Lesson One of the Self Defense Mini Clinic

Each lesson of this course includes videos of highly effective, street proven fighting moves that are easy to learn and simple to use.

Each installment will also include some seriously important fighting information that has taken 20 years of interviews and research with dozens of the world’s most notorious street fighters, bar bouncers, law enforcement officers, and soldiers to put together.

This stuff is solid gold. These lessons are boiled down from a 100 page book I wrote on how to fight and win. I’ve taken the most valuable life-saving lessons from it at put it into 5 short lessons.

You don’t want to miss any of this critical information.

Below is your first video, the other two videos are further down the page (my little trick to get you to read this stuff). The following technique is extremely simple and can be used by anyone with little practice.

*Note: Feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of the page. I enjoy the feedback and others may learn from your insights & thoughts. Enjoy.


Know When The Fight Is On:

Today’s lesson is meant to get you up to speed quickly. It includes the most important things you need to know to win a street fight.

The best way to win a fight is to recognize it before it has happened. Countless guys get taken out by some punk without even knowing they were in a fight (they either didn’t see it coming or didn’t want to believe they were in a fight). Don’t let this happen to you.

There are three ways to recognize a fight (other than someone punching you). There are non-verbal body language cues, verbal cues, and previous behavior (aka common sense).

Aside from getting hit there are 5 main non-verbal cues that you are about to be in a fight:

  1. The “Look Away:” During an argument the other guy suddenly looks away from you off to one side. An experienced street fighter and special ops soldier Jim West uses this cue all the time. He once told me, “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.” It may seem odd but looking away is a very common, almost reflex like, reaction for many aggressors. So take Jim’s advice and hit first because if you don’t his haymaker will be sailing towards your temple.
  2. The “Finger Jab:” Someone poking you in the chest is also a big red flag. It’s a way that your opponent “tests the water” to see if you are an easy target. He’s building up his confidence and resolve, by violating your personal space. If you stand by and do nothing, it tells him, “the water’s fine… go ahead and attack this guy.” A poke in the chest, or any violation of your personal space at the initial stages of a confrontation should trigger some kind of immediate response from you.
  3. The “Shove:” Yet another classic example of violating your personal space, except this move is almost always immediately followed by a punch. You should expect very little time between the shove and the incoming blow, which of course means you need to act fast in this situation. People typically don’t push, then walk away.
  4. The “Target Gaze:” An opponent will naturally look at what he’s about to strike. Watch out for an adversary who changes his gaze from your eyes to your chin or some other obvious target. This is another one of those gifts from human nature, he can’t help but look where he is going to strike, so use that information to gain the upper hand.
  5. The “Chin Drop:” Another involuntary move 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.

Verbal Cues:

  1. The Threat: “I’m gonna zyx@%# you up!” 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.
  2. The “Sudden Silent Treatment:” If your opponent has been talking, talking, and talking, 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.” In other words he is probably about to hit you.

Previous Behavior:

This one is painfully simple. If you are around someone who is known to be violent it’s pretty likely they may start a fight. Don’t play with fire. Also intoxicated men are trouble, intoxicated men with women around are even more trouble. If you get into an argument or scuffle with a drunk guy and his girlfriend or other women are around he is very likely to fight.

I’ve worked with almost a dozen bar bouncers from some of the roughest bars and nightclubs and they all know that saving face is one of the biggest causes of fights. In other words if you somehow manage to bump into, slight, or irritate a drunk guy or his girlfriend a fight is pretty likely, so be ready for it.

Now that you know how to recognize a fight before it happens I’ve got another fight move for you. This one is from professional fighter and notorious “cooler” Mike Serr. Go ahead and watch the video before moving onto the next section.


Dealing with Fear:

When it comes to fighting and learning how to fight fear is the 800 lb. gorilla in the room. Everybody knows it’s there but nobody want to talk about it.

Well like it or not I’m going to talk about it. After 20 years of working with Special Ops soldiers, SWAT cops, Cage-Fighters, Ex-Gang Enforcers, and bar bouncers, I’ve learned that all of them feel fear before a fight.

Wow, what a shocker. Fear is normal and healthy. The thing is none of these guys are scared, because they have learned to deal with that fear and make it work for them.

They have learned to harness that adrenaline dump and make it work for them, not against them.

The average guy on the street, when confronted with a life threatening fight will quickly realize the danger and the voice inside his mind will start talking a mile a minute, “Why is this happening to me? Am I going to die? What did I do to piss him off? Should I run? Should I stay and fight?” and on and on.

Letting this internal dialogue turn your fear into panic will get you hurt. Instead you have to use that fear and adrenaline to help you identify targets and take action.

The first step is to control your breathing. Slowing the pace of your breaths (inhale deeply and exhale slowly) sends a direct message to your brain that calms you down, lowers your heart rate, and lowers your blood pressure.

The next step is target awareness described below. But before we get to that here’s another video for you.


Target Awareness:

Once you know a fight is eminent you need to look for open targets to strike. To do this you must be aware of certain “high value” targets on the human body, so that when they are exposed or unprotected you know when and how to strike them for maximum damage.

