I originally posted this video on the FightFast facebook page shortly after the tragic events at the Boston Marathon. This video was created a few years back, but recent events make it all the more relevant. As Mr. Wagner explains in the video, although it is rare, civilians in the U.S. unfortunately are exposed to IEDs. The good news is that the simple and easy to learn technique in this video can save your life if you are ever unfortunate enough to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

First of all, it must be said that this technique only works if you have at least a split second warning before a device explodes. I’m not suggesting that this makes you immune or that those victims of the Boston Bombing would have been saved or less severely injured had they known this technique. That was a surprise attack. However, if you are exposed to several blasts, after the first “surprise” you do have a chance to drop to the ground, thereby lowering your profile and potentially saving your life.

The best part about this technique is its simplicity. While nearly all those who have served in the military are familiar with this technique, startlingly few civilians are even aware it exists. This is a shame since it is dead simple to learn and extremely effective when done right.

As Mr. Wagner explains in the video, this technique starts with you becoming aware that an explosive device is in your vicinity. Once you see it you need to immediately take a step away from it then dive onto the floor with your feet pointed toward the device. Once on the ground you have lowered your profile significantly, reducing the amount of shrapnel you are exposed to.

How does this work? Well on average only 2% of the shrapnel (fragments of metal or other debris which cause most of the damage in this type of explosion) coming from an IED or grenade actually travels along the horizon (close to the ground).

It’s simply mathematics, drop to the ground, lay flat, and your chances of surviving increase dramatically. Remember you can’t outrun shrapnel, although this is often a first instinct it is dead wrong.

Once on the ground there are several steps you can take to prevent that 2% of shrapnel you are exposed to from causing a serious or mortal wound. The first and most important step is to be face down with your feet together and pointed toward the device. This step allows the soles of your feet and your legs to absorb any shrapnel headed your way. Your feet and legs are now a wall of protection for your vital organs.

Next you want to cover your ears with your hands, tucking your elbows in at your sides. This protects your ear drums as much as possible and tucking your arms in at your side protect the artery that runs on the inside of the arm. You will also want to open your mouth to prevent the the shock front from collapsing your lungs. And close your eyes to prevent dust and debris from hampering your vision after the blast.

Lastly, the information shown at the end of the video explains how this technique can be slightly modified to save the life of someone your are with.

For a safer life,
Bob Pierce
Head Honcho, FightFast.com

You can learn a lot from the video above. Most of it is pretty obvious but I’m going to break down a few points because I think it’s worth mentioning. Before I get into that I want to make one thing clear, I’m not suggesting that a one-strike KO is common or likely. The fact is it’s not but the little guy would have most likely won even without a KO here’s why:

First, little guys can take out bigger stronger attackers. The big guy in this video is a full head taller than the winner. My all logic an reason the big guy should have one the fight, and the truth is he probably would have won if he was ever given a chance. Fortunately, the little guy wisely took the initiative and hit first. The big guy never had a chance.

That brings me to the second point. Whenever possible you should strike first. You won’t always get a lucky first strike knockout but taking the offensive in a self defense situation dramatically increases your chance of winning. The little guy knew that, and even if he hadn’t knocked the big guy out he would have probably followed up with repeated strikes at sensitive targets to keep the big guy off balance and distracted. That’s how you win a fight against a person larger and stronger than you.

Third, the little guy in this video maintained a confident posture. He didn’t slump over or hang his head when confronted. He didn’t want to fight the big guy, but never submitted.

Fourth, strike quickly. The winner of this fight didn’t make a looping punch, he didn’t try anything fancy either. It was a quick strike with his full body weight behind it. He didn’t wind up or let on that a punch was coming. Looks like the big guy may have tried to block the punch with his right hand but wasn’t quick enough.

Let me know what you think.

For a safer life,
Bob Pierce
Head Honcho, Fightfast.com

Hey guys, I’ve got a nasty little add-on fight move for you this week, the backfist.

