Multiple Attacker Defense – Rear Hold Escape
Don’t you hate it when you’re fighting a bad guy and his buddy comes up from behind and grabs you?
Sucks, right?!
The answer isn’t to “fight” his grip and wrestle your way out of it. You don’t have time to go strength vs. strength.
Try this instead…
Self Defense Technique Against Multiple Attackers:
Rear Arm Grab Escape & Counterattack!
I like it Jeff,excellent move!
I’m curious how often people grab someone by the wrists from behind to restrain them? I’ve seen people grabbed by the neck, in a bearhug, or by hooking around the upper arms. I’ve never seen someone (particularly a man) grabbed by the wrists like this except in self-defense classes. Do other people have different experience from me?
Actually Todd, I don’t think it’s all that common. Personally, I can’t see a reason to grab someone by the wrists from behind. It’s much more likely for a woman because a man feels like he can control her this way, but most guys don’t see controlling another guy by grabbing their wrists.
However, this same technique can be modified for use with 2 guys each holding you by the arm, even if it’s by the upper arm. The theory of relaxing the arm and pivoting through is very versatile and I highly recommend experimenting with it.
Thanks for the provocative question!
Jeff
Outstanding!
Teacher
I loved your trick for the defense, I want to thank all his affection for allowing me to learn with this new weapon of self defense.
Receives a strong hug for you and your entire team and collaborators.
Jeff, thank you very much. All your Close Quarters Combat Training is Awesome!
The Lord God Almighty Bless You Always.
Jose Ramon Avina
Love this move! I can see it being used in a movie.
Id like to see it at full speed and with the guy holding your arms not being so cooperative to see how it works. I suppose with the element of surprise and lightning speed it could work. Still a good move to know.
You’re absolutely right on all accounts Brian!
First, when I watched the video back, I can see that my training partners are WAY too compliant. In fact, I’m making a note to add more speed and resistance into all of my videos that will be shot in the future. Definitely something I want to improve on.
Second, you’re right that surprise and speed are crucial. Everyone should be surprised though that once the move is tried and you can learn to relax your pivoting arm, it can be done very quickly.
Give it a try! I think you’ll like it!
Jeff
outstanding
You can add stomping on the guys foot to get things moving. That would put the guy in back off balance and put you at an even better advantage going into your move. THere may not be enough time, but something to consider if you are being held differently as mentioned above.
Thanks Jeff!
Thanks for comments, Jeff. I see two very powerful general principles: using looseness and making space rather than resisting so you can shift position quickly, then using the closest attacker and putting him between you and the others. Very versatile ideas. I could even see the same principle being used for a bearhug as well, with some training. Bend the elbows and drop your hips to make some space, then make your hips loose and shift your hips around behind so you can pik him up by the knees and swing him toward the other attackers. Even if the exact attack isn’t a wrist grab, the same principle seems very valuable. The wrist grab makes a particularly dramatic example because you have so much space, but I agree it could be made to work for a variety of attacks. Thanks for the clever and original demo and the thoughts.
If some one has you in a bear hug start by pushing toward him like you want him to fall back, he will resist, then go forward and down then you can come up behind up behind.
what a crock. i cant believe you can claim to teach realistic self defence via DVD, especially defence against multiple attckers or against knife attacks. You are lulling guulible people into a false sense of security. YOU are going to get someonr KILLED. YOU should be PROSECUTED
Good move, thanks.
hi Jeff
thanks for a good video this is the first time i have seen this technique and its allways good to learn something new
i tend to agree with the other comments above it would be difficult to do in a tight situtation but i really like the bending down and moving to the rear under neath the attacker holding your wrists i personally think that movement alone could enable you to gain a bit of traction in a real serious fight
have agreat weekend thanks peter mcgrath
I don’t think this situation happens often, i think rear neck hold happens much more often, doesn’t matter if ones neck is being held by standing or both are bent 90 degrees.
I agree with the comments to the effect that this is not a common attack pattern, but I think the value in learning movements is in our ability to generalize the skills to the situations we do actually find ourselves in.
