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Fighting Course Begins with important stuff you need to know right now to fight fast, effective immediately. If you get jumped today -- not that I would ever wish this on you -- but if you do, I want you to have some tools and understanding right now to deal with it. So I’m going to begin your 5 Day Fighting Course with the things I think you need to know the most. Here goes. Dealing with Fear: External Traction Fear of fighting is more common than you’d think – even among experienced fighters. Only a stone-cold sociopath has no fear in a confrontation. So don’t plan on not experiencing or feeling fear. It’s going to happen. The key is to know how to deal with it. I’ve interviewed hundreds of hardcore combat soldiers and seasoned streetfighters and found that nearly every one of them admitted to being fearful in every single fight. Surprised? Well don’t be, because these guys understood that they could easily be killed. So, they felt fear – sometimes extreme fear -- in every confrontation. I want to point out to you, again, that you have about 1-8 seconds to act. You don’t have the luxury of time. There’s a clear threat coming your way. You can’t even read this warning before it’ll all be over.

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Fighting Course

 

Begins with important stuff you need to know right now to fight fast, effective immediately.

If you get jumped today -- not that I would ever wish this on you -- but if you do, I want you to have some tools and understanding right now to deal with it.

So I’m going to begin your 5 Day Fighting Course with the things I think you need to know the most. Here goes. 

Dealing with Fear: External Traction

Fear of fighting is more common than you’d think – even among experienced fighters. Only a stone-cold sociopath has no fear in a confrontation. So don’t plan on not experiencing or feeling fear. It’s going to happen.

The key is to know how to deal with it.

I’ve interviewed hundreds of hardcore combat soldiers and seasoned streetfighters and found that nearly every one of them admitted to being fearful in every single fight. Surprised? Well don’t be, because these guys understood that they could easily be killed. So, they felt fear – sometimes extreme fear -- in every confrontation.

I want to point out to you, again, that you have about 1-8 seconds to act. You don’t have the luxury of time. There’s a clear threat coming your way. You can’t even read this warning before it’ll all be over.

The bottom line here is to understand a couple of things:

Fear will be present and your little voice will begin talking “what ifs”. You must gain External Traction.

 

External traction is the combination of having a plan and taking action to execute the plan when something happens… especially when the inner voice of fear starts on the “what ifs”.

The simple key to gaining External Traction is to move your thoughts to potential targets to attack him and towards and escape route.

You must initiate Target Awareness.

Seeking out and gathering “target acquisition” info almost instantly begins to focus and channel your internal dialogue – start asking questions like:

“He’s approaching me -- is he in range?”…“Is there anything in his hands?”…“What targets are open?”…“Are there any friends around?”…“Now… what targets are open?”…“Is anyone behind me?”…“What targets are open now?”…“Do I have an escape route?”…“What targets are open now?”

Hopefully you’ve noted the need to continually evaluate which targets are open. A common rookie mistake is to focus in on one target and then try to “wait” for it to open up or even strike at it when it’s not open. This is called Target Focus and it’s the wrong

way to choose targets. Keep in mind the “high value” targets -- the side of the neck, throat, eyes, inside thigh, outside thigh, groin, and the angle of the chin. Always, always,

maintain target awareness during a fight.

Here’s another coaching point…

Do not pay attention to the yelling and verbal threats. Do not look into his eyes. This only distracts you from your target awareness. A good streetfighter wants you to “buy into” his distractions. Mad-dog staring... insults… yelling… the whole works. It’s doubtful he knows the science of internal dialogue, but he does understand that it’s easier to win after he “gets into your head”.

So I can’t stress this external target awareness enough. It’s a simple solution to a big problem. This is why so many martial artists -- even accomplished black belts -- have their asses handed to them in a real street fight. They wake up (if they wake up) wondering what the hell happened. Well in the well-lit dojo they’ve trained with plenty of room on padded floors. They bow politely. Their opponent also bows politely, and then comes at him in a predictable manner.

But later on, in the tiny dimly-lit bathroom at the local mini-mart, this same martial artist is suddenly confronted by some big dude screaming threats, insults and foul language about taking his parking space. Confusion hits, the “internal dialogue” goes berserk, and all that cozy training flushes right down the toilet. Fade to black.

Now don’t get me wrong, studying martial arts is better than spending your time on the couch watching reruns of “Gilligan’s Island”, but these classes won’t teach you how to get around this internal dialogue or how to use fear to your advantage.

That’s why you’re here. You’re getting stuff that really works – in the “real world”. I’m giving you pearls here.Fear is an emotion and you can not control your emotions. Don’t try to. You’re not a wuss, wimp or anything else because you feel fear. Courage and fear are different. Courage is acting and/or doing the right thing in presence of fear!

The “Four D's” Of Personal Combat:

Understanding the Four D’s of Personal Combat will help you understand how to win again even larger and more aggressive opponents. It’s crucial that you begin to understand and incorporate these tactics.

The Four  D’s are;

1) Deception     2) Distraction     3) Disruption    4) Destruction

First off know this. Unlike “sport fighting”, prevailing (winning) a street fight has little to do with size, strength and physical skill. The Four D’s are the great equalizers of those factors.

1.   Deception

Deception is key to fights, games and even wars! General Eisenhower used deception against Hitler to pull off D-Day and you too can use deception to gain the advantage over an opponent. The basic concept is to make your adversary think one thing while you turn the tables on him. The result is confusion, hesitation and panic.

Deception can be verbal, physical or tactical. Tell him you don’t want any trouble while your discovering your targets. Raise your hands up in a manner of submission so that they are ready and in front of your shoulders and face… AND HIS! He’ll believe that you’re in a “surrender” position but truthfully your hands will be in what is called a “forward boundary” ready for action.

About the same time you're looking him in the eye stating, "I don't want any trouble" should be about the time you unleash on him and take the offensive. Striking first is critical. It may not be politically correct, but it will be necessary to be effective. More on that later in the course.

2.   Distraction

There’s a quirk in the human brain that makes it difficult to focus on more than one thing at a time.

The good news is that you can take advantage of this human limitation by redirecting… or “distracting”… your opponent’s attention away from you so you can act with a reasonable chance at catching him off-guard. The bad news is that distractions are often only effective for a split second or so… which means that unless you have an immediate follow-up plan, the distraction is futile.

A few examples of simple distractions are flipping a cigarette in their face, dropping loose change from your pocket on the ground (they’ll almost always look), spitting or spilling your drink in their face, appear to adjust your glasses and throw them in their face.

Be quick with this one. More importantly, be prepared to act the instant you gain a distraction.

3.   Disruption

Disrupt his plan. He began his attack thinking he could dominate, control and humiliate you. Show him quickly and decisively that this could end very bad for him. Get him thinking about his own well being. Tom Cruse (fighter not actor) fights by the rule that, “display a complete and total disregard for your opponents well being”. This is also when you need to be unpredictable.

Some tactics…

Hit First (That’s right… we’re not in grade school anymore. Start it and finish it with the first strike advantage.) 

Close the distance (unless he has a knife… in which case run! You will get seriously hurt even if you win) take the fight to him and quickly inflict damage and pain! Do not hesitate to begin attacking targets. This tactic takes away his plan and forces him to start internally thinking about a new plan.

Forward Pressure (Continue The Attack) with a relentless assault without pause. Get him back pedaling. It’s not time to be Mr. Nice Guy. Beat this guy down into both physical and mental humiliation.

4.   Destruction

I just touched on some of this because the simple lesson is “kick his ass”. You didn't sign up here for lesson on the obvious though. So, here’s the skinny on effective destruction.

Think target and what to strike it with. For a true hand-to-hand fight with no improvised weapons, knives or guns… typically a soft target gets hit with a hard body part (i.e. closed fist to the gut) while a hard target gets hit by soft tool (i.e. an ear slap with an open cupped palm.  (You’ll learn this in today’s video clip.)

Attack high value targets. Get this guy to understand that he picked on the wrong person and you intend to hurt him badly. Start “laying the hate” without relenting and make him succumb to the “Surprise & Shock” factor of messing with you.

You had better answer a question for yourself in advance. Are you willing to hurt a person who’s attacking you. Seems like a no-brainer huh? It’s not. You can’t afford a hesitation in the 3 to 5 seconds that this all takes place. Hesitate and you’ll pay a dear price. Perhaps the ultimate one.

Last two questions that should be running through your mind…

“What’s my target?” & “What’s my next target?”

Six High Value Targets:

 

Eyes – The eyes are extremely vulnerable to attack. Dirt in the eyes or a simple flick or jab can be a great equalizer to a larger more aggressive opponent.

Throat – A hard punch to the throat can be “game over”. This is better done with a blade hand (form a C with your fingers and thumb and strike with either side.) Warning:  A strike to this target can be fatal.

