Krav Maga proves a challenging workout

Self-defense is a wonderful thing. Even if you favor pacifism, knowing how to defend yourself is an essential skill. Self-defense training is also a great way to get into shape. A good martial art discipline should not only work the entire body, but also strengthen coordination and build up muscle memory. And when it comes to this, Krav Maga is one of the best.

Krav Maga is a martial art used by the Israeli Defense Force, and it’s the fighting style Liam Neeson utilized in Taken to punch people in the throat. Designed to focus on incapacitating an opponent as fast as possible, the style emphasizes speed and uses the entire body to provide amazing cardio and strength training.

“Krav Maga is a continuously adapting system that takes the most efficient techniques of different styles of martial arts,” said AJ Lavarias, an instructor at Krav Maga Worldwide in West Los Angeles.

Some of Krav Maga’s kicks come from Muay Thai, and some of the ground techniques are rooted in Jiu-Jitsu — proving Krav Maga’s efficiency is based on the moves that are available.  If there are better ways to perform techniques, Krav Maga adapts and modifies to incorporate them.

The best way to describe Krav Maga is ruthlessly efficient. The style teaches practitioners to use everything they have, on them and around them.

When punching, for instance, instead of swinging an arm forward, Krav Maga teaches you to launch forward on both feet to close in on your opponent to build momentum. At the same time, when extending the striking arm out, one must twist at the hips, putting more speed into the punch. This works not only the arm, but the muscles in the hips and back as well.

There is not a fancy form or flow to attacks; instead, it’s just about taking out your opponent before they can hurt you by keeping the body constantly moving. One interesting, and challenging, part of Krav Maga training is maxing out an activity, be it punches or kicks, over a period of time. This works the body past the point of exhaustion, simulating what might happen in an extended fight.

Throwing two punches is easy; 30 is tough, but far easier after practicing. This gets the heart pumping. When the entire body is put to work like this, it helps to build endurance. The constant exercise helps tone muscles while getting great cardiovascular exercise.

“Krav Maga requires involvement of the entire body,” Lavarias said. “The way we build our technique is through muscle memory and in our classes we focus on teaching a few techniques in each class session.”

There’s an emphasis on training movement, on the ground and standing, like other activities, such as parkour. The warm-ups include exercises requiring all four limbs, sometimes using them in coordination to move, or running while punching or stretching the arms. Then in the combat training, the entire body is put to work, even if it’s just to throw a single punch.

The end result is a very tough, but highly engaging workout. Weights are not involved, but it’s a great way to build all-around fitness.

“We have a heavy emphasis on teaching our students to be aggressive and to fight for their lives to get home safely,” Lavarias said. “We want our students to be confident in themselves and their technique. There is also a greater mental aspect that is expressed as part of our self-defense. This is to ‘recognize the situation, assess the situation and address the situation.’”

Krav Maga is one of the most challenging fighting styles. The constant exercise creates great cardiovascular endurance, and using the entire body to power each strike works muscles that might be ignored — in addition to the regular ones already used when punching and kicking.

If lifting weights isn’t your thing, self-defense, and specifically Krav Maga, is a great alternative to training the body and building strength. It’s tough, challenging, fun and most of all, practical. For those interested in learning how to fight, this is one of the best ways to learn. And you’ll get in great shape doing it.

Nicholas Slayton is a junior majoring in print and digital journalism. His column “Way of the Body” runs Tuesdays.