Muay Thai for Self Defense

Hi my friends, I always try to find arts and training that will increase my skills and make me a formidle opponent in real life street situations.  I recently found a set of DVD that I thing are simply awesome.  Although Muay Thai was designed for the ring, the techniques of this art are devastating and should be part of your arsenal.  Now you CAN learn, STEP-BY-STEP, the ENTIRE art of Muay Thai all in the comfort of your own home, and get in fantastic shape in the process. The Complete Muay Thai Home Study Course has easy-to-follow DVD sets for all levels – beginner to advanced! LEARN MORE HERE! (select Muay Thai at the top)

ARE YOU AS “BUFF AND TUFF” AS YOU’D LIKE TO BE?

Thousands of people like you would LOVE to be BOTH FIT and ABLE TO HANDLE THEMSELVES IN A REAL LIFE SELF DEFENSE SITUATION, but…they haven’t the foggiest idea about how to get started

Fitness and personal power – If this is what you’re looking for, we have something that will do the trick:

WHY NOT TOUGHEN UP AND GET IN FANTASTIC SHAPE AT THE SAME TIME?

Scott “Bam Bam” Sullivan is the owner and chief instructor at Bam Bam Martial Arts in Houston, TX. Scott is a professional Muay Thai instructor, a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and has taught thousands of people the wonderful art of Muay Thai.

Scott has been training and teaching Muay Thai since 1986 and have spent over 22 years TRAINING, COLLECTING, and COMPILING some of the best Muay Thai boxing drills and techniques he could find so that he could turn around and help others achieve something never before possible. Scott has taught literally hundreds if not thousands of students exactly the best ways to develop powerful punches, thundering kicks, gut wrenching knees and wicked elbows – all while getting in the best shape of their lives.

In case you didn’t know, Muay Thai is arguably the best “striking” martial art in the world. That understood, you should be able to understand why…

“Muay Thai techniques are so powerful that professional mixed martial arts fighters all over the world are scrambling to master them.”

Professional fighters train in Muay Thai for one reason – IT WORKS! The fact is that if you don’t know these techniques, your fighting ability not up to snuff and there is a serious, gaping hole in your ability to handle yourself. If you are serious about your fighting ability, YOU NEED TO KNOW THIS ART.

What most people may not also realize is that Muay Thai training is also one of the best workouts you can do. Period.

How would you like the fantastic fitness level, confidence, power, security and respect that comes from practicing the fantastic martial art of Muay Thai – the martial art that is rapidly becoming recognized as one of the best fighting systems around?

And here’s how Scott can help you:
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“Now, You Can Learn the Complete Muay Thai System Through Scott’s Special Muay Thai Home Study Course” LEARN MORE HERE! (select Muay Thai at the top)

Street Proven Fight Winning Attitude

Most fights are lost for one very simple reason, hesitation. The person being attacked either does not react fast enough or is less willing to use violent force than the attacker.

Learning self defense and street fighting skills are a huge part of ensuring that you are victorious but your attitude and mindset are even more important.
When most of us (law abiding, courteous citizens) are attacked we don’t know how to react. We don’t use violence in our daily life, it is foreign to us. In fact, most people are downright uncomfortable with violence.

This is where criminals have a huge advantage. They survive off of violence and they are very good at scaring us normal folks into giving them what they want at the threat or use of a little violence.
On top of this most of the time it is hesitation that causes someone to lose a street fight. This is even a problem for those of us who are comfortable with the thought of using violence to protect ourselves and our families.

This is why simply knowing self defense and how to use violence will not save your kiester in a real street fight.

There are really two kinds of hesitation. The first kind is simply not acting soon enough. For example the all too common “I’m not going to hit first.” Other people simply refuse to accept the fact that a fight is coming until they get hit.

Don’t be that guy (or girl). Don’t get me wrong I’m not suggesting that you turn into a loose cannon, but if you feel threatened or you get that little twinge in your stomach that is telling you “somthin’ ain’t right” you must act immediately.

Let’s take a moment and discuss a little life lesson. Patience is only a virtue when you are dealing with your spouse, your child, or the DMV. Patience which is often hesitation in disguise will not serve you well most areas of life, especially not in a fight. Taking action puts you in control of the situation.

