I've been taking Krav for about 3 weeks now as a trial to see if it is for me. Last night we worked on grappling. We covered, standing choke defense (hands on throat) Professional choke defense (Rear naked) Head lock defense from front, rear and side. I worked with a guy a lot stronger than me who didn't let me do anything to him. I either did it or he maintained his position. The defenses were simple and effective and actually were more instinctive and easier to do when the agression increased from the attacker. ie he really went to choke me and came at me.
In the 2nd class we covered defense from being mounted. Initially we practiced being on our back and trying to prevent him from getting a mount. No mats so I have some scrapes on my back, but loved it. We then practiced once he had the mount and came straight in for a choke. The attacker was to choke with arms bent, straightened, full weight into it, slightly leaning forward and in close with head to either side of yours. We had to learn to quickly identify what position he was in and where his weight was. We were taught about leverage, body positioning and vital points left open by the attacker in these positions. The point was to get the choke off, get him off while attacking a vital point. Once off the counter was to continue brutally and immediately. Again my partner was much bigger and stronger than I was and I have zero ground experience. To my surprise even with him resisting and really applying the choke most of the movement came naturally once I stopped trying to think of the fanciest way to defend. My natural reactions with some tweaks on technique and knowledge of leverage got him off of me without me feeling like I was straining myself. I don't like the idea of going to the ground in a street/self defense situation knowing cowards travel in packs but judging from this beginner level introduction to Krav Ground tactics and my experience getting jumped on the street I really think that what was taught and what they build upon can be used effectively. The point clearly was not meant to make you an expert Jiu jitsu player. It was to get you out of it fast, brutally and alive.
What I liked about the progression from one class to the next was the use of concepts and simple techniques that worked in multiple situations. We started off standing and worked our way to the ground on our backs while protecting against the same attack (chokes) from various angles and positions. From what I can tell, as you advance in Krav the defense go from defending your average no nothing thug to defending against someone more trained. I'll be doing this for another week before trying a month at a local BJJ school, so I can better compare the tactics and immediate effectiveness then.
Like I said, besides watching MMA I know nothing about ground work so the above was a newbies opinion. What I can say is that last week I started a thread asking about a BJJ class I watched and noting that there was one position where I immediately wondered why a groin shot wasn't the immediate response since it was the closest open target. I thought there was something I was missing with that being my immediate reaction but was glad to see that exact response in the Krav class. Maybe it's too simple to be useful but it seems to work as far as I can see. Again, I'm far from an expert.
Here is a link of a demo from the Krav school I am currently at. He shows some of their ground defense. Feel free to tell me it's crap.
YouTube - Mastering Krav Maga DVD Preview - David Kahn
