About Krav Maga
About Krav Maga (Lexington, MA)
Traditional martial arts like Kenpo, Karate, Kung Fu, and Tae-Kwon-Do, were designed for a type and style of combat that was typical several centuries ago. Combat sports such as Muay Thai and MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) are designed for controlled environments where there are rules, a defined format, and specified outcomes, which end the fight. Real-life violence has changed from that which traditional martial arts were once designed for, and in a street fight or similar there are no rules, no referee, and there is no predictability about the direction the fight will take, or how it will end. Krav Maga – meaning “Contact Combat” in Hebrew - is a constantly evolving system of self-defense/fighting which recognizes that violence doesn’t follow a predictable route or involve rules. It assumes that attackers will be armed and assisted by others and takes these things into account when formulating techniques, tactics, and strategies for dealing with threats and attacks.
Based on the idea of directness and simplicity, Krav Maga avoids the use of complex techniques that rely on fine and/or complex motor skills; things that rapidly deteriorate when the heart rate rises under stress and duress. You will have witnessed this if you have ever failed to tie shoelaces on your first attempt when in a rush/hurry and/or when pressured. This is a task that you will have repeated daily throughout your life, and yet when stressed/put under pressure, this task becomes difficult. It doesn’t matter how skilled you become in a martial art/self-defense system, if the techniques and movements have some level of complexity to them it is highly unlikely that you will be able to perform them when adrenalized in a real-life physical confrontation. Krav Maga techniques and solutions are designed to work when you are surprised/unprepared, exhausted and fatigue, and when you fail to perform them fully and correctly i.e., Krav Maga techniques are designed to be effective when performed sub-optimally. The system has been continually tested, improved, and updated since the 1930’s, when it was originally referred to as KAPAP (an acronym that translates as Krav Panim a Panim – meaning “Fighting Face to Face” in Hebrew). The IDF (Israeli Defense Force) continues to use Krav Maga as its chosen method of hand-to-hand combat because it has been proven effective and reliable in one of the toughest environments on the planet.
What has been proven to work against committed attackers and assailants in the Middle East will work equally well against drunken aggressors in a pub/bar, against muggers, and anyone else who may mean you harm. Based on natural reflexive movements that you will perform automatically when attacked and a teaching methodology that is based on getting a new recruit combat ready in the shortest possible time, Krav Maga is both effective and straightforward to learn. At our dedicated Krav Maga training facility located just a few miles from the center of Lexington, Massachusetts, Krav Maga 5th Degree Black Belt, Gershon Ben Keren, teaches an authentic Krav Maga program that comes direct from Israel. If you are interested in experiencing genuine Krav Maga for yourself, you can attend one of our beginner classes by clicking the button below.
Beginner Classes