Self-defense against attack from behind:
1. Defend against Rear Bear Hug
When the attacker grabs, first thing you are going to do is drop your center of gravity way forward and become very difficult to lift. Then you are going to hit him. Then you are going to shift and start to strike his groin until his hands, the minute his hands open up, elbow to the mid-section, elbow to the face with rotation to fight. Punch. You kick, and space.
The video below shows the instructor teaching the steps to defend yourself against bear hug from behind. You can start watching the video from 0:24.
TIPS: Bear hugs can be the start to a very dangerous scenario especially when applied to kidnappings. Fortunately, with practice and good mental rehearsal, you can set yourself up for success if ever confronted with such a scenario. Be ready to overcome that initial shock of being grabbed and someone's arms wrapped around you and fight! Keep hitting, moving, making noise and be committed to your survival!
2. Defend against Back Hair Pull
When you get pulled from the rear, your automatic reaction for the pull should be to cover your head, so your hands are going to come up to protect your face. Then you will turn your body to punch to the attacker's face. Once you turn there's a kick to the groin, and you can open up the gap, make separation.
Watch the video below to on how to defend yourself against back hair pull visually. The most important part of the video is from 0:20 - 0:46 where the instructor shows how to defend yourself in the situation and later on the video he teaches you step by step learning process.
3. Defend against a Rear Choke
The first thing you are going to do while defending yourself against rear choke is resist the pull. That means you are going to move back to go along with him and resist his ability to take me over to that kind of position. Then you are going to walk with him and shove your behind in that direction, so there's a lot of weight and a lot of ability for you to resist him trying to lift you up. His hands are just a squeeze of the fingers against the thumbs, so you are going to come from the front and pull those thumbs directly into your chest. One hand will stay up, and the other one will continue to travel and strike him in the groin. While this hand is still held, you are going to strike him towards the chin, and from here you are just going to open a gap and reevaluate or reassess the situation all over again.
Watch the video below to gain visual perspective against defending against a rear choke. The most important part of demonstration in this video is from 0:35 - 1:35 minutes. And from 1:50 onwards the instructor teaches you step by step how do the defend yourself from rear choke.
TIP: Notice how similar this defense is to the same attack from the front. Both involve plucking, striking and basically elicit the same response. This is no accident. Krav Maga techniques are designed to be based off of instinctual responses to given threats and to be able to solve multiple problems with one answer, thus limiting the number of techniques you need to learn and increasing your reaction to the attack. Like the extended choke from the front, this defense is relatively easy to learn and become proficient in.
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