Customer Reviews

Advanced Krav Maga: The Next Level of Fitness and Self-Defense

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Obviously I have read & enjoyed David Kahn's previous book & yes, I am biased based on that. I am biased because it is written in the same fashion as the previous one but at a much more advanced level, & that the learning curve is still NOT steep, but something that EVERYONE can learn & pick up very, very fast. His "No Rules" approach to those that may threaten your life is something that has helped me in quite a few situations, especially since I run a bar in New York City that can occasionally get rowdy. I have also learned how to restrain aggressive people in the most efficient & effective ways without doing any serious damage, but having the power and control to do so in a heartbeat if I felt my life was suddenly threatened. Being a former student of Praying Mantis Kung Fu & loving it, I feel that I have taken my martial arts training to the next level with David kahn's books. This book can definitely be used for fitness, but I find it's the most effective for those that may find themselves in dangerous situations. I also like that David has an approach in which you assume that your attacker may know what you know & how to always counter & use variations. If you are a martial artist or are seriously into MMA, this book is a must read.

I think that this is a great book written by an expert author. Having been a long time student of David, but moving to another part of the country, I felt reading the book brought me right back to his classroom. I highly recommend this book. The KM stories provide great background for the mindset of what it is to train as a Kravist.

Basically this is not a bad book,it contains the more advanced fighting methods found in krav maga.It has more defenses against puncnes and kicks and goes into ground fighting which is now the rage in much greater detail then previously published krav magna books.It also has a section on self defense with techniques for womens situations in self defense.The reason for giving it only 3 stars is many self defense techniques are explained in word passages only instead of with pictures.When dealing with advanced techniques this isn"t sufficent as it too often leaves you guessing on what the author is saying. A picture is worth a thousand words is the old saying and this certainly proves true here.With addded pictures this book could have been a 5 star book

I must confess that I had been anxiously awaiting the release of this book ever since I found out that it was coming out a few months ago. Needless to say, I was able to purchase it on its release date and have been reading through it ever since.

Now I really enjoyed David Kahn's first book Krav Maga: An Essential Guide to the Renowned Method--for Fitness and Self-Defense even though there were a couple of things I wish had been done better in that particular book.

Unfortunately, those things that I wish had been done better in his first book are the exact same ones that I wish had been done better in this one. Primarily the lack of using actual photographs in the book and instead relying on basically exaggerated stick drawings to help demonstrate the techniques that Mr. Kahn explains so well in the accompanying text. I know for a fact that this is the fault of the publisher as I had the good fortune to speak with Mr. Kahn on the phone several weeks before the release of this book and that had also been a concern of his as well.

However, since this is an ADVANCED book and should only be used by those that already have a very firm base of knowledge in Krav Maga, this shouldn't be any more than a minor annoyance and only slightly detracts from the book only in sections where they are used. Other than that, this book is outstanding!

Allow me to explain.

This book builds upon the information provided in his first book Krav Maga: An Essential Guide to the Renowned Method--for Fitness and Self-Defense and therefore should only be used after studying his first book until you have the information provided in it down pat, or if you are already an intermediate or advanced Krav Maga practitioner.

This book starts out explaining some very important principles of Krav Maga and how, if studied and used correctly, can improve your abilities exponentially. One principle in particular that I am particularly fond of it called retzev, which basically means continuous motion in combat. Similar to something I was taught in my early years of training when my instructors admonished me to hit my opponent; hard, fast, continuously, and aggressively. Although only when in dire straits of course.

There are quite a few Krav Maga stories in this book relating a lot of real world experiences that several different practitioners had gone through over the years. Now some may find this distracting or worse yet unimportant, but they would be wrong and sorely missing there importance. Often time's people tend to merely read the actual words rather than reading between the lines and behind them to discover greater insight and meaning. Please don't make that mistake with this book as you would really be missing a lot of valuable information.

The next few chapters go over a variety of defenses against several different types of attacks ranging from punches and kicks, to knee strikes and elbows. The author does a very good job describing the techniques to be used and how to use them for the most part, although there were a couple of them that I would like to have seen explained in a little bit more detail.

The next chapter goes over some defenses that can be used if your attacker grabs a hold of you and attempts to take you to the ground. Although not quite as detailed as I had hoped, this is still a pretty well done section, although the lack of photographs is a minor annoyance and had they been included, it would really have improved this book considerably. The book then continues on with quite a large section on ground work; fighting and defending oneself when on the ground against an attacker.

The following chapter goes into quite a bit of detail on self-defense for women (probably why that chapter was entitled, "Women's Self-Defense Principles." Obviously this particular chapter wasn't my primary reason for buying this book, but it is well done and had a lot of good information in it.

The final chapter was a Krav Maga training plan which some may find helpful, but for me I really didn't see much in it that I haven't already seen. It mainly consists of various training routines that you can do to get in shape and practice your Krav Maga skills at the same time. It isn't a bad section by any means, and I am sure that most of the readers will find it useful, but for me personally I didn't really find much benefit from it.

In closing I would like to reiterate that this is a great book to own IF YOU ALREADY HAVE A SOLID BACKGROUND IN KRAV MAGA, if you don't, then you need to either get Mr. Kahn's first book Krav Maga: An Essential Guide to the Renowned Method--for Fitness and Self-Defense or better yet, find a Krav Maga school near you and start taking classes. You won't regret it!

Shawn Kovacich

Martial Artist/Creator of numerous books and DVD's.

As a practitioner of the martial arts since 1970, and a sensei, I am totally impressed with David Kahn's books on Krav Maga. Although it is not his own system but a system designed by Imi Lichtenfeld for the Israeli defense forces, Kahn writes about KM with complete respect for the system, and even more for those of us who will practice it. Traditional martial arts has been slipping into sport, and the original self defense and combat techniques are often lost as a result. All of the techniques in KM are to be found in traditional martial arts, but in the martial arts, one often has to look deep and long to find them. Krav Maga - a no nonsense readily effective often deadly approach that anyone and everyone can learn without ritual - strips away the superficial and stylistic barriers and gets to the often "hidden" techniques, right to the heart of the matter. It has to because so many lives depend on it. In his books, Kahn clearly outlines this system so that KM is accessible and fully attainable to anyone who desires to become a practitioner. KM is becoming a martial art in its own right as it is flexible and therefore, incorporates techniques from other martial arts as long as they are immediately useable and effective. If not, they are disgarded, as they should be. As a student of traditional combative art (not sport,) I find David's work to be not only relevant in an unfortunately dangerous world, but "real" comprehensive guides that can immediately help assuage fear, as knowledge can lead to self confidence and self confidence leads to... less fear. These books accomplish what they set out to, and we are much better off for having them. Bravo!

I've previously reviewed Kahn's earlier book, Krav Maga. Everything I said there applies here. This book does not repeat the information about mindset and training methods which are found in Kahn's earlier book; such repetition would be redundant. Hence , there is more space devoted to techniques; but even when talking about technique, Kahn's writing is conversational and readable. The reasons why things are done are given as well as how they are done. As with the earlier book the illustrations are very nicely focused drawings which, as I said in the earlier review, I prefer to photographs when the intent is to illustrate a process. Also as in the earlier book, there is a nicely thought out training plan. All in all, an excellent achievement.

Have studied other disciplines and came across David's first book which I thought was excellent and clearly written. I've just finished Advanced Krav Maga and thought it was equally informative. The techniques and language is very clear and concise and I would definitely recommend it. Looking forward to some DVD instructionals from Mr. Kahn.

Very good instruction but needs more pictures. I'm just getting back into the martial arts at the tender age of 61. Darren Levine's series of books & DVD's are about perfect. Would recommend both authors highly.

david kahn did it again. another very good book on krav maga. i dont look on what "krav maga association or organization" a practitioner or expert involved with. i look for an credible author who can share his knowledge easily and more practical. and that is who david kahn is. a 5 star rating was given for a very good kravist. hoping for another more advance book

David Kahn is the real thing. He is a great teacher and a fighter. I have trained with him in Israel. He doesn't self promote so you would never know that he has been to Israel 30 times to train. You would never know that he is one of the leading authorities in the Krav Maga industry. David is my friend and he is a good person. I know many of his students who all love him. He has a big following but no flashy claims or advertising. What you see is what you get. He is a trained writer and he was educated at Princeton so he writes a good book. Many in the Krav Maga industry use his books as reference. You won't be disappointed.