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    Science of Takedowns, Throws, and Grappling for Self-Defense
    Science of Takedowns, Throws, and Grappling for Self-Defense
    Science of Takedowns, Throws, and Grappling for Self-Defense
    Ebook464 pages5 hours

    Science of Takedowns, Throws, and Grappling for Self-Defense

    By Martina Sprague

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    The odds are, if you're attacked on the street you will have to defend yourself against a bigger and stronger assailant, or against one with a weapon. When this happens, strength alone will not be enough to stop your attacker. Science of Takedowns, Throws, and Grappling for Self-Defense addresses the concepts and mindset required to survive an encounter with a larger attacker or one armed with a weapon. Illustrated with hundreds of photos, it shows you what types of throws, takedowns, locks, and presses work on the street and teaches you how to apply concepts like timing and positioning to make your techniques more effective, how to defend against common attacks with a weapon and what you can do to use that weapon in your favor, which mistakes are the most common and how you can prevent them from weakening your defense, and much more.

     A takedown or throw requires the ability to disturb your opponent's balance. When first getting introduced to takedowns in martial arts class, we tend to outmuscle or force our adversary down. This frequently results in the stronger or bigger person claiming victory and makes takedown practice discouraging for the lighter weight martial artist. A successful and effortless takedown, by contrast, relies on scientific principles, primarily the location of the center of gravity. Science of Takedowns, Throws, and Grappling for Self-Defense focuses on learning to disturb an adversary's center of gravity while retaining our own; in short, how to get our opponent on the ground without going down with him. Since the principle used for shifting the center of gravity is identical regardless of a person's physical build, understanding this principle allows a smaller person to take a larger adversary down with relative ease. The book's primary aim of discussing principles rather than specific techniques makes it adaptable to almost any situation that warrants a takedown.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMartina Sprague
    Release dateFeb 11, 2018
    ISBN9781386070078
    Science of Takedowns, Throws, and Grappling for Self-Defense
    Author

    Martina Sprague

    Martina Sprague grew up in the Stockholm area of Sweden. She has a Master of Arts degree in Military History from Norwich University in Vermont and has studied a variety of combat arts since 1987. As an independent scholar, she writes primarily on subjects pertaining to military and general history, politics, and instructional books on the martial arts. For more information, please visit her website: www.modernfighter.com.

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      Science of Takedowns, Throws, and Grappling for Self-Defense - Martina Sprague

      Introduction And Overview Of Concepts

      The intent of this book is to study the principles of takedowns, throws, and grappling for the purpose of self-defense. A takedown or throw requires the ability to disturb your opponent's balance. When first getting introduced to takedowns in martial arts class, we tend to outmuscle or force our adversary down. This frequently results in the stronger or bigger person claiming victory and makes takedown practice discouraging for the lighter weight martial artist. A successful and effortless takedown, by contrast, relies on scientific principles, primarily the location of the center of gravity. This book focuses on learning to disturb an adversary's center of gravity while retaining our own; in short, how to get our opponent on the ground without going down with him. Since the principle used for shifting the center of gravity is identical regardless of a person's physical build, understanding this principle allows a smaller person to take a larger adversary down with relative ease. The book's primary aim of discussing principles rather than specific techniques makes it adaptable to almost any situation that warrants a takedown.

      Takedowns and throws accomplish the same thing: to get our opponent on the ground. Although a throw is often more dynamic than a takedown, it is also more difficult for a lighter person to execute a throw successfully against a bigger adversary. Throws also don't work well if you lack a solid foundation. The same is not necessarily true for takedowns. If your opponent lifts you off your feet, you can still use the principle of balance manipulation to take him down. To make the text easily applicable to self-defense, we will focus on takedowns first. Once you master the takedown, it is relatively easy to adapt your positioning slightly and use the same principles to execute a throw. Many of the principles discussed in this book can also be used as rescue techniques when coming to the aid of another person. When you have learned how to unbalance an adversary, a variety of effective and easy to use presses are discussed, giving you the option to subdue an opponent on the ground until help arrives.

      In order to use the information under stressful conditions with minimal amount of training, gross motor skills will take precedence over fine motor skills. In order to gain skill and confidence, however, you must practice the concepts discussed herein, and a number of exercises are provided for this purpose. An important principle is developing the right mindset about a high threat encounter. We can easily talk about how one should think, or how one should react, or what one should do, but only realistic practice brings proper insight. Takedowns, throws, and grappling require close physical contact with our opponent, which may feel uncomfortable to those without sufficient training in the martial arts. You may therefore want to practice physical closeness with a person you trust at first, but not necessarily know well.

