How to protect yourself against the deadly Knock Out Game

New "Knock Out Game" by Teens Kills People at Random Media Suggests the Wrong Self Defense Solution - we give you the right one. Damian Ross, The Self Defense Company There's a new game kids are playing it's called "Knock Out". How it works: a g...

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The Hardest Thing About Self Defense

The Hardest Thing About Self Defense - When Should You Fight Back? Damian Ross, The Self Defense Company Real self defense is technically easy; simple, gross motor skills developed to cause more injury to your target than you sustain. The most c...

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Could the Naval Yard Shooting Have Been Prevented? - Damian Ross, The Self Defense Company

Could the Naval Yard Shooting Have Been Prevented? Learn the 20 Behaviors of All Mass Murderers By Damian Ross, The Self Defense Company [caption id="attachment_8501" align="alignleft" width="276"] There are 20 behaviors that ALL workplace mass ...

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Boxing still king - MMA won't get off it's wallet.

Boxing Still King while MMA comes up Short Damian Ross, The Self Defense Company Mayweather and Canelo will make a combined $53 Million for one fight. Compare that to the $38 million COMBINED CAREERS of the top ten MMA fighters of all time and you'...

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Boxing still king - MMA won't get off it's wallet.

Boxing Still King while MMA comes up Short Damian Ross, The Self Defense Company [caption id="attachment_8478" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Show me the money: Floyd Mayweather will make almost as much in one fight than what the the top 10 MMA...

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Get that "Killer Instinct" (Part 2)

You've seen the movies and heard the stories from the Mighty Achilles to Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. 
Folklore and Hollywood will have you believe that everyone who puts on a uniform is a trained killer, and anyone with a Black Belt is a lethal weapon. It's a myth that both martial artists and soldiers gladly let you believe, my self included.

Everyone thought Achilles thighs were vulnerable in his new armor

Having the ability to KILL doesn't make you a KILLER.

Knowing how to injure, maim and kill doesn't mean that you'll be able to at the moment of truth. 

Thinking that YOU SHOULD be able to do this has lead to HUGE performance expectations that have resulted in self doubt and lack of confidence in your WILLINGNESS to defend and protect yourself and your loved ones, but don't worry, I'm going to fix all that. 


Know this: the "killer instinct" has been blown out of proportion.

S.LA. Marshall uncovered the truth about killing

A man by the name of S.L.A. Marshall, the chief combat historian for the US ARMY during WWII and Korea discovered that only about 2% of all soldiers had the capacity to kill on command without any post traumatic stress disorders or PTSD.

In fact the firing rate in WWII and Korea was an astonishing low 55%. That means that only 55% of soldiers fired their weapons in the direction of the enemy. Only 10% of soldiers actually aimed at the enemy.

Yet by Viet Nam things began to change.

Firing rates went up another 25% and now they are near 90% plus.

The questions we want answers to are:
Why were soldiers trained to kill, refusing to kill?
How did the army overcome this problem?
How does this information pertain to your training?

Why were soldiers trained to kill, refusing to kill?

Human beings, like any other species, have always been reluctant to kill one of their own kind.

It's not natural for any species to want to do this. It doesn't make any sense from a primary survival standpoint. A species would become instinct if every mating or territorial dispute was a fight to the death.

Animals of the same species NEVER fight to the death.

Violence and anger do not make you a killer.

You will get mad at another human, you'll even fight another human, but you won't want to kill another human.

Humans have 4 ways to handle conflict:

1. Flight or run away
2. Submit or Shut down
3. Posture
4. Fight

Most animals, especially humans, engage in posturing. We make our selves look bigger, we point fingers and talk trash. Think of two dogs. They bark, they raise the hair on the backs of their necks. They'll even nip and bite but IMMEDIATELY stop once dominance is established. You literally need to train a dog to want to kill another dog.

The same posturing has been seen in war. Over the centuries troops will have battle cries, drums and bagpipes, banners and flags. All to intimidate and weaken the enemy before the fight.

As a species man would simply rather avoid a fight.

In war, most casualties in war come from long range weapons. Artillery, cannon balls, bow and arrows and long range missals have always done the most damage.

Killing the enemy face to face is NOT something humans enjoy.

Most deaths in ancient Greece came after the enemy was routed.

In Ancient Greece when armies would clash in the phalanx formation it was mainly pushing and shoving. There were no real casualties when the armies clashes FACE TO FACE. It was only when one army was routed that the deaths occurred. I was much easier to kill another human being from the rear, than face to face.


During the American Revolution and Civil War where armies would line up in formation and fire at one another, the death rate was only about 1 per minute or two. This extremely low for trained soldiers standing at only 30 yards from the enemy, especially since the musket was accurate up to 75 yards!

As mentioned before, Marshall found that only about 2% of soldiers could kill on command and live with the consequences. The rest suffered from some form of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).
For years PTSD was thought to be caused by fear of death. But it's not the case since people who have been exposed to the same risk of death have not exhibited PTSD.