In the video above Demi Barbito teaches you how easy it is to work the backfist into other brutal self defense moves making the combo even more devastating.

As you know one of the biggest secrets to dominating any street fight is creating a constant barrage of strikes to overwhelm your attacker. The backfist is perfect for this strategy. As Demi explains in the video, the backfist is not a great lead off move when you are in punching range, but when added onto the end of another technique it quickly adds insult to injury, allowing you to add in another painful technique in a split second.

Remember not every strike needs to be a finisher, it’s about the totality of strikes. A quick backfist to the nose or groin does not take a lot of strength or agility. Its simply a quick flick of the arm driving your knuckles into a soft sensitive target. It’ll keep his mind on the pain allowing you to follow up with more strikes.

Now for that nasty little tip at the end of video the, driving your thumb into an attacker eye socket. Two things to remember on this one, first you may destroy someones eye when you use this so it’s only for a real life and death situation. Second, be sure to tuck your thumb into your hand, it’s not a “thumbs up” motion. You don’t want to break your own thumb, and you don’t want or need to drive your whole thumb into his eye socket, just the tip will do the trick.

This nasty technique will most likely take the fight right out of an attacker, but be sure to follow it up with something else, there are no guarantees in a street fight.

For more simple, easy to learn close quarters fight moves from Demi Barbito check out his “Extreme Close Quarters” fighting system. You’ll be glad you did.

I hope you enjoyed this clip, please share it with others, it could be a life saver!

For a safer life,
Bob Pierce
Head Honcho, FightFast.com

Fights often start with an aggressive or belligerent attacker pushing you. If that happens you have two options fleeing the area, or taking control of the situation. A push or shove is a violent act and will not likely be followed up with a peaceful resolution.

I would normally recommend flying into a barrage of quick strikes to take the attacker by surprise, and prevent him from striking first. However, there are situations where an attacker pushes or shoves a victim, but doesn’t immediately start his attack. As you can see in the video above an attacker may shove then drop his hands at his side while perhaps continuing a verbal assault, not thinking you are a threat.

The move Ray demonstrates in the video above is great for a situation like this. If you have access to his hand you can use it to quickly put him into a painful and immobilizing joint lock.

This is also a great move to use on someone who is drunk or otherwise out of hand in a situation where blowing out his ear drum with an ear slap would be considered overdoing it.

As with most joint locks speed is key, no attacker will stand there willingly while you put him into a joint lock. This is a fight move you’ll need to practice slowly at first, but you’ll eventually want to practice it at full speed. The goal is to have the attacker in the joint lock before he realizes what’s going on.

Again, for most situations I recommend quick damaging strikes to immobilize an attacker but there are situations where that’s not possible or appropriate. This is a move designed for those types of situations. The more you know the better your chances of surviving and winning in any situation.

For more simple restraint techniques, along with plenty of brutal lethal tactics (for when things get serious) check out Ray’s Lethal Defense DVD Package.

For a safer life,
Bob Pierce
Head Honcho, FightFast.com/TRS Direct

The Thai Kick is one of the most devastatingly effective fight moves around. The problem is, when not done correctly (and many instructors leave this part out) it’s also one of the easiest moves for an attacker to defend against.

In the video above, Thai Kickboxing expert Mike Goldbach shows you exactly what to do to avoid the number one mistake people make when using the Thai kick on the street. And this simple trick doesn’t just work for the Thai kick, it’s a necessity for many other kicks, and striking techniques too.

As you saw in the video the “lean out” is nothing more that an extension of your arm to stop an attackers forward momentum (to keep him the right distance away from you) and to prevent him from striking you while you execute the kick. If you are using the “lean out” while kicking you use the arm that’s on the same side as leg you are kicking with. If you kick with your right foot, you check him with the right arm while kicking.

