What is the Street Value of Your Martial Art?

The following was inspired by Phil Elmore's Article "Choose a Weapon, Not a Toy."

Watching martial artists perform acrobatic and complex techniques is awe inspiring. When I was a child I wanted to be Bruce Lee or any other number of actors on Saturday afternoon "Kung Fu Theater". These movies made the idea of mastering my body, spinning, jumping and defying the laws of gravity seemed possible. In the mid 1980's I would start my Asian martial arts career with Tae Kwon Do. I would spend hours on end practicing jump spinning kicks, split kicks and back kicks. A few years later we all caught the joint locking craze thanks to Steve Seagal. We would train in Aiki-jujutsu techniques until my wrists and grip would get so sore that I could barely hold the steering wheel on the ride home.

Later, I would be fortunate enough to discover the truth about defensive tactics. Those techniques and principles would evolve into the Self Defense Training System twenty years later.

Like most people, my early training and perceptions of the martial arts consisted of sport and Hollywood martial arts. All of those methods appeared to work when everyone involved was on the same page. Later I learned how to determine what should be used for self defense and what is best left in the dojo or octagon. Sometimes it can be tough be cause a lot of individual techniques seem to cross over. But is you use this simple criteria you will be able to determine the street value of your martial art.

What constitutes a trick or a tactic? What qualifies as a legitimate self defense technique? There are a few generalizations to determine if your training is sport, art or defense.

The maneuvers must feel natural.
When you're under adrenalin stress you only have control of your gross motor skills. You will not have the ability to perform techniques that involve using smaller joints like the fingers and the wrist. Since your blood flows from your extremities to bring oxygen to your major muscle groups and organs, the control you enjoy in the dojo is no longer there. Techniques that use larger type motions and only major joints are to be chosen over others. An example, an edge of hand blow would be MORE advantageous than a ridge hand or a single knuckle (ippon ken) fist because while the ridge hand and the single knuckle require you to contort the hand, the edge of hand remains in a close to natural position.

You must not feel awkward
Styles that force you to assume unnatural positions and deep stances for fighting situations will not hold up under real conflict. Life or death situations demand fast and decisive actions. The longer it takes you to move, the less valuable time you will have. Never choose style over utility. Sweeping motions and stylized movements of your favorite kung fu movie take way too long to pull off against a determined, fast moving attacker. Even your MMA techniques (though a lot more effective than your modern day martial art)will still train you to use "legal" and "safer" techniques. MMA, believe it or not, is designed for safety. As is boxing, wrestling, judo, etc. The point of the contest is not to kill or be killed. As a result, all of the methods that are considered lethal have been eliminated from your training. Not only have the individual techniques been eliminated, but all of the tactics used to secure those techniques, all the ways to open a man up to make him susceptible to those lethal methods are left out as well.

In the SDTS all of your training is geared to open your target up to the lethal techniques.


You must be capable of delivering repeated and unanswered punishment to your target
Techniques like punches, edge of hands, chin jabs and stomps can be delivered in rapid succession while techniques like back kicks, spinning kicks and other techniques that require time to execute are to be avoided. It's not that anyone ever got knocked to kingdom come with a back kick, its just that you can miss a lot more with a back kick and it can't be repeated as fast or as accurately as a front kick or a reverse punch. In the Self Defense Training System you are trained to keep your target off balance by constantly taking ground, moving forward and attacking him. With each strike you or causing damage to him and his balance. With each attack you will break him down bit by bit.

You must be able to deliver your attack without being injured
If you depend on pads, wraps or protection when you train then you will not be prepared to use those methods in the street. A busted hand is useless in a fight. You won't be able to strike, grip or fire a weapon. In The Self Defense Training System you prepare the surfaces you plan to fight with for the harsh reality of contact with bone, clothing and muscle. You will prepare both the weapons you attack with AND your vulnerable target areas for the punishment of a knock down, drag out fight. Anything less is tactically irresponsible.

