I’m a great believer in Tim Larkin’s Target Focus Training. Been twice to the Foundation training and am scheduled to take the Human Weapon Project 2 soon.
Yeah, I’ve also used a lot of Tim’s stuff. First trained with him in 1997 and I’ve loved everything TFT has put out. I’m pretty fortunate to have been exposed to a ton of great instructors. I love Russell Stutely’s pressure point training… Avi Nardia’s version of HUBUD… Peyton Quinn & Bill Kipp’s RMCAT/Fast Defense stuff was REALLY empowering for force-on-force training. Hmmmm… I think I could probably go on forever. I guess the key here is to try a bunch of things that look like a good fit and add what works into your toolbox. So many good trainers out there!
I have only been able to take a couple in person firearms classes but have taken a variety of DVD/online courses. I will be starting in person Krav Maga classes in a couple of weeks.
Taekwondo and Hapkido back in the day. A smidgeon of wrestling and boxing. Haven’t trained for many years now. Would love to get into Krav Maga when time permits.
My favorite system Kung Fu the method Ving Tsun(Moy Yat Family). Also I would recommend for a good self defense system: The Self Defense Company, Damian Ross, Fonder
I was re-watching some of the Marvel shows that came over from Netflix this past weekend, and one of the characters talked about how “brutal” Krav Maga is. I know that Krav Maga is kind of an umbrella term — anybody else here have experience with it?
I have just started working with a personal trainer/Krav Maga instructor. Much of my limited training so far has focused on regaining all the muscle I lost from my recent medical issues so I can’t speak with any authority on the subject. The attraction to me is that it seems designed to end fights quickly and work with your bodies natural reactions to threats.
I really like the Guided Chaos system better than any other that I have practiced or studied. I can really tell a difference in hitting power and speed after getting the techniques down and it is very intuitive. I first heard about it on the WL podcast a few years back.
I started Okinawan Sanchin Ryu karate when I was 7. It is a very practical self defense system and is 90% of what I use for hand-to-hand. I earned my black belt when I was 16 and after a while, I took Shotokan classes for around 6 months, which I found to be a great addition to my tool bag. I learned the high kicks that Sanchin Ryu didn’t use and it was much more intense and aggressive. When I went to college, the only martial art nearby was Taekwondo, which I tried for a bit but didn’t care for that much. Then I turned 21, got into pistol shooting, took several defensive pistol and tactical carbine classes as well as joining an IDPA league and I took a position as range safety officer at my college shooting range for 2-1/2 years. I was even the President of the Bullseye Pistol Club for the last 2 years (and Vice President of the Practical Pistol Club for the last year). I kind of fell dormant for a while after college but now I’m pushing 40 and have 2 little boys and a tiny wife that I’m responsible for protecting, so I was very excited when I found Warrior Life and and got back into what has been a (interrupted) life-long journey, now getting expert training on knife throwing, combat machete, and of course firearms, to name a few things. To sum it up, I carry an automatic-opening combat folder and tactical pen as part of my EDC but have my martial arts training as a go-to and rely on my guns only for home defense, as carrying aggravates an old back injury.
I just picked up a couple of “kung fu rings.” These are big loops of rattan or metal that help you practice keeping your techniques tight. You put your arms through the big hoop and them work some of your techniques, keeping them aligned inside the circle.
I boxed as an amateur, and wrestled in college, but never got into competitive martial arts. Now that I’m older and less capable physically, I’ve really come to more fully appreciate Tim Larkin’s Target Focus Training as a great source of practical self-defense guidance that starts from the vantage point of “avoid avoidable conflicts”! While I fully support other tools in a personal self-defense arsenal that allow you to project force at distance, the ugly truth is many unavoidable conflicts are going to start with what you already have in your hands at the onset of an attack against you. As Tim frequently reminds people, whomever gets the first injury in on an opponent is most often going to be the one with the greatest likelihood of surviving the initial attack/encounter.
From a teen till I hit 20 I did everything from karate to Wing Chun to JKD. When I hit 20 I found traditional Japanese jujutsu and I’ve been doing it ever since.
I got to put some of Jeff’s training to the test from the get to your gun segment in the Fast Class Roadmap section while training with my Krav Maga instructor. It was very helpful to be able to take the video training and quickly apply it in the physical realm.
Definitely agree that when an attacker is within several steps you have to take care of them physically before you can get a large enough opening to consider safely drawing and firing. There were multiple times when I was more worried about the instructor getting his hands on my firearm then I was about getting my own hands on it. You really need to get your opponent distracted with defending themselves and off balance to get a big enough opening to consider drawing.