During WWII civilians of both England and Germany were subjected to massive carpet bombing and air raids. They experienced not only loss of life, but loss of everything they ever owned and yet the cases of PTSD were no higher than during peace time.

It is only soldiers ordered to kill at close range who experienced PTSD. It was because the soldiers HAD TO KILL, that caused their stress.

How did the army overcome this problem?

Better training methods through inoperative conditioning.

We created training methods so that the soldier doesn't "think" about what he's doing.

He just acquires target and fires. These core skills are repeated over and over again.

But the ability to operate a weapon wasn't enough. Soldiers though out  history have been well trained. There was clearly something missing.

The targets they were shooting and how the targets were presented was the key.

We all know that if the targets were LIVE that would trigger the soldier's aversion to kill and if they weren't real enough the soldier would not perform.

During Vietnam the Army went from Bulls-eye targets to Silhouette targets. Now the soldiers were being conditioned to shoot at more realistic shapes. 

Later those targets became more life like and the surroundings changed from the range to the field where simulations were set up so targets would appear in an environment like the one the soldier would be operating.

More "realistic" surroundings = better performance.

A "Kill House" used by Colombian Spec Ops

Now soldiers are trained to move, target pops up - shoot target, keep moving. They do this so many times that they can complete the action "WITHOUT THINKING".


The key point here is that the targets are "humanoid" and NOT human. Because we need to circumvent your aversion to kill another human being.

How does this information pertain to your  SDTS Training? 



Your target is something that resembles a human being. Heck we even have you dress him up.

Your conditioned response? He comes in range - you attack with a programmed set of core, gross motor skills at 100%, just like you would do if attacked.

Like a soldier you train those skills until you can do them in your sleep.

Like a soldier you will simply react with a conditioned response when placed in a specific situation. 

In essence, like a soldier your SDTS training is programing a specific response to a specific trigger.
Soldiers are trained to move, acquire the target and shoot the target.

You're trained to establish distance and attack or flee once that distance has been breached. 

You can't predict what he's going to do, it is a punch, a stab, does he even mean you harm.
 However, you do know where he's standing and that's all you need to know!


At the end of the day you develop a skill set and a reaction that can be interpreted as a "killer instinct" but all we're doing in the SDTS is conditioning you to respond in a specific and consistent way in dangerous situations.

Will you become a mindless"killer robot"?  You wish. Unfortunately it doesn't work like that. You're instinct will tell you whether or not your in danger. Then you actually switch from your fore brain to your mid brain (that's a whole other article) then you react.


Remember, there's no such thing as tough, there's only trained and untrained.

Train Honestly,



Damian Ross
The Self Defense Company

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Olympics Start Tonight! And I'm Disgusted

The summer Olympics is one of my absolute favorite times. This is when we get to see amazing athletes from around the world who have dedicated and sacrificed so much for a little fame and recognition. It's the time to showcase sports for athletes who don't get a million dollar signing bonus or pimp sandwiches for subway.

So why am I disgusted?

Of all the inspiring stories the Olympics has to offer, I still know WHY or HOW Snookie told her friends she was pregnant.

I have to watch the "Situation" on (insert lame game show here).

I know that "Kyle" is back on the Bachelorette/Bachelor/Actor trying to get a job show.

Because every time I go by the TV there's some "News" about the mob housewives of orange jersey or some other "reality" show.

Reality shows are proof that the world is coming to an end. Forget crime, forget social unrest, reality shows are the decay of modern society. For entertainment's sake you can be famous for lecherous and reprehensible behavior. People support these personalities because it lowers the bar for them and tells them its "OK" to act like a piece of crap.

Don't get me wrong, over the course of my life I have had some less than stellar moments. I call them mistakes and regrets, not my portfolio.

South African Sprinter Oscar Pistorius

As South African Oscar Pistorius proved in 2012, you don't necessarily need legs to compete against the best sprinters in the world at the Summer Olympics. Pistorius had his legs amputated below the knee at the age of 11 months and was initially going to compete solely at the 2012 Paralympic Games but a last-minute ruling added his name to South Africa's roster for the 2012 Olympics. Regardless of how he finishes in the 400-meter sprint, his favorite event, or the 4-400-meter relay, Pistorius has already made history as the first amputee to compete in the Olympics and the Paralympics in the same year.

American Hurdler Lolo Jones 

Lori Jones, more commonly known as Lolo, didn't have it easy growing up. Her mother juggled multiple jobs, struggling to feed her six kids while their father was in and out of prison. At one point, the family lived in the basement of a Salvation Army. Ms. Jones told HBO Sports that she used to shoplift TV dinners to help feed her family. (She also famously told HBO Sports that maintaining her virginity at age 29 has been harder than graduating college or training for the Olympics.)

