Grab a Gun Grab Lunch
BY MOSHE KATZ 
CEO
ISRAELI KRAV INTERNATIONAL

November 20, 2024, Israel

Sometimes a friend will say, Let's grab lunch! but I am not a fan of that expression, or let's grab a taxi. To me these expressions mean doing something in haste, without much thought. It also implies there is no cost, as if the driver is just waiting for you, to serve you for free. A grab seems like a quick easy solution to any situation, Let's just grab a...whatever. It is so easy, so simple, so effortless. 

If I land in Boston and need to get to a destination an hour away, and someone says, Just grab a taxi, well, did you stop to consider that for me that might be rather expensive? That term for me implies a quick thoughtless action with no consequences, an easy simple action that anyone can do, a matter that is so easy it requires no thought or consideration. We can just "grab" lunch on the way home. (if we really did just grab it, we would be stealing, what we really must do is park the car, get in line, look at the menu, make an order, pay etc)

Our style of Krav Maga, IKI Krav Maga has evolved a great deal over the years. It has evolved because we were dissatisfied with what existed before it. As John Lenon wrote, "Thought I was in love before, but in my heart I wanted more." (Real Love). So we wanted more out of Krav Maga, something more user-friendly, something that is better for the average person, something that is better suited to the more realistic practitioner. i.e. One who has evolved to the point of forsaking delusions. 

Just Grab it

We do not use grabs in any of our defensive techniques. Why? Why are we breaking with so many martial arts that use grabs on a regular basis? My answer is that they simply are too risky, they are low percentage moves at best. Unless you are dragging a child out of the mall, grabs will fail you. It is very easy to get out of a grab. There are so many different ways to do this. Why don't the police just grab a prisoner to escort him from place to place? Because grabs are easy to get out of. 

We do not rely upon grabs. Just as we can learn how to get out them, so can our opponent. If you want to learn simple methods to get out of grabs, come to our classes, it will not take long to learn. 

And yet in some styles of Krav Maga there is grabbing. And we must ask why?

Important Side note: All martial arts, without exception, practice and train in somewhat unrealistic conditions. i.e. we are in the dojo, the training hall, with our teachers and friends. Even those schools that go full force, or NHB, no holds barred fights, even the most hard-core training, will never exactly duplicate a real-life violent situation. We do our best, but we must first acknowledge the differences. If we truly believe we have replicated a real situation we will be fooling ourselves and this will hurt our chances of survival in a real attack. We must acknowledge the differences. In a real attack a person will fight like a trapped animal, like a tiger with claws out and ready to kill. You will never get this in a training hall. If a person has a knife in his hand and you try to grab the wrist, or even the knife, and believe it or not there are "instructors" who teach this way, you will be facing a Tiger with claws. No one will go down easy; they will fight you tooth and nail and you will not grab anything. It is better to set our delusions and movie based martial arts fantasies and wet dreams aside. 

We advocate a different idea, not based on grabbing, not based on muscular strength, not based on how fast we can grab someone, and not based on the hope that we can grab their wrist in the precise spot that we need in order to control them. We have dislodged those fantasies from our minds. We are free from delusion, we are enlightened. 

We teach concepts such as Total Body Movement, Gross Motor Movement, The Ginga step, Using the Surprise to your Advantage, Flowing with the Energy of your Attacker. To fully understand what we are talking about you will have to attend our classes, or join us online. I am just outlining some of what makes us different from other forms of Krav Maga.

Now we face a problem sometimes. But we also face wonderful remarks. At a recent seminar in Virginia a woman, with a great deal of martial arts experience, kept saying to me, "This is simple stupid", or something along those lines, i.e. it is just so easy, I can't believe how easy this is, and it works. 

We get that all the time, "I can't believe how easy this is and how effective it is". In South Africa a veteran Krav Maga instructor from another style attended our seminar. She had this look on her face and kept saying "I need to wrap my head around this". She ended up following us all over South Africa attending every seminar and lesson she could. Yes, it is simple and effective. But we also get naysayers. We get those who are so hell-bent on  "Aggresvie Krav Maga", that they can't contemplate any other approach. It has to feel tough. 

