by N. Mashiro
Remember, when he has you by the throat it isn't a question of being humiliated or relieved of your credit cards. It's your life, your future years, which are on the line. Those future years will depend on your decisiveness, courage, and speed.
ATTACK *10
The attacker tries to choke you from in front, using both hands to squeeze your throat. He may place his thumbs on your trachea, or on the arteries beneath the corners of your jaw, or he may just squeeze in an unsophisticated manner.
If he crushes the trachea, which isn't difficult, you will strangle to death very unpleasantly as the windpipe swells shut, even if he releases you immediately. A few seconds of pressure on the carotid arteries will render you unconscious and helpless; a few minutes will leave you dead or brain damaged. The untutored squeezer may not manage to accomplish either of these objectives, but his grip will be terribly painful.
I suggest that you avoid using your thumbs on your practice partner's neck while trying these moves. It is too easy to make mistakes. Just clasp him around the neck with your palms and fingers, keeping your thumbs free.
BASIC DEFENSE #10
By far the best immediate defense against a front choke is the forearm wedge. Of course a finger in the eye or a good swift kick aren't bad responses either, but the wedge works well, is very fast, and gives you the option of escape without injuring the opponent if he happens to be your brother-in-law the jerk.
The forearm wedge consists of clasping your hands (palms together) and spreading your elbows slightly to form a triangular wedge of your forearms. Start with your hands at about waist level and then drive your arms up between his forearms with great speed and force. Pretend to yourself that you're trying to strike an invisible target in the arc over your head. On the way the wedge formed by your forearms will lift and separate the attacker's hands away from your neck.
This technique is a favorite of mine for three reasons. First, it is a brute force move with no need for fancy timing. Anybody can learn to do it in minutes. Second, the rising wedge derives its power from the muscles of your back and shoulders (not your arms), which makes the motion fairly powerful even when performed by a 105-pound stewardess. Third, the forearm wedge takes advantage of your natural tendency to arch your back and pull away from a choke. I have found that the really successful self-defense techniques usually build on the student's first instinctive reaction to the attack. This one is a good example.
COUNTERATTACKS FOR SITUATION #10
10-1: Drive this wedge violently up between his forearms to tear his hands off your neck, then slam your clenched hands down into his face. This is the standard recommended technique in most of the military manuals and self-defense books, but in practice I have found it to be a little difficult to perform. Usually the opponent's face is just slightly out of reach, which forces you to lean forward awkwardly to deliver the blow. This robs the blow of its power.
I feel that the downward blow is best used when the opponent is pushing you backwards against a wall while he chokes you. In this case suddenly tearing his hands loose from your neck makes him lunge forward-directly into the path of your descending blow. If you can, use a hammer-fist blow (or its equivalent) against the bridge of his nose, and be satisfied if you can just rake your knuckles forcefully across his eyes, nose, and lips. A palm-heel strike up under his chin might be a good way to follow up. (See Figure 18.)
10-2: Here's one for the wrestlers among us. Use the forearm wedge as before, but separate your arms at the top of their rise, swing them out sideways and then back in to strike his lower ribs on each side. This is a simultaneous double hammer-fist attack. For extra power, strike downward at a 45-degree angle as if trying to bring your fists together at the level of his belt buckle. Finish by driving your shoulder into his abdomen as you encircle his thighs with your arms and pull up, throwing him on his back.
This technique has always seemed a little crude to me, since it depends on a wrestler's kind of strength and aggressiveness. This opens the question of who in his right mind would try to choke such a person, but then maybe the attacker isn't in his right mind. The key point to remember here is to avoid the tendency to bring the fists in horizontally toward his lower ribs. This weakens the blow. By angling the fists more downward as they hit the ribs you can add a lot more force to the attack.
10-3: This technique is one I learned from watching Bill Cosby do it on "I Spy" many years ago. It probably ought to remain in reserve for TV episodes where it would always work, but it is kind of fun and I'll pass it along to you.
Break the choke hold with the forearm wedge. At the same time take a slight step forward. When your hands reach the top of their rise, separate them, swing them out and down, and then bring them together again at waist level. Performed correctly, this technique traps the opponent's wrists under your armpits. Now perform another forearm wedge ... and dislocate both of his elbows at the same time!
Figure 18: The forearm wedge is a natural motion with a good chance of success against a front choke. The follow-up blow to the face, however, works best when the attacker is pushing you against a wall or fence as shown here. He falls forward into the blow.
10-4: Perform the basic defense as before. When you have knocked his hands free of your neck, reach out and grab his hipbones, then pull his pelvis toward you to meet your rapidly rising knee. Actually, this one will work just as well without the basic defense. When he grabs your neck, grab his hips and knee him hard in the genitals. He'll let go of your neck, do not doubt it.
