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What If They…(insert random extremely unlikely thing)?

In the totality of the world of fighting, anything can happen. We actually had someone come into our gym brandishing a samurai sword one time. He didn’t attack anyone, and was definitely mentally unwell, so I’m glad the situation didn’t escalate. It also means if someone in class asks, “What if they have a sword?” I have to take that question seriously, because it did actually happen! Unlikely things do happen. Some people do win the lottery, some people do become celebrities, and some people do get attacked by katanas. But those scenarios are not where we need to focus our limited training time. One, because it’s not a good use of our ....
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What If They...Know How To Fight?

I remember an email I got early on in the infancy of Krav Maga Raleigh. The person wrote in and asked, “Is there groundfighting in Krav Maga.” I answered that we did have fundamental groundfighting, but we didn’t specialize in it because we also had to work on all the other skills. I still remember verbatim his response: “What if you fight a BJJ black belt? They will take you down and then own.” I didn’t respond to that very articulate email, because it was clear he had an agenda more than he had curiosity. But I did want to ask this guy what HE would do against a BJJ black belt, because apparently the only way to win a fight is to be ....
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What If They...Are Bigger Than I Am?

It’s just harder. Fighting isn’t a, “It Works Or It Doesn’t,” scenario. We can all agree that punching someone in the face really really hard works. Everyone knows that kicking someone really really hard in the groin works. Everyone knows that jamming your thumb into someone’s eye really really hard works. But sometimes it doesn’t. When someone is larger than you, it becomes harder to physically affect them. There’s a reason combat sports have weight classes, and why fighters dehydrate themselves to near death to get into lower weight classes. Being bigger is an advantage. Bigger people have more reach, more power, and more armor. ....
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16 May 2025
50% OFF Shirts and Tops For Another Week

We have one more week left on our apparel sale. T-shirts, tanks, and all tops are 50% off until next Friday. Use the code HALFOFFUNIFORMS at store.kravmagaraleigh.com when you check out. There are two reasons for this sale: 1) We do require Krav Maga shirts in Krav Maga classes, and we don't want you to have to spend a bunch of money to get kitted out. Our uniform policy is to reinforce everyone's belief that we're a team here at KMR, and teams have uniforms. It also removes those few times that someone would come in wearing a shirt that is offensive, inappropriate or just...weird. But mainly it's about the team cohesion. 2) Trade is pretty chaotic right now, and it seems ....
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14 May 2025
Why Krav Maga IS a Martial Art

“Krav Maga isn't a martial art, it’s a fighting system.” A true statement, and also one we can dig into. The word, “art,” in martial arts is often taken too literally, or too contemporarily. We use the word art to almost always mean a creative or aesthetic skill. Painting, writing, singing, etc. However the Military Arts have been formally studied for thousands of years and referred to as such. Any field of skill and knowledge is an “art,” even if we don’t use the term that way currently. As for “martial,” that refers to war and the military. So the “Martial Arts,” is synonymous with ....
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12 May 2025
Why Krav Maga ISN'T a Martial Art

“Krav Maga isn't a martial art, it’s a fighting system.” We can say martial arts are - at some level - about fighting. Some have formalized most of the realism out of the fighting (aikido is usually the whipping boy here), others have focused on competitive rules to the exclusion of practical applications, all the way to Mixed Martial Arts, which is probably the most “about fighting,” a martial art can be while still reasonably protecting the safety of its participants. So why isn’t Krav Maga a martial art? One reason is that we are not focused on the artistry of the performance. Some martial arts have lost focus on the combative aspects ....
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The Shortest Bestest Workout I've Ever Done: Part 3

We’ve got a couple bodyweight workouts, but what about lifting weights? There’s something about picking up heavy things and putting them down that you just can’t recreate with calisthenics. Let’s look at one more effective, short workout, this time using barbell squats and deadlifts. The workout is 5 barbell squats , followed by 5 deadlifts , for 5 rounds. There’s no time intervals, you do the whole workout as fast as safely possible, aiming to get under 10 minutes. This workout is not for everyone. You need to be strong and secure on your barbell exercises, and know your strength levels well enough to pick the right weights. Start ....
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The Shortest Bestest Workout I've Ever Done: Part 2

The internet is full of “Get fit in 10 minutes,” type workouts, and they are - in general - crap. Especially when you consider what, “Fit,” means these days, which is some combination of strength, cardiovascular endurance, and aesthetic appeal. A 10 minute workout is not going to give you all of those things, unless you do it four times in a row four days a week. However, 10 minutes IS enough to improve some aspect of your fitness, and short workouts can be great in these situations. Especially if you’re only able to do a “Full” workout twice a week, some supplemental sessions can do a lot for you. Behold: Tabata Burpees. If you’re ....
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5 May 2025
The Shortest Bestest Workout I've Ever Done: Part 1

Over 35 years of martial arts, sports, and fitness activities, I’ve done a lot of workouts. And while there are plenty of more elite athletes and coaches out there, I think I know a good workout when I see it. I also know that most of us aren’t trying to become elite athletes, nor is that even realistic for our lives. We just want to get in good shape with the time we have. Usually that means finding a sport or activity or gym class that we like, and doing it as much as we can. But sometimes we just can’t get there. Or there’s a gap in our training we’re looking to fill. But we don’t have an extra hour in our day - plus commuting, changing, ....
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2 May 2025
Self-Defense vs. Fighting Part 3: Knowns and Unknowns

Let’s look at one more difference between self-defense and fighting: In self-defense, there are no “knowns.” What do we mean? It means that you don’t know anything about your situation. You don’t know anything about your attacker, you don’t know if they have friends, you don’t know what they want, you don’t know what they know, etc. If you enter a kickboxing competition, you are for sure in a fight. You’re going into a ring against someone who wants to - at minimum - hurt you more than you hurt them. In that scenario, you also know what the rules are, what techniques they will use, you know that they’re ....
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What If They…(insert random extremely unlikely thing)?

What If They...Know How To Fight?

What If They...Are Bigger Than I Am?

50% OFF Shirts and Tops For Another Week

Why Krav Maga IS a Martial Art

Why Krav Maga ISN'T a Martial Art

The Shortest Bestest Workout I've Ever Done: Part 3

The Shortest Bestest Workout I've Ever Done: Part 2

The Shortest Bestest Workout I've Ever Done: Part 1

Self-Defense vs. Fighting Part 3: Knowns and Unknowns

Emily Moler

Saif Shafiq

Tianna Sanders

Book your free no-sweat intro today!