We know Krav Maga is a very efficient, precise and expert method of self-defense, however there are other benefits of Krav Maga that spin off from this discipline and that you can apply to your everyday life when confronted by any problem. We can summarize this with Awareness, Assessment and Action.
As you begin your Krav Maga training, you learn to become aware through the exercises and drills you do in classes. A lot of times when we are faced with issues at home, work or in the streets, we may not instantly become aware of a problem because we’re too concentrated on ourselves. We want to tune out from all the noise, crowded streets and people around us. We put on our earbuds to listen to music whether we’re sitting down in a subway car or at a Starbucks, and we may even close our eyes to try get some rest before coming in to work or on the way home from work. Unfortunately, this is the time that violent perpetrators act and may catch us unaware. However, once you do become aware of danger to yourself or others, you make an assessment of the situation so that you can take the right action.
Let’s say you’re riding a crowded subway car. You’re busy looking at your Smartphone and you notice people moving away from what looks like a deranged man who seems to be holding a sharp object in his hands, maybe a screwdriver. You’re trying to look through the moving people at this apparent threat. You have become aware of a possible problem: A mentally unstable man talking nonsense but holding some sort of object in his hands and threatening people with it. The riders move away but the train is in transit and they can’t get too far from this man. You make your assessment of the situation. Is the man just talking nonsense but not really a threat? With a mentally unstable person you never know, one minute they’re calm and the next they act aggressively. Being trained in Krav Maga you start going through different defense strategies in your mind that you have learned in class. You look around and you see a mother holding a baby and she looks concerned because the deranged man is too close to her. You assess her situation. You decide you will get closer to her in order to protect her from any harm should the unstable man decide to hurt her or the baby. Now you have taken action based on your assessment and awareness of a potentially dangerous situation. In this case the action is to protect not only yourself but a woman who is vulnerable because she is holding a baby in her arms. You have taken the action of placing yourself in a physical position that allows you to confront the individual should he become dangerous. Maybe nothing happens. The train stops at the station, doors open and the crazy man decides to walk out or maybe he threatens you with the sharp object while the train is in motion. In any case, you have become aware of a potential problem.
Krav Maga builds your self-confidence and sense of self-worth. If you feel confident to confront physical harm as a result of constant training and exercise drills, then you feel strong enough to confront anything and not be afraid. This helps you to maintain high awareness levels wherever you go whether is in the streets, at a bar or at a party with friends. Once you become aware of your surroundings you’re constantly making an assessment. Every situation is different and some may require you to take action and some may require no action depending on the factors involved. Whatever the case, you’re always making a decision based on your awareness and assessment of your immediate surroundings.
It is important to be committed and consistent to your Krav Maga training in order to develop strong awareness skills. The more time and effort you put into your training, the more you prioritize it, the greater will be the result in terms of building your self-confidence, sense of self-worth and endurance.
Krav Maga is a very powerful weapon that one can use in all aspects of life so that you never become a victim. It gives you a strong inner voice for you to defend yourself when confronted by adverse situations. All of us, sooner or later, will go through many challenges in our daily lives, but the outcome of these challenges depends on how we react to them. Krav Maga acts as a management tool for us to confront these challenges and through a series of steps we take, based on our training, we can successfully overcome any of the problems that come our way.