Remember, the lean out is not a shove, you don’t need to knock him back. You just want to keep him in place, or take the power out of any punch he may be throwing. You also don’t want to leave your arm out for him to grab a hold of. It’s just a quick extension and retraction of the arm. It’s also important that you keep your opposite hand up to protect your head. This arm should extend for a lean out after you have kicked the attacker. While this second lean out is happening your other arm is drawn back to protect your head once again.

To learn more about the feared Thai Kick and why it’s one of the most feared fight moves around (it’s been known to break an opponent’s femur in actually street fights) check out Mike Goldbach’s Combat Thai Boxing.

For a safer life,
Bob Pierce
Head Honcho, FightFast.com/TRS Direct

I’ve got a treat for you this week. Just ran across this gem in the FightFast archive. The clip above is jam packed with great self defense tips. We’ll take them one by one below.

First off, as you probably know a lot of guys like to get right up into your face before they start a fight with you. For the attacker, a verbal assault is a way to amp himself up before the fight. You have to take this kind of behavior seriously.

Sure some guys may get in your face because they need to blow off some steam with no real intent on hurting you, but your gut will usually tell you when trouble is on the way. Even better than relying on your gut, check out this short list of ways to recognize a fight before it begins.

My recommendation is that you never allow an aggressive person to get within arms distance of you in the first place, but we all know that these things are sometimes out of our control. So when it does happen you need to know how to deal with it.

The video above covers two tried and true ways to take the offense in this type of self defense situation. The first is if you have your arms above your waist and the other is for situations where your arms are at your side.

If your arms are above your waist you will have great access to a punishing uppercut or elbow strike. Either one will instantly put your attacker on the defense giving you a huge advantage. What you do to follow up the first strike is your choice, just be sure to do something, one strike won’t finish the job. Here are some quick follow up ideas: more elbow strike, knee strikes, a good ear slap, head butt, etc.

If you are caught with your arms down there are still options for you. To start with, having someone right in your face with your arms at your sides is like being caught with your pants down, not a good thing. The instant you recognize an aggressive person approaching, your arms should instinctively come up and extend outward palms forward in a “stop right there” type of position. But again things don’t always happen the way you want.

If a guy is able to slip into your personal space and catch you with your hands down you still have options. Your best option is the element of surprise, while he is yelling obscenities at you you’ll be able to quickly strike him in the groin with either the knuckles forward or palm forward technique shown in the video.

The big advantage of the groin strike is the predictability of his reaction. Most guys bend forward when hit in the groin. Don’t bet your life on this happening, but you should definitely be able to take advantage of it in the likely event that it does happen.

If and when the attacker bends forward you can simply run your hand up his body grabbing a hold of his head in whatever fashion is easiest at the time. From there you can put him into a front headlock, twist the head and put him on the ground or skip grabbing the head all together and follow up the groin strike with either a hammer fist up into his face, or a forearm strike to the base of the skill with your other arm.

As you can see your options for ending a fight in close range are pretty wide, the key is taking the offense and continuing with a barrage of quick efficient strikes until you are able to escape.

For more brutally simplistic, street-tested fight moves from Jim “Smokey” West check out his Fight to Win DVD package. It’s filled with punishing tips and tricks like you saw in the video above. Get there now! Fight to Win DVD

For a Safer Life,
Bob Pierce
Head Honcho, FightFast.com/TRS Direct

Blocking strikes in a self defense situation is almost always a losing game. If an attacker is taking the initiative and continues to force you to react to his strikes you have very little opportunity to end the conflict on your terms. That’s why this simple triangle strike is so effective. It not only blocks an attacker’s punch, but the force of the block/strike will make the attacker react to you, not the other way around.

When used correctly this fight move puts you in control and forces your attacker on his heels. The best part is, this move relies on basic skills that can be learned quickly and easily, and doesn’t rely on size or strength.

As John Nottingham explains in the video this move is based on the strength of the triangle. With your hands together and arms locked out you can create a sort of human battering ram to drive your attacker off balance and do some serious damage wherever you strike.