Control is good, especially when you are talking about control over your life.
Act, don’t react.

Okay enough with the philosophical stuff. Let’s get practical. If you are the first to hit you are statistically much more likely to win the fight. Enough said.

The second type of hesitation is more common for people who have martial arts or self defense training. This kind of hesitation causes people who ‘know better’ to get hurt and killed in street fights every year.

I’m talking about scale of violence. Many trained martial artists will lose street fights because they fail to bring enough violence into the fight. They know what to do but they just can’t bring themselves to do it.

They are comfortable with the thought of using vicious moves, and if you asked them if they would eye gouge someone who was threatening their life they would say ‘hell yeah.’
As with many things in life the trouble starts when they have to put that thought into action. The thought of doing an eye gouge is a lot different than the act of plunging your thumb into the eye socket of someone threatening your family.

When it comes down to it they are afraid to hurt someone who is trying to hurt them. This is the absolute worst reason to lose a fight.

If you don’t know how to fight and you get your butt kicked in a street fight you can’t really be criticized.

If you do know how to fight and you just failed to be mean and nasty enough to win you will get no sympathy from anyone who is experienced with street fighting or self defense.

The key is that once you engage a person who you know has no regard for your health and safety you must return the favor. As the old cliché goes you must fight fire with fire.
He is willing to do whatever it takes to win. The only thing that will stop him is him realizing that you are willing to do terrible things to him (stuff like snapping all the ligaments in his knee, blowing out his ear drum with an ear slap, or biting out a chunk of flesh).
Showing him that you are willing to use nasty street fighting moves will make your wallet suddenly much less valuable to him.
Criminals may be mean, cruel, and heartless but they aren’t stupid enough to lose an eye over a wallet.
It all comes back to that fight winning attitude. What are you willing to do to protect yourself? I am willing to use whatever means necessary. I hope you feel the same way.

If you do feel this way your fighting mindset should be as follows:

If someone tries to hurt me I am going to immediately use the most savage and violent force I know to eliminate the threat to my life.

It’s as simple as that. A fighting mindset doesn’t require meditation or hours of training. It requires you making a decision and promise to yourself that you will take the necessary action to save your skin.

Stay Smart and Stay Safe,

 

Derek
Special Agent Combatives

P.S.  Pick up your copy of Special Agent Combative System or Brutal Beyond Belief Today!

Great Fighters Know The Value Of A Good Distraction:

All great street fighters (or any kind of fighter) know the value of distraction. However, most average guys still believe in the ‘fair fight’ fantasy they have seen in movies or heard about in stories from our parent’s generation.

I’ve got some news for you. Those fair fights in the good ole’ days weren’t always so fair. And I can tell you for sure that today’s bar and street fights are never fair.

Okay so I’m sorry to ruin the romance about fighting, but what does this all mean for you. Well if the times have changed you have to change with them. So I’m going to tell you about one of the most useful little tools you need to have in your bag of nasty self defense tricks.

Ever noticed how it’s pretty hard to focus on more than one thing at a time? Have you ever seen that video where you are asked to watch the basket ball as several men pass it back and forth? If you haven’t check out the video below before you read on.



This video makes it pretty clear that our minds have a hard time focusing on more than one thing at a time. You would be foolish to not use this to your advantage.

There are literally thousands of things you can do to distract an attacker no matter where you are. But to make it more clear I will go over some of the general ways to distract in a self defense situation, then talk about some specifics for each type.

Verbal Distraction: This kind of distraction is often used subconsciously by attackers. This includes yelling obscenities and heckling a person. It almost always forces the person being attacked to think about what is being said instead of focusing on what the yelling guy is doing.

If you find yourself in a self defense situation you can use this technique too. You don’t have to have something clever to say to make this work. Just yell something. Keep in mind that if a fight wasn’t eminent you have probably just made it eminent by yelling at the guy. So don’t use this unless you are pretty darn sure a fight is coming your way.

Also if someone tries to use this technique on you in a fight the key is recognize it early, ignore what is being yelled, and instead focus on the attackers body movements looking for targets etc.
The best part is, now that you are aware of this distraction technique it will be much less likely to work on you.

