Basics of Self Defence - Surviving Knivings

The Real Threat of an Edged Weapon

Edged weapons enjoy a tremendous psychological intimidation factor. Most people assume they're doomed if they try to attack a knife wielding thug. That's not always the case if you possess just a little knowledge of the true dangers of edged weapons.

The real threat posed by any edged weapon is penetration of the blade. Any blade piercing more than two inches into your body can rapidly produce lethal results. Vital organs, major arteries and veins all are in danger when the blade penetrates the body.

The Roman Legions conquered the world realizing this fact. The famous military tactician and historian, Vegetius, writes of how the Romans would make fun of their much larger opponents who would slash and hack with the edge of their weapons rather than stab and thrust. The smaller Romans found these much larger, more physically powerful foes easy prey to the straight thrusts of their short swords. Why? Because they knew slashes and hacks rarely killed, regardless of how powerful the blow. The Romans would trade a twelve inch long slash for a two-inch stab any day.

According to the Department of Justice statistics on edged weapon assaults, the first three to five strikes in a knife attack are slashes and more importantly, these first strikes are not lethal in nature!

Many studies have been done not only on the criminal use of edged weapons but on the military use of edged weapons in combat. The conclusions are the same: there's a strong, innate revulsion by the majority of the human population to stabbing edged weapons into another human. There are many psychological reasons given for this aversion to penetration, but what you need to know is that this little known fact can save your life in a lethal confrontation.

A "Knife Fighter" vs. "Fighting With A Knife"

You need to know the difference between a "knife fighter" and "fighting with a knife." But first, let's be really clear about something: if you ever face an attacker who pulls a knife and you can escape to safety, then run! If you can get away, then do it.

Very few people are trained to fight with a knife, so in 99% of the cases you'll likely face a knife fighter. Since you understand that your danger comes not from the knife itself, but from the brain of the attacker holding the knife, then you have an advantage.

Weapons Systems of The Human Body

Think of the body as a set of weapons systems. Your primary weapon system is your brain and your secondary weapon system is your body. Every other weapon you can think of — knife, club, or firearm — is ancillary or useless without the first two systems in place.

Your mission in a life and death situation is to shut down your attacker's brain or central nervous system (CNS). That is your guarantee to defeating your attacker as this diagram clearly shows:

No CNS = No Body = No Knife = No Threat

Facing an edged weapon threat, you now know you have a high likelihood of facing a non-lethal slashing attack first. Also, when you face an attacker who's focused on the knife giving him his power, he'll focus on using the knife to fend off your attack rather than protect his central nervous system. So your focus needs to be on attacking his primary weapon system while he focuses on using his ancillary weapon (his knife) against you. This leads us to the next step.

How To Take Out Your Knife-Brandishing Attacker

Quick review on the principles covered so far:

• Stabs are lethal. Slashes or cuts are rarely lethal.
• Most knife attacks are initially slashing attacks.
• You need to focus on destroying the knife fighter's CNS.

One Proven Approach

First you need to close distance; no good if you stand off and dance in and out with an attacker. That allows him to slice and dice you at will. You need to be close. Your focus isn't on the knife but on his neck; your target is his CNS.

The body weapons of choice are your forearms. That three inches of bone above the break of your wrist is your body's own personal piece of lead pipe. The hand has approximately 72 bones in it and can easily break or fracture if not properly set. The forearm needs no special position and is an extremely powerful striking weapon.

As you quickly close distance, merely attack with full downward circle strikes. Imagine your arms rotating in front of your body like two propellers — your left rotates clockwise, your right counter clockwise. The striking surface of your wrists rotate six to eight inches in front of your torso. This attack not only provides protection of your torso area but generates incredible striking power for this assault as you rush in.

This is a violent assault designed to strike the assailant in multiple targets of his body. Your first strikes will hit his arms and rapidly advance up his body. With your focus on his neck, you'll soon find yourself well above his knife and in his center core. There, you can use your forearms strikes to:

1) Crush his windpipe; the windpipe has the consistency of copper tubing and crushes easily.

2) Strike the Vagus nerve (follow the neck from the earlobes down, this nerve runs up and down that line on either side). You'll know when you hit the nerve because it's an instant knockout. Your attacker's eyes roll straight up, his knees buckle, and he collapses straight down in a lump.

3) You can also use your thumbs to gouge out his eyes. Simply open-hand slap him on the ears and place your thumbs in the sockets and gouge.

You'll notice I didn't discuss what happened with the knife. During that confrontation you probably received a couple of cuts or slashes and you may need stitches...
Final Notes

Make no mistake, edged weapons are very dangerous, but you can increase your chances of victory in an unavoidable life or death scenario using the above principles. Don't get caught up with the martial arts knife fighter scenarios. It's highly unlikely you'll ever meet a highly trained martial artist or well-trained operator who fights with a knife. It's far more likely you'll be dealing with a criminal who's used to everyone cowering when he pulls his knife.

cud u post other stuff abt self defence?

Thank uu

gurmzz wrote:cud u post other stuff abt self defence?

Thank uu

Will do.