Inside Defense Against a Straight Knife Stab


Technique Review 

This week’s technique review is about defending the straight knife stab with the forearm. So we are dealing with an attacker, an assailant who is doing this type of …

Video transcript

Hi everyone. This week’s technique review is about defending the straight knife stab with the forearm. It’s the difference with the forearm, but from the outside. So we are dealing with an attacker, an assailant who is doing this type of behaving. It can be attacking with the backhand. So right with the left foot forward or right and right. It can be more recoiling. It can be less recoiling, especially when the same leg is forward. This is really what we are talking about. And we see several types of mistakes. One of the common mistakes is that the hand is going out and then in. We see common mistakes that the body doesn’t really move. Not out of the line early enough and definitely not out of the channel. So these things should be very much emphasized.

Also the subject of the strike, we see people who are striking like this: the acute angle here, the strike is not strong enough, the angle of the strike is, the angle of the arm is not strong, the punch is not strong, so that is the idea. I mean, not angle correct, not strong enough strike.

So, we talk about this problem, let’s show the problem for a moment. A few times the person is stabbing … Touch here. So a few times the person is stabbing, that is really the idea. When we think about the natural response, let’s say somebody is advancing and striking like this, probably I see the hand coming of course. Yes, I am not sure I can see the knife, but I see the hand coming. So when he is attacking, that is a natural response. So again, if I’m in a sort of a passive stance or maybe a little bit one leg forward quite casual, and I see a problem, something like this is the natural response. Again look at it, I’ll try to do it a bit slower. That’s the idea of the natural response.

So we’re trying to take this type of natural response of pushing away, staying away, trying to take this beginning of the motion, and do an inside defense with this. So the assumption is that the hands are high or coming high quite early, and from here they are going forward. So the interception is to the center and forward very early. That is really the idea. When you are ready.

Okay. So, please one more time. He attacks, that’s my defense. So the thinking is like this, that I’m trying to close the center, cross into the center, touch the area of the back of the hand, maybe even the knife.

If I will be defending the forearm, which usually we are conditioned to do, especially against the strikes, punches, it’s too late. Look where the knife is. The knife is on me. Inside me if I didn’t move the body. So, we need to do the hand defense early. So he makes the attack, that is what I’m … and I need to go again here, this area. Sometimes if I do this early and correct, I’m even disarming the person sometimes, because of a strike on the fingers area. So, he attacks, body defense, very important. And do the body defense with moving diagonally forward.

Now, when we are doing this, please … That was the defensive section. So, I was sliding on him. Why? Because I was not doing any following through. I was not doing any sweeping action. I was going towards his opposite shoulder. So now where did I reach? I reached where he is going to, where he is recoiling to. So, he went out, he went in. While he is going in, I can have enough time to trap him. So then, doing an early enough trap, … One more time. Early enough trap, I trap quite okay.

Now about the strike, and it’s really important. One more time. We see people who are coming too close. Look again from here. People are coming too close, too dangerous. If I miss something, I’m in the line. In the channel, it’s dangerous, it’s deadly.

So, the idea, I would like to be here. I would like the back leg will not be in the line of his channel, but outside the channel. This takes me out of the channel, so I’m 45 degrees, even 90 degrees sometimes, depending how much he was advancing. And from here, I’m trapping and striking. Look at the strike. Look what I’m doing with the strike, while striking. I’m lowering my shoulder. Why? If I’ll be high, where is the punch going? Like this, one, I cannot reach him so easily, he’s a long person, that is one thing. And the second, the angle here between the arm and the chest is like 45 degrees, it’s not a strong punch.

I would like to do this, because it’s my strongest strike, right? But what happens with this hand? This hand now, it’s back. I cannot have a situation that I’m doing one, and then two, look what happens with the knife, it’s coming to me back. One more time. So if I do one and then two, it’s in front of me again. I cannot send this shoulder forward. This shoulder can only be like in the basic 360, 90 degrees with the arm cannot do this. That is the maximum I can get. So again, when he strikes and I’m here, at this moment, this is a good punch and that is not a good punch. So, in order to make this good punch strong enough, what do I need to do? Tilt. Look what happens with the elbow, the elbow goes down. Look what happens with the arm, the arms become near the, the strike comes to the target.

So, again, let’s do it from this angle, they will see better. This is the defense, that is the attack. Also many times we see a very, very common mistake, check that you’re not doing it. A rhythm of three clicks. Meaning, slowly, one, two, three. People are emphasizing the grip too much. So then you are conditioned to grab and then to strike. What will happen if you will not grab? What happens if you will fail with your grab? You know what, like Pavlov’s dogs you will not strike. It will disrupt the pattern in your brain. So if he is striking few times, and I’m thinking about grabbing and I didn’t manage to grab well, and I ought to be sure that I am grabbing, only after I grab, I strike. That is what will happen. The strike if at all, would be very late.

So, think about two clicks. The first click is the defense. The second click is strike while grabbing. Don’t think about ‘grab and strike’, think about ‘strike while grabbing’. So, from here. Look again. From here. And so you see how … One more time. You see how the defense is the first section, while the hand defense, the active defense, the body defense, dynamic defense, moving the target is the first action. And as soon as possible, there is a strong attack. So now, this is the channel, I’m outside the channel. The attack is strong and the shoulder is low and the trap is there. The trap should be practically with the low elbow. Sometimes because I don’t strike him, what will happen is I’ll get close to him and you will see that my arm is horizontal and practically I’m blocking his upper arm. Well, this is true, because he didn’t get to strike. If my strike was good, then, now he is moving away more or less.

So it will not be reasonable to stay like this for a long time. You need to go in. You want to curve, make more attacks and move in. So you’ll feel sometimes that the grab becomes horizontal, the arm horizontal and the pressure is against the upper arm. But please remember it is possible that will happen, but it will not happen if there was a strong strike. So the essence is defend, the elbow is still low while you are striking. That is the essence. All that happens afterwards, who knows in reality? If I gave a good punch, he is there, okay. You see, you saw how he was moving away and I was going with him with my grab. Only with the grab. And I was not in this situation.

So, don’t make a mistake if when you see yourself, you see your instructor with the high elbow, it means that you are very deep, very late in your actions. It is okay, it can be good. But initially what is important is to find yourself now. With the low elbow, which is effective for the defense, you see what happens with a low shoulder that enables this low elbow that is crucial. Low elbow is crucial, because that enables the continuation of the defense and the pressure and the counter attack. That is it.

So, this week’s analyzing was mainly about the inside defense. And we have different types of drills to coach ourselves. For example, give me your hand like this, and when I’m sending the hand, you are deflecting. Let’s show. So, look how I block his movement of the palm, and he is working with the forearm and the elbow moving in. So he does not have this response. So this response doesn’t happen. He has this response. That is one of our games or drills to enhance and make a better forearm defense inward, and not choppy action. What’s good, what’s bad in the chopping action? Chopping action, yes, chopping action down, okay, down, yes. It’s in front. The knife is maybe still in front. So if I was aiming to his throat, and he did the chopping action, it can be hitting his stomach. He needs to do an inward action. Inward, exactly. That is the idea. So we need to enhance the inward action. Thank you so much.

So, to wrap it up, inside defense, diagonally forward, get out of the channel. As you strike, grab and as you strike, the shoulder goes down. So the line of shoulders is about 45 degrees down. Thanks. All the best.

 

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