Physical Distraction: This is anything you do which touches a person’s body and causes their mind to change focus from you to whatever the distraction was. Physical distractions are great self defense tools because it is even harder to ignore a physical distraction than a verbal distraction, even if you know it is a distraction.

A great example is throwing your drink at someone. If you are in a bar and a guy is trying to fight you or you know a fight is coming, chuck your drink at him. If it is one of those thick glass tumblers, all the better, you might not have to do anything else (how’s that for quick and easy).
However, if you were not the pitcher of your high school baseball team you probably aren’t going to take him out with a glass to the face, but that really isn’t the point of this move. In fact winding up to chuck it is a bad idea because it lets everyone in the room (including him) know that you are about to throw your drink (unwanted attention). Instead toss it in his face from a relaxed position in front of your body.

I guarantee he will be distracted for at least a second, long enough for you to deliver good shot to the face or groin, or maybe kick him off his bar stool (always a classic).
I’ve got more great distractions to share with you all, but I would like to hear from you too. If you have any distraction techniques you have used or know of any great tricks please share them with the other readers by leaving a comment below.

I’ll finish this post up next week and tell you about the other distractions I know work well.
Alright I hope you learned something from this, other than the fact that moon-walking bears are hard to see. If you want to learn how to follow up these distractions with some vicious and effective finishing moves check out my home page.

Stay Smart and Stay Safe,

Derek
Special Agent Combative System

Never Surrender

Presently at Special Agent Combatives we are pretty certain we have it easy when it comes to self-protection training.  All it required was years of arduous work and training to produce our research into an uncomplicated, nevertheless operational system.  Afterwards we merely had to bundle it and promote it around the globe.  It all sounds pretty easy doesn’t it?  Well when you compare that with what folks must do to enter the correct mindset to fight and train it completely does appear pretty easy..  You are the one who must build up the will to survive and fight, and in your blackest hour you must harness your courage and do what appears unimaginable.  You are the one who refuses to say die, we simply tell you how to be sure the other guy does.

General George S. Patton once said, “Courage is fear holding on a minute longer,” that's all you have to ask of yourself in the worst case scenario.  You may never come across a life or death battle, and you should try to avoid them, but when all that remains is to fight, fight hard and do not quit until you can’t fight anymore or one of you is lifeless.  Now that might sound extraordinary, but there's no happy ending if you give up.  If your boat sinks you don’t stop swimming because you’ll drown and die, and the same principal applies once you are in a fight.  Don’t assume that you may be saved or they’ll spare your life.  You must dig deep and reject losing.

We live in a society where most people don’t care about an individual’s character as long as they get the job done.  They can be a total lowlife, but if they produce they’re alright to keep around, but in a fight the true you will determine the winner.  It's crucial to train and it provides you the advantage in any fight, but what makes the difference is what you have inside.  Your desire to succeed and ignore pain must be nurtured, and through training your confidence will increase with each strike.  Once you quit in a fight your training won’t count worth a damn, but if you desire it seriously enough you'll be amazed at what you’re capable of when forced.

As a pupil of human battle I’ve discovered many cases of unbelievable bravery in the face of overwhelming odds.  In many instances those fighting were well trained, but that was merely part of the equation, it was their volition to keep fighting regardless of injures or losses.  Many were just average people who didn’t want to die on that day, and did what they had to, to survive and live.  That’s why at Special Agent Combatives we do the easy part, we train you, you’re the one who has to dig deep and keep fighting.  When that moment arrives we believe we’ve furnished you with the best training imaginable, but you have to do the rest.  Remain strong and continue training.

Review of Dynamic DeCuerdas Eskrima

I have been studying DeCuerdas Eskrima ifor some time now and I must attest that it is one of the deadliest close-in blade fighting systems in the world.
The late Grandmaster Gilbert Tenio openly taught a mixture of 19 Eskrima systems while keeping the core of the DeCuerdas teachings secret. GrandMaster Tenio passed down the true teachings to Master Richard Van Donk who is now revealing them in a step by step, level by level teaching format that is done as both a direct how-to instruction and also shown in a dojo setting teaching the art of DeCuerdas Eskrima.