Solar Plexus – The soft spot just below the “breast bone”. If you surprise attack him with a first strike shot here you’ll likely knock the wind out of him. This is an uncomfortable experience for anyone. While he’s still talking crap surprise attack him here and you may not only gain the surprise, it may be instantly over. Don’t bank on it and strike your next target though.

Neck – The side of the neck has a bundle of nervous and the carotid artery flowing through it. A good shock can mean “lights out”. The shoulder and head offer a good funnel system to guide your edge hand in to the right target are too. This is a high % shot.

Groin – You’d be surprised how many guys don’t immediately think something is coming here. Target this a number of ways. Kick with the shin to the groin hard. If you can get your foot in between his legs on the way up his own thighs will direct the attack on the target. You could also “Slap Grab and Twist” as our instructor James Painter will show you in the video clip for Day 3 of this course. Tomorrow you’ll see one taught by instructor Kathy Long that adds a destructive take down with it as well.

Inside Knee – The knees are delicate. Look how many 300 lbs. football players go down each year to knee injuries. From the outside in, or the inside out a good stomp or sweep kick to the knee joint with bring him down like a giant redwood

tree. This takes his mobility. FYI: It works best if his foot is planted on the ground and the leg straight. If you manage a stomp kick directly to the front, it does the most damage but it isn't a high percentage shot. (Tough to target and easy for him to move out of the way.) Go after the sides… especially the inside of the knee.

Outside Thigh – Muay Thai fighters are trained… relentlessly… to target the large nerve that runs on the outside of the thigh. You’ve likely had a charlie horse before… they are pain rich and a very effective in reducing the opponents mobility.   

Principles of a Fight:

 

Surprise (Deception & Distraction): A quick, decisive and unexpected attack will negate most of the advantages of your adversary.

Overwhelm (Disruption): Maintain a forward pressure blitz on him without pause.

Violence of Action (Destruction):  Use high damage potential strikes at high value pain-rich targets.

 

Spec Op soldiers use the phrase, “Speed, Surprise & Violence of Action” as a cornerstone to planning their attacks. This hasn’t changed since fighting was invented.

Last note, once your work is done you’ll want to get out of the area as quickly as possible. Don’t wait for him to recover ... don’t wait for his buddies to show up... and don’t wait for emotionally “jacked up” bystanders to attack you. Do what you gotta do, then leave the area as quickly as possible.

If you haven't already watched them, their are video lessons featuring techniques and tactics at the top of this page. Take the time to watch and practice these moves... carefully.

Day 2's lesson will show up in your Inbox tomorrow with links to still more techniques and soiid learn to fight-fast material.

Know When Your In A Fight

A frequent and common mistake is to “deny” that you’re even in a fight. A confrontation doesn’t start with a punch to your nose, it starts when your intuition tells you “something’s wrong” (something called “combat awareness”).

Here’s the problem:

When you’ve got some pissed off 6’ 5” drunken rugby player yelling profanities in your face -- it’s difficult to make snap decisions.Your body’s “automatic” responses during high stress is to drain blood away from the brain’s cortex (responsible for rational thinking), which guarantees a loss of “higher thinking” (the reason why many those flashy martial arts moves suddenly fly out the window).

The solution is to create clear “Decision Points” -- beforehand. This will help make decision-making more automated for you under stressful conditions.

You’ve GOT to have a series of decision points – an automated checklist if you will – that reduces internal chatter, and eliminates the need to “figure it out” at a time when your higher thought processes are in lock-down.

You want to simplify your decision making process. I’m going to detail a couple of decision points you should set up beforehand:

Know when the “fight is on”.

This is a big one. Because a lot of guys choose to put-off making this decision until it’s too late, then later (perhaps mumbling from a hospital bed) explain that they had no idea what that “mean guy” was up to. In reality, there are often THREE major signs that trouble is brewing. They are as follows:

1.  Body Language

2.  Verbal

3.  Previous Behavior

Let’s delve into each one briefly.

1.   Body language:  These are non-verbal signals. It’s typical for the average guy to ignore these, but learn to become attuned to them. There’s a number of “tells” or non-verbal body language signals that indicate an imminent attack on you. These are like gifts from your opponents telling you “you’re about a second or two away from me striking.”

The “Looking Away” – Just before that right haymaker is thrown an opponent will commonly look to one side. It’s a sort of distraction technique. As fighter Jim West says “If I’m in a confrontation with someone and they look to the side, it means they’re about to hit me – so I hit first”.

The “Finger Jab” – Someone poking you in the chest is also a big red flag. He’s building up his confidence and resolve, by violating your personal space. Any

violation of your personal space at the initial stages of a confrontation should trigger some kind of immediate response from you.

The “Shove” – People typically don’t push, then walk away. This move is almost always immediately followed by a punch. Decide beforehand what you’ll automatically do in this type of a situation, because you’ll most likely have NO time to decide during a confrontation (which is the whole point of creating these “Decision Points”). FYI: 95% of the time a right “Haymaker” is going to come your way. Train yourself to watch your left side.

The “Target Gaze” -- An opponent will naturally look at what he’s about to strike. Watch out for an adversary who changes his gaze to your chin or some other obvious target

The “Chin Drop”: Another “cue” that should prompt you into a decision is seeing your opponent drop his chin. This is a fairly consistent, and subconscious act of protecting the neck … it almost always means trouble.

Getting Hit: The biggest non-verbal cue is being struck. Many novice fighters can get “blind-sided” and are slow to realize what’s going on. They know something’s wrong, they may even suspect they’ve been hit by that angry looking fellow -- but somehow they just can’t bring themselves to believe it – until they get hit again. If you suspect you’ve been hit, do NOT stand around trying to figure it out. Take immediate action, whether it’s running away or dropping the guy in front of you.

 

2.    Verbal – This is the second major indicator that trouble is at your doorstep. Here are two specific verbal cues that you should look out for:

The Threat: “I’m gonna zyx@%# you up!” Okay… this may seem so obvious that it’s not worth mentioning. And I wouldn’t mention it if my research didn’t show that MOST inexperienced fighters do nothing in the face of serious verbal threats. They often stand by and take NO action. A Bully or Emotionally Hijacked individual (rarely will you get open verbal threats from a Predator), often uses the verbal threat as a way to “ramp up” his confidence and emotions (much like the poke in the chest) meaning that things can escalate fast. Think through various scenarios and what would trigger you into decisive action.

The “Sudden Silent Treatment”: If your opponent has been talking, talking, and talking and then suddenly becomes quiet, it means he’s entered into an internal dialog on what he’s about to do to you. As FightFast instructor Demi Barbitos says: “Fighters don’t talk and swing at the same time”.

 

3.    Previous behavior - This is the third indicator of potential trouble. Judge people by what you see them doing and adjust yourself according. This is where your powers of observation come in. You’ll want (for example) to avoid loud young men who’ve been drinking – especially if there are women accompanying them. Bar bouncer (and cage

fighter) Mike Serr points out that nearly ALL intoxicated men will react violently if they are confronted or slighted in front of a woman.

So a common tactic is to set up a “ploy” to separate the guy from his pack before confronting him. It is more likely he’ll leave or follow direction as there’s no need to “save face”. Even a small guy with very little chance at winning will fight furiously to avoid being humiliated in front of friends and women. It’s important to keep in mind that loud behavior with friends and women present can create a volatile situation.

What will trigger you to action?

You should decide, in advance, what factors will trigger immediate response from you. Define them for yourself. Automatic response -- There’s no longer a need to think about it. If a certain “trigger” is tripped you don’t have to ponder long and hard. The decision’s already been made for you.

You should know this, some of your “triggers” may not hold up in court. But by defining your triggers, you also can define what’s NOT your trigger. Someone accidentally bumping into me is not a trigger -- for me. And if he then “flips me off” and calls me a “son of a #!*!” and keeps walking, that’s not a trigger for me either. You see, it allows you to make intelligent decisions under stress (and avoid being emotionally hijacked yourself) and never regret those decisionsThe most beautiful thing about a trigger is that it allows you to FULLY engage when the time comes. No hesitation, no second guessing because there is no other decision to make other than “am I willing to hurt this guy?” and “what is my target?”. You’re locked in and ready to rock n roll.

Altercation vs. Personal Combat 

 

It’s important that you understand the difference between Personal Combat (a truly life-threatening fight) and a simple Altercation.

An Altercation is where you’re life is not necessarily in danger – but you are still in a physical confrontation. It’s more of a situation where you need to control and restrain. An example might be your drunken brother-in-law who needs to “escorted” out of the house because he’s table-dancing with a lampshade on his head… or the neighbor who’s upset because your dog “unloaded” in his yard… or any situation where shattering your opponent’s nose with a vicious head-butt would be considered “over the top.” And that’s the problem.

Winning a fight absolutely depends on instant decisions. Go or no-go.  Fight or flight. Yes or no. Spending precious time pondering whether or not you’re in an altercation or a real-to-goodness fight leaves you wide open.