In almost any hand-to-hand ambush situation, our reflex to flinch and stiffen up tend to betray us because experienced attackers learn to exploit those instincts. The lesson here is not so much how to escape a rear wrist grab, which most of us seem to agree is unlikely, but remembering the strategy to regain your balance, lower your center of gravity, and reposition yourself better when caught from behind. Rather than stiffening up, resisting the grab, and focusing on just the approaching threat. People set this sort of multiple attack up in fact by getting you to focus on the man coming toward you rather than the one that will restrain you.
Think of these kinds of ‘techniques’ more in terms of role playing drills rather than just specific attack/response movements and you can learn a lot from them: positioning, posture, balance, timing, strategy. That’s why I suggest this is potentially useful, because of the skills needed to perform it, not because of the specifics of the technique. If you think about it, a lot of martial arts training relies implicitly on this principle, being able to generallize from specific skills to more general strategies and tactics with the effective use of increasingly challenging drills that apply a similar strategy. In my opinion.
I tried this on my girlfried. I grabbed her arms from behind and said “ok now what are you going to do?” Her response was a heal to my groin and she was free.
Brian, you’re a lucky man to have such a resourceful girlfriend.
Ya it was a completely effective and simple move. lol
Smart girlfriend and steel balls!
Nice combination!
Keep up the training (as long as you can) Brian!
Jeff
Very nice move
NOT THE WAY MOST SKILLED ATTACKERS WOULD ATTACK . BUT TO RELAX IN A MOVE LIKE THAT IN VERY IMPORTANT TRY N NOT LET YOUR ATTACKER FEEL YOUR INTENTIONS THE OPENING WILL COME TIMMING IS MOST IMPORTANT !! I SALAUTE THE GIRLFRIEND….
Absolutely right Bernie. Relaxing while in an adrenalized state can be difficult so this is one technique that should be practiced quite a bit just for the benefit of learning how to relax and understanding the different mechanics your body is allowed in that state.
Timing is critical.
Thanks brotha!
Jeff
Shalom;
i love it, but do you have any instructors in the el paso area?
thanks and God bless…
I myself would not allow that much space in holding someone, a knee in the small of the back, holding the arms in a wishbone. Holding someone in
a choke with a bent wrist is more controlling. I’m sorry your simulation belongs on “Dancing with the Stars” more then in a self defense class.
Comments are always welcome Ralph. Alternative points of view are welcome.
Disrespectful, unprofessional comments aren’t warranted. It’s ok to disagree without being disagreeable.
Remember…you’re a guest.
Thank you.
Jeff
Hahaha what a terrible video and instructor. Do yourself a favor and dont rely on this crap. Go to a local gym and register in boxing classes and either mma/jiu jitsu classes. And for your information Jeff, an MMA pro would knockout any street fighter there is. EXAMPLE: Kimbo Slice was the best street fighter around, what happened in a no holds bar fight against someone trained? he got his ass whooped. Be realistic, anyone with MMA training is at a huge advantage and coupling there training with “no rules” they would destroy anyone.
Hello Samm,
I think you’re looking for Bullshido.com. That’s where the other disrespectful 13 year olds hang out and throw out obnoxious comments. Have fun.
This blog is for serious and professional survivors who know are interested in survival.
I’ll leave your comment up for now as a lesson to others who are here for serious discussion and have respect for other points of view.
After this, if you can’t keep your comments respectful then you’ll be banned from the site.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Jeff
P.S. – Since I’m a bad instructor, I’m assuming you won’t be returning anyway.
Oh and as for your move in the video, when does anyone actually grab your wrist like that when trying to restrain you? It isn’t second grade. They would lock up your arms (between the elbow and shoulder) with the crease of their elbow, not grab your wrist. At least be realistic for these people, you owe them that much. No one ever grabs someones wrist from behind to try and restrain them ,what a joke.
I think most of us agree, it’s not the most realistic demo we’ve ever seen, or the most likely way to be restrained in an attack, but I’m also inclined to give some benefit of the doubt here. I’ve seen some very good material from Jeff as well. Some of the comments here seem a little harsh and maybe overly generallizing somewhat if just based on a single demo clip.
