Krav Maga

cgreg1277

Hey guys,

I am thinking about taking a Krav class. Does anybody currently take Krav? Is this a exercise that you can track in MFP? Any feed back would be great...thanks in advance

engineman312

i know that in a typical martial arts class you can burn about 600 calories in an hour. wear an hrm if you really want to be acurate, but it'll probably get in the way of any grappling, and ur instructor probably wont let you wear a watch anyway.

just enter it as martial arts or something.

camolas

Hello there,

Krav Maga is an excelent self defense technique that was developed by the Mossad. It is very focused on life threatening situations and teaches a lot of techiniques on how to control and disarm an oponent in a dangerous situation. Krava Maga IS NOT a martial art. As such, its physical component is limited and I don't believe you would particularly benefit from it as a form of exercise (altough Im sure you do need to warm up and possibly do a few strenght exercises).

I'm not a Krava Maga practicioner so I can't confirm this information. If you are interested in learning a self defense sport and at the same time use it as an exercise I would ask that you look into more traditional martial arts, specially those that have a focus on physical conditioning.

Hope that helps

swordsmith

Yes- I have taken krav now for 6 months along with my work out partner (also an MFP peep here). I am a level 1 very close to testing for level 2.

I use the exercise "Martial Arts" here on MFP.

Be advised that krav is basicaly street fighting- it is made to keep you alive in a street encounter. I have previously taken shotokan and tai kwan do many years ago- krav is lightyears above them for what it is meant to do. There are no katas or pretty moves- defenses are used to get you within range to start throwing combatives. DOnt get me wrong -for some traditional martial arts are where they want to be- krav is its own system focused on a specific mission. They also work your endurance big time- I am a ball of sweat when I come out of it.

One thing that I like (and my partner who is female) is that they dont match you up by same sex and size. Some nights my 5'4" partner is matched up with the 6'4" former linebacker or the head of the state police fugitive task force and she can now deliver tremendous combatives and get out of their holds, locks, etc. Be advised there is a LOT of contact- you will go for the groin and as a female your breasts will be touched (not sexually but when doing knife defenses, knees, etc its just going to happen- and out on the street the bad guy that grabs you wont care where or what he grabs).

I HIGHLY recommend krav as both an exercise/cardio work out and as a life skill for tactical hand to hand. You will get a great work out and have your confidence boosted tremendously- I have seen quite a number of females in class get fitter and more aggressive- they all say that they feel more confident and empowered taking their safety into their own hands.

And remember- No groin, no krav maga!

smc1277

I would love to take Krav but I don't think there are any classes around here.

smc1277

I would love to take Krav but I don't think there are any classes around here.

swordsmith

Hello there,

Krav Maga is an excelent self defense technique that was developed by the Mossad.

Just a small point- krav was developed by Imi Lichtenfeld and it pre-dates the Mossad. The Mossad undoubtedly is trained in it (as are all Israeli forces) but they have no claim on inventing it. If anything the IDF can lay claim to that as Imi was the first chief instructor of physical training for the fledgling IDF in 1948 which is when he officially named his system krav maga (the system had been under development since the 1930s).

Krav maga in Hebrew means "contact combat".

arc918

I took one class at a local studio and really liked it. Unfortunately, the class times didn't fit my schedule well. It was an awesome workout. Lots of cross-fit stuff thrown in there as well (not sure whether or not it was unique to this studio).

camolas

Thanks for the correction swordsmith

Always learning something new.

Cheers