BJJ as self defense?

I understand what you're saying, but it just take a little common sense. I'd never go around pulling guard in a street fight, or even be content playing bottom, or whatever. You just have to adjust it. And the actual "self defense" moves for BJJ are great, it just sucks that most schools don't actually teach them. I know them mostly from this one guy at my school who really drills them, plus i watch a lot of DVDs.
 
JerseyTrash said:
I understand what you're saying, but it just take a little common sense. I'd never go around pulling guard in a street fight, or even be content playing bottom, or whatever. You just have to adjust it. And the actual "self defense" moves for BJJ are great, it just sucks that most schools don't actually teach them. I know them mostly from this one guy at my school who really drills them, plus i watch a lot of DVDs.
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I agree, what i don't understand is who advocate's pulling guard in a self defense situation???

Every time BJJ and self defense thread is started people start that argument, then others chime in that training a striking art/system is better. To see the effectiveness in grappling, watch the TV shop cops, regularly people swing wildly @ the cop then he close's the distance and takes the guy down, often looking for a figure 4/kimura position. What more could you ask for in self defense.... A big overhand right that maybe connects/ko's the guy he hits his head on the sidewalk and potentiall gets seriously injured?
 
Well, I have done both except my jits is combat submission wrestling which is Jud/Sambo/Jits/Catch wrestling/Wrestling. I also do Muay Thai. But if you aren't confident in striking just go watch some Shinya Aoki fights. Just jump on them and pull guard. Work from there.
 
It is cliche to advise people to run from multiple attackers or a knife. The vast majority of these situations, running will not be an option. I would not run and leave my wife and kids alone.

Self defense is a big picture thing. You need striking and grappling. You also need a weapon for the rare, rare situation where you have multiple attackers ready to do you bodily harm.

I carry a Glock 27 every day. It is as natural for me as grabbing my wallet as I head out the door.

You most likely will never ever need a gun to defend yourself. But, when you do need a gun, you will need it really bad. And, there are few substitutes.
 
I've done some bjj self defense, but I would need to do many more repititions of the techniques in order to feel confident when using them in a real life situation. Going back to my original argument, the focus of training at BJJ schools is typically related to competition not self defense (at least from what I've encountered).

I competed at the last pan ams and took silver at the blue belt super-heavy category (i'm a purple now). I pulled guard every match except the first when my opponent did. I didnt have any confidence in my takedowns. It led me to think about all this. Anyway, I'll do some judo from now on.
 
Oldguy said:
It is cliche to advise people to run from multiple attackers or a knife. The vast majority of these situations, running will not be an option. I would not run and leave my wife and kids alone.

Self defense is a big picture thing. You need striking and grappling. You also need a weapon for the rare, rare situation where you have multiple attackers ready to do you bodily harm.

I carry a Glock 27 every day. It is as natural for me as grabbing my wallet as I head out the door.

You most likely will never ever need a gun to defend yourself. But, when you do need a gun, you will need it really bad. And, there are few substitutes.
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Lol @ you carrying a Glock 27 everyday should you have multiple attackers ready to do you bodily harm.

Do you make a checklist ?
 
mikeffd said:
I've done some bjj self defense, but I would need to do many more repititions of the techniques in order to feel confident when using them in a real life situation. Going back to my original argument, the focus of training at BJJ schools is typically related to competition not self defense (at least from what I've encountered).

I competed at the last pan ams and took silver at the blue belt super-heavy category (i'm a purple now). I pulled guard every match except the first when my opponent did. I didnt have any confidence in my takedowns. It led me to think about all this. Anyway, I'll do some judo from now on.
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No Gi owns street fights. I got into a fight with our High School's best wrestler two years ago. I was trainign Muay Thai and CSW still. But he threw punches I kneed him and elbowed him he shot. I pulled guard and he was confused as hell. Worked my hips into an armbar. Made him cry and he had a fractured arm. Im not proud of it. And I didn't even get suspended because he said I was defending myself since I wasn't pressing charges. Just an instance where it was useful.
 
A single person with a $35 pocket knife can wreck your life. I'll bet that the students at Virginia Tech that died would have traded every possession they owned for a handgun. They would not LOL.

If fighting is some sort of game, then duke it out with hands and fists. True self defense means using all the tools available.
 
EE6_TBOIO_MATb said:
Lol @ you carrying a Glock 27 everyday should you have multiple attackers ready to do you bodily harm.

Do you make a checklist ?
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It may seem funny to some, but the man is looking to protect himself and his family, and is legally allowed to do so. I don't carry a pistol with me, but everyone that's an instructor at my school does, so I understand the motivation behind it.

The only problem I have with people using weapons of ANY kind for self defense is when people buy a weapon an DON'T train with it. God that pisses me off! People gp, "Oh I'll just keep this gun in the dresser and then if someone breaks in, I'll use it." That's the worst logic ever. Knife, gun, ASP, pepper spray, tazer, unarmed, you NEED to train with what you plan to use or not use in a self defense situation. Otherwise it's like having a car in the garage, never having driven it before, and saying, "Well if I am in a really big hurry, I'll just hop in the car and go."
 