Wishy-washy indecision is your enemy. Black and white decisions are where it’s at.

Now, a good way to tell if you’re in an altercation or an actual “personal combat” situation is to look to your gut (no, don’t look down at your stomach). Your intuition. If you’re experiencing a huge adrenal dump and all the signals of “fight and flight,” you need to trust that and know you’re in a situation that requires total commitment on a level that ultimately could prove lethal.

Irritation and a slightly elevated heart rate on the other hand is telling you you’re in an altercation. Only YOU will know. The trick here is to listen to what your body is telling you.

Here’s another way to look at it. If your answer to the question “Am I Willing To Hurt This Person?” is “No,” then you’re in an “altercation” situation that probably will require “control” tactics. It’s why you must have your decision points well developed before you actually find yourself this type of situation.

 

Today’s video material links are at the top of this page and they’ll reveal a nasty groin tactic that you never want to be the recipient of (I’m not sure what would hurt worse, your groin or the back of your head. You decide.) Also, one of our Bar Cooler/Bouncer instructors will show you something we call “Finger Magic” which is a great set of control and escort tactics to have in your arsenal

Check your e-mail for Day 3’s Lesson Tomorrow.

 

I’ll be sharing with you the Four Ranges of Fighting. I’m also going to dispel 17 myths you likely believe about fighting that are wrong and can get you seriously hurt. I'll also offer you some fighting tools that will make you aware of high value targets and how to attack them.

Tomorrow's video clips are going to reveal a couple of surprise takedown moves that can and will bring your opponent a surprise landing him on his ass and head. Quick and painful takedowns demoralize your opponent. These techniques will give you some good useable stuff.

Day 3 of 5 Day Fighting Course

The first step in designing your own personal fighting system is to break up the fight into its component parts. A fight is a fluid state. It simply cannot be artificially dissected into parts and still be a fight -- so breaking it down into its component parts is a compromise.

Never-the-less we need to do it to clarify some points.

Four Ranges of Fighting

A fight can be roughly divided into 4 Fighting Ranges. Here’s a quick idea of some hand-to-hand fighting ranges:

Weapons Range Striking Range Close In Range On The Ground

 

1.    Weapons Range: This distance represents the reach of a club, knife, gun, pepper spray, or improvised weapon. Obviously there’s a LOT you need to consider for anyone armed with a weapon. For example, police officers consider anyone armed with a knife is a lethal threat anywhere within 30 feet. Now that may seem like a huge distance, but research has PROVEN over and over that a determined person armed with a knife can close a distance of 30 feet and inflict lethal wounds before an officer can draw his weapon and shoot.

Weapons are a more complex subject than pure hand-to-hand fighting. With weapons you must be aware of the range of the weapon that you are facing. Dealing with weapons requires situational evaluation. While at times distance is your friend (running from a knife wielding attacker) other times it’s your enemy (getting close enough to disarm a handgun). Complex evaluations such as…

a.   Am I protecting anyone near me (family, friends)?b.   If I disarm and the handgun fires will anyone nearby be hit?c.   Has the perpetrator shown willingness to use the weapon?d.   Can I escape?e.   Is there cover or concealment nearby?

These complexities run beyond the scope of this instructional course other than to say you should study the range of any weapon facing to know the distance where it can harm you and the distance whereby a disarm might be applicable.

For the remainder of this course we’ll cover the ranges applicable to hand-to-hand personal combat fighting.

2.    Striking  Range: This is the distance you can reach someone with an arm or a leg and is the fighting range that most traditional martial arts seemed concerned with. There are many tools and nasty tricks you can use from this range.

3.    Close in Range: Sometimes called the “trapping range” this is within a foot of your opponent and it’s where you’ll be able to end a fight within seconds using such simple moves as head butts, knees, and elbows. These are high-damage moves that can mean hospitalization, permanent injury or death for your adversary, so use them wisely and be careful when practicing (I’ve seen well-trained fighters get knocked unconscious while “practicing” these moves).

Curiously, many traditional martial arts don’t have many tactics that cover this fighting range, but in terms of ending a fight fast, the Close-In Range is where it’s at. The problem is the transition from Striking Range to Close-in Range because it’s unlikely your adversary will allow you to simply walk up to within one foot his body without striking you.

There are numerous transition tricks to get you into position for “lights out” finishing moves utilizing again, head butts, knees, and elbows. You’ve likely already seen some in our video segments that accompany this course.

Getting into close-in range or “entering” as it is referred to in the industry is a critical transition in fighting that many advanced sport fighters’ study at great length. The irony is that while they spend a great deal of time training in this area, in an actual fight this portion lasts milli-seconds.

For real world fighting application both opponents are not aware of the event as they would be in sport fighting. The element of surprise and speed make the entering portion of a streetfight less critical. Speed, surprise and violence of action is the tactic to keep in mind. If you’re in a street fight and you’ve got your dukes up bouncing on your toes your strategy and tactics are terribly flawed.

4.    Ground Range: Often referred to as grappling. Ground fighting in the real world is NOT the same as what you see in the high school gymnasium or a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) match. I don’t care if you took state championship in wrestling, there are a couple of things you need to consider before willfully taking it to the ground. First, most fights do not take place on padded floors with plenty of open space. Nope, sorry to say that -- unless you’re lucking enough to get into a real fight inside a dojo – you’ll be rolling around on tile, concrete or asphalt with plenty of obstacles to run into. Even if you win you’ll be scraped and banged-up to a bloody pulp.

Another thing, ground fighting often means long minutes tangled together on the ground (anyone who’s watched a wresting or UFC match can attest that it’s a slow methodical process). But on the street you must ALWAYS operate under the assumption that your adversary has various goons and buddies who’d be more than delighted to kick and stomp

your head while you’re struggling to get that Full Nelson applied. So there are good reasons you want to end it fast… on your feet.

Despite all this, I would recommend that you learn a dozen or so simple but effective ground moves because any fight that lasts more than 9 - 12 seconds almost always goes to the ground. So you’ve got no choice but to discover some tricks that’ll get you out of a pinch.

There are many opinions regarding other references to various ranges. Many are valid but for our purpose here my point is that you consider (but not over think) your use of space in obvious ways. Because I don’t care how well-trained you are in a particular punch – it won’t work if your adversary is fifteen feet away.

On the other hand I’ve seen some fight systems hinge so tightly on “fighting ranges” that it becomes a pre-occupation for the fighter (“am I within 2.5 feet?... okay… time to retool myself from kicking range to punching range”).

Again… you haven’t got time to “think” about various tactics, ranges, and techniques. You simply must keep target awareness then use the most appropriate tool to strike.

Fighting Tools

Think of this like a carpenter – to get the job done he uses three basic tools – a table saw, a planer, and a nail gun. Yes there are a ton of other tools he’ll want at his disposal, but without these essentials he won’t even be able to get started. So in general, there are 3 groups of hand-to-hand Fighting Tools available to you – and within each group there are a bunch of options available to you. They are:

1.   Strikes: These are offensive moves that include kicking, punching, head butts, elbows and knees. With all the variations available there are literally thousands of such moves to choose from. Don’t get confused. You’re already building a personal arsenal even if you’re not entirely aware of it yet. In Day F5’s lesson your going to learn how to select the techniques or moves that you can rely on.

2.   Blocks/Checks: Essentially these are defensive moves. Once again, there are simply so many parrying, redirection, and stopping maneuvers available that I couldn’t possibly cover them all here. So again, one of the big problems for guys like you is sifting through tons of dirt and sand to discover those valuable golden nuggets.  But don’t fret, I will reveal more on the blocks and checks you’ll want in Day 5’s lesson.

I want to make a point about these tools. Defensive moves are important, but it’s more important to remember that if you’re blocking, you’re not attacking. That’s not the position you want to be in. Your odds of winning are greatly increased if you are on the offensive and forcing your opponent to defend himself. If you find yourself blocking you should be moving to turn the tables and take the attack to your opponent.

3.   Manipulations: This includes offensive throws, joint locks, breaks, choke holds and escapes.

A lot of manipulation techniques boil down to pain compliance and “control and contain” tactics. This is extremely popular among anyone who makes their living in law enforcement and security, as their goal is to control people and not necessarily “end the threat”. I would recommend learning these techniques for the kind of “altercations” where you need to control someone without causing too much damage.

You want to have as many “tools” available to you as possible. Yes, I’m sure you heard certain “experts” claim that having multiple fighting tools will “overwhelm” you in a fight. Nonsense. The more fighting tools and skill sets you have available to you, the more target opportunities you’ll have at your disposal and the sooner they will appear.

Think of it like working on a car. You’ll want more than an adjustable wrench and a hammer with you (although I DID once replace a water pump like that… which I don’t recommend). The more tools you’ve got, the more options you’ll have to get the job done. It’s that simple.