These teachings are now available as the DeCuerdas Eskrima Home Study Course which encompasses levels Levels 1-4 of the 7 levels of this practical and dynamic art. Study through Level 4 will give you a Black belt.

Now you can achieve your Eskrima Black Belt and be recognized anywhere in the world. GrandMaster Richard Van Donk is a prestigious member of the World Head Of Family Sokeship Grandmaster Council and several others.

This is a Complete Learning System that has been created for you..... to make you skilled and confident with knives and sticks and give you the ability to save your and your loved ones life in a real situation, and that is what I am all about. Training for real combat. This system is not for competition. It is for survival in the real, sometimes harsh world.

This Course is unique in all the world. It was created and filmed in REAL TIME. Beecuse of this it took years to complete, filming the students as they progressed though the levels just as you will do. This isn't just a quick set of of video footage like many courses. GrandMaster Richard Van Donk recruited a group of individuals from all walks of life who had no Eskrima background when they started.

This system is not difficult to learn on your own and I highly recommend you add it to your self-defense arsenal. You wont be dissappointed.


TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS GREAT COURSE CLICK HERE

Derek
Special Agent Combatives.

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Special Agent Combative System: The Fluid Shock Wave Principle

In this article I would like to introduce you to a fighting principle called the Fluid Shock Wave Principle. The Fluid Shock Wave Principle is emphasized in all of the special agent combative system counterstrikes. It is not an unknown concept in the martial arts; this striking principle has been called the focus punch, the energy sink, the heavy hand strike, and many other terms relating to a "vibration" type of strike. Unfortunately, learning how to deliver such a strike often took a lifetime of constant practice, since few individuals understood the strikes physics or a dynamics. I will explain them to you in this article.
I began researching striking principles after studying pressure point control tactics as a special agent. I learned that motor points are more sensitive to strikes, which allowed all of the strikes forward momentum to dissipate into the target before starting the recovery. The analogy that is often used to describe such a strike is the action of hammering a nail.
The foundation of the fluid shock wave principle is based upon nerve motor points as targets and a method of striking which maximizes kinetic energy transfer. We know that nerves are one of the most sensitive types of tissues in the human body. This is especially true when stimulated by various types of pressure or strikes. We also know that when a nerve or nerve motor point receives an unusually high degree of energy, the nerve may become over stimulated and experience a motor dysfunction. Since motor points are composed of large muscle mass which is saturated with microscopic effector/motor nerve tissue, the potential for injury from a strike is normally limited to a bruise. Therefore, striking a motor point becomes an ideal target for liability concerns, and very practical tactically, since over stimulating a motor nerve stops resistive muscular action.
An important aspect of the fluid shock wave principle is the mechanical aspect of the strike itself. What a strike or impact is made of a target, energy is transferred from the energy source into the target. The degree of energy, (known as kinetic energy) which is dissipated into the target, will be dependent upon the velocity, the mass of the energy source, and the duration of the energy transference. The efficiency of the strike will determine the length of the motor dysfunction.
To generate an optimal fluid shock waves strike with the hand, leg, or impact weapon, I have made the following observations:
1. Velocity: to increase the velocity of a strike substantially enough to effect a motor dysfunction, is very difficult. Velocity must be double at a minimum to have a substantial effect on power generation.
2. Mass: in contrast to velocity, the mass behind a target can be substantially increased by attempting to strike with the total body weight. This is one of the secrets of the fluid shock wave principle. This can be accomplished by several methods. The first is to ensure that all of your joints are locked on impact. This is a principle called "energy leaks," which describes how kinetic energy may be lost on the impact exchange. For example, if you allowed your wrist to buckle on a hand strike, energy will dissipate in the wrist instead of the opponent's motor point. The reduction of kinetic energy will be substantial, and will dramatically affect the length of the motor dysfunction if it occurs at all. Therefore, all joints must be locked (not hyper extended) on impact.
