We’re all hoping to never end up in this situation, but chances are, at least once in a lifetime, each of us will have no options but to defend oneself against an attacker armed with a knife.
This article is not meant to provide a “bulletproof” recipe to defend yourself against knife attacks, but rather provide information to make you realize there is quite a bit you can do to further prepare yourself for such an event, beyond what you have learnt at your Dojo. Everything in this article also assumes a person (alone), facing a single attacker armed with a visible knife; a knife that can be seen before the confrontation start.
The first important thing when being caught in this situation, is to control your fear, as panic is pretty much the worst thing that can happen to you. Having practiced many knife defense drills at your Dojo, combined with your regular training, should give you enough confidence to be able to think clearly, and not panic.
The answer to getting out of this situation unharmed, mainly rely on being prepared and staying composed, even though one can realistically never be fully prepared for such situation. The best you can do is getting all the training you can get, and use all this training to respond according to the precise situation you end up into.
I decided to take a closer look at all the drills practiced through the years, and possibly identify anything that can help increase my chances to get out of such confrontation unharmed.
One thing that I realized right away, is how differently one can get attacked according to how the attacker is holding the knife. This is why, when possible, it is very important to be able to visually see the grip on the knife before the attacker starts attacking.
1- The knife is held “By pinky” (as I call it): Meaning the blade is sticking out of your attacker’s hand on the side of his hand’s pinky finger.
2- The knife is held “By Thumb” (as I call it): Meaning the blade is sticking out of your attacker’s hand on the side of his hand’s thumb.
While an attack “By pinky” is usually very dangerous in terms of how deep of a wound you can sustain if stabbed, the attack is also somehow more predictable by nature, because of the human body physical limitation associated to how the knife is held. The attack is also of a shorter range by nature, and forces your attacker to get closer to you before hurting you.
An attack “By Thumb” is at least as dangerous as an attack “By Pinky”, in addition to being more unpredictable, because of the many more possible ways your attacker can strike. It also has a longer reach (whatever the length of the knife) allowing your attacker to reach you in an easier way.
Practice with a dummy knife and partner, trying to stab any ways you can with the knife in your right hand for example, and left foot forward (Yaku), then right foot forward, as well as with the knife held “by pinky”, or “by thumb” etc... Try all combinations, and you will quickly realize that some of these combinations have some degree of predictability due to body physical anatomy limitations, while others absolutely don’t and could come from any directions. This does not seem like much, but any small predictability can make a huge difference, and make you more confident that you can deal with the situation.
Most Knife defense technics emphasize getting control of the arm holding the knife, which implies getting closer to the knife, and unfortunately taking more risk of being hurt to defend yourself. If the idea of trying to control that arm is too scary for you, there are other ways for you to manage not to get hurt. You can maintain a constant distance from your attacker, so he is too far away to strike you, but you are close enough to be able to get back within a kicking range quickly. You should be focused on reading your opponent’s body language. Body language reading can give you an extra split second, allowing you to anticipate your attacker’s move, and make all the difference.
If you are a fast mover, and have good kicks, there is more you can do beyond managing your attacker’s distance, because this alone will not get you out of the situation. I suggest using your angles combined with proper timing, to always move away from where the blade is coming from, and use low kicks to the knees (low Mawashi geri / Yoko geri / Mae geri), damaging the opponent’s knees or legs, thus decreasing his overall mobile capabilities without the need for you to get too close to the blade.
Please remember that defending against an attacker holding a knife does not always mean that you cannot strike 1st. If the knife is drowned, and your opponent’s intent is clear, should you see an opportunity to safely deliver a decisive blow, you should go for it.
I am not going to get into much more specifics, as I believe that, by nature, “one-on-one” training is absolutely required to learn these potentially life saving skills. You never know if a defense technique really works until you try it yourself with someone aggressively trying to get you with a dummy knife; so practice is a must!
Remember there is no “silver bullet” when it comes to knives. No matter how much you practice, there is always the possibility that you face something you’ve never thought about. However, the answer lies in being as prepared as possible to stack the odds in your favor, and reacting to the specific situation you are into.
Finally, assuming that you are the only one being attacked (No friends to also defend), if you have the option of putting an obstacle between your attacker and you (like a car..), you can manage to walk around it and keep at a safe distance until you figure out your next move. If you can retrieve and walk away / run away, knowing that your single opponent will not chase you (whatever the reason, like being in a very crowded place, etc..), you should definitely take it without shame.
Time to practice!
Toronto, Alpha - KarateBoost blog
Comments