      The suggestion that one should not show fear when faced with a threat is ideal but unrealistic. Feeling and showing fear is okay, but it is not okay to give in to the fear or allowing the fear to paralyze you. Nor should you be afraid of your own abilities. The idea that your background and training make you dangerous and that you must use your powers with caution is also unrealistic. There are few mysteries in the martial arts, and many highly trained martial artists don't fare well in street encounters. This does not suggest that there is something wrong with the martial art you practice and its principles, but rather is a reflection of how the martial artist has trained for the encounter. Those who train for decades with no or little physical contact are unlikely to suddenly bring out their powers when it counts. When in the training hall, avoid pairing up solely with close friends. Practice also with students you don't particularly care for. The more uncomfortable you are with your training partners, the more beneficial training can be as long as it is supervised and ethical. Get used to the physical closeness of another person also if he or she stinks from a hangover from last night's party.

      You can practice techniques to death. But if you lack the clarity of mind or the courage to use them in a real encounter, your training for realistic self-defense is of little use. You do yourself a disservice if you resolve to train with no or only minimal contact. You should not get into a real battle in order to learn how to get out of one, but you must get banged around at least a little in order to learn to use your skills in real time. Your mindset must thus be on offense. While the idea of taking your adversary down without hurting him is noble in theory, how does one know exactly how far to go when one's life is at stake? Be prepared to do whatever necessary to save your life or escape an encounter with minimal injury to yourself or your loved ones. Although you should not train with the intent of hurting your partner, you should train with intensity and seriousness. You must show courage and a will to learn and train with a variety of partners, preferably with those who are bigger, stronger, faster, and more daring than you. When you give your practice partner all the physical benefits, you must use correct principle in order to prove effective. A big and strong person can always use his size and strength against a weaker person, so the equalizer comes in skill and proper mindset.

      Our intent is not to learn every useful technique we can think of for self-defense. Although strikes and kicks are valuable tools that we will touch on, they are not the focus of this book. If your size and weight are considerably less than your opponent's, generating the momentum needed to execute a strike powerful enough to end a confrontation against a person intent on hurting you is difficult, even if you are a very good striker or kicker. Most people can take a few good blows without it stopping them. Those who do stop when struck generally have a psychological disadvantage; they have never been hit before and believe they are hurt worse than they are. But these kinds of people are not likely to initiate an attack against you in the first place. A strike or kick that lands precisely on an inherently weak area of your opponent's anatomy may well do enough damage to end the fight. But the time and adrenaline constraints of a real confrontation make it difficult to execute or rely on such a blow. If your first strike fails to prove effective, and the distance between you and your opponent is such that he can grab you, further strikes may be even more difficult to execute. Takedowns and throws, by contrast, lend themselves to short fighting range. While we will talk about strikes and kicks as softening techniques, we will not spend a great deal of time discussing how to develop or execute powerful strikes. If you can strike or kick and get away, or finish your opponent with a good blow without clinching, by all means . . . Whatever gets you to safety is the right move. However, understanding and gaining proficiency in techniques that unbalance your opponent give you a valuable option every time there is body contact.

      We will emphasize correct principle coupled with correct mindset (or correct thinking). Although the possible attacks are many and only limited by the attacker's imagination and skill, the principles are few and can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Why train in principles rather than in techniques? A specific technique works only for a specific situation. Training in and building an arsenal of techniques assumes that you know beforehand what type of attack is coming; it assumes that you have memorized and perfected enough techniques to prepare you for every type of attack with every slight variation. But unless you have practiced these techniques to the point of muscle memory, you will not likely be able to use them successfully in a chaotic situation. Focusing on principles has a great advantage in that it eliminates the need to remember a hundred specific defenses for a hundred specific attacks.