MMA is great training for fighting, but I’d argue that MMA strategies can sometimes not be the best choice in an ambush where there are unknowns, weapons, multiple attackers, and surprise. MMA strategies sometimes rely on give and take and tend to draw you into a fight, where what you really want to do in many situations is avoid getting stabbed or shot or beaten to death and find an escape route rather than outfight your attackers. Of course it depends on the sorts of situations you are concerned about. If you mostly get into fist fights and aren’t concerned too much about the other sorts of ambush attack, then I can see MMA training being pretty much the best thing. Just my thoughts, fwiw.
Well put Todd…and thanks for the professional response.
I agree with your stance on “MMA for the street”. Of course there’s always the “unknown” and the “lucky punch”, but in a straight up fist fight, my money is on the MMA guy.
Throw in a baseball bat and a few homies and I’ll probably have to change my bet.
Thanks for keeping it real!
Jeff
hey jeff,
just wanted to add…this technique (stepping behind) also works for most grabs from behind (Full nelsons, chokes, double handed rear grab to the throat…etc.) As with everything else, smoother with practice. Although not a new technique for me, I have personally used this move to end 3 violent encounters, 2 by knockout. It is effective when applied with speed, precision, and most importantly, INTENT. Thanks for sharing it with others.
In addition to some of the interesting content, I’m very impressed with the way Jeff responds to critics. That’s not a trivial thing. I’m an old computer guy who started out on electronic discussion forums even before the Internet was a public commodity and we had to dial in directly to BBS servers. That’s a lot of experience with this kind of conversation, and I’ve seen a lot of different approaches to running forums. To me Jeff exemplifies good facilitation of discussions by encouraging different viewpoints, presenting his own clearly, and drawing the line at hostility and disrespect. It’s not about “being nice” or about “being right,” it’s about being able to learn something that makes it worth spending the time to participate. Sorry for the distraction, but when someone does something particularly well, I think it is useful to acknowledge it.
Thanks for your comment Todd! Much appreciated!
The purpose of our organization IS to share ideas and pull together under the common goal of “survival” in whatever form that takes.
No “my master can beat up your master” B.S., eh?
A few years ago, I was talking with a guy who was very well versed in close combat and we were discussing trainers we most respected for their technique. What was surprising to me was that the one guy (I won’t say his name) who I thought had the absolute WORST techniques in the world was the guy who my friend thought had the BEST.
Here’s what I decided that day…
…the best self defense technique in the world is the one that WORKS when you need it to work!
I don’t care if it’s a double somersault dragon tornado kick or biting off an ear. If it’s the one move that you can somehow manage to pull off while some meth addict is trying to carve you up with a butter knife…who am I to say it “doesn’t work”?
Keep up the great debate “warriors”!
It’s all good!
Jeff
The major flaw I see in this demonstration is that the attacker from behind, no matter how strong his grip, does not have his thumbs wrapped around either forearm or wrist, but on top with the other four fingers. Nobody grabs a wrist or forearm that way. It makes for an instant release with a simple twist.
You’re correct Brian. This wasn’t noticed during the taping because I was too busy flapping my gums.
Not sure why my training partner didn’t grab hold the right way, but as stated a few replies down the line, for future tapings, I’m going to focus more on realism to the moves and resistance.
Thanks for your comments!
Hi Jeff!!
Incredible Move !! By practising self-defence technqiues, At longer ranges, you can most easily prevent an attacker from harming you. Learn easy strikes, blocks, and kicks that work at long range.
Awesome! I am not an expert or anything, but won’t most from behind grabs be pressing an individual against the rear attackers chest. This would prevent any stepping behind to execute the move. Or are we discussing performance before attackers get fully established? Like they was unaware you are aware. Thanks!
Dwayne, you can usually still get your hips behind the attacker even if he is holding you against his chest, as long as he can’t grab you too low. For example, in a bearhug over your arms, if you immediately bend your arms so his grab is around your chest rather than your waist, you can still move your hips. If he manages to slide his grip down toward your waist, you won’t be able to free your hips. So one strategy for a rear bearhug grab is to immediately bend your arms and drive them forward so your hips stay free to step around. It often helps to shift your hips to one side first to make space, then shift to the other side to step behind. Does that help?
Thank You…
Mr. Anderson,..Thank You!!!