Recently we (at Science of Skill) have seen an increased interest in looking at Jiu-Jitsu, grappling arts, and all fighting arts as they relate to self defense. So, for this week’s concept piece I’m going to take a tangent from the usual look at training and competition mindset and offer a few thoughts on self defense and the ever-evolving world of grappling (among other things). If you like it, please let me know, as I will likely visit this aspect again.

While my formal/competitive BJJ game is in early stages (of a multi-decade journey), I have been studying martial arts that included grappling for the majority of my lifetime. My school has offered a blended system for decades and I first walked through the doors when I was just 17 years old, after having already spent my youth in the Japanese martial arts blend of Shorei Goju-Ryu Karate. At my current academy, we have four pillars to our curriculum: self defense, striking, grappling, and weaponry. Many of our black belts have run security, worked in law enforcement, have military experience, and/or teach outside courses on self defense concepts and techniques for the real world. Many of our students have used our curriculum to escape sketchy and deadly situations (an unfortunate reality of Chicago life). All of our students must eventually test themselves in high-intensity sparring situations across all four pillars.

Of course, self defense is often about avoiding physical conflict by keeping your wits, awareness, and confidence about you. Not being an easy target is many times the most effective way to avoid becoming a victim of attack in the first place. I cannot stress that enough: most attackers, whether they are looking for a fight, for monetary gain, or to satisfy violent urges are looking for a quick and easy win. Off the top of my head (and I may come back and explore this more thoroughly in a future article), I would say that some of the most important concepts in self defense are awareness, demeanor, range, mobility, restraint, and the element of surprise.

Dispelling the Myth

For this first look into applying martial arts in the real world, I’m going to stick to what we have been exploring over the last year; specifically, Jiu-Jitsu and grappling. Let me spend today dispelling some myths that are often cited in the ridiculous world of “my art is better than your art”.

• Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu doesn’t include striking – This is simply not true. While sport BJJ has completely removed striking from its rule set, the foundation of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (Japanese Jujitsu and Kodokan Judo) and BJJ itself originally did not ignore its importance (The Lost Art of Striking in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu). It is only in the modern era that less and less of these techniques are taught. Due to the popularity of BJJ via the exposure of MMA, many students cross-train in a striking art and keep their BJJ focus on pure grappling, while other students look to study BJJ specifically to avoid the trauma of studying a striking art (certainly as a competitive option). For these reasons (and others), many schools no longer teach striking as part of a Jiu-Jitsu class, but that doesn’t mean the complete art never did. The simple fact is that most students are looking for grappling lessons when they take BJJ, and most instructors are happy, or only qualified, to stay focused there.

• Never go to the ground in a street fight! – For sure this is good advice in many situations. When there are or may be multiple attackers, and in uncertain conditions, it should very much be a goal. However, in the real world these decisions are not all our own. No fighter out there can guarantee to keep a fight standing. This is why most Krav Maga schools now also teach some ground technique. Self defense requires keeping a cool demeanor no matter how the situation changes, and it does—often in the blink of an eye. Not only should you know what to do if an attacker, crowd, misstep, or obstacle forces you to the ground, you should also consider your best options when things aren’t going your way in the stand up plane. How can you be sure that the drunk guy at the bar itching for a fight isn’t a Golden Gloves champion? Taking the fight to an area that you will have an advantage is a very real self defense strategy. So long as you are aware of your surroundings. Knowing what to do on the ground is also a great way to get back to your feet more quickly than the threat can.

• 90% of fights end up on the ground – Equally silly, this myth of BJJ legend was a misinterpretation of an LAPD study that served a very solid marketing platform. I have attempted to research this and the bottom line is there is no way for there to be an exhaustive study that is accurate. What does “go to the ground” mean? Both fighters end up there and are actively engaged? Either fighter does? What about riots and group fights (common in bars and the streets)? In the end, the answer is similar to what I stated above. No fighter in the world can guarantee taking a fight to the ground. If the ground work is the only aspect of fighting that you study, you are ill-prepared to defend yourself in the area that most fights will begin—on your feet.
• Jiu-Jitsu doesn’t include takedowns – If you are studying BJJ at a school that starts all rolling and drilling from the mat, you are studying one plane of the martial art. While that may be the most effective portion to take into competition (hey even if you don’t know how to take someone down, your opponent will probably get you there), it is not the most effective portion to take into a street fight. A solid throw or takedown may end the fight right there, and one that also offers you the option of finishing upright and in control of both your attacker and your surrounding is one of the most effective forms of self defense. If you are studying BJJ for self defense, you had better be focused on delivering and defending takedowns, and you had better be including some that you don’t follow all the way down.
• Training in the gi is unrealistic for the real world – I live in Chicago. It is cold more than it is hot. If you don’t think I can pull off a choke using some drunk professional’s suit coat, you’d be mistaken. If you don’t think understanding how to manipulate and move your opponent utilizing a winter coat, a hoodie, a pant leg, or a belt may just save your life, then you lack imagination. I’ll leave it at that.

• Jiu-Jitsu 2.0 techniques only work in competition – What is BJJ 2.0? Berimbolo, Worm Guard, Voldemort Guard, leg entanglements, etc. Again, this idea lacks imagination. Will these work the same way as you would use them while rolling? Probably not exactly. Should you drop to the ground and attempt to establish a Worm Guard with a one-on-one attacker in a trench coat? Probably not the go-to move. However, if you find yourself getting trampled on the ground in a crowd that got out of hand, an understanding of leg entanglements may just be what gets you back to your feet safely. If you latch onto a coattail or lapel as you fall from a surprise blitz, it may be what stops your attacker from stomping your head and instead brings them down alongside you.

All right. That is enough for today. Please let me know what you think. Happy to explore some of these (and many other arts and applications) more in depth. I could go on and on, and we may spend some of 2016 doing just that. Thank you all for the great feedback and reception that I received this year. It is much appreciated. Above all, keep training, stay woke, be aware, and have a SAFE holiday season!

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