combative Archives | Personal Defense Network

The Combative Mindset, Part 2: Fear Management

November 30, 2011 By Chris Fry & filed under All Articles, Defensive Training Concepts.

“There is nothing to fear but fear itself.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt FEAR: A distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined; the feeling or condition of being afraid. Anticipation of what’s going to happen, anticipation of the unknown. Fear is always there, just under the surface,…

Movement and Survivability

October 13, 2011 By Chris Fry & filed under All Articles, Defensive Training Concepts.

Movement is a critical component of surviving a combative encounter. Armies understand the value of movement, boxers spend as much time on footwork as they do on punching, and offline lateral movement during close-range gun battles has been proven to drastically increase survivability. Two or more combatants rarely remain stationary for very long while engaging…

Making the Thrust

October 13, 2010 By Michael Janich & filed under All Articles, Non-Firearm Defensive Tools.

In my previous article, Making the Cut, I discussed the mechanics of combative cutting with a knife. Based on that understanding, let’s take a look at the other side of the equation: thrusting. First, let’s get the semantics out of the way. Whether you prefer to call it “thrusting,” “stabbing,” “sewing machine,” or anything else…

Firearm Ready Positions

August 18, 2010 By Chris Fry & filed under All Articles, Handguns, Self Defense Firearms.

Close Ready Close Ready is a pistol ready position that places the handgun just below the visual plane and close to the torso. The elbows are down and tight to the sides of the torso, and the muzzle can be seen with the lower periphery of vision. Close Ready can be utilized as a Movement…

Making the Cut: Understanding Combative Cutting Dynamics

August 3, 2010 By Michael Janich & filed under All Articles, Non-Firearm Defensive Tools.

Self-defense is all about stopping power. Regardless of the weapon you use, your ultimate goal is to efficiently and decisively stop your attacker from carrying out his attack. And the less capable the weapon you use, the more skilled you need to be in its application. In previous PDN articles, I’ve discussed the realities of…

Combative Applications of Competitive Techniques, Part 2

July 7, 2010 By Mike Seeklander & filed under All Articles, Defensive Training Concepts.

In part 1 of this article, I tried to draw correlations between two areas (combative and competitive) in each of the five critical skill sets. My purpose was to outline how techniques used in either area relate, and more importantly how to train them. In this part, I will get into the weeds and discuss…

Combative Applications of Competitive Techniques, Part 1

June 23, 2010 By Mike Seeklander & filed under All Articles, Defensive Training Concepts.

I’ve often been asked, “Does practical shooting under the stress of competition offer training benefit to those who want to use these skills for combative purposes?” My answer is a strong yes, and I will break down why in this two-part article. In part 1, I will draw correlations between the two areas (combative and…

Attributes of the Combative Shooter

January 13, 2010 By Chris Fry & filed under All Articles, Defensive Training Concepts.

An attribute is defined as a quality, character, characteristic, or property belonging to a person, thing, or group. In this article I’d like to discuss the essential attributes of the combative shooter, as I see them. Note I do not list accuracy or speed in my list of shooting attributes. While these are certainly desirable…

Shooting: Balance of Speed and Precision

January 13, 2010 By Rob Pincus & filed under All Articles, Defensive Training Concepts.

As we launch the Personal Defense Network, we realize that a huge portion of you are going to be interested in firearms training for defensive use. As I looked over the dozens of topics that I expect to be covered here in the coming years, it was not easy to pick the most important ones.…