The typical untrained street fighter really has just two effective tools -- a right haymaker to the head and a left haymaker to the head. (Wow… what a cornucopia of moves).

So when it comes to target awareness and fighting ranges this guy is left asking “is my opponents head open now? Am I in range for a haymaker?” That’s a rather limited menu of options. Whoever is suggesting that this is a good thing doesn’t understand the nature real-world fighting. You want options. Having more options does not mean more decisions, just more opportunities.

17 Myths Exposed

 

I’ve listed some “fight myths” that have been floating around for years. You’ll now be one of the few people on earth who knows with 100% certainty that these “truths” are really ugly rumors, urban myths, and just plain ol’ lies.Here they are:

1.   Martial Artists Win Streetfights: Listen: I don't like to "knock" the martial arts. They all have something valuable to offer. We owe them a debt of gratitude for getting us where we are today, and they're better than nothing. BUT...unfortunately, many of the arts being widely taught today are ancient arts, developed for another time and place in history, for specific conditions and circumstances that simply do not exist in the world you'll be fighting in today.As one instructor put it: “Martial Arts is what you do with somebody while street fighting is what you do to somebody.” I wish I could take credit for that quote.

Statistics show that your average “store front” black belt does not have a much better chance at winning a street fight than any other average guy.

Shocked? Well don’t be. Most martial arts concentrate on discipline and complicated “fine motor” techniques that go straight out the window when “crunch time” hits.  If you want to study the arts as a discipline I think it’s great. I even recommend it as you’ll gain many benefits. However, be certain not to confuse your art application with real world streetfighting because they won’t have any similarities.

Case in point: ask  your MA instructor how to properly bite off someone’s nose or stick your thumb in their eye socket if they have you in a compromising position!  

2.   The 5-Minute Fist Fight.  This is a big one and it’s important that you get this Hollywood version of fighting out of your head. We’ve all been exposed to movies where the hero is endlessly fist-fighting. Yes, one big-gulp and a large popcorn later, he’s still going at it. But here’s a reality check for you.  Nearly every actual street fight lasts for no more than 3 to 8 seconds! Get a handle on just how little time you have to recognize what’s going on and take decisive action to win. The key is what you do in the time leading up to that 3-8 seconds burst.

3.   The One-Touch Death Move. This is a close cousin to the “One Touch Knock Out”, both of which are very misleading. It’s time to stop concentrating on specific fight techniques and begin focusing in on key targets and strategies.

I’m going to reveal to you what’s “probable” rather than “possible”. It’s why you don’t see basketball players taking most of their shots from half court. Sure, it’s possible they’ll make it, but a good driving lay-up is far more probable. If you follow some basic fight principles (which I’ll cover in a little bit) it’ll be highly probable that you’ll win.

4.   The Predictable Reaction. I hear this nonsense all the time and what’s scary is that plenty of fight systems on the market today are based on this myth. It goes something like this; Hit him here, and he’ll do this… then strike him here, and he’ll do that… then throw a blow here, and he’ll drop to the ground like a sack of potatoes. And that’s it… you win.

Don’t believe it.  My research shows that you’re in for a big surprise if you buy into this regimented “step-by-step” theory of fighting. People – especially those facing a threatening and volatile situation – are wildly unpredictable.

5.   The Man-To-Man Fight. Another grand illusion. Most guys imagine (and train for) a fight against one man. Well you can’t depend on that. Stats prove that more times than not your opponent will have “back up” – friends willing to help take you down and kick in your head. This is why it’s critical that you first make quick and effective decisions early on to end the as fight quickly as possible and prepare for more than one adversary.

6.   The Convenient Fighting Environment.  Dojo training often lulls one into the sense that you’ll always have plenty of fighting room… that your opponent will calmly approach you, bow, and ask if you’re ready… and that the ground will always be nicely padded. The reality is different. I’ve found that most fights occur in tight quarters (a bathroom, between cars, etc), with little or no room for flying kicks or fancy moves. They’ll be no light, furniture in the way, and rough concrete floors to strip meat off your bones. Ouch!

7.   The “Undefeatable” System. This is another good one. A series of fighting techniques that can’t be beat -- yeah right. Don’t believe it. As I’ve pointed out, fighting has more to do with proper target acquisition (i.e., hit him in the side of the neck where all the blood and nerves to his brain run), than it has to do with any specific moves and techniques (i.e., a spinning roundhouse kick). So the idea that a collection of techniques is “undefeatable” just isn’t possible.

Here’s a question: What happens when two students of this “undefeatable system” meet in a fight? Hmmm. Guess that means they’ll be kicking their own asses.

8.  The Floating Warrior. More Hollywood cult crap that you shouldn’t buy into. There is simply no internal meditation or external training method that can defy the laws of physics.

You want to employ surefooted confidence, clearly telecast “alpha signals”, and forcing an opponent “back on his heels” can go miles to (1.) persuading an adversary (especially a “Predator”) that he shouldn’t mess with you or (2.) ending the fight with YOU on top. Forget about floating through the treetops.

9.   Most Fights Go To The Ground. Most guys are surprised to discover that this is a myth -- but it is. In fact, most street fights and personal combat situations do NOT end up on the ground. Yes, someone ends up on the ground alright, and it’s the loser – with the winner (or winners) standing over him stomping on his head. So why is this myth so common? Well, it comes from the study of police reports. You see, most cops who struggle with an adversary end up on the ground.

Now hold on – doesn’t that contradict what I just said? No, it doesn’t. Because the goal of law enforcement is to “contain, control, comply” (also known as the 3 C’s) – which, by the way, requires more skill than simply winning a street fight. In other words a cop can’t simply eye jab, ear slap, then move in for a knock-out head butt because a dangerous criminal is resisting you. No, an officer’s goal is NOT to end a fight in 3 seconds, but instead to use “reasonable and proportionate escalation of force” to control and contain his subject.

This is different than what happens in a real world street fight and it’s why the stats on “going to the ground” have been skewed. Use these techniques on your drunken brother-in-law when you want him out of your house but don’t want to hurt him too bad. When he sobers up he’ll thank you for not landing him in the hospital.

10.   Bullies Are Social Deviants and Cowards: On the contrary, recent studies suggest that the majority of bullies are often socially popular and often considered “successful” in life. They typically are NOT outcasts, but in reality are often confident and popular. Over the course of a year, statistics show that 14% of boys have been a victim of bully threat or attack. I suspect the true percentage is much higher since there’s a good number that won’t raise their hand and gladly volunteer this information. “Oh yes… I’ve been humiliated. That’s me.”

You get the picture. This 14% represents boys who admitted being a victim. Bullies get much satisfaction by hurting and humiliating people who don’t accept their dominance. They WILL fight when challenged – so giving someone advice to “stand up to a bully” will almost certainly mean a physical fight. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t stand up to a bully, but it’s good to know what you’re in for. In other words – never bluff with a bully. If you stand up, you better be ready to fight. And bullies usually have some fight experience.

11.   Diplomacy Works Best – It’s a nice thought, but unfortunately your adversary is rarely a reasonable person. There are three types of opponents you’ll face (Bullies, Predators & The Emotionally Hijacked) and each of them have unique circumstances that motivate them. I cover explanations of their motives extensively in my book should you have interest. Know this though, diplomacy might work on one of them. Even then it’s less than “probable”. 

12.   Your friends will back you up. Ha! I’m sad to say this is not true. We’d all like to believe our buddies will back us up, but research shows that they’re more likely to pick their noses than pick a fight. In fact, crowd behavior studies show that the more friends and bystanders are hanging around, the less likely it is that you’ll get help in a fight.

The technical term for this is “dilution of responsibility”, but I think they should change that name to something less technical like: “I thought someone else would take care of it”. Now, on the other hand, if you have just ONE friend and no crowd of bystanders, you actually may get some help. But the facts have shown over and over that individuals inside a crowd are less likely to act. A “gang” mentality is different. They will back each other up because it’s part of their “job”.

13.   Ignore them and they’ll go away: This is a common tactic, especially with women who feel they’re being followed. They simply put on the blinders and hope for the best. “Oh goodness, I hope that bad man goes away”. Bad tactic. Don’t ignore a predator you suspect is “scoping” you. Believe it or not, your best bet is to let him know that you ARE aware of him.

Look at him directly. Watch him. Let him know you’re aware of his presence. Once a predator suspects you know his real intentions, it strips away much of the motivation to attack since the element of surprise has been taken away – and surprise is one of the predator’s most powerful tools. He knows he can’t surprise you, and now you’re perceived as less of an easy mark. Of course eyeballing a bully will have the opposite

effect and will probably result in the “what are YOU looking at?” response. So this tactic is to be used when you suspect a predator.

14.   Police are there to protect you: Now with all due respect to law enforcement, they are not your personal body guards. They can’t be. Here are three reasons we have cops.