      A principle is a little broader in scope than a technique and can involve position of superiority and direction. For example, we can say that any time you have established a superior position partly toward your opponent's back, you can use a neck takedown that involves shifting his center of gravity to the rear by cupping his chin, tilting his head back, and directing your energy toward the ground, allowing gravity to take its course. Or we can say that any time you are attacked in such a manner that you have access to your opponent's centerline (as when attacked with a roundhouse punch or kick, a wide slashing knife attack, or a wide swing with a club), you can use an unbalancing move that involves shifting his foundation away from his upper body center of gravity by ducking the strike, grabbing his leg, and using it as a lever to throw him off balance. Understanding the principles and motions of possible attacks enables you to prepare physically and mentally for the encounter.

      Since the principles discussed here are scientifically based, your study will give you a clear advantage over a larger adversary, or the bully of the street, who is not familiar with the scientific side of takedowns. Takedowns and throws rely not on strength, but on leverage and movement based around one's center of gravity, and are therefore well suited for smaller or weaker people. If you happen to be of small stature, try to view it as an advantage during the course of your training, since being small forces you to rely on the principles of physics rather than on your strength. Exploring the principles will give you confidence in your abilities and enable you to apply them to a myriad of scenarios. We will rely on the following principles:

      1. Shifting the center of gravity.

      2. Positioning for superiority.

      3. Using straight and linear momentum.

      4. Using torque.

      5. Establishing and maintaining an aggressive mindset.

      Correct use of these principles helps you unbalance an adversary in both standing and grappling situations involving the following scenarios:

      1. Striking attacks, where your opponent punches or kicks you (including knife and stick attacks).

      2. Grabbing attacks, where your opponent tries to hurt you, pull you along with him, or force you off balance.

      3. Surprise attacks, where your opponent attacks you from behind or uses his momentum to rush you.

      4. Attacks initiated by you, because you sense a threat that you try to preempt, or because there is a need to come to the rescue of another person.

      When training in takedowns and throws, mats should be used to protect against injuries due to falling. It is also a good idea to have basic knowledge of how to fall in order to spread the force of impact over the body to decrease its effect. Refer to the safety tips below for training suggestions on falling. You will see additional safety reminders throughout the text. When taken down or thrown on rough or hard surfaces, the force and risk of injury is much more severe due to the lack of protective mats. The element of surprise also prevents the assailant from breaking the fall. An added benefit is that impact with the ground will at least stun him long enough to give you the time advantage you need to escape or further subdue him on the ground.

      Throughout our study, our primary objective is to unbalance our opponent, thereby creating an opportunity to flee to safety. Our secondary objective is to subdue him on the ground until help arrives. We will resort to the ground fight only if our unbalancing move fails to ensure our or a loved one's safety.

      Safety Tips

      1. When learning to fall, start by practicing from your knees. Use mats to cushion the fall or fall from a standing position and onto a bed.

      2. Tuck your chin down toward your chest to avoid bouncing your head against the ground. If the fall is frontal, catch yourself on your forearms and not on your hands, wrists, elbows, or knees.

      3. Spread your weight as much as possible to break the fall and avoid injury to joints or other sensitive body parts. Use headgear and elbow pads for extra protection.

      4. Communicate with your partner. Ask him or her to help you slow the fall until you get proficient at falling.

      5. Discuss the technique with your partner prior to executing it. Horseplay or surprise attacks in training can easily lead to injury.

      We will now preview the concepts we will use during training. Studying and thinking about these concepts beforehand helps you relate to them when they recur in the text later. The concepts are listed in alphabetical order with a reference for further learning. Read them all before commencing your study, and refer to them as often as necessary during the course of your training. For a deeper study of how the principles of physics relate to the martial arts, please refer to Fighting Science: The Laws Of Physics For Martial Artists, also by Martina Sprague.

      ––––––––

      Explanation Of Concepts

      ATTACK LINE: The attack line is created by linear movement between you and your opponent and allows your opponent to attack more effectively. When faced with an aggressor, stay slightly to one side of the attack line, move back and forth across the attack line, or employ circular motion to thwart his attack. If you have the opportunity to initiate the move and use your momentum to knock your opponent off balance, try to stay on the attack line in order to focus your power in the direction of your attack. This does not mean that you must operate along your opponent's centerline; only that you should move linearly and in the direction of power. See Positioning Preparatory To Takedown, Chapter 2.

      CENTERLINE: The centerline is an imaginary line approximately five inches wide, running vertically on the front or back of your body. Striking the targets found on the centerline (nose, jaw, throat, heart, solar plexus, groin, base of neck, spine, and tailbone) may cause serious injury or death. The centerline is also where your strength is focused. Power loss occurs whenever a technique is not lined up with your centerline. The closer you can keep your techniques to your centerline, the more powerful and effortless they will be. See Finger Locks, Chapter 11.