Ms. Jones is now a media darling and a brand unto herself. Despite a disappointing 2008 games, and needing surgery a year ago to repair a tethered spinal cord (OMG, ouch) Ms. Jones qualified for the 2012 team and is gunning for gold.

"It's all about fighting," Ms. Jones wrote in her blog, Run Lolo Run, and for me it is about climbing all the way back to the top." 

Sudanese-American runner Lopez Lomong 

Lopez Lomong has been running for a long time. When he was a 6-year-old boy in Sudan, he was taken captive by rebel soldiers during a civil war. With the help of friends on the outside, he escaped and ran. He ran for three days and three nights to reach a refugee camp in Kenya.

Mr. Lomong lived in the refugee camp for ten years, finally coming to the US as one of the "Lost Boys of Sudan" at age 15. He became a US citizen in 2007, and has been able to bring his two younger brothers to the U.S. He has also set up a charity, 4 South Sudan, to help Sudanese children. You can find out more about his foundation at his website, lopezlomong.com.

American boxer Queen Underwood 

Queen Underwood started boxing at age 19, and it helped lift her out of a dark depression. She had been horrifically abused —physically, sexually, and emotionally — by her father for years. Boxing gave her a feeling of control over her own body, and helped remove the feelings of helplessness she had endured through the trauma.

Now at age 28, Ms. Underwood is considered one of the USA's best hopes for winning a medal in women's boxing. (2012 marks the first time that women's boxing is even an event.)

She's also starting a foundation called Living Out the Dream. Ms. Underwood, along with her sister Hazzauna, has become an outspoken advocate for victims of child and sexual abuse.

"My whole motto is 'Can't stop, won't stop,' " Underwood told USA Today. "I'm looking forward to reaching out and being a mentor and an idol to everyone who has been through the same situation or maybe just has had a hard life." 

American weightlifter Sarah Robles 

Sarah Robles, is not just the strongest woman in America, but has out-lifted every man and woman in the country to become the highest-ranked lifter in the country. Despite this, she lives in poverty because there's no endorsement deals for incredibly strong women, apparently. Incredibly, Ms. Robles also suffers from a congenital deformity of the wrists and forearms called Madelung's Deformity, which causes pain in her wrists.

By the way, while sponsoring companies may find Ms. Robles' appearance "nontraditional," she is, in fact, rather traditionally feminine. When she's not training, her hobbies are "old lady activities like cross-stitching and crocheting" she writes in her blog, Pretty Strong. 

Saudi Arabian runner Sarah Attar 

Seventeen-year-old Sarah Attar is one of two female athletes competing for Saudi Arabia. Ms. Attar, who has spent most of her life outside Saudi Arabia and speaks with an American accent, trains in San Diego. In Saudi Arabia, women are not allowed to vote or drive, and cannot take a job or even be admitted to a hospital without permission from a male. While there are no specific written laws that prohibit women from participating in sports, there is no physical education for girls, and no women's-only hours at swimming pools, reports IOC said.

Ms. Attar hopes her appearance in the Olympic games will encourage other women to participate in sports. "We all have the potential to get out there and get moving," she said in an IOC video.

The 2012 Olympics marks the first time in history that female athletes will be competing from every nation.

Palestinian Runner Woroud Sawalha 

Although the United Nations doesn't recognize a Palestinian state, the International Olympics Committee has allowed athletes to compete under the Palestine flag since 1996. That political controversy aside, Ms. Sawalha aims to improve the image of women in sports in her country when she runs the 800 meter.

"Maybe the view of girls will change from practicing sports in a more professional way and more freely in front of people," she told CNN recently.

Ms. Sawalha, who runs in a black head scarf, long pants, and a long-sleeved shirt, doesn't even have a track to train on. She runs on a road full of pot holes, cars, and horses. 

In my opinion EVERY Olympic Athlete is a hero. Especially the "non-money sports" like judo, wrestling, tae kwon do,  and weight lifting where athletes work $10,000 a year jobs, live out of their cars and in the back of gyms just to train for the trials.

I know these people. 

If you're not from money, you're living day to day. Scraping a living at menial jobs so you can have the flexibility to train and find the money to travel and it's not cheap. the way the Olympic system works is that you need to compete in a specific number of competitions at a particular level. You may be as fast as Usain Bolt, but if you don't compete in enough competitions around the world, you won't even be able to compete in the Olympic trials. Unless you're in a sponsored sport like track and soccer it is up to you to pay your own way, travel, meals and expenses to compete. Some organizations can help compensate you like USA Wrestling, and US Judo Association but most times it may just cover some meals and not even your hotel. 

So when I see JWOW getting her own show and making millions I want to get in a bathtub and throw in a toaster.

Please in some way shape or form, even it's it just watching when you have a moment, support the effort this summer and watch some TRUE REALITY. 

Train Honestly,



Damian Ross CEO, The Self Defense Company

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