During a knife attack, the first reflex of a victim would be to try to restrain the armed wing. As a witness, intervening by grabbing it might also seem like a good idea.
By keeping it under control, we do feel we are neutralizing the threat.
That is the theory. In practice, is a simple grab truly effective? Mos of the time, we consider that the answer is “no”.
Table of Contents
Seize an armed wing is not such a good idea
Seizing the arm of the aggressor is a reflex. Instinctively, we think that keeping the threat at bay keeps us safe. In this case when you have to grab one or two hands holding a weapon, it requires more than immobilization techniques. We are not dealing with the ones you see in Brazilian jiu jitsu martial arts that are extremely dangerous in self defense, when they involve being stuck to the ground.
To seize someone who has no arm is possible in specific situations. But it’s a completely different story when this person has a knife.
Muscular strength is essential to maintain a grip with enough efficiency.
You have to apply so much power and pressure to make sure the arm cannot move an inch. Well in reality, this rarely happens. As self defense is a discipline open to the greatest number, it would not be relevant to provide everyone with immobilization techniques based on seizures, as in 95% of cases these would not be suitable.
Otherwise, it becomes too easy for the aggressor to break free of the grip, slicing off everything in his way.
The drawback of this approach is that even for a very massive man who can control one arm, the attacker has another one so he can change his grip or use his other limbs to strike you, which could create enough diversion to break free of the grip.
Furthermore, keep in mind that if the aggressor loses the use of his arm, so does the defender who must maintain his grip! And things get worse if you hold him using both hands.
As you may have understood, seizing an armed wing is far too dangerous for an ordinary mortal.
It is fairly easy to release from a seizure, either by a simple wrist movement, with or without a shift to open the angle, or even more simply after a blow. Releasing from a seizure while holding a knife in the hand also offers the opportunity to slice the victim’s wrist, why not even the tendons. So bear in mind that in a real knife attack, the attacker will not stand still!
As long as he is still able to move, danger still exists. A simple seizure is therefore not fully effective, except to drag out the conflict and thus multiply the chances for the aggressor to find a way to counterattack.
That’s a good draw if you want to apply a suicidal technique!
Demonstration through practice
As say they, a picture is worth a thousand words. Some preconceived ideas need to be tested. This is why it is worth testing by putting yourself in the shoes of an armed aggressor to see for yourself how easy it is to get out of a grip, or at least to sever the one holding you, which by the way, will eventually lead the victim to release his grip and allow you to escape.
To do so, the training partner must grab the wrist with all his strength. The attacker must try to free himself by cutting with the knife, bending the wrist, moving, hitting the wrist, and shifting impacts.
This is an important exercise to practice, because the brain memorizes better what it experiences than what it hears!
The seizure can work under certain conditions, but for an extremely short time, i.e. the time to hit. So although it is not devoid of interest, it is necessary to know which technique to use, and when.
The moment you start fighting (in a seizure, as in most situations, by the way), you are disadvantaged.
That’s why you should avoid techniques that dawdle as much as possible and focus on massive, quick damage (i.e. strike on sensitive parts).
