So what will I learn after getting my Green Belt?
This is a very common question from students. By reaching your Green Belt in UTKM, it means you have put in a minimum of 280 class time hours training in Krav Maga, not including your own practice time. This means that you have a solid foundation and skill against most attacks, ranging from chokes, headlocks, grabs, punches and kicks.
Starting at the Green Belt level you will begin to focus your training much more on dealing against weapons. We spend some time dealing against knives or sticks from the White to Orange Belt level, but we do not spend a great deal of time on these types of weapon attacks. This is simply because you need to have a strong Krav Maga foundation, mental conditioning, and foot work in order to deal against cold steel weapons and sticks, not to mention firearms!
At a Green Belt and Blue Belt level you will start learning how to deal with firearms. As part of our requirements, in order to progress to your Green Belt, both for legal and safety reasons you will need to get your Firearm License issued from the Canadian Federal Government. This course is government-regulated and contains important knowledge on firearms and firearms safety. After all, how can you learn how to disarm a firearm if you don’t have a basic knowledge of firearms?
By the time you reach your Blue Belt you should have enough knowledge about Krav Maga. This is the moment when you start selecting a specific field and specializing in it. I have always been fascinated in firearms usage and military Krav Maga, so I selected firearm disarms and using firearms as a cold weapon to be my specialized trade in Krav Maga.
In my opinion, Krav Maga is the most complete fighting system out there. This because Krav Maga covers all aspects of attacks, and combines other training ranging from shooting to tactical evasion driving. The learning curve of traditional martial arts like Tae Kwon Do is: 1. Kick, 2. Advanced Kicks, 3. Very Advanced Kicks, 4. Matrix Kicks.
You can imagine the progression of Tae Kwon do as a tower.
Whereas, in Krav Maga the learning curve is: 1. Punch, Kicks, dealing with bear hugs and chokes, 2. Knife Defense, Stick Defense, 3. Take downs, Ground Fighting, 4. Shooting, firearm disarms.
You can imagine the progression of Krav Maga is like a Pyramid.
No, our punches will not be as good as a boxer, nor will our kicks be as good as a Muay Thai fighter, but in real life we do not get to pick what kind of attackers we will face. We have to cover all areas of fighting and recognize an attacker’s strength and weakness, then counter the enemy’s weakness with our strengths.
Written By: UTKM HQ
Edited By: Warren C