Target awareness is a continuous process because as an attacker moves closer or further away from you the targets you can strike change. Below is an example of what your internal dialogue should be like once you realize a fight is coming:

“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?”…

Finally you need some basic info about what targets to strike and why, some are common sense some may surprise you:

Neck: the side of the neck is a “knock out” area. The good news is that the shoulder and head offer a natural “funnel” that’ll guide your hand directly into his neck – which means it’s a “high percentage” shot. People rarely protect their neck properly so even a poorly executed shot can often mean instant knock out.

Groin: believe it or not, research shows that most guys do NOT protect their groin. They are so “indoctrinated” with the idea that they’ll be punched in the face that they leave themselves wide open for one of the most devastating strikes. So forget about focusing so much on getting in that right hook to the head, (which he’ll be expecting), and start looking for an OPEN target.

Inside knee: very vulnerable. One good kick to the inside of the knee can end a fight instantly.

Outside thigh: a favorite target of Muay Thai fighters is the nerve running down the outside of your leg. Even a well conditioned fighter can’t stand more than a couple good shin kicks to this nerve before buckling.

Eyes: Striking the eyes is a great distraction technique. They are the main sense used during a fight, take them away for even a second and you have gained a huge advantage. An eye strike causes a person to blink involuntarily, and if scratched the eyes will water blurring vision.

There are many more targets these are just a few to get you thinking like a fighter.

Keep your eyes peeled for more free videos, in the next lesson I’ll take you inside the world of a real street fight. This is something most guys have no idea about, thanks to myths and misconceptions that often get guys hurt or killed.

Knowing what a real fight is actually like is a huge advantage.

Interested in learning “dirty fight tricks” right now?
Click here to find out how!

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2,694 thoughts on “Lesson One of the Self Defense Mini Clinic”

  1. Best and most concise instruction of these techniques I’ve ever seen. Also, the explanation of non-verbal aggression is right on . . . seen that kind of stuff by bad guys many times.

  2. Thank you, you have identified body targets that usually open and easy to identify. All of these targets cause extreme pain.

    Where should my hands be to be able to execute these moves?

  3. Good info, learned this and more 55 yrs ago with USMC First Recon. We were very early into SE Asia
    Thanks for the refresher!

  4. Excellent stuff here. At 5’6” and 150 pounds I’m at a bit of a disadvantage against most. These techniques, especially the finger magic clip, seems to level the playing field a bit. Thanks so much.

  5. Learned quite a bit from these videos Bob!! Can’t wait for the next set!! The critical points to watch for the open as well as the magic fingers were awesome!! Thank you very, very much!!

  6. I’m old school from South Central la been in quite a few fights won some lost some your video are informative some of the technical skills you showed I have used do you also have other techs that are useful

  7. Awesome thank you for showing me these techniques I have my second brain tumor and people make fun of me he tries to hurt me so now I can use self-defense fun learning some of your techniques hopefully I won’t have to use them but it’s good to know that I’m try thank you

  8. Due to unforseen immediate health issues I haven’t had a chance to view dvd or anything else sent. Will reserve a comment til after I view them thanks in advance

  9. This is by far the best discovery I ever found on the web everything you need right here so defense weapons the process of it and understand another art all the way around it’s a very good website and your information And phenomenal

  10. I studied Korean style power punch when I was a young teenager, so I will take the time to learn whatever strikes you are teaching. But I don’t want to jump through to many videos in a single lesson, I am interested in expedient attack techniques, I am getting old but I realize the clear and present danger in our present social conditions, in this present world knowing what works quickly is more important , then a long extended fight. Hopefully you can design a strategy that I can employ with stealth mode incorporated.

  11. This really helps me learning these ways to defend myself me being a women and i would use this to hurt anyone that messes with me very helpful thank you for this i can not get to my gifts my clicker will not let me click on it

  12. Hello Bob,

    Thank you for this video, I have experience this awsome skills to be very helpful in all my seroundings. Again, thank you.

    Antiapas Talon Hawk

  13. I love it and appreciate you putting these videos out. So much of it is common sence and keeping your wits about you. Thinking straight is a real winner

  14. Good instruction. I like the strike to the nerves
    At both sides of neck using a rabbit punch.
    It drops the idot and he is incapacitated
    And helpless for up to 25
    Minutes just to standup.
    Like the arm lock , the going and outer leg is nice
    But as a disabled veteran I have to use the distraction and make them attack fiirst.

  15. I’ve been attacked by serval men in my life and have even been shot in the head. I really appreciate the time you guys take in putting these survival videos and how to defend yourself videos out there for us. I really wish more women would get on board. Thank you I have more confidence now when I go outside thanks again. Angel

  16. Terrific! Husband doesn’t want me to practice on him, LOL. Thanks guys, looking forward to more.

  17. This is down-right good stuff. Much thanks for the years of compilation distilled into your technique a child can handle. Well done. You guys are the best.

  18. Very effective moves for sure. Reminded alot as Im a former 14 year practitioner. I still retain alot from my younger days. Thank you all.

  19. Excellent training. I now feel that at the very least I will be able to neutralize the first opponent. I really don’t wanna hurt anyone, but I also choose my life over his. Thanks for all the invaluable training and tactics and awesome gear

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