Your techniques must be able to produce reliable, repeatable and predictable results
That jump spinning back crescent kick looks cool as hell but you can't hit your target with the desired effect 100% of the time. While a good old reverse punch is repeatable and a heck of a lot more accurate and reliable. Strangles that are trained to get your opponent to tap are a little different than the ones that are designed to asphyxiate him. You can't secure that joint lock 100% of the time, all the time on everybody but you can sure as hell knock 'em cold with an edge of hand. All of the core techniques in Module 1 of the Self Defense Training System
are repeatable and delivered the intended effect on the recipient 100% of the time.

Your attacks must cause more injury to your target than to you.
The guy who wins the fight is the the guy with the least amount of injury. Striking with an unconditioned fist to a skull or an elbow causing your fist to shatter is not what you would consider effective. Opting for the right type of conditioning or other, more durable parts like your edge of hand, heel of hand, elbows, forearms, knees to name a few are much more capable of causing more damage to your assailant than to you. It's obvious that if you do choose to use a closed fist in combat that you condition it properly. Unfortunately most people lack the time and the knowledge to do this correctly. In module 6 of the Self Defense Training System we show you step by step how to condition your ENTIRE body for combat.

Self defense is not a game. It does not look pretty. You will sustain some type of injury ranging from the minor to the extreme. Get over it. What you don't want to do is die trying something stupid and useless. When you sacrifice utility for style you will fail. Self defense is not about style, it's all about results. I don't care if you use a brick, your fist or your car. Remember, it's not a matter of who's right, only who's left.

Train Honestly,
Damian Ross, CEO The Self Defense Company


Damian Ross is CEO of the Self Defense Company and developer of The Self Defense Training System, the most lethal and effective self defense system in the world, The Guardian Defensive Tactics Police Combatives Program, 60 minute Self Defense and the Family Safe Program. Mr. Ross also founded the Self Defense Instructor Program that helps people develop their self defense careers from the ground up. Mr. Ross is originally from Ridgewood, NJ where he was a High School Hall of Fame Athlete in football and wrestling as well as a varsity wrestling coach. He then went on to Lehigh University where he was a varsity wrestler and football player. Mr. Ross has 3 black belts, 4th Degree in Tekkenryu Jujutsu, 2nd Degree in Judo, 2nd Degree in Tae Kwon Do. In addition to his martial arts experience, Mr; Ross spent 8 years in the professional security and personal protection business. He is internationally recognized as one of the foremost authorities in reality based self defense.

Sacrifice

Sacrifice is the surrender or destruction of something of lesser value for something of greater value. It's giving up what feels good right now for something that will yield greater rewards down the road. Olympian Jeff Blatnick said that every athlete has a choice between the pain of sacrifice or the sting of regret. This isn't every athlete's choice, this is every person's choice. you are forced to make the choice between the pain of sacrifice or the sting o.f regret. Unfortunately you're getting stung.

Most people think they sacrifice, when in fact they do not. They confuse sacrifice with obligation and duty. You think you sacrifice because you go to work or school everyday. The fact is you have to go to work or else you wouldn't have the means for food and shelter. Sacrifice comes from beyond your normal, everyday routine. Sacrifice involves something extraordinary. Like the saying goes, if it were easy everyone would do it.

Sacrifice is ALWAYS simple but NEVER easy. When I was in college my wrestling coach Thad Turner said, "Rossi (he put an "i" on the end of my name because he knew I was Italian), Rossi, you don't have to be a great athlete to be in shape, you just have to do it." This was after I came in after 8 weeks off a little to big for my weight class.

He was right. Being in shape only requires one thing: SACRIFICE. Seriously, if you just went out and ran or walked 5 to 10 miles a day you would be in far better shape than if I didn't. Sure there are better and more scientific ways to get into shape, but you don't need a PhD.

The same can be said for Self Defense. All you need to do is sacrifice some time in front of the TV or at the bar. Sacrifice something that you know will not be missed.

The trick is just to schedule it in your day. At this time I have 45 minutes of the Self Defense Training System. Then I can go do whatever else I need to do. Mark my words in a few weeks you will dread missing your work outs. Plus, after you master the SDTS you can replace it with whatever physical training you should be doing. If you miss a day...no BIG DEAL. I miss days all the time. Just don't miss two or three in a row. Then you have an issue. Schedule at least 1 to 2 days off per week as well and take 1 week every 8 to 12 weeks OFF.

