It’s not a choice, it’s a responsibility Damian Ross and BJ Pehush of The Self Defense Company Most people try to live their lives without violence or having to fight someone. This is a noble pursuit and if you’re able to avoid violence you sh...

I always hear the argument…you don’t need a black belt to defense yourself (I know, I said it). This is absolutely 100% true. Self Defense is NOT a martial art. But teaching self defense IS. I’ll explain… As a martial artist or an athlete y...

(or at least give him the benefit of the doubt) Yesterday I went to the annual wrestling awards banquet at my alma mater, Ridgewood High School. Every year my family has the distinction of honoring a Ridgewood wrestler with the Philip A Ross, Jr. award...

Frequently, I get asked about certifications, systems or methods. The only way we will do this is to actually spend time with you on the mat. The Black Belt by mail is really hokey at best, but I won’t stand in someone’s way who believes in what we te...

Exerts taken from “Tokio Hirano (1922-1993) 8th Dan The Man Who Revolutionized Judo” By Jim Chen, M.D . and Theodore Chen Hirano 7th Dan At Age 42 Tokio Hirano (5’5”, 75 kg), obtained Godan (5th dan) at age 19, is perhaps the greatest Judo te...

Mat Pull: The simple act of lying on flat on your stomach, reaching in front of you and pulling your self across the mat. This is one exercise that helps develop your muscles for grappling. We do these as a part of our warm up. The other day, I was be...

Success at home, work or on the mat is what drives all of us. Sooner or later, you’re going to want something more. It’s in our very nature to succeed. It is a primary survival instinct. The benefits of success are obvious. Sense of accomplishment, se...

Every once in a while I get an email from some misguided and offended martial artist with his or her knickers in a twist telling me where I go wrong by saying “Martial Arts will Fail You Every time”. But facts are facts. Just because you have a bl...

Can Anyone Defend Themselves? Of course the answer is "Yes", but each person has different circumstances. A 300-pound football player is going to have a different skill set than a 130-pound mother of two. The biggest misconception in the martial arts ...

How many times do you practice techniques with your training partner and you stay in the same spot? Next time you are training, pay attention to how much you and your partner move. You’ll find you move very little or not at all. You see, when you are tr...

I was talking to a parent recently and they told me that their son was not going to compete in wrestling because they were afraid he would get frustrated when he lost. The parent felt the child was far too sensitive to handle the frustration of failure an...

By William Pehush of The Self Defense