      Most frontal attacks are aimed at your centerline. Be aware!

      CENTER OF GRAVITY: This is your balance point. Whenever your center of gravity does not fall above and within the area your foundation, you will lose balance. Understanding this principle enables you to unbalance a much stronger, bigger, or more aggressive adversary. When a person's center of gravity is manipulated, he is unable to use his strength effectively. By understanding how the human body works, you can manipulate its many natural bends and balance points in order to take your adversary down. See Defining Balance, Chapter 1.

      COMBINATIONS: Whenever possible, attack in combinations. One strike or a single defensive move and counterattack will not likely end the fight. Think beyond the first move. When practicing unbalancing techniques, a combination should be thought of as any set of moves that places you closer to your objective. A combination could comprise, for instance, a setup or distraction, a gap closure, a softening technique, an unbalancing technique, and a finishing technique. See Softening Techniques, Chapter 2.

      COMPLETION OF MOTION: Any started motion must come to completion before you can reset your body's balance. For example, if your opponent raises one foot off the ground to take a step forward, he is in a balance inferior position until he has replanted that foot. This is your window of opportunity to move in with a takedown. See Defining Balance, Chapter 1.

      DETERMINATION: Your determination may be the deciding factor between success and failure. Getting caught up in emotions and fears inhibits your ability to respond to a threat. With practice and increased confidence come determination and the ability to face a situation and follow through to a logical conclusion. An aggressive mindset may more often than not help save your life. See On The Chaos Of Attack, Chapter 13.

      When it is inevitable that you must defend yourself (first picture), quick determined action may be better than waiting to see what happens (second picture).

      DIRECTION OF ENERGY: If your objective is taking your adversary down, you must direct all your energy toward the ground. If your objective is using body momentum to knock your opponent off balance, you must direct all your energy along the attack line. Power is derived from several sources working in harmony toward a common goal. Balance is an element of power. You must center your upper body over the foundation of your lower body and project all energy in the same direction. Power loss often results from opposing movements in body mechanics. See Direction Of Energy, Chapter 3.

      ECONOMY OF MOTION: In a high threat situation, gaining control of your opponent and ending the fight as quickly as possible is imperative. Use techniques that will do the most amount of damage in the fewest number of moves. When you waste time, you give your opponent additional time and the benefit of positional strength. A low kick, for example, may be more economical than a high kick, because it is closer to the target and requires less agility to perform. A neck manipulation takedown may be more economical than a wrist lock, because it requires the use of gross motor skills rather than fine motor skills and can be done through linear movement. See How To Practice Your Martial Art, Chapter 11.

      ENVIRONMENT AWARENESS: Use the environment to your advantage. Try to place some sort of object or barrier between yourself and the attacker. An obstacle can be used to unbalance your opponent or bar further aggression. Don't go empty-handed against an armed attacker. Find something in the environment that can be used as a weapon. Be aware of escape routes and objects that may obscure your vision. Be thoroughly familiar with your most frequently visited environment (your home). See Awareness Exercises, Chapter 2.

      ESCALATION OF FORCE: Start with the least amount of force necessary to control the threat. Try to recognize and remove yourself from a dangerous situation before it requires offensive action. If action must be taken, try to deescalate the situation. In a verbal confrontation, this may simply involve talking to your opponent and resolving the issue without physical contact. If your opponent approaches you, don't wait until it is too late to turn the situation to your advantage. When you decide to go ahead with your unbalancing move, pursue it with full force and intent. How far you go after taking your opponent down depends on the situation, your ability to get away, and the perceived threat. Never assume that a fight is over because you nailed your opponent with one good strike, unbalancing move, or joint break. We are driven by our mental determination, and even a fight that should have ended might not, because of added adrenaline. Once you decide to let go of your adversary, know that the threat may not be over. Consider how to reapply control or continue with a second unbalancing technique. You may need to escalate a joint lock, for instance, to a press and breaking technique or, if your life is threatened, take a more lethal approach. See Is It Ethical To Kill In Self-Defense? Chapter 13.

      Don't assume that a fight is over because you landed a good strike (first picture). Finishing with an unbalancing move may be a good way to escalate a technique and buy time to get to safety (second picture).