The next important element in maximizing the mass behind a strike is the use of your total body mass. This is accomplished by placing the emphasis on rotating your hips, or axis behind the strike itself. In conjunction with locking all of the joints on impact, you can generate power based upon your body weight, instead of striking with just the weight of your limb another important element of the fluid shock wave principle, is the concept of energy duration or "time one contact." During my study I have identified and learned measurements of the duration of the fluid shock wave itself. The length of energy transfer must exceed approximately 30 milliseconds to achieve a motor is dysfunction. Ironically, this is almost exactly the length of energy exchange that occurs naturally when you allow all forward momentum to stop before retracting a strike.
Technique considerations
With the Special Agent combative system I have developed a unique strategy of the defensive and offensive striking by combining motor points and the torso for targets, with the fluid shock wave principle of striking. Unlike other striking systems, the Special Agent combative system does not advocate striking to the head. Not the face, the head. The head as a target is comprised mostly of skin and bone, not muscle mass or sensory nerves. Therefore, strikes of any type to the head with a closed fist should be avoided if possible. This is a tactical consideration. For example, the head is generally a hard structure. You will receive severe hand injuries from striking an attacker on the head. Trust me, I have done it. This will disable you only infuriate the attacker.
The Special Agent Combative System philosophy on utilizing defensive counterstrikes is that strikes should be delivered to the torso or nerve motor points whenever possible. If you strike to the head it should be in the face with a Palm Heel strike or Hammerfist or with jabs to the eyes.
The targets of the special agent combat of system strikes are as follows;
Palm Heel strike: the Palm Hills strike was designed primarily to stop its edit and attackers forward momentum. This strike is delivered in a stiff arm motion, and can be targeted at the attacker's face or checks. Generally, this strike is followed by straight punch to the torso.
Straight punch: the straight punch is normally considered the power hand strike. Although this strike can be delivered to the head, it is strongly recommended that this strike be delivered to the torso, specifically the solo plexus region.
Forearm strikes: forearm strikes are used when the subject attacker had deeply penetrated the reactionary gap, and the straight punch or palm heel strike cannot be used. Forearm strikes are generally very strong techniques and should be delivered to the torso. I also use them when striking the brachial plexus or side of the neck for what's called a brachial stun.
Brachial stuns: the brachial stuns are, without any doubt, the most effective and reliable stunning technique within the special agent combative system. Brachial stuns were designed to replace the necessity of hand strikes to the head. This technique can be delivered with the back of the hand, the inside of the hand, the inside of the forearm, or the outside of the forearm.
Front thrust kick: like the palm heel, the front thrust kick is designed to stop an attacker's forward momentum at the edge of the reactionary gap. The recommended target for this kick is the upper thigh lower shin. Attempting to kick any higher would normally result in the attacker grabbing your foot or your leg. Front thrusts are also very effective when targeted towards the attackers groin or knee.
Knee strikes: the knee strike, as utilized by the Special Agent combative system, is delivered to the attacker's thigh, groin, abdomen, and face. Striking to the thigh creates a high level motor dysfunction to the attacker's leg, and also creates a high-level stun. I have used this technique many times when trying to control an attacker. When I strike their thigh several times with a knee strike they lose function of that leg and go down usually holding their thigh and writhing in pain.
Angle kick: also known as the peroneal kick, is one of the most effective Special Agent combative system counter strikes. The angle kick is delivered mainly to an attacker's thigh and knee. This technique will create a motor dysfunction that will often last 10 minutes or longer. The angle kick is also known to create a high-level stun that is only second to the brachial stun. The pain is often so intense, that attackers often believe that their legs are broken. The pain normally diminishes in approximately 20 minutes. Giving you plenty of time to escape.
So this week's lesson has covered the fluid shock wave principle. Embracing this principle will give you much more powerful techniques that you can use to create your reality-based self-defense system.
Derek A. Smith is an expert in self defense. He is a 30 year veteran of Law Enforcement, Security, and the Military. Derek also has over 30 years martial art and combative training. If you want some of the best training to prepare yourself for any self defense situation Derek of course recommends his courses Special Agent Combative System or Brutal Beyond Belief. In these courses I eliminate the fluff and teach only what works based on my 30 years experience. You can see them on my website at http://www.specialagentcombativesystem.com.

The Strangers

Genre: Horror
Rating: R
Release Date: 21-OCT-2008
Media Type: DVD

Price: $12.98

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