Oldguy said:
A single person with a $35 pocket knife can wreck your life. I'll bet that the students at Virginia Tech that died would have traded every possession they owned for a handgun. They would not LOL.

If fighting is some sort of game, then duke it out with hands and fists. True self defense means using all the tools available.
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QFT on the knife comment. Nothing is more personal that ramming a steel razor blade into someone as many times as possible. Guns are so much more impersonal. Dealing with knives is an entirely different ballgame for self-defense. Different mindset, different attacker, etc. Way worse IMO than someone robbing you with a gun.

At our school we have a list of Knife Fighting Rules:

1. You will get cut
2. Don't get cut so bad that you can't continue to fight AKA Don't get dead
3. The only cut to worry about is the NEXT cut. (if you start thinking about the cuts you've already taken, you're playing catchup and will get hacked to pieces. Nothing matters except the ones that haven't happened yet. Worry about your injuries after the fight.)




I've gone off topic sorry. I think BJJ is great for self defense as long as you're confident it will be a 1 on 1 situation and that there aren't any weapons involved. As far as a 1 on 1 fight with a trained vs. an untrained opponent, it is probably the best self defense art you can get.
 
ShogunOOORAH said:
No Gi owns street fights. .
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I'm suprised this thread got to page 3 before someone brought up the gi thing. Just be sure you and the guy you get attacked by aren't wearing any clothes.

I used to train strictly self defense and it got boring and one demensional fast. Now that I train at a Renzo school I get my jits with moves that work on both the mat and the street for the most part. When I train at my other school I don't even bother learning the strictly gi competition techniques.
 
You kno wwhat I'll chime in with a little personal observation.

I live in a pretty rough part of town and one night there was this "ghetto guy" outside my building saying all kinds of retarded shit. It seems like someone called the cops cuz they came and they were trying to calm him down. The guy went and tried to hit a flurry on the cop, but the cop covered up, closed the distance, did either an inside or outside leg trip, and went on to get knee on belly...and cuffed his ass up.

YES grappling works for self defense you just need the right strategy.
 
And the is no knife defense, there is either getting out, having a better weapon or getting real lucky.
 
I've done some BJJ self defense, and it was strikingly similar to Aikido, only the finishing submissions were a lot more realistic. But, I find that no gi grappling modified for MMA is much better for self defense than pure bjj...
 
I fear a knife more than a gun. I once watched a one hour knife fighting DVD. The next day before BJJ class, I asked this guy who was a 2nd degree aikido black belt to disarm me with a training knife and/or defend himself. I proceeded to cut and stab him so bad that after a few minutes we just stopped. It was ugly. I was a complete novice and I destroyed him.

I am skeptical about any unarmed defense against a knife.
 
Oldguy said:
I fear a knife more than a gun. I once watched a one hour knife fighting DVD. The next day before BJJ class, I asked this guy who was a 2nd degree aikido black belt to disarm me and/or defend himself. I proceeded to cut and stab him so bad that after a few minutes we just stopped. It was ugly. I was a complete novice and I destroyed him.

I am skeptical about any unarmed defense against a knife.
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like bas says...pick up a rangy weapon and keep distance between the both of you...shit a trash can lid, cardboard box, a chair, a broomstick, anything just keep distance or u will get stabbed.
 
Oldguy said:
I fear a knife more than a gun. I once watched a one hour knife fighting DVD. The next day before BJJ class, I asked this guy who was a 2nd degree aikido black belt to disarm me with a training knife and/or defend himself. I proceeded to cut and stab him so bad that after a few minutes we just stopped. It was ugly. I was a complete novice and I destroyed him.

I am skeptical about any unarmed defense against a knife.
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I am skeptical too. I hope no one was under the impression that I came in here saying that I or anyone else for that mater, could claim to fight anyone with a knife. When I posted those rules, the idea was that you pretty much do have to get very lucky to even survive. I was hoping those rules would show the desparation of any situation where you would find yourself faced against a guy with a blade.
 
I train BJJ for fun, period. The self defense thing is totally overblown. If my primary worry was self defense, I'd buy some pepper spray, and save myself enormous amounts of time and money.
 
Doesn't anybody train striking in BJJ? We don't do it every class but we do practice kicks and punches from stand up. We also regularly train take downs. Sport BJJ doesn't allow strikes but non-sport BJJ does not have that restriction.
My biggest concerns as far as BJJ in self-defence is multple opponents and knives (I'm in Canada, gun attacks are very, very rare). Multilple opponents run! Wrist control is important in stopping people from grabbing their knife in the first place. I only know of one person who carries a gun and he runs a gun range. BJJ is more than being on my back, positional dominance is key. If I've got a person in side control or knee-on-belly I've know got a position where I can strike much more easily.
My feeling is that Gi training is appropriate for self-defence. In the summer people might be wearing a t-shirt but when it is -20 celsius outside if you are only wearing a t-shirt I'll stall long enough for hypothermia to get you and then I'll kick your ass. Even in the summer many people are wearing a jean jacket or motorcycle jacket those work just as well as a Gi jacket to choke a person out.
 
Pepper spray has a very bad track record at stopping a determined attacker.
 
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