The secret to making this work is keeping your arms locked out and putting your body weight behind the strike. Keeping your arms locked out is pretty self-explanatory so we’ll focus on how you put your body weight behind this fight move. Utilizing your body weight means you want to step into your attacker, lean forward, and essentially fall into him with your body weight driving into him. Your front leg will then be there to catch you as the attacker is driven backwards. You can see this in the slow motion segments at the end of the video.

As mentioned in the video there are several targets you can direct this fight move towards. The shoulder is a great target for stopping an attacker’s punch, but it won’t necessarily be a fight ender. Also as far as blocking the punch goes, simply having your arms in the triangle configuration will protect your head and neck from a punch. Since you aren’t too worried about the punch, driving this move into his head or neck would be a better choice. In most cases this will also take the power out of his punch, but has the added benefit of being a potential fight ender.

Of course as Mr. Nottingham said in the video never assume that this move alone will end the fight. You will need to follow this self defense move up with a barrage of strikes at high value targets. Only stop when it is clear the attacker is no longer a threat, or you have enough time to escape.

To see more of John Nottingham’s simple, easy to learn, self defense techniques (including some great follow-ups to the move above) check out his VIPER Street Combat training system.

For a safer life,
Bob Pierce, Head Honcho FightFast.com/TRS

Grabbing your shoulder from behind is an aggressive gesture attackers often use to start a fight. Their intention may be to demonstrate dominance, spin you around, or hold you in place while an attacker facing you prepares to do you harm. Regardless of his intentions, a shoulder grab from behind is a situation you should have an answer to.

The best answer is to simply move forward, away from the grab, and escape. That is hands down the best option you have. However, you may be in a closed in area where escape is not possible, or as mentioned earlier there may be two attackers one in front and one behind. Whatever the case, you need to have a strategy to take charge of the conflict if escape is not an option. That’s what the video above is all about.

As you can see from the clip above this move is extremely simple. When an attacker grabs you from behind the only information you have is the location of his hand and arm. This move takes full advantage of that.

By spinning around and dropping your body weight on his arm you will cause your attacker to drop with you. The secret is that you are pulling him slightly off balance while dropping your weight onto his arm. No matter how strong he is or how small you are this works. That’s one of the reasons it’s such a great defense.

There are plenty of wrist and arm locks taught by various systems for dealing with this attack, but the truth is, if your attacker is much larger that you he may be able to simply resist the joint manipulation. There is no way to resist someone pulling you slightly off balance and dropping their body weight on you.

There are a few key points you’ll want to keep in mind when using this move. First, you must spin to the inside for this to work. Next, you can’t hesitate. The second you feel a grab on your shoulder you must react full speed. This will limit his ability to respond.

Also, when doing this you’ll want to tilt your head downward slightly to protect your face. At full speed you may force him down so forcefully that his face slams into yours. By tilting you head forward and exposing your crown bone to him you will protect yourself against this.

Finally, when you drop your weight you must go all out. Depending on your size putting half your weight into it may not work, and there is no second try.

I hope you enjoyed the tip. For more brutal, simple, street proven moves from Chris Clugston Click Here.

For a safer life,
Bob Pierce
Head Honcho FightFast.com/TRS

If you get the jump on an attacker, utilizing the bum rush, it is extremely difficult for even an experienced street fighter to recover. At the very least the confusion and panic you will create in an attackers mind will give you the few seconds you need to get yourself and others out of harm’s way. Let’s go over some of the details that make this fight move so effective on the streets.

There are three things that make this technique powerful.

1. 1. It relies on basic movements everyone is familiar (no fancy hard to master techniques)
2. 2. Forward Pressure on the Attacker
3. 3. Violence of Action and Speed

Let’s take these one at a time. First we have the ease of this technique. Most people have no trouble at all walking forward. We do it instinctively, without having to think. If you are older you may not run very often but believe me the muscle memory is still there and although you might not be running a 100m dash any time soon, you can probably run forward for 10 or 15 feet no problem.

