Krav Maga is not a sport. There are no weigh-ins, international competitions or black belts. Krav Maga is also not something you do for fitness and it’s definitely not something to be taken lightly. People – civilians – come to Krav Maga (the Israeli self-defense method developed in the mid-20th century for the IDF) to learn how to defend themselves in real-life situations. There are still Krav Maga trainings for military and law enforcement in Israel and across the globe, but many who come to Krav Maga schools these days are just like you and me. Some have been mugged or attacked on a city street. Others have been victims of domestic violence or sexual assault. Others still have just been watching the news and are concerned about a rise in extremist threats.

“It’s not fancy,” says Drew Goodwin, owner and chief trainer of Warrior Elite Krav Maga.

What Krav Maga is, though, is a defensive tactical system designed to teach people how to be more aware of their surroundings, and, surprisingly, to first try to avoid the threatening situation all together. Once it’s clear that the attack is happening, Krav Maga teaches students how to use what’s at their disposal – their legs, the palms of their hands, and what are known as “common objects” (anything quickly found in their viscinity) – to successfully escape the threat. It’s not about beating the attacker to a pulp, it’s about escaping to safety. So it might look scrappy, but it is more appropriate to real-life situations than say Brazilian Jui Jitsu or traditional martial arts.

“The increase in video taping has shown people what fighting actually looks like,” Goodwin, who operates two Warrior Elite studios, one in Rancho Bernardo and one Downtown, says. “People are realizing they aren’t ready for that.”

Goodwin and his Warrior Elite schools are members of the International Krav Maga Foundation (IKMF), based in Israel, which monitors global attack trends. Goodwin is also the IKMF California Director. As the methods of attack change, from country to country and from year to year, the IKMF adapts their training to address those new kinds of attacks.

“In Brazil, they have a very specific type of attack,” Goodwin explains. “And in Africa, for example, they use machetes that they hide behind their back. How do you defend against a machete attack?”

When car-jacking became popular in the U.S., Krav Maga worked to develop tactics that could help students in that situation. IKMF is now seeing a rise in knife attacks in the U.S. and are adapting their training methods accordingly.

Goodwin came to Krav Maga 12 years ago, when his kids were attending the JCC’s Nierman Preschool. A trained EMT, he is currently going back to school to get a bachelor’s degree in emergency management and homeland security. The Rancho Bernardo location of Warrior Elite has been running for five years, while the Downtown studio was opened this past October. Goodwin travels to Israel twice a year to keep up-to-date on the training methods and recommends that people who are interested in studying Krav Maga make sure the studio they choose has a connection to Israel.

For Krav Maga, “it’s important to have the context,” he says.

Learn more at warriorelitekravmaga.com.