Deterrence – This is their main purpose. Deterrence depends on people’s reluctance to take a chance. It’s like the store owner (and this is a true story) who kept getting robbed and ripped off, so he placed an obvious cardboard cutout of police officer in a highly visible part of his store. It completely eliminated the robberies and dramatically reduced shoplifting. It worked not because anyone was afraid of a cardboard cutout, but because it placed a seed of doubt in the mind of the potential criminal.

Mop up – Okay… this sounds lousy, but much of a cop’s time is spent traveling to crime scenes, talking with victims, writing up reports and “mopping up” the blood. Now this has almost nothing to do with preventing crimes, except for the fact that good police work can eventually lead to getting specific criminals off the streets.

Apprehension – Here’s where cops earn their paycheck. It takes guts to put your ass on the line and hunt down a dangerous criminal. Most of us avoid this kind of confrontation, but cops purposely put themselves into it. In reality the mop-up and apprehension are both just another form of deterrence. The idea that a cop will investigate and try to catch them is a powerful reason many people don’t get involved in crime.

 

Most people are shocked to discover that the police do not have the ability (nor the legal obligation) to protect individuals. Existing by the simpleton motto of “let the cops handle it” is a risky way to live. The harsh reality is that YOU are responsible for your own protection -- and for that of your loved ones – not the cops.

15.   All You Need Is One (Or Two) Fighting Techniques – This is a common theory that has some truth to it. But I want to dispel the foolish notion that knowing less is better than knowing more. This just isn’t true. Because following this kind of logic would indicate that, for example, you’d be better off using an uneducated bag-lady as your investment broker than a guy with a Master’s Degree in Finance.  I’d put my money on the Master’s degree – but that’s just me.

16.  All Military Fight Systems Can Be Trusted. Let me tell you a “dirty little secret” about some military combat systems being sold today. Recently there’s been a rash of “experts” who’ve “trained” the military in their secret system.

Here’s the scoop. They’ve offered a few military guys some free training in their system. That’s it. Free seminars or workshops to military personnel is almost always a marketing ploy and a “resume building” exercise. They can now turn around and advertise that

their system is used by “military experts”. Keep your eyes open for this nonsense. Just because someone trained military people does NOT make it special.

Another thing, most soldiers will admit that much of the hand to hand stuff is absolutely worthless to them because 100% of their job is to fight at a distance using hi-tech weaponry -- NOT hand-to-hand systems. This is exactly why I’ve personally sought out special military units that indeed depend heavily on hand-to-hand fighting.

And believe me, these guys exist. I even got some of them to talk. They sneak around behind enemy lines quietly “taking care of business” without firing weapons and drawing a bunch of attention to themselves. Real live bad-asses that’d make Rambo look like a pussy.

17.   Sport Fighting Is Just Like Personal Combat. Many think that a trained boxer, cage fighter, Mixed Martial Artist, or kickboxer is the same as being a trained street fighter. Not true. Let me ask… who do YOU think would win a spontaneous street fight -- a champion MMA fighter or some ex-con street-brawler raised in the toughest area of east LA?

I’d put my money on the ex-con. Because as brutal as it may appear, an MMA fight really IS different than a street fight.First, a pay-per-view “cage” fight (also called a mixed-martial-arts or MMA fight) is about making money for the promoters. They can’t allow every fight to be over within 3-8 seconds.

They’d lose their audience -- and advertisers -- fast. So, in an MMA fight there’s no quick “fight ending” moves allowed -- which is what a street fight is ALL about. Also, promoters have got to take some effort to protect the fighters. They wouldn’t be “sanctioned” for long with a continuous stream of dead bodies being hauled out of the ring.

So, here’s 15 moves that are outlawed in most sanctioned MMA fights -- but used in most street fights:Eye gouging.

Groin strikes (the ever popular “sack-attack”) Throat strikes (which can easily be lethal). Grabbing the trachea Biting (alright… Tyson DID try this once). Clawing, twisting, or pinching the flesh. Strikes to spine or back of head (also easily lethal). Striking downward, using the point of the elbow. Head butt (think of a “bowling ball in the face”). Hair pulling. Kicking the kidney with the heel. Grabbing the clavicle Small joint manipulations (such as fingers)

Weapons and improvised weapons. Multiple attackers (except in WWF).

 

Seriously… what wins a “match-fight” is strength, size, speed, endurance, and skill. In “personal combat” or street fighting, it’s the use of deception, distraction, disruption and destruction (the four Ds) that wins. Think about this. When Mike Tyson went to prison – they separated him from the general prison population for his own protection. Why? I mean bad-ass Mike Tyson was the most feared Heavy Weight boxer at the time – what did he have to worry about?

Well, even Tyson knew that the fight rules in prison were different than in the ring. In fact, just like on the streets, there are NO rules. Anything goes, and you’ve got to be resourceful to survive. Now granted, some skinny little con would have little chance at beating Tyson in the ring under existing boxing rules.

But a sport fighter who doesn’t understand the big “Four Ds” is at a serious disadvantage in any street fight. This is why size, strength, and endurance are not huge factors in a street fight – it’s about your skills in the Four Ds. Sure feels good to get some of that off my chest.

Now it’s time for you to watch today’s video clips. These two clips will demonstrate two different takedown methods. Diallo Frazier – a street “solja” who grew up on the other side of the tracks reveals one of his favorite surprise takedowns. The other reveals former Army Special Forces operator and instructor Jim “Smokey” West’s solution to entering, takedown and a resulting choke that will be a solid addition to your arsenal’s collection.

Day 4’s Lesson tomorrow will define & reveal the Four Methods of Winning, dispel a few more personal “inner myths” that you need to be aware of and deal with in advance of finding yourself in a real fight… AND, a revelation into an amazing science that will immediately effect and transform your life. The science of Power Signals will infuse your personal presence with amazing significance that your family and business associates will quickly notice. Just a side note…  women tend to respond nicely as well!

Day Four’s video segments will reveal a DELTA operators Gun Disarm & a brutal tactic from a Prison Based fighting system that you will want to add to your options as well.

The combination of website and video material contained in Day Four's lesson combine for truly powerful and highly applicable topics that you do not want to miss out on. Check your e-mail tomorrow for DAY FOUR’S Lesson.

Again, if you haven't already watched them... click on the links to videos in the box at the top right of this page to learn these techniques and tactics. And once again, watch your Inbox closely for tomorrow’s lesson.

Day 4 of 5 Day Fighting Course

Too many guys think that learning how to win a fight means that your objective must be fighting.

Wrong!!!

Your objective is to “end the threat.” There are four ways to end the threat. Here they are:

Four Methods Of Winning:

1.   Avert or avoid – This is all about not putting yourself in a dangerous environment to begin with. It’s about being aware of your surroundings. My research has shown that people who frequent violent areas of town often become (for some mysterious reason) victims of violent crimes.

So a crime victim might say “I was in a dark back alley near Skid Row at 2 in the morning and I was viciously and unexpectedly attacked by thugs”. Now I ask you… seriously… how much of a victim is he really? The world is not your own personal playground. You must take responsibility for the sticky situations you put yourself in.

Of course people can and DO get into confrontations where they’d least expect it… at ball games… outside work… at the gym… any number innocent places. But it’s a game of calculated chance. Because the odds of running into serious trouble on a street corner ripe with drugs and prostitution is greater than on the steps of a Mormon church on Sunday morning.

Another more subtle form of avoiding a confrontation is how you carry yourself. Proper body language and an air of self-esteem can go a long way in broadcasting to criminals that you’re not an easy mark. Knowing some simple ways to “take care of business” instantly adds a level of self-confidence that people recognize. This also leaks into other areas of your life and the confidence will be noticed.

2.   De-escalate – Remember the goal is to “end the threat”.

There exist three types of opponents you’ll face. Only one responds well to non-physical de-escalation efforts. The following lists the three types and offers some guidelines as to when and where you can possibly de-escalate the fight.a

Bully – There’s little chance at successfully “de-escalating” a confrontation with a bully. He’s interested in dominating you, and at the point of confrontation he may view anything less that dishing out a good ass beating as “backing down”. And bullies don’t typically back down.

Predator – You have even less of a chance to successfully de-escalating a confrontation with a predator as once he’s chosen you to be a victim he will not be talked out of it. A predator must simply be convinced as quickly as possible that he’s made a mistake by choosing you as a victim.

Badger – An emotionally volatile individual that DOES respond well to specific de-escalation techniques. Of course the trick is to be sure which type of opponent you’re dealing with. If it’s a Badger, try to de-escalate if it’s safe.

 

3.   Escape – This is a highly under-rated consideration. If you’re not trying to protect yourself, your loved ones, your dignity, freedom or future… then why bother fighting? Avoid the fight completely, or run and get the hell out of there. This should be the FIRST thing you consider.