You probably have also learned to punch or push something straight in front of you at some point in your life. This also doesn’t take much thought, and there are no fine motor skills to break down when your adrenaline dumps in a fight.

Next we have the fight winning concept of forward pressure. Chances are, if you ever use this on an attacker the last thing he thought you would do is rush him with a barrage of punches. You’ll be putting him on his heels from the very start and continuing your forward pressure until he loses his balance or trips and falls. This is a strategic advantage that’s yours for the taking.

Last, we have speed and violence of action. With this fight move you aren’t hitting him with a hay-maker and then standing around to wait for his response.

No, instead you are hitting him with 10-20 quick punches down his center line. None of these punches need to be knock-out material. If your small this will still work because the power comes from you walking or running forward, while punching, not being able to deliver a knockout punch from a boxers stance.

Even if you punches aren’t very strong the sheer number of them, combined with your forward pressure that puts him on his heels, will eventually result in him falling down. Oh, and let’s not forget violence of action. You attacker was probably not expecting you to fight back at all, let alone have you bring the fight to him. When you become the aggressor and demonstrate that you don’t have any regard for his well-being you’ve take away a psychological advantage he thought he had over you.

For more simple, yet brutal fight moves that were developed and tested specifically for street fighting check out Diallo Frazier’s Ghetto Boxing DVD Package.

For A Safer Life,
Bob Pierce, Head Honcho FightFast.com

When it comes to protecting yourself or your family you simply can’t afford to be pushed out of the game. The technique in the video above is a quick and easy to learn defense against an attacker who thinks he can push you around.

Remember folks, a push is an aggressive move that is usually followed up with a strike. Attackers love to get their targets on their heels before they start pummeling them with punches.

The best thing you can do is be aware at all times, never letting a guy push you in the first place, but in the real world things get messy and you won’t always be ready for an attack. However, by training yourself to instinctively drop back into your “crash position” (explained more fully in the DVD package) and spring forward after a push. You’ll quickly be able to turn the tables on an attacker who thought he could get you on your heels and wind up for a looping right hand shot.

After you spring back you want to drive your elbow straight forward jamming it into the inside of his shoulder with all your body weight. This does two things, first off it’s pretty painful (lots of delicate nerves in that area), and second it will stop him dead in his tracks.

You don’t stop there. As you know from my other posts you have to follow up with a barrage of strikes to convince him that he’s picked the wrong guy or gal to mess with.

What makes the elbow push block so great is that it leads naturally to several very effective and very painful counter strikes.

As you saw in the video, you can make your hand into a fist and drop it down onto his head and collar bone. Remember this is one fluid motion. You hammer fist will drop onto his head and glance off downward into his collar bone or sometimes onto his face and sternum depending on the exact situation.

The key is that you have to drive and pull your hammer fist downward. You aren’t striking his head, you are driving through it. If you don’t have this mentality you’ll simply give him a bump on the head.

Instead, you want to really drop your whole body into the hammer fist like you are swinging a sledge hammer. If you do use all your weight and you land directly on the collar bone it will break even if you are a 110 pound woman. The collar bone simply isn’t that strong.

I recommend practicing this self defense combo with some focus mitts so you can go “full tilt” and really feel yourself dropping all your weight into it.

Last but not least remember to keep your other arm and hand up to protect your face. As Jim West explains just after this segment he is dropping his arm so he can talk to the camera. You must protect your head in a real life situation. Always remember to keep your hands up while practicing this or you’ll forget it when a real self defense situation occurs.

For more brutally simple fight secrets from former Delta Force Operator Jim West check out his Master of Destruction DVD package. The clip above is just one small example of the brutal street savvy self defense instruction packed into this two disc package. Check it out now by clicking here.