Commentary

Many times, students look at me and think I had an easy road to becoming a Krav Maga expert. Growing up, I won’t deny I was quite physically talented and coordinated. I was also the smallest kid in my Krav Maga classes. While in my previous hobby of Capoeira, my [Read More]

I recently did an interview with Eyal Yanilov. Although it didn’t make the article, one of my favorite moments in his discussion of training was talking about him as a teenager when he studying under Grandmaster Imi. During that time, Eyal had been taught sentry removal training. For those who [Read More]

When we think of self-defense, much of the time we portray ourselves as an empty handed defender striving to overcome a weapon wielding attacker. However in this day and age, never knowing if, when, or how we may be attacked, should we consider using a blade to defend ourselves? This [Read More]

On Father’s Day, I was irritated to see so many martial arts studios and publications post the same meme. I can take a joke, but I do not like being the butt of jokes. When you consider why this is supposed to be funny, it stops being a joke and [Read More]

I looked at the two one-inch boards my friend was holding and let out a breath. As I relaxed my body, thinking about the round kick I was about to execute, I remembered I had not broken two boards with this kick since I took first place in a tournament [Read More]

This is the sixth in a series of six articles on things I have learned from High-Intensity Resistance Training that have influenced my approach to martial arts. If you missed the previous articles in this series, you can find them here: High Intensity Resistance Training and Martial Arts – A [Read More]

This tremendous journey started in 2007. I had been training some Kali with Mike Williams (always working on increasing my martial arts knowledge) when he mentioned that one of his grandmasters was coming to the United States and would I like to host a seminar at my school. Now those [Read More]

I have often explained to my long-suffering famly that my devotion to Krav Maga is healthy. I tell them the greatness of martial art goes beyond being able to be healthy or protect ourselves. In life, we will all face moments where the unfairness of the world crushes our spirits. [Read More]

A poster sized flyer catches your eye as you walk past with the words “Martial Arts Seminar.”  It prominently displays the face of that martial artist you respect and always hoped you could meet. It has a date and a time.  At the bottom are the little pull tabs of [Read More]

Disclaimer: my point of reference here is traditional Taekwondo as that is my chosen art, however all martial arts are valid it all depends on which feels right to you. You’ve just earned the second hardest belt you will ever put on, the white belt. And you gained admittance into [Read More]

The over abundance of resources easily and freely available through the Internet is a double-edged sword. While it can certainly help us, when used wisely, it also has multiple disadvantages. One of the main ones being how easy it is to fall into the trap of being entitled to judge [Read More]

I am often asked if learning Krav Maga will teach people how to be aggressive. “What if they start getting into fights, trying to be super-protectors?” For some reason I really do not understand, people seem to think you will come out of my classes ready to get into street [Read More]

The Style of No Style Prior to his death, Bruce Lee sought to create a martial art of limitless adaptability. He described that art, Jeet Kune Do (Way of the Intercepting Fist), as the “style of no style.” In Lee’s conception, this meant that the practitioner was free of any [Read More]

“Oh well, that’s just the way it is! I’m getting older, everything stops working after fifty, all down hill from here…” This statement and all the variations of it, make an assumption, and that assumption is what creates a lie and makes us all accept that every year we spend [Read More]

This is the fifth in a series of six articles on things I have learned from High-Intensity Resistance Training that have influenced my approach to martial arts. If you missed the previous articles in this series, you can find them here: High Intensity Resistance Training and Martial Arts – A [Read More]

This time we’re going to discuss the main long blades of Dekiti Tirsia Siradas (DTS) as well as other miscellaneous weapons. Negros Island, the home of Grandmaster Jerson “Nene” Tortal is in the Visayan region of the Philippines. That being the case, we will use the Illolngo term for the [Read More]

Are weapons useful? People train in martial arts for a plethora of reasons: as a hobby, to stay fit, to learn how to fight, etc. A lot of traditional martial arts include some sort of weapons training. Some, like Filipino martial arts or Koryu (old school Japanese martial arts) focus [Read More]

My job is to teach people how to be safe. That’s how I earn a living and the central focus of my study. I know even if I won the lottery tomorrow, it’s still how I would devote my time.  That doesn’t make it any easier when the world around [Read More]

Toxic Masculinity. Cancel Culture. Addiction to food, drugs, social media, etc. Martial arts training is more relevant and needed today than ever before. But not necessarily in the ways of the 70’s through the 2010s. That was the era of martial arts as a means of dominance either over another [Read More]

I’m not here to talk about myself, but a short bio will give what I’m about to say some context. After 37 years of training, 13 years of journalism, and 21 years as a dad, I started a podcast. Safest Family on the Block is where I take that experience [Read More]