      EXHAUSTING THE MOTION: A technique must be taken to completion in order to prove effective. When you can no longer drive your momentum forward, the motion of the technique is said to have exhausted itself. For example, if you are attempting to push your opponent away but are unable to take a step forward, the only way you can push is by starting with bent arms and gradually straightening your arms. Once your arms are straight, the motion of the technique is exhausted, unless you can also step forward and keep pushing. When engaged in a confrontation that involves movement of mass, such as a takedown or grappling situation, avoid assuming a position that exhausts the motion of your technique, if possible. One way is by keeping your opponent's center of gravity close to your own, and relying on movement in your body to unbalance him rather than on movement in your arms alone. See Full Nelson From The Front, Chapter 6.

      FINE VERSUS GROSS MOTOR SKILLS: Fine motor skills involve the use of precise hand/eye coordination, whereas gross motor skills involve the use of larger muscle groups. Because of the way the nervous system works, we are physically stronger and faster when under high stress than in a low stress situation. However, we are also mentally weaker and unable to use precision or solve complicated problems when under a great deal of stress. Gross motor skills are therefore more stress compatible than fine motor skills. See Attacking Opponent's Arms, Chapter 5.

      If a wrist control hold involving fine motor skills fails (first picture), can you reverse direction, go with your opponent's motion, and gain outside superiority for an unbalancing move against his elbow (second picture)?

      FIRST TOUCH: Use the moment of first touch as a cue to explode with a takedown. Regardless of who initiates the attack, your window of opportunity is the moment you first make physical contact with your opponent. Physical contact tends to momentarily freeze your opponent or halt his advance. Simultaneously, you must eliminate your own tendency to freeze. See Momentum And First Touch, Chapter 3.

      FOOTWORK: Footwork can be used to create a gap or close distance. Perhaps the most important aspect of footwork is the ability to deceive your opponent. Constantly moving and switching direction will confuse your opponent and make it difficult for him to determine when within range to attack. Use footwork to gain a window of opportunity for your unbalancing move. See Defining Balance, Chapter 1.

      FREEZING: Freezing your opponent momentarily inhibits his ability to respond. You may be able to freeze your opponent's advance through a distraction or the concept of first touch. The moment you make contact with any part of his body is a signal to move ahead with your unbalancing technique. When touching or slapping your opponent, for instance, his mind momentarily goes to the part of his body that is touched. This buys you time to come forward with offense. You must also be cautious of your own tendency to freeze. Again, use the first touch concept as your window of opportunity. See Momentum And First Touch, Chapter 3.

      INDUCING THE ATTACK: Being able to sense your opponent's attack before it happens gives you a great advantage. An armed attacker in particular will likely be tense and nervous, and will respond to any unpredictable move you make. You may be able to induce the attack by giving him a perceived opportunity to commit, from which you can then initiate a proper defense. See Recognizing The Attack, Chapter 12.

      INERTIA: Inertia is resistance to change in motion. A heavy person has more inertia than a lightweight, and a person moving at a great speed has more inertia than a person moving at a slower speed. This makes the heavy or fast fighter difficult to stop. However, inertia also applies to starting motion. Thus, a heavy fighter must overcome more inertia than a lightweight when setting himself in motion. This bit of knowledge can work to your advantage when executing a takedown. Once he hits the ground, a heavy opponent must expend a considerable amount of energy getting back to his feet, which may afford you an opportunity to escape. See Scenario 6, Chapter 13.

      INHERENT WEAKNESS: Many targets that win a fight in sports martial arts are not effective within the confines of a street encounter. Since there are no rules or bell to signal the end of the round, you must focus on taking your opponent out as quickly as possible. Try to attack targets on his body that are inherently weak. Knees, groin, throat, and eyes are examples of such targets. If you decide to further subdue him on the ground, a choke or joint break may be a good option. When practicing how to attack the inherent weakness, consider the confines of the area and identify finishing techniques that will eliminate the threat in the least number of moves. See Target Areas For Softening Techniques, Chapter 2.

      When your opponent attacks (first picture), counterstriking against an inherently weak target, such as the throat, can end a fight instantly (second picture). Be aware of the potentially lethal consequences of striking the throat.

      MIND AND BODY FOCUS: Separating your opponent's mind and body focus may allow you to defeat him easier. Try interrupting his focus through a distraction; for

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