After a while something else incredible starts to happen; you begin to enjoy the down time. The time with the family is more pleasurable, the night out with friends is that much more fun. Those times you took for granted are what they should be: ENJOYABLE and something to look forward to. Something also happens to you...you're in a better mood and people actually like being around you more.

Life is about the sweet and the sour. You can't appreciate one without the other. How would you know what sweet tasted like without sour to compare it to? Making weight (the act of dieting in order to be a specific body weight for a competition)is a fantastic example. Nothing makes you appreciate food beyond the scope of normal comprehension than restricting your diet to that of a super model and increasing your exercise to that of a Spartan.

Have you ever seen and in season wrestler eat just one M&M? The rest of the world would pop 'em in their mouths without a second thought. As for me I knew this was M&Ms were few and far between...especially peanut! Bet your last dime I made the puppy last for 15 minutes. I'd hold it, stare at it, examine it, "Hey, looks like they missed part of the "M"". Then I would take it in my mouth and hold it there. I wanted to make sure I could taste all the hard shell candy goodness the good folks at M&M Mars had to offer. Then before the candy shell melted away, right about the time it still had it's last bit of crunch, I'd gently bite down and pierce the soft chocolate center and dislocate the peanut into two halves. Slowly I would chew until only the bitter sweet after taste of candy, chocolate and peanut remained. No water will touch these lips for an hour.

Yes, sacrifice makes you appreciate the things most people take for granted. After EVERY work out. The colors seem brighter, the air smells crisper and you have just a little more tolerance than before. Sacrifice is what makes life worth living. Nothing worth anything comes without sacrifice. Love and happiness are to be won and earned not given.

Regret on the other hand is a cold-hearted son of a bitch. Regret reminds you of all things lost, It makes you bitter and angry. Regret turns your soul black. Regret reminds us the end is soon approaching, regret is death. Regret can kiss my ass.

Regret and fear go hand in hand. Fear is regret's best friend. Fear is the tool regret uses to keep you in your place. It tells you you're too old, too fat and too slow. It tells you you will be a failure and look ridiculous. Fear is a douche bag. Fuck fear. I make fear my bitch. Fear pays me $2 to cut my lawn.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not about to go out and do something that will get me killed or injured for the sake of giving fear the finger. Sacrificing your life for something where the end result isn't worth the risk is flat out stupid. Bungee jumping for example. In theory it looks like a lot of fun. In reality some guy who obviously smokes a lot of pot is going to guess my weight and push me off of a bridge...sorry, don't think so.


Train Honestly,
Damian Ross, CEO The Self Defense Company


Damian Ross is CEO of the Self Defense Company and developer of The Self Defense Training System, the most lethal and effective self defense system in the world, The Guardian Defensive Tactics Police Combatives Program, 60 minute Self Defense and the Family Safe Program. Mr. Ross also founded the Self Defense Instructor Program that helps people develop their self defense careers from the ground up. Mr. Ross is originally from Ridgewood, NJ where he was a High School Hall of Fame Athlete in football and wrestling as well as a varsity wrestling coach. He then went on to Lehigh University where he was a varsity wrestler and football player. Mr. Ross has 3 black belts, 4th Degree in Tekkenryu Jujutsu, 2nd Degree in Judo, 2nd Degree in Tae Kwon Do. In addition to his martial arts experience, Mr; Ross spent 8 years in the professional security and personal protection business. He is internationally recognized as one of the foremost authorities in reality based self defense.

Shoot to Kill

"Shoot to kill". You will hear this phrase hundreds of times when learning tactical firearms. Police, Soldiers and civilians are taught to "shoot to kill."

The reasons for this are simple. You are trained to shoot at center mass because you have the greatest chance of hitting your target and more important, stopping your target. This is a decision that has to be made in seconds and you don't have a lot of time to save your life or the life of someone else.