For example… a Muay Thai kickboxing champion had his car stolen in San Francisco (a true story that made front page news). It was ripped off right under his nose as he watched from the front window of his own dojo. He was humiliated and quickly took chase on foot – and amazingly caught up with the car thief at a red light (traffic in San Francisco is very slow indeed). Angry… adrenalin pumping… and in the best fighting shape of his life he yanked open the car door and confronted the car thief…

And was immediately shot dead where he stood.

Now, when you analyze the situation, there was NO good reason this kickboxer needed to do anything but call the cops and get some paper work filled out. He had insurance, the danger was already passed (the thief was driving away for Pete’s sake), there wasn’t a girlfriend, grandmother, or baby in the car. It was his foolish eagerness to fight and confront a dangerous criminal that ended his one and only life.

Learn a lesson from this. Do not be too eager to fight.

4.   Disable the Adversary – This is where all the target acquisition and fighting techniques come into play. I won’t go over all the specific techniques, but I will repeat this: the secret is to quickly pick open targets and then using specific fight techniques to attack those targets – never the other way around.

Now notice that I use the word “adversary” and not “attacker.” Here’s why… as we talked about earlier, YOU may be the attacker. Standing around whistling in the wind until a threatening person has the opportunity to define himself as an “attacker” is not a good idea. If you wait until HE is the attacker, it means you’re the defender, which lessens your chance at winning.

You’ll want keep certain “High Probability Tactics” in mind. These are tips designed to give you a great chance of success in a street fight or personal combat situation.

 Power Signals

 

Believe it or not, words and language are actually your SECONDARY form of communication. That’s right, whether you’re aware of it or not, your main form of communication is not transmitted verbally, but rather nonverbally.

Power Signals is the study and application of non-verbal communication. I assure you, there’s no “magic” involved with this – it’s all hard science that is designed to place you in a far stronger position when dealing with dangerous people. Let’s take a look.

Studies show that 65 – 85% (two thirds) of communication between people is carried out.

Over the course of an entire day, the average person is actually engaged in talking for only about 40 minutes. The rest of the time you are busy communicating through nonverbal body language.T

The people with whom you’re communicating with will put more “weight” on your nonverbal information than on your actual words.

You will form and solidify an opinion about someone within the first 4 minutes of knowing them – after which point it will be difficult to change that opinion.

 

Dominant alpha, males – no matter what their size -- are rarely picked on by bullies or targeted by predators. Alphas convey nonverbal signals that they can and will “take care of business” if necessary. What’s surprising is that these non-verbal signals cut across all barriers and are instinctively understood by all humans – no matter what language they speak verbally.

Your goal should be to use nonverbal communication to your advantage – to take “conscious” control over them so you can “sell” a certain image of yourself. To do this, we need to dig a little deeper into specific “Power Signals”.

There are three groups of power signals, each group or range communicates a personality or character quality.

Alpha Signals: Leadership, Dominance, Control. An Alpha will initiate action and take up space.

Beta Signals: Competence, Credibility, Intelligence, Confidence. A person with Beta characteristics interacts and shares space.

Gamma Signals:  Friendliness, Likeability, Interpersonal Attractiveness. A Gamma will respond and give up space.

 

Now an average person displays varying degrees of each trait depending on their situation – although anyone hovering near one extreme or another will become an extreme person. In other words, if you always act as an Alpha then you become a bully… act only as a Beta, you seem cold and uncaring (think of Mr. Spock)… act only Gamma and you’ll be sickeningly submissive.

So yes, there is a time and a place for each of the three. For example, most people will veer heavily Gamma when pulled over by a cop, (“yes sir… you look very handsome in your blue uniform this evening, sir”). In that scenario, acting too alpha may just land you in jail – or at least a more expensive ticket.

On the other hand a college student speaking to his professor would most likely act in the Beta range as he exchanges ideas and opinions. But make no mistake; the student ultimately acknowledges on some level that the professor is still the bossman.

The 4 Non-Verbal Channels

There are four areas or “channels” that you can purposely “manipulate” in your nonverbal communication -- Physical Presence, Expressions, Gestures, and Sound. Now a lot of people take offense at that word “manipulate”. Get over it if you can. Because the benefits derived from effectively controlled non-verbal signals (Power Signals) are HUGE.

Physical Presence:This is your appearance, posture, and use of space. Dress may seem obvious as I just pointed out, but posture is also an element in communicating your emotional state.

Some “Physical Presence” tips to being an Alpha.

Darker color clothing, uniforms, and clothes that emphasize height will increase the perception of dominance.

Portray power and confidence by standing square to the other person, and maintaining a wider foot stance than normal.

Lean forward while speaking and then straighten while listening. Interact at a closer distance than normal and claim more personal territory through

your posture and sweeping gestures. When entering an establishment (bar, restaurant, etc), pause at the door and take a

look over the entire place. When seated, don’t be concerned about “taking up room” (maybe by slinging your arm across the chair next to you).

Alphas are always in motion, rarely sitting absolutely still for any length of time.

 

Expressions:During a confrontation almost all of your adversary’s attention will be focused on your face – so your facial expressions will be their main source of information. So it’s

important to understand what you’re actually saying with your face and eyes so you can effectively control your nonverbal communication.

There are a few things you can concentrate on that will give a lot of control over your nonverbal communication. Here they are:

1.   Neutralize your expression. Alphas typically have extremely controlled facial expressions. Someone who is perceived to be highly dominant is very good at neutralizing any hint of emotion from their face.

2.   The Eyes: This is huge. I’m sure you’ve heard that the eyes are the “gateway to the soul” and in many ways that’s true. Research shows that the eyes are the most effective “tell” of a persons emotions, level of interest, arousal, or attentiveness. The eyes also play an important role in persuading and influencing the attitudes of others.

When it comes to establishing dominance or power, you must remember that it’s a zero-sum game. You either win or you lose the Alpha game.

So to send Alpha-signals, you need to:

Effectively neutralize emotional expression… Eliminate the downcast and shifty eyes… Make sure you’re making more eye contact while speaking than when listening… Avoid visual attentiveness to individuals who compete with you for dominance.

 

Also, when greeting an individual avoid the “eyebrow flash” (raising your eyebrows up and down quickly during initial eye contact, is a gamma signal), an open mouth expression, or winking. Instead, mutual glances, or a simple smile prove to be successful greetings that don’t yield power.

Gestures:Unlike postures, gestures are generally confined to a specific part of the body and are relatively quick motions meant to emphasize a certain point or to reinforce or de-intensify the perceived strength of emotions.

touch can communicate a great deal about a person’s psychological state. Unlike other gestures, however, touch is much more conscious and controlled and is an important means of communicating when up close.Touching is one of the most powerful means for establishing and maintaining social contact because it effectively communicates caring, comfort, affection, and reassurance.

It also serves a major role in communicating power. In touching exchanges between men and women, men typically touch women more frequently than women touch men.

But among same sex, touching among men tends to increase the level of discomfort and anxiety. High status individuals are more likely to touch and initiate touch with lower status individuals. This is viewed as a signal of exercising dominance. Therefore, touching is seen as a reliable indicator of status.

So here are some “Gesturing” tips to being an Alpha.

Avoid using any adaptors – especially touching your face or playing with objects. Make sure your gestures are very controlled and deliberate. Always initiate the touch (a handshake for example). Simultaneously touch two areas to establish dominance. An example of this

would be shaking his right hand while grasping his shoulder with the left.

 

Also, touching outside of the normal regions can show dominance over a lower status individual. A pat on the back to show approval is acceptable and clearly demonstrates dominance. A pat on the head, however, would appear very condescending, and would most likely be challenged. And well… a pat on the rear-end means you’re likely on very thin ice.

Sound:The fourth channel of nonverbal signals is sound, or “vocalic communication”. Simply put, sounds convey meaning. Aside from facial gestures, the voice is the most powerful channel for transmitting the emotional state of the communicator. Perceived personality characteristics and social class are also revealed through the various attributes and characteristics of the voice. The voice can be very effective in shaping whether the speaker is introverted, extroverted, likeable, dominant or submissive.

Here are some “Sound” tips to being an Alpha:

Speak with a loud, strong voice. Pace yourself at a moderately fast rate with full resonance. Articulation and correct pronunciation are very important for effectively

portraying status. Dominance can be displayed in crisp and clear speech, as though you were issuing

commands. Avoid “non-fluencies” words such as “umm,” “like,” or “you know” used

between sentences or weak expressions such as, “I guess,” or “ok”. These dramatically decrease your alpha-level presence. Vocal cues of confidence are vitally important.

Throat clearing and nervous coughing are perceived as non-Alpha traits.

 

Power Signals are quite simply one of the most powerful sciences that allow you to manipulate other people and alter their perception of who you are and how you will deal with matters. While some perceive the study as esoteric and/or non-pragmatic it has been my experience that those individuals exhibit little Alpha traits themselves! This stuff is real and it works.

