subject: In Self Defense You Need To Keep Attacking And Talking Ground The Rest Is Just Details [print this page] I've learned a lot from Master Instructor Ross over the years about martial arts, self defense, and physical training, and while I haven't always been the best student I'd like to think the dedication has paid off in some small measure. If I was asked today to describe what I took away from the training and sum up the Self Defense Training System in just one sentence I would simply say, "Always keep attacking and always take ground." Now it sounds simple, but it is the fundamental principal behind all effective self defense techniques and can be applied to other forms of close combat, and even warfare as a whole. How you attack and what direction you attack in will be decided by the situation, but the principal will always remain the same.
When you strike at an attacker you have just ruined their plans and if you keep attacking they won't get a chance to attack you, and if you keep attacking they might never get a chance to attack at all. Now attacking all out won't guarantee you won't get hurt, but it will improve your chances of winning dramatically. Sooner you start fighting and winning the sooner you will end the fight, and that will help you avoid being hurt. Yes you're putting a lot on the line, but your risking more if you wait for them to make their move, and if they surprise you and hit you first don't wait attack them and don't give then another chance.
In the end we're talking about raw anger and aggression teamed up with discipline and technique and if used together they will drive your opponent back. When you start fighting back move into them and don't give them an inch, don't even give them a chance to breath. Your goal is to be standing where they are and if they're in the way make them pay for that real estate in pain and blood. Now once again this won't be easy and you can get hurt, but if you lose you could die. In their mind you will horrify them, because they're hitting you, but you keep coming, and now they have real fight on their hands.
Whether you're carrying a katana or an M-4 you need to keep attacking and keep taking ground. You look for the opportunity and than exploit it to the fullest, and don't let up until you knock him down. When you get stuck in one spot whether you're in the middle of a hostile village or in the corner of a boxing ring you know things won't get better until you fight your way out. Fighting equals survival and the alternative is simply unacceptable. So don't wait for a weapon to be pulled out, hit them before they get a chance to even pull it, and if they do stab or shoot you that is no reason to stop fighting. It might be a simple principal, but it has to be in order to work.