I even had an instructor tell me point blank and honestly. "I know your techniques work, but I am working with macho security guards, and they need to feel that it is Bad Ass, this just comes across as too...soft". I understand, business is business, you need to look and act the part. But our stuff works, easily. 

I can take every technique, break down the situation and analyze it, show our defense and ask - now you tell me what you think. Grabbing is not the way to go. And yet, many styles of Krav Maga around the world continue to teach this way, and I must ask why?

My Answer: There is a human tendency to GRAB. People feel secure grabbing something, they want to grab, they want to hit. Just watch any movie, the more violent the better, but often this is not the best method, often a grab is weak and ineffective, and yet we love to grab. Perhaps the easiest situation to get out if a wrist grab, or a shirt grab. That is why none of the IKI techniques is based on grabbing, none! because it does not work, and I can, and have, proved it. (all over the world with all types of people). But there are many gun, and even knife, defenses taught in other styles of Krav Maga that are based on the defender grabbing the weapon, or the arm that holds that weapon. This is a big mistake on several levels as it relies on Speed, Precision, and Strength, what I call the Three Amigos, or the three unreliable friends. And yet these are taught in other styles even though they are illogical, and I can prove and demonstrate their weakness.

Why are they taught?

So why are they taught? Because it appeals to people, because people like it!

People like to grab, and this feels right to them.  It feels natural; someone points a gun at you, you grab it! you take it away from them! you show them who is boss!  But it does not work, it is not that simple. When you grab the gun, they can pull away, hard and fast. Or, if you do succeed in grabbing the gun, an experienced gun-man will strike at your hand and pull his gun back. He is trained to protect his weapon. You will lose, you will be shot, and you will die. But, it is fun to grab. 

We like to grab, it feels...and sounds, easy. Going back to the beginning of our discussion, Let's grab lunch! Just grab a taxi! there is no effort involved. Someone points a gun at you, Just grab it. Just do it. It feels right because we like to be in control of our environment, I can just grab that and take it away from you. It appeals to our sense of Control; we take what we want! We are being Aggressive and after all, isn't that what Krav Maga is all about? (At least according to 90% of the advertisements). 

Like my friend who teaches the Macho Security Guards, they want to feel aggressive, they want to feel tough. It just appeals to their inner need to be a warrior. That is why it has such appeal. It caters to the inner needs of these people. 

Sometimes I feel geared up for a fight, I have all my weapons ready, all my information to make my point, I place the phone call, but the representative on the other end of the line does not fight. He just says he understands me and will refund my payment in full, with an apology. I feel deflated, I was all geared up for a fight! I wanted to hit and yell.

That is the same with Krav Maga. A guy wants a big fight, a GRAB, a punch, but you show him an easier method, a simpler method, a more fluid, and yes, sometimes softer looking method, but he is not satisfied. It does not matter that it works, he wanted a fight!!!

I recall watching my Kung Fu teacher, Sifu Chow, everything looked so fluid, so soft, too soft, but when he hit you, BANG, you had no doubts. Likewise, our techniques "walk softly but carry a big bat". 

IKI is based on logic and experience. Neither logic nor experience alone is enough, they must work together. We do not rely upon grabbing the gun and overpowering our opponent, remember he chose us a victim, we did not choose him. He will overpower us. We use wisdom.

MosheKatz2024

Moshe Katz, 7th dan Black Belt, Israeli Krav Maga. Certified by Wingate Institute. Member Black Belt hall of fame, USA and Europe.

Understand the Israeli Fighting Mentality - Israel a Nation of Warriors by Moshe Katz

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What is the cultural background of Krav Maga?  What makes it unique? What makes the Israeli military so effective? Why are Israeli security systems used all over the world?

What are the Biblical origins of Krav Maga and who was the first Krav Maga instructor?

What weapons and military strategies did our Biblical ancestors use?

How has Krav Maga developed in Israel and what are its goals?

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