What is Krav Maga?
Krav Maga ⎼ meaning contact combat in Hebrew ⎼ is an Israeli-developed self-defense system that teaches you how to avoid physical confrontation and evade a dangerous situation. The self-defense and fighting system integrates techniques from martial arts and combat sports such as judo, karate, and boxing to help people protect themselves in hostile situations. Krav Maga is practiced by the Israeli security forces and the American FBI and SWAT teams to neutralize real-world threats.
Krav Maga trains the practitioner’s mind, body, and spirit to prepare them for dealing with potential threats. Besides teaching you defensive and fighting techniques, Krav Maga also works on your critical thinking skills to improve awareness of your environment. The self-defense system trains you to look out for signs of danger, find the best escape routes, and identify objects for use as potential weapons to maximize your chances of survival.
Why should You Learn Krav Maga?
Krav Maga classes provide an intense full-body workout that can help save your life. It is a vigorous and effective self-defense system that improves your physical fitness while teaching you how to protect yourself and your loved ones from modern, real-world threats. For most people, Krav Maga is easy to learn and practice. It uses simple and effective combat techniques such as punching, kicking, kneeing, and elbowing to help you evade danger and safeguard yourself from harm.
While it teaches you combat skills, Krav Maga is not a fighting sport. The system was designed specifically for self-protection. Krav Maga strives to avoid physical confrontation and violence at all costs, using aggression only when all other forms of conflict resolution have failed. When faced with an immediate threat, Krav Maga teaches swift acts that inflict the maximum damage with minimal effort to subdue the opponent and neutralize the danger.
The Krav Maga self-defense system can help you get in shape, stay in shape, and improve your chances of survival.
What Age Groups Should Learn Krav Maga?
Krav Maga uses the most basic and simple full-body movements for self-protection, making it practical and accessible to most age groups. Krav Maga is much safer than other contact and fighting sports. Anyone over the age of five can safely enroll in Krav Maga training.
Anyone ⎼ from kids to older adults ⎼ can benefit from Krav Maga’s health-boosting and survival-enhancing activities. Krav Maga delivers plenty of benefits to both kids and adults. Learn how the self-defense system can help people of all ages overcome the health and safety challenges of modern, urban life:
Benefits of Krav Maga for Adults
The overall majority of Americans live in big cities and have sedentary desk jobs. It is estimated that 83% of Americans live in urban areas and 86% of the US workforce sit all day to perform their jobs. This modern way of living increases risks to your health and safety. Crime rates are often higher in urban areas, and sedentary desk jobs cause diverse chronic health conditions ⎼ known as sitting disease ⎼ and reduce your quality of life.
Krav Maga is the perfect solution to help you tackle both of these modern-day health and safety challenges.
The self-defense system incorporates vigorous physical activities in the training program to help you get in shape and improve your overall health. Plenty of studies have found that moderate weight loss can promote cardiovascular health and improve your blood pressure, blood sugar, and blood cholesterol levels.
Besides improving your health and fitness, learning Krav Maga can also help you stay safe. Every year, millions of American adults become victims of property and violent crimes. A Gallup poll conducted in 2020 found that on average, 15% of US adults become victims of conventional and violent crimes every year. Learning Krav Maga will help you evade and neutralize real-world threats, protecting your safety and keeping you alive.
Signing up for Krav Maga classes promotes mind-body wellness, reduces the risk of falling victim to a crime, and improves your chances of survival.
Preparing for Krav Maga Classes
If you’ve never participated in martial arts or other combat sports, it is best to get educated on the realities of Krav Maga to learn what you’re getting yourself into. The internet is a great resource to help you learn more and mentally prepare for Krav Maga classes. Watch some YouTube videos on Krav Maga to see practitioners in action.
Krav Maga incorporates swift and vigorous aerobic moves in the training program to teach you how to subdue opponents. If you find vigorous, high-intensity physical activities challenging, you should start working on your fitness to improve your agility and performance. Performing exercises that increase strength and endurance and taking high-quality, natural power supplements can boost your fitness, helping you prepare and make the best of your Krav Maga classes.
Benefits of Krav Maga for Kids
Kids are not immune to the challenges of modern life. An inactive lifestyle, school bullying, and the threat of sexual predators and child abductors pose health and safety risks to your kids.
Our modern, sedentary lifestyle has made children unhealthier than ever before. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one in five American children is overweight or obese. Overweight children are more likely to develop diabetes, breathing problems, high cholesterol, and fatty liver disease.
Other than health issues, everyday threats at school and in the streets expose your child to safety risks. According to the American Psychological Association, as much as 70% of school children have experienced bullying. In addition to school threats, your children can also
become victims of abduction and sexual abuse.
Krav Maga is the perfect solution to help your child stay safe and healthy. The self-defense system’s dynamic physical activities help your child maintain a healthy weight to reduce the risk of chronic diseases. Krav Maga also teaches your kids how to protect themselves from aggressive peers and predatory adults, keeping your children safe from harm.
Preparing Your Child for Krav Maga Classes
Krav Maga is a fun physical activity that most children enjoy. The self-defense system provides a safe training environment for kids to help them get an entertaining workout and learn essential self-defense skills. Krav Maga instructors are very accommodating to children’s’ diverse learning styles. They will work with your child to develop different approaches for performing the required self-defense techniques. Therefore, you don’t need to do much to prepare your kids for Krav Maga training.
If your child feels intimidated or awkward in Krav Maga classes, you can sign up your entire family for self-defense training to make them feel more at ease. Many Krav Maga academies provide training programs exclusively for families to help your entire household get fit and stay safe. Practicing Krav Maga with your kids is a fun family-bonding activity that can improve your quality of life and increase your chances of survival.
Krav Maga is for Everyone
Krav Maga is a simple and effective self-defense system that is accessible to most age groups. The system was built on simple principles, instinctive reactions, and practical techniques to protect you from harm. Anyone over the age of five can sign up for Krav Maga classes and reap its benefits. Krav Maga improves your fitness and helps you stay alive. Sign up for Krav Maga classes to practice a new hobby, get a fun workout, and help you overcome the health and safety challenges of modern life.
Author Bio:
Katie Tejada is a writer, editor, and former HR professional. She often covers developments in HR, business communication, recruiting, real estate and finance, but also enjoys writing about travel, interiors and events. When she’s not working, you can find her spending time with her family, or attending Krav Maga classes.