems to have stats on how many fights end up on the floor. These seem to depend on what sort of martial arts they teach and how their marketing works.
What this means to you is, you never really get an unbiased view.
Hopefully, in this blog I will give you that, I do not feel I am biased to any range, you tell me if I am after reading this.
90% of fights end up on the floor**!
The rise of the UFC and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu meant everyone had to admit how important grappling is.
I wouldn’t even think of taking an MMA fight without having my grappling as good as any other range. It is as vital to the sport as anything else. The most important words there is – sport. Real Self Defence is not a sport, I will try not to let this be a bias in this blog.
I trained in Machado BJJ for several years and loved it. I have nothing but good things to say about it. However……..
You cannot spend 15 minutes trying to pass someone’s guard on a night club floor. Never mind that fact it takes too long anyone and everyone will kick you in the head just for a laugh.
Imagine worrying about your side control escape when someone is taking your kid away.
A Grappling Base in Self defence.
You need a base, you need the ability to recognise grappling positions and how to avoid them. Having the ability to move on the floor will improve anyone’s self-defence.
That comes from rolling, there is no way around that. Time on the mat is what counts.
There is nothing wrong with falling in love with grappling just keep it as part of your arsenal not all of it. A flying armbar is self-perfection and I am talking about self-protection for now.
Once you have learnt and trained to a decent base level lets start preparing for self-defence, not sport.
Small Joint Locks don’t work!
Do you want to know who says that? MMA coaches! They say it because they are illegal in MMA, so they do not work in MMA.
As I mentioned earlier it’s all about marketing and what they are trying to sell you.
I am telling you right now they do work, Snap a couple of fingers in each hand and see how good your guard game is, let alone your punching.
If someone has hands-on you break their fingers, nothing scientific here just bend them the way they’re not meant to go.
The great leveller in grappling and self-defence – KINO MUTAI
If you’re unaware of what kino mutai is let me explain. Kino Mutai will enable you to survive and win a confrontation with someone who is a much superior grappler to you, It will leave your attacker devastated and under no illusion, you have caused them major damage, and yes it’s illegal in MMA.
Uninterrupted biting and eye-gouging.
Not just a nip and childlike bite when we say uninterrupted we mean it. Combining Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Kino Mutai is a recipe for almost guaranteed survival.
Using BJJ you will pin someone down or lock on to them then bite and gouge until you feel fit to let them go.
Here is a Video of Paul Vunak training this in Sumbrada style flow.
“OOOOO I could never bit anyone, it’s dirty fighting”.
If I had a pound for every time I heard that
As I mentioned in other blogs I train in case I find someone in my children’s bedroom at 3 am not to look good or someone looks at my wife.
I train for life and death and nothing else. ( Well enjoyment too, I do love training. However, my compass is self-defence and protecting my family).
Imagine finding two people trying to take your 5-year-old child and you end up playing a guard game on the floor for 10 minutes while the other takes you, child. In this paradigm who wouldn’t bite so, they could get up and catch them?
Using weapons while grappling and self-defence
Many instructors are teaching grappling with a stick and or knife. They will spend a long time showing how a disarm works etc …and so they should.
For me grappling with weapons boils down to a few concepts which you can add to your game without paying £50 for a video on it.
- Drop the stick Kino Mutai is a much better option when grappling.
- Train with your attacker training to cut you (training blades only FFS)
- Train with you trying to cut your attacker – this is a massive one, in self-defence we only ever see ourselves as the defender. If someone is taking my child you can bet your balls I’m picking up the kitchen knife.
Do all this and work it out, minimise how many times their blade touches you, maximise how many times your touches them and get into biting positions.
In summary
There is nothing wrong with sport grappling it’s great fun and you develop attributes doing it.
Just do not go down that rabbit hole of helicopter armbars if you’re only training for self-defence, there are better things to do with your time.
As with all training “Begin with the end in mind” – why are you doing this? what do you want out of it?
The answer to those questions should be your training compass for the journey.
Thanks again for reading and if you’re looking for effective military tested self-defence and martial arts in Hull please contact us.
Regards
Paul.
*I made that up on the spot.
*Made that up, also don’t forget almost all fights start standing up.
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