Shooting to injure lowers your chances of stopping that threat dramatically. Trying to aim at the leg of someone attacking you and probably running at you at the same time would cost you your life. If deadly force is required then you want to end the situation as quickly as possible with minimal loss of life and injury. The only time you will be shooting is if you feel deadly force is required.

Also, if you did shoot and injure them they still can attack can still attack and kill you and others. There are many accounts on youtube where a subject has been hit several times and still kept attacking.

The key here is when you decide to defend yourself, you must attack in such a manner to end the conflict as quickly as possible to avoid injury to yourself. This is the same way you must approach all self defense. Especially hand to hand and close combat where the risk of injury is even GREATER.

The only logical and practical solution is to adopt the "shoot to kill" attitude which means to do what is ever necessary to stop the threat as fast as possible with minimal injury to you or others. When you attempt anything less you leave yourself extremely vulnerable. One reason you don't see wrist locks and pressure points in the UFC is because they don't work against a non-compliant subject. In the real when you attempt those tricks it will do two things: 1. Signal to the target that you have some training and let him know you're trying to hurt him and 2. Give him the opportunity to do something more vicious and violent.

Honestly, I don't know a real martial artist who in the real world would ever take such a risk as to not end the fight as fast as possible. The only conceivable reason anyone would ever want to do this is because they don't want to hurt another human being. After almost 30 years I have heard every conceivable argument on the planet from the moral to the religious. And while my good nature wants me to agree with you, the practical SOB knows better. I know the idea of hurting another human being is unappealing. I agree. I'm not a sociopath, but I dislike the idea of being hurt or injured a lot more than I do the welfare of anyone who decides to cause me or my loved ones bodily harm.

Moral decisions are made BEFORE you act. Just like the "shoot to kill" policy, don't engage in any use of force unless you feel you're life is threatened and you STOP when you feel the threat is no longer an issue.

I get criticized for being too violent? OK, all I say is that do whatever it takes with the methods that have been proven to have highest percentage of success and stop when you feel you are safe. These are the same people who after they demonstrate a self defense technique will stomp on a downed target's head. I'm too violent?!?!

I will never tell you WHEN to fight, only HOW to fight. The only way people survive is when they are willing to do whatever it takes to survive. DON'T think about hurting another person, concentrate on doing whatever is needed to get home safely. This is at the core of The Self Defense Training System. This is the driving force of The Self Defense Company.


Train Honestly,
Damian Ross, CEO The Self Defense Company


Damian Ross is CEO of the Self Defense Company and developer of The Self Defense Training System, the most lethal and effective self defense system in the world, The Guardian Defensive Tactics Police Combatives Program, 60 minute Self Defense and the Family Safe Program. Mr. Ross also founded the Self Defense Instructor Program that helps people develop their self defense careers from the ground up. Mr. Ross is originally from Ridgewood, NJ where he was a High School Hall of Fame Athlete in football and wrestling as well as a varsity wrestling coach. He then went on to Lehigh University where he was a varsity wrestler and football player. Mr. Ross has 3 black belts, 4th Degree in Tekkenryu Jujutsu, 2nd Degree in Judo, 2nd Degree in Tae Kwon Do. In addition to his martial arts experience, Mr; Ross spent 8 years in the professional security and personal protection business. He is internationally recognized as one of the foremost authorities in reality based self defense.

Number 1 on GOOGLE "TOP OF THE WORLD MOM!"

Today while on the phone with my web (evil) genius Matt McKernan from Mosaic Interactive, I couldn't believe my eyes, after four years and countless hours The Self Defense Training System is ranked number two on google (behind wikipedia!). This is a banner day for The Self Defense Company. This is one of those moments that snaps you back to a pivotal time in your life.

October 2007 I had someone else handling the marketing and distribution of my products. To tell you the truth, I felt our business relationship as well as our "friendship" had run it's course a few months earlier. But, I figured that I'm not going to be best friends with everyone I'm in business with so as long as we're making money, no problem.

