Krav Maga - Lesson 1

So last night I went to a (paid) class in a gym for the first time in a while.  I was a nervous wreck and came way early for my inaugural Krav Maga class at Muay Fit, Puchong.

Pic taken from MuayFit's website

When the instructor, Master Mike came in I became even more nervous.  But Master Mike is a friendly chap and made me feel more comfortable.  I think he can sense I'm the high-strung type and told me to smile. Hahaha...

Anyway, the lesson is two hours long with the first hour more for conditioning than anything else.  We did a lot of sprints and some basic attacking drills.  The second half of the class was to hone our motor skills so that our body knows what to do when we are in a dangerous situation.

The beauty of Krav Maga is that the things they teach you are so simple yet brutally effective.  You don't need a lot strength to be honest.  What you must have is a fighting spirit (as Master Mike said to me, "I can teach you the techniques, but I can't give you fighting spirit), and presence of mind.

"Presence of Mind" to me is pretty much heightened motor skills in this case.  You don't really have time to think how to block an attack, how to counter-attack when you are in danger.  Your body just needs to react quickly in order for you to survive the ordeal.

That is what the second half of the class is all about.  Constant practice and drills.

At the end of the class, Master Mike gets you to close your eyes.  He would then "attack" you in several ways and you have to quickly react to the attack.  Very practical stuff.  I like.  Can't wait to get to my second lesson next week.

On a side note, the class wasn't physically taxing.  I am not in pain as I type this.  In fact, tonight I plan to weight train.  There is a possibility that weekends could be spent going to a class in the morning, and weight training in the afternoon or vice versa.