Internal Myths

 

Okay… it’s time to get into a very scary place – inside your own mind. Because that’s where the real fight takes place. It’s time to clear away some of the cobwebs hanging around in your cranium and take a fresh perspective. Now I don’t want to get too technical, but my research uncovered something extremely important – a thing called “cognitive dissonance”. This is nothing but a fancy way to say that a person’s actual beliefs don’t match up with their actions.

This can cause extreme discomfort and indecision – something you don’t want rattling around in your head during a fight. To win, you must be clear-headed, know exactly what to do, and then do it with decisive action. You can’t afford to be “working things out” inside your head while facing down an adversary.

So, let’s begin to change some beliefs that you may be hanging onto – and may ultimately hurt you. Some of these beliefs are nothing but simplistic myths instilled in us as young boys – yet we still hang onto them as grown men.Here are four of the most common examples -- although I’m sure as you examine your beliefs, you’ll come up with plenty more. I’m avoiding the sugar coating here – and you should do the same with yourself. Because hanging onto baggage and childish notions will result in deadly hesitation in the heat of battle. Let’s take a look:

A.    John Wayne Syndrome – a “real man” never backs down.

While there certainly exist individuals who live to this as a creed, it’s not necessary. Remember the definition of winning is to “end the threat”. We’re not in this for sport fighting. In this realm losing has some permanent and long lasting ramifications. Apply wisdom to the circumstances at hand.

B.   Never Hit First – Another notion from childhood – because what’s the first thing that your dad or a teacher asked you after a fight? Wasn’t it “who hit who first?”

Well research proves that hitting first means you’ve got a damn good chance to win the fight. You’ve initiated surprise, dismay, got the guy back on his heels, and have an excellent opportunity to keep up the pressure until you can end the threat. Everything you want.

Oh… but wait… that’s right… you can’t hit first. Teacher said so. It’s time to grow up and get away from this kind of thinking – it’s just plain dangerous. Let’s forget fist-fighting for a second and think about it as a gun fight. Would you allow an armed opponent the first shot? I sure hope not. Same goes with hand-to-hand combat. Do NOT freely give away your main advantage because of some misguided idea.

C.   Fair Fight – This is more common than you’d imagine. Stuff like don’t hit a guy with glasses… no hair pulling… no biting… no eye gouging… and so on. If you actually believe this, you need to add one more to the list… no fighting.

It’s like the British officers who were so disgusted with the way “unchivalrous” American colonials fought. Those savages actually “unfairly” shot at them from behind trees and bushes. How uncouth. Let me be clear… in a fight you want an unfair advantage. You never want to purposely give away anything that may give your adversary the edge.

D.   Fight Your Fear – Fear is information; it’s not to be controlled or eliminated and is certainly not your enemy. As we defined earlier in this course, acting in spite of your fear is something called “courage”.

I’ve see too many “fight systems” that talk about “getting rid of fear”. Wrong-o. Understand that fear itself is a healthy emotion that’s protecting you. You’d probably agree that being fearful of walking on the edge of a cliff is a fairly natural emotion to. It’s simply your body’s way of protecting you. The idea that you need to get rid of it is foolish, and will either result in “brain freeze” or will simply put you in greater danger. The key is to “listen” to fear rather than deny it or attempt to suppress it.

With just 3-8 seconds to win a fight, indecision and hesitation can mean the difference between prevailing (and walking away), or taking that losers ride to the hospital… or worse… the morgue. Shed these foolish myths from your psyche.

Day four, which you’re nearly complete with as of now, is the longest lesson. All this cerebral stuff is Important but mind-numbing to some degree also.

Tomorrow in Day Five we’re going to put this altogether and show you how to continue to build your personal arsenal of tactics, options, power signals and a whole lot more. Be sure and check your e-mail for Day 5’s final lesson. 

Today’s video clips are not to be missed. James Painter and Dale Comstock are two of our most popular instructors and have some pearls to share with you.

Tomorrow’s video clips will deal with two different common scenarios… a headlock escape and the real world application of elbow strikes from another Spec Op instructor. As always, you won’t want to miss this stuff. Just these video clips will allow  you to  build a great arsenal.

Day 5 of 5 Day Fighting Course

At this point you probably know more about fighting and winning than MOST guys.

"But that’s not good enough"

Ultimately you’ll want to end up in a place where you’ve designed your very own personal combat system. One custom made just for you. The good news is that without a lot of trouble you can take it to the “next level” – essentially becoming a black belt level fighter very quickly and without much training. Today’s video clips (links to the right) are two solid examples of my point.

The 80/20 Principle

 

This principle states that 80% of the consequences stem from 20% of the causes. Now of course this isn’t a hard and fast rule -- it’s more like a rule of thumb – but it can have powerful consequences.

Let me see if I can clarify this for you with an example.

The Japanese used the 80/20 principle to concentrate 80% of their efforts on just 20% of the industrial cycle – that cycle being production costs and quality control. By focusing on a small but important sector – and doing a better job than any of their competitors – the Japanese lowered their cost of production while at the same time raising the quality of their product. The result? Well nothing too big… just one of the world’s most powerful economies.

Okay, so what does this production and economic talk all have to do with fighting?  Well just this. This 80/20 rule transcends into more than just industry – it permeates everything in life. So when developing your own personal fighting system, you’ll want to look to those techniques that have the absolute highest probability for success and lowest required maintenance time. This is what will drive your success.

When turning to DVDs for instruction, Fight-Fast has sought out teachers that focus their efforts on the fighting side of martial arts -- not the “art” side. I have personally run across plenty of instructors who claim that their training is suitable for the “street” when the simple truth is that it is not. At Fight-Fast we’ve already done the hard work for you by seeking out instructors based on their real-world talents, experience and ability to teach -- not necessarily what level “belt rank” they’ve achieved or the lineage of instructors they’ve studied under.

Once again, you’ll be concentrating the vast majority of your efforts -- 80% -- on the 20% of tactics and techniques that will do you the most good – the ol’ 80/20 rule working for you!

High Probability Tactics

 

You’ll want keep certain “High Probability Tactics” in mind. These are tips designed to give you a great chance of success in a street fight or personal combat situation.

Eye Contact – Good eye contact demonstrates that you are confident – which can be especially important to convincing an adversary that you will fight back -- not the easy target they were hoping for. You’ll want to break eye contact when the fight is imminent. Instead, look to his hands for weapons then to his chest to determine his movement. The direction of his chest determines from which side he’ll be throwing a haymaker (if he turns to his right, he’ll be throwing a right handed shot). You don’t want to allow eye contact to suck you into his emotional state as it often begins the destructive “internal dialogue”. Instead check for weapons, look for movement, the quickly begin your target acquisition.

Distraction – Throwing change on the ground, flipping a cigarette into his face, or a quick jab to the eye can allow you to set up for a devastating first strike or a quick escape. You won’t get any more than a 1-2 seconds head start before your adversary snaps back, so use that time to your advantage – either strike or flee.

Deception – The purpose is to provide you with an element of surprise. You can’t go wrong with the submissive-looking hands up and ready “forward trigger” position combined with a verbal “hey man… I don’t want to fight”. Good stuff that lulls him into a false sense of security. When you suddenly “lay on the hate” he’ll be thrown back on his heels… panicking and wondering why he ever messed with you.

 

Self Defense and the Law

 

First of all I want to be clear -- I’m no lawyer. I can’t give you specific legal advice and this section is not meant to back you up in court or anything like that (“but Bob Pierce said I could cut his throat…”). It is incumbent upon you (and every citizen) to learn the laws in your state as it pertains to self defense.  But I do want to take this chance to try and clarify some legal aspects. Take it for what it’s worth.

First of all, many of the principles that we teach you in this book have the potential to land you in legal hot water.  I’m not trying to back away from one word of what I’ve written -- the purpose of this book is to teach you the principles and tactics that’ll give you the highest probability of surviving a violent confrontation.

But it does not give you the best strategies of winning a potential legal battle. Every state in the U.S. has its own specific laws relating to self defense. This is my own non-professional opinion on what the general intent is:

Use of force is justified when you reasonably believe that it is necessary for the defense of yourself or others against the immediate or imminent use of unlawful force, and there is no reasonable and apparent avenue of exit. The force used to defend yourself must be no more than reasonably required (proportionate) and necessary to stop the immediate threat.

Individual state laws differ from this, but I think in general it’s I’m giving you a reasonable opinion. Here are some points that’ll clarify the above statement:

 -- “Unlawful Force” means that the attacker is someone other than a police officer or anyone who is legally authorized to give you a beating.

-- “Reasonably Believe” is rather dicey as it leaves you wide open to the interpretation of the police… prosecution… and the jury. What appears to be a “no-brainer” to you may be twisted beyond all recognition by ambitious lawyers and prosecutors looking for fresh notches on their belt.

