Telegraphing Tips

Improve your Krav Maga dramatically by avoiding the telegraphing of movement.

Telegraphing is akin to setting off the early warning system of your attackers brain – sending him or her into response mode. Ideally, Krav practitioners should move in ways the mask their movements – delaying any response from an attacker. As such, keep these three major issues in mind when training and actively make effort to eliminate them from your Krav Maga.

First, keep in mind that moving while utilizing Krav Maga’s method of “hands, body, feet,” is a good way of eliminating the telegraphing that happens when this process is not followed. Start by understanding the background that helps define your silhouette can be seen as changing with the subtlest of movement from the body. In this case, leaning with the body (often as a means of loading weight into the balls of the feet) is a recipe for failure. For example, this is particularly evident during handgun to the front defense. Fail to move your hand first (lean instead), and you’re caught 99 percent of the time.

Secondly, telegraphing is often an issue – even when moving as Krav Maga prescribes – when the Kravist sets up into a fighting stance improperly. Specifically, I’m referring to the most common issue when this occurs – arm and elbows located outside the body. Even as the Kravist moves correctly – using the hands, body, feet method – the movement of the arms placed well outside the body invokes recognition in the attackers eyes. Specifically, over 120 million rods in the human eye are responsible for night vision, sensitive motion detection, and peripheral vision. Invoke the rods early, and your counterattack is likely thwarted.

Third, it’s vital, as mentioned above that every Kravist work to improve the timing of each movement by firing the sequencing muscles in an optimal way – allowing for the most efficient and effective defenses and counterattacks. Without an efficient hands/body/feet movement, the Kravist is bound to telegraph his or her intention and will likely fail.

Check out the video below, where I illustrate each point.

…walk in peace.