Personally, things couldn't have been better. I was making a ton of cash, training and teaching everyday. We just purchased our dream home in the town where my wife grew up. I was rubbing elbows with celebrities, professional athletes, rap stars, successful entrepreneurs, doctors, lawyers and masters of finance. Life was good but I felt something wasn't right, so I started squirreling away some extra money to set up a new business just in case things went wrong.

Then it hit. First my "friend" and business partner offered me pennies on the dollar for my talent and expertise. After consulting with my attorney and long time real friend who told me "Dude, if you sign this deal I'm never talking to you again" the ride was over and just like that I went from making a lot to making very little and I only had enough cash to literally last me 6 months!

After that dream house GONE, new lifestyle GONE, Mercedes GL450...GONE. It's funny, the Mercedes was the first real "splurge" item I purchased. What was once a source of pride was now a symbol of things I might not have.

It was as if the world turned on me and my wife. People who I thought were friends started posting slander on forums. That business partner had a fire sale on my product without my permission (oh yes, we are in active litigation). My reputation was dragged through the slime and the years and years of doing the right thing, training, sacrificing, blood, broken bones, late nights and double shifts shattered by a few measly posts by people with their own agendas. The world didn't want the truth, just the gossip.

I remember staying up late nights wondering what I was going to do. How the hell was I going to pull this off. I didn't sleep, if it wasn't for Pete and Roger handling the teaching load, the Training Center would have closed.

Listen to me and listen good. When times are good, everyone is your friend. When times are tough, you discover who your real friends are but when you're truly proverbially and literally fucked, you're on your own...unless you've made the wise choice of choosing the right partner. Marrying my wife was the hands down 100% best decision I have EVER made. The only thing she ever wanted from me was my time. It also helps that she's REALLY hot.

That was only temporary. The cream always rises to the top and the truth is revealed in time. Now, all of those people are gone and what remains is the truth. Listen, I don't care what you say, when people post stuff about you...you get pissed. In some cases I was blocked from forums and I couldn't defend myself. I quickly learned not to care. The right people will find you, no matter what.

In the end, it's all just "stuff". No big deal, they are just things, the real issue was providing for my family, putting food on the table, health care and education. It was tough. But thanks to my friends Pete and Roger (whom you meet on the Self Defense Training System) and Will and Ian whom you meet on 60 minute Self Defense, I would have been sunk.

I want to acknowledge the Self Defense Company Instructor Corp and especially Mike Archangel. They provided inspiration and support to keep moving forward and gave us some influx of capitol to continue to live while my wife and I built the company. They served as the inspiration to provide the best possible product and the Instructor Program will always be a priority.

The Self Defense Company was launched by my wife and me in 4 weeks. One month was all it took from concept to launch. We spent 12 to 14 hours a day in front of the computer building sites, writing copy and creating a brand and a business. I spent thousands of hours writing and filming the Self Defense Training System. Some of those scenes in the modules were shot in the middle of the night after a full day of filming.

NOTE: Before you go run off and launch your site, the Self Defense Company is the culmination of literally hundreds of years of technical expertise and a decade of successful marking and distribution experience. I say this to "keep it real". If you want to be successful in any business you better have a good product and know someone who knows how to launch a product...and some money. Nothing worth anything is free but, money should never get in your way. But a word of caution, not everyone is meant to be rich beyond their wildest dreams (people who promise that should be thrown in jail) BUT...EVERYONE CAN BE HAPPY BEYOND ALL EXPECTATIONS.

Providing a product like no other was and is the most important aspect of the Self Defense Company. When producing The Self Defense Training System, the cornerstone of the Self Defense Company, we spared no expense. We brought in a top notch sound and camera crew and had post production that rivaled some movies.

At the same time I had to get the SDTS out and I needed to generate income. Failure was not and option. We would film three modules over the course of several days and in a few months, film a few more. It was crazy. I didn't have time to be sick (though in modules 1 through 3 I'm running a fever).

During this critical time my wife and I met Matt. I had been marketing online since 2003 and I could separate the "shit from the shinola". You could throw a rock on the web and hit some one who would promise you first page on google and a ton of traffic. NOTE: they first page on google are for keywords no one searches and the traffic is from people you don't want.

