New York may have a reputation as being a pretty tough city, but it’s gotten tougher in recent years with the introduction of Krav Maga courses. Some of these classes are designed to promote fitness while others offer advanced fighting and self defense techniques. Whether they want to get in shape or learn how to protect themselves students at Krav Maga NYC gyms will find themselves losing weight and feeling like a whole new person.
Fitness classes at Krav Maga NYC gyms offer a fat blasting total body workout that is worlds beyond the usual exercise routine. With Krav Maga there are no tired routines. In fact, much of this unique discipline depends upon the fact that it’s a bit unpredictable. Krav Maga is essentially a martial art that has its deepest roots in 1930s street fighting. As such, practitioners observe virtually no rules beyond defending themselves and making an efficient counter offense.
This all makes it sounds as if sparring would be an essential component of any Krav Maga NYC class. In some instances this is true, but in others it is not. A class that focuses solely on fitness will usually not involve physical contact between students. People enrolled in a fitness class will definitely learn to strike, punch and kick, but they will do so with a heavy bag and other training tools rather than another class member. Taking out aggressions on a heavy bag is a great way to manage stress while toning muscles and losing weight – all in an atmosphere that is never intimidating.
Other Krav Maga NYC classes will inevitably involve physical contact between students. These classes are based on learning self defense principles that require students to practice certain maneuvers again and again. These courses begin with the most essential elements of Krav Maga techniques. Students are taught how to fight on their feet by taking appropriate body positions and evenly distributing their weight. They learn how to move with ease and grace even in high pressure situations. Most vitally, students in these beginning level self defense classes learn to effectively strike opponents using their hands, elbows, head, legs and knees.
In the next level of self defense classes the student is introduced to the concept of ground fighting. It’s no secret that the best way to win any fight is by staying on your feet, but sometimes that is not a realistic option. That is where the basics of ground work come into play. In this class Krav Maga NYC students learn all about how to get back on their feet in a hurry. They also learn how to attack from a position on the ground as well as becoming familiar with various chokes and pins and how to break away from such grappling maneuvers.
Some self defense courses offer a very specialized curriculum. These classes get down to specifics for students who have already completed an introductory level course. Many of these specialized offerings prepare students to deal with an attack in an extraordinarily dangerous situation. Most of these relate to being in enclosed surroundings that offer only a little available space for movement. Krav Maga training in these courses helps students make wise decisions in very bad situations. It also helps them to strategize an escape plan and keep their cool under enormously stressful circumstances.
Students who have mastered the basic elements of Krav Maga self defense training and still want more may try to enroll in higher level sparring classes. In these sessions they will be paired with other advanced students to engage in sparring that is closely supervised by an instructor. In these classes they will encounter even more elements of other martial arts disciplines and will also utilize the principles of boxing. Some of these classes allow for full contact sparring, so students should be fully prepared with a comprehensive training program before enrolling.
Some students stick with Krav Maga fitness training for years even though they have no interest in becoming an accomplished fighter. This is an excellent decision as Krav Maga offers a great way to get in shape and stay that way with a series of varied and challenging workouts. Some specialized fitness classes will have participants using the jump rope for cardio conditioning. Other courses focus on intense strength training. Still others will combine several of these elements for an intense total conditioning workout. There really is nothing else like it on Earth.
Krav Maga is definitely for people who love to work up a sweat. Those who are only interested in going through the motions of their weekly workouts will find that Krav Maga is not where they are meant to be. But people who want to get motivated and get moving will find that this is the ideal training regimen.