Boot Knife

Military Self Defense Basic Problems

* Focused on strength and speed. Still has a competitive training attitude

* Trained weapon control more than ending the attack

* Rules instilled due to current media 

First problem, being focused on strength and speed are not bad things, but it assumes that you will better than your attacker. Hey, this might be the case most of the time in the gym, but after a long day at work? What if there is more than one of them. I am not stronger than two guys.

Military self defense training as hand to hand combat is the last resort. They mostly with weapons because that is the most effective way to attack. So when a soldier is left unarmed against a armed attacker, it is usually really bad. They are tired or hurt. Probably the situation you will be when attack on the street. Criminals go after everyone, but especially the weak.

So you would think that the military would create a self defense system with these things in mind and they did, back in World War Two. These systems cut down on training time, but then what are they going to do? Soldiers wanted to train more in hope to be more effective, and ventured out into other combat martial arts. Some found mixed martial arts and liked how you could compete all day/everyday and not injury your training partner.

Please understand that I am not saying that mixed martial arts are weakening military unarmed self defense. No way, but the way of training is. You see it is a know fact that you do as you train. Mixed martial arts is a sports and self defense is not. There are similarities, but you can not just flip a switch during combat and hope that you do the right thing.

You have to train in a way that does not promote physical attributes or sports competition.

Second problem, focusing on the weapon usually a gun, knife, or stick, but not on ending the threat. What? Wait, the gun, knife, or stick are not the threat? The person is the threat. You can take the weapon a way from them, and still get killed. Yet if you end the threat, it is over.

Again the military loves weapons and for good reason. Weapons work in ending the attack. Still the whole point is to end the attack and not to get the weapon. Semantics? No way, imagine you are fighting an attack and a gun goes flying to the floor. You dive for it and barely get it. What you did not see is the attacker smashing your skull in with their boot while you go for the gun. A little graphic, but very real. Please understand what the threat is here.

Third problem, rules instilled due to current media. That could mean the rules in sports like mixed martial arts or the way media views the military. We have gone over mixed martial arts a lot, but not on how the media sees the military. Honestly this is my take on it, but from the vets I have talked to, this is a huge problem. The media loves a story and they will tear apart anyone to get it. The military is trained in lethal moves and combat. So if they kill to defend themselves, but that is not acceptable here. The media knows this and plays a killer soldier story to death.

Understand that the media does help keep us all in check, but I believe that it can be abused. Military training knows this and tries to create ways to help their soldiers, but combat is combat. We are fighting for our lives here. So holding back in fear that it might get online or in the news is a real thing for many people not just the military.

So now what can be done? 

I do not claim all the answer. I know something has to be done. I suggest you talk to your self defense instructor (military or not) about these issues and seek more help.

About The Author: Adam Espiritu is a martial artist and instructor who works with 15 years training and coaching self defense. Adam has written a Free Mini Self Defence Course that shows you step by step how to turn you martial arts street lethal with 3 Hidden Martial Arts Secrets.

Drop by http://www.combative-self-defense.com/self-defence-courses.html for a Free copy of the course and even get a bonus video on the only self defense course Adam depends his life on.

If you need more military self defense training help, Adam has created a larger article on it at http://www.combative-self-defense.com/military-self-defense-article

Kershaw Military Boot Knife - Street Fighting Speed

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