Ironically, Matt and I were in the similar positions. He quit his job and was working out of his house wondering how he was going to make ends meet. Do you remember 2007 and 2008? It was the lowest of the low. The economy had hit rock bottom and NO ONE HAD ANY MONEY. It seemed like every other month, Matt and I would be on the phone consoling one another. One month I would do well and he would do lousy, the other month vice-verse. It wasn't until 2009 that we started seeing any light. Now Matt an office and a full time staff of 12 people.

From the beginning Matt told my wife and I realistically what it was going to take to be on the first page for our key words: a well constructed site, a lot of work, time and a decent product. Let's put it this way, if you're not who you say you are Google is not going to let you hang around.

I remember my wife and I sitting in front of our computers throwing key words at google and drilling down to see where the SDTS site was ranked. Each week we climbed up, then we would get booted back. Sometimes we would hit page one and then a few hours later BAM, back to obscurity. It was painful! Not once, but twice we had to prove the we could claim the title of "Most Lethal Self Defense System in the World". We also had to provide verification of our testimonials. It was a long row to ho, but we did it, not because we wanted to, but because we had to.

There is something liberating about burning the bridge behind you. Once you make that decision and commit with every fiber in your body, the lack of options is quite invigorating. It forces you to put all your energy into one task and one task only. The way I approach defensive tactics is the same way I approach life. Make a decision, commit and adapt along the way.

Reaching this coveted spot on Google brings me right back to those extremely difficult times that I would not like to revisit...EVER and I'm not going to. Through the SDC Instructor Program, we're helping others do the same.

The one thing to take away from this is times get bad for a reason. I think the saying "things happen for a reason" is one of the most annoying things someone can say to another person in a time of grief. It's also annoying because it's true.

The universe is a funny thing. It will tell you exactly what you need to know you what you need to do, you just need to pay attention to it. The harder it gets, the more difficult the times, the more the universe is shouting at you to pay attention.

Everything and everybody are connected. It's the way of the world. If you introduce a drug into your body, it has side effects. If you introduce a new species of fish into an ecosystem, it has ramifications. This is the way the world works. It will allow you to find your place in it is you let it. Most times we waste too many times trying to force our place in it because we think we ought to be someone or something. Miller's Death of a Salesman is a great example of this.

Take my life for example:
When I was a senior in High School I blew out my need a decided NOT to go to Annapolis and was no longer recruited by major athletic programs. If I hadn't blown out my knee, who knows what would have happened. I might not have met my wife or even discovered the SDTS Training.

My Custom Motorcycle Shop failed. But it showed me how to set up a business and it was where I started teaching people the SDTS.

I opened a dojo, which lead to an online business.

My father died and father in law died exactly one year apart. This told me while it was their time to go, it was my time to step up.

I had a falling out with a business partner and thought I lost everything, which was only the universe telling me that I shouldn't be with that person and to build something far better and honest.

Today, Number 1 on google is cool, but it symbolizes more than that. It's justification, it's validation and it's proof that what I believed deep down is true. Sure, we could be booted to obscurity tomorrow, but for right now, we're number 1.

Train Honestly,
Damian Ross, CEO The Self Defense Company


Damian Ross is CEO of the Self Defense Company and developer of The Self Defense Training System, the most lethal and effective self defense system in the world, The Guardian Defensive Tactics Police Combatives Program, 60 minute Self Defense and the Family Safe Program. Mr. Ross also founded the Self Defense Instructor Program that helps people develop their self defense careers from the ground up. Mr. Ross is originally from Ridgewood, NJ where he was a High School Hall of Fame Athlete in football and wrestling as well as a varsity wrestling coach. He then went on to Lehigh University where he was a varsity wrestler and football player. Mr. Ross has 3 black belts, 4th Degree in Tekkenryu Jujutsu, 2nd Degree in Judo, 2nd Degree in Tae Kwon Do. In addition to his martial arts experience, Mr; Ross spent 8 years in the professional security and personal protection business. He is internationally recognized as one of the foremost authorities in reality based self defense.