-- “Proportionate” means your response should be similar to the threat. In other words if someone slaps you, you slap back. Shooting him in the head would be considered to be a “disproportionate use of force”.

-- “Immediate Threat” means that the threat of harm is not something that’ll happen at some future time. This also means that once the attacker is no longer a threat to you, the fight should end. Any final kick to the ribs or parting head stomps will be seen as acting outside the category of immediate threat.

I’ve got a lot of friends who are lawyers and -- speaking off the record (of course) --they’ve given me their own ideas on how best to avoid a criminal or civil lawsuit from fighting:

Never hit first. Allow your attacker to get the first strike Always give clear warning to your attacker before you defend yourself… Always match your attackers force with less or equal force… Never stand your ground, retreat to safety regardless if others may be in

danger… Your attacker’s life is more important than yours. Show a greater concern for

your attacker’s safety    than your own…

If your attacker falls to the ground, or is temporarily unable to continue his assault, do not continue the counter-attack, stop and assess maybe he will decide to leave or stop the attack…

After successfully defending yourself from an attack, do not leave! Stay in the area and wait for authorities to arrive…

Use just enough force to do the absolute minimal damage to your attacker and remain “calm and cool” so that you can weigh every action you take with careful deliberation, ( this is the state of mind the jury will be in when they second guess your actions).

 

This is not a joke. Follow these steps as spelled out by legal experts and you may just stay out of jail – although you’ll lose any fight and probably won’t be able to avoid the hospital or perhaps the morgue.

You can see why I advise guys like you to take responsibility for your own protection and that of your family and let the legal chips fall where they may. Because, despite what anyone says, the legal system is not set up to protect you. Nope. Its function is to put people in jail and -- when it’s your turn on the legal hot seat -- the prosecutor’s job is to do everything he can to get you there.

As I’ve pointed out numerous times, hitting first give you a huge advantage. As you remember, the pre-emptive attack is a core component of winning a fight. If you can, always strike first -- and if possible 2nd, 3rd, and, 4th.

Yet a pre-emptive attack is the riskiest of all categories in terms of legal consequences. The more pro-active you become in defending yourself or others from harm, the more you expose yourself to legal action. The earlier you make your personal triggers, the more vulnerable you become to litigation.

Every state has laws giving individuals the right to defend themselves and others from the threat of harm, however some give broader rights than others. And to complicate it more, civil law (take your money) has a different set of standards than criminal law (go to jail). And all of them are open to the interpretation of the local DA’s office (“do we want to prosecute or not?”), presiding judges, and juries.

We’ve all heard horror stories of people reasonably and successfully defending themselves against hostile attacks only to be sued later, or having to defend themselves against criminal charges. There is no winning in these situations. Win or lose you will be out time, money, and expend a large amount of psychic energy. As unfair as that may seem, it’s the reality of what you’re dealing with.

Reminds me of the story of the armed Good Samaritan who chased off a man trying to rape his neighbor. As he was chased off into the night, he screamed to the man that “next time I’ll be back for YOUR wife!” What he didn’t anticipate was that the man chasing

him was also an expert marksman who didn’t hesitate to shoot him through the spine. He was permanently paralyzed and a jury convicted the Good Samaritan of using excessive force. The man later said he didn’t regret shooting the attempted rapist because he’d rather spend time in prison than wonder when and if the rapist would return for his wife.

Welcome to life on planet earth. So you have to ask yourself, do you protect yourself from criminals or do you protect yourself from the legal system? Well when it comes to fighting I have some suggestions that may just help you have it both ways. I cover them extensively in my book (which I recommend that you pick up) but suffice the conclusion here to end with the following quote:

“I’d rather be tried by 12, than carried by 6”

Not sure of the origin of this quote. But the point is clear enough.

Training Methods:

The average guy looking to defend himself on the street doesn’t need to endure a lifetime of training. The purpose of this course and my business is to demonstrate the simplicity of protecting yourself practically, efficiently and effectively.

I’ve received emotional letters from dozens of customers who simply watched a certain program – did NO training – and were able to recall and use it correctly when they needed it. Doesn’t get much better than that. But if you’re serious about implanting this information deeply into your body, you’ll want to consider training it.

Street fighting does not require the same level or type of conditioning as sport fighting. Surprisingly, cardiovascular endurance isn’t a significant factor in a street fight. I know this is a controversial claim but research and 18 years of study and observation backs it up. Remember, true street fights (as opposed to mutually agreed combat) rarely last longer than 10 seconds.

Understanding and employing the 4 D’s (Deception… Distraction… Disruption… Destruction), will trump cardiovascular conditioning. So with that in mind, having the ability to initiate and maintain continuous explosive action for 8 to 10 seconds will give you a huge advantage in a fight. Design your training accordingly.

For street fighting focus on anaerobic conditioning (strength and power training). Eight to ten seconds may not seem very long but try going all out on a heavy bag for that amount of time…it’s pretty tough.

The more realistic you train the better. This includes the emotional component as well. Here are some tips:

Practice initiating a pre-emptive attack and counter attack from multiple positions and stances. If you practice the 4 D’s you won’t be initiating the attack from a classic boxer’s stance. More than likely your hands will be up, open, and forward in an “I don’t want any trouble” submissive posture. This is the position you want to practice launching from.

Practice maintaining a constant barrage. And if training with a partner, maintain constant forward pressure. Constant Barrage is more important than Strike Accuracy. Practice Target awareness. If working on a heavy bag, imagine different targets being made available, if working with a partner, make sure he or she offers you a variety of targets to attack

Practice your verbiage as you initiate an attack as well as anything you might say during the attack. Make it as real as possible. If you working with a training partner have your partner play the part; yelling, threatening, cursing, etc. His goal should be to drive up the emotional content as much as possible.

Develop a “Strike” mentality - Start hitting a heavy bag. A partner with “strike mitts” is even better, because it allows you to get used to movement. Practice striking with your hands, elbows, shoulders, head, and knees and mix up “Hi-Line” shots (at the head and chest) and “Lo-Line” shots (at the stomach, ribs, groin and legs).

Always practice proper execution: Watching countless videos of actual street fights as they happened has only cemented what my research has already strongly suggested -- that real-world fighting is sloppy. It is the rare exception for a fighter to properly execute a complex martial arts move. This is why it’s important to practice proper execution, as you’ll be more likely to retain a percentage of it when “crunch time” hits.

As expert shooter Bennie Cooley points out, if you can group your shots within 3 inches of each other during practice, you may just retain a grouping the size of a paper plate in real combat (which is considered excellent shooting in the real world). Or as Bruce Lee once pointed out: “I do not fear the man who has practiced 1000 kicks one time… I fear the man who has practiced one kick 1000 times.”

But Bruce was a little off in his numbers. Studies show that it takes about 2,000 repetitions of a move before it’s actually “implanted” into your brain’s neural pathway for easy recall even under stress. Now 2,000 sounds like a big number, but it’s not. The key is to practice a move correctly.

Here is a proven method for developing your skills.

Level 1

Practice a move in front of a mirror slowly. This allows you to “self correct” anything you're doing wrong. Keep practicing until you are satisfied that your technique is correct.

Practice the same move in front of mirror at full speed. Again… this allows you the opportunity to self correct.

Try it again… this time in slow motion with your eyes closed. You’ll want to periodically sneak a peek in the mirror to see if you’re still on track with your technique.

When your satisfied with your technique, perform it at full motion with eyes your eyes closed. This will start hardwiring the move into your muscle memory.

 

Level 2 – Get your hands on a heavy bag… they’re not expensive and the exercise value alone that you’ll receive it is worth every penny.

Now practice the same move on the heavy bag – slowly. Use a mirror again if you can to periodically check your technique. If you see that it’s flawed, go back to Level 1.

Practice the technique on the heavy bag at full speed. Try to visualize how you’d use the move on specific target areas.

 

Level 3 – Practice with a partner. Now I realize not all of us have someone willing to act as your punching bag, but for those who are committed to taking their skills to an expert level, having a live person to practice on is important. For any specific move you want to:

Practice with partner slowly… then when you’re both comfortable.... Practice with partner at full speed.

Of course this is only a brief description of how to train -- the DVDs will take you through specific moves and techniques in detail. But it’s important to remember to always be careful with your partner – especially if you’re just getting started. Make sure your partner understands how to “tap-tap-tap” on your side whenever they feel uncomfortable.

Most of the moves you’ll discover are ones that can be used “straight out of the box”. They’re almost always simple, easy to learn, and devastating --- so you must use care during any practice. Avoid “showing off” your new moves to unsuspecting friends or family members as it’s easy to put them in the hospital or permanently injure (even kill) them.

You’ll discover some powerful information – which requires you to accept some big responsibilities. Use discretion.