10-5: Now for a simple throw. For some reason selfdefense students (and their relatives) expect that the class will involve throwing people on the ground with boneshattering results. I try to give them a little of what they expect now and then to keep them happy.
The first thing to understand about throws is that they require no strength. For novices this is very difficult to accept, but a properly timed, well-executed throw requires as little strength as punching someone backwards off a log. The principle is very much the same. All you do is set him up so he is tottering on the edge of an abyss, then you nudge him over. Of course, if the throw isn't timed right or the attempt is clumsy, strength begins to count a lot. In that case, the stronger you are the more likely it is that you will be able to salvage the situation and complete the throw, after a fashion.
Use the forearm wedge to break his hold. Bring your left hand down and grasp his right wrist. Step in toward him with your right foot, put your weight on it, and begin a continuing pivot to your left. As you turn catch his neck in the fold of your right elbow. Continue the pivot until your back is toward your opponent. It will work best if you squat down slightly so that your hips are lower than his.
This is the tricky part. Use your hold on his neck and arm to pull his shoulders horizontally around to your left, straightening your legs at the same time. Don't try to pull him forward or down. As you pull his head across your body and around to your left, his body will rock up and balance on your hip or lower back. When you practice this move experiment a little and search for this teeter-totter position. Once you have achieved this critical balance, only a slight additional pull will drop him on the ground in front of you. You see? Like falling off a log.
10-6: Here's another throw, which is far more subtle. Break the choke hold as before, then bring your hands down and grasp the opponent's shoulders or upper arms. Snap your right knee up into his groin to get his attention. (Actually the idea is to distract his attention.) Now shift the position of your right leg to put the knee against his left inguinal fold (the crease between his left upper thigh and his groin), while you slip your right heel around to the left spot behind his right knee. Once in position, it is a simple matter to spin him down to the ground by pushing with your knee, pulling with your heel and twisting his shoulders around to your left. (Pull with your left hand as you push with your right.) (See Figure 19.)
This trick sounds really esoteric until you try it and see for yourself how well it works.
The hard part is getting into position. After that it's all downhill.
ATTACK # 11
The two-handed front choke, just as in attack #10. It is the defense which differs.
BASIC DEFENSE # 11
There is another basic defense for the front choke which works almost as well as the forearm wedge.
Clasp your hands over your head. In one forceful motion, step back with your left foot and twist your body to the left, catching his wrists under your right armpit. For additional power bow slightly from the waist as you twist. This motion rips his hands free of your neck or at least makes it very difficult for him to continue to throttle you.
This basic defense leaves you in a highly contorted, lefttwisted stance at the moment your neck becomes free. Counterattacks from this position tend to take advantage of the coil-recoil effect by using the body's natural tendency to whip back to the right from this position.
Figure 19: The inguinal fold throw is a specialty item best suited to relatively friendly scuffles ... as you'll notice by the short distance from the opponent's knee to the defender's crotch.
Figure 20: One excellent release from a front choke is to raise your right arm and twist violently to the left. Then, if you prefer, you can go on to a painful wristlock.
COUNTERATTACKS FOR SITUATION #I I
11-1: Perform the basic defense as described above. If the attacker has been pulled off balance toward you (which can easily happen) snap your torso back to the right and catch him in the face with the back of your right elbow. This can be an extremely powerful blow, equivalent to striking him with a club.
11-2: The next technique incorporates a wristlock. Wristlocks are extremely useful little techniques which allow a small, unmuscular person to control and subdue a much larger assailant. This ability is usually of the greatest interest to police officers, but occasionally the rest of us discover a need to immobilize someone without breaking his leg or knocking him out. Wristlocks are the key to this kind of control.
Use the basic defense to free your throat, but make an effort to trap his wrists by clamping them under your right arm as you turn. To perform this technique you need to keep at least a minimum amount of control over his hands during the twisting stage. At the completion of the leftward twist, when your neck is free, take his right hand in your hands.
Pay close attention because this works only one way. Your right hand should grasp the little-finger side of the attacker's palm. Your fingers will be in his palm and your thumb will be on the back of his hand near the knuckle of his middle finger. Your left hand grasps the thumb side of his hand, with your fingers in his palm and your thumb on the back of his hand near the knuckle of his middle finger. (Some military manuals show the thumbs crossed in an "X" but this is not necessary.)
Now you have him. Keeping your hands in close to your chest, twist your body back around to the right until you are facing him again. Keep his hand turned so that his finger tips point up. To apply pressure against his wrist joint, simply pull his arm toward you with your fingers while pressing the other way with your thumbs. The pain is very sharp and impossible to ignore. By applying pain with the wristlock and simultaneously twisting his hand to your right, you can make him bend over at the waist and beg for mercy. If you feel no such emotion, a swift kick in the teeth will take the fight out of him. (See Figure 20.)
Figure 21: Another response to the front choke is to break the hold as in Figure 20, and then use the wristlock to set up this very brutal takedown. Once you have captured the opponent's arm (third photo) all you have to do is lean back and throw your feet out to drive his head into the bricks.
11-3: If the finesse of a wristlock seems a little feminine to you, here's a good, crude, brute-force variation which the male macho types can sink their teeth into. Twist free and grab his right hand as described in the previous technique. Turn back to your right, twisting his arm to keep his finger tips pointing up. This will result in rotating the back of his elbow upward, too.
Let go with your left hand, retaining your grip with your right hand. Pivot to the right on your right foot and catch his captured arm under your left armpit. Try to catch his arm just below the shoulder. Put your left hand under his wrist, maintaining your grip with your right hand.
At this point you can exert pressure against his wrist by pulling with your right hand. You can put painful pressure on his elbow joint by levering upward on his wrist with your left hand (the right hand helps, too). But most people prefer the final option. Lever up on his wrist with both hands as you throw your feet out from under you and let your entire weight hang on his upper arm. (The motion is like sitting down on the ground very suddenly.) Unless your opponent has superhuman strength and resistance to pain, he'll crash headfirst to the pavement. He'll think he was hit by a passing truck just as he was about to choke the life out of you. (See Figure 21.)
11-4: A very simple counterattack which derives from basic defense # 11 consists of breaking the hold by spinning to the left (as always), but then you continue the spin and perform a complete 360-degree turn. As you are coming around stick out your left elbow and hit him in the face or ribs, as appropriate. A hammer-fist attack can also be of use here under some circumstances.
ATTACK # 12
The two-handed front choke, just as before.
BASIC DEFENSE #12
There is one more choke escape which I want to tell you about because it is very elegant-and it also works quite well. It appeals to nonviolent types more than to the machos, but then again, "self-defense isn't just for jocks anymore."
The attacker has both hands on your neck choking you. Place your hands together in front of your chest in an attitude of prayer. Raise your hands to a point between his wrists. Bow forward slightly and place your chin between the tips of your fingers. As you continue to bow forward, slide your hands up along either side of the edge of your jaw, under your ears, until they meet again behind your neck. Bow low, turn to one side, and step away. You're free. (See Figure 22.)
I really ought to point out to inexperienced readers that you are very vulnerable to a knee in the face during the bow, so make it fast if you can. You can't bow faster than he can kick, but you can bow faster than he can think of kicking, which is just as good.
I offer no counterattacks to go with this escape, because it just wouldn't be in keeping with the humble spirit of the technique. One simply bows in deep respect and steps away. Of course one simultaneously makes the attacker look like a total fool, but there is no need to be arrogant about it, is there?
ATTACK # 13
At this point we shift from front chokes to lapel grips. A lapel grip is that classic TV confrontation where the bad guy grabs you by the shirt front and snarls, "Smile when you say that." Okay, now you can smile and simultaneously make him wish he had never laid eyes on you.
BASIC DEFENSE #13
The following two counterattacks serve as their own basic defenses, but both require that you keep your cool and stay on guard to parry that ominous right fist the adversary is certainly shaking in your face. Also, when you see that he is reaching for your shirt, you must naturally and smoothly bring your hands up on either side of his wrist. If you do this as an immediate reaction he won't really notice it, but if you wait too long and then reach for his arm he'll know that something is up.
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Therefore, in this case your basic defense is simply to get your hands on the fist that is tearing your shirt.
COUNTERATTACKS FOR SITUATION #13
13-1: The attacker grasps your lapel with his left fist, thumb up, and threatens to punch you with his right fist. (You'll be able to feel the position of his fist with your hands. If the palm of his fist is facing up, not the thumb, use the next technique instead.)
Pass your left hand over the top of his fist, curling your fingers around the little-finger edge of his hand. Use your grip to
twist his fist to your left (counterclockwise) so that the back of his fist is uppermost. Clamp his fist securely against your chest with your left hand, forcing his wrist to bend enough to get the heel of his fist pressed tightly against your chest. Turning slightly to the left, raise your right elbow over the attacker's arm and then smash it down against the back of his forearm just behind the wrist.
The leverage of this motion is so extreme that you may be able to snap the bones of his arm like a pair of matchsticks. Note that there is a scissoring motion implied here. The back of your upper arm and the lateral edge of your chest form the blades of the scissors. As you bring your elbow down his arm gets "cut" between them.
A milder application of this hold will bend the forearm bones, which is just as painful as it sounds. He'll drop instantly on his knees to relieve the pressure. At that point you can casually snap your right fist out in a reverse hammer blow to the face. Of course, the really appropriate thing to do is to force him to kneel and then say, "On your knees, dog, when you speak to your betters." (See Figure 23.)
Figure 23: When someone threatens you by grabbing the front of your shirt you can trap his fist and snap the bones in his forearm quite handily. If he makes any threatening moves with that upraised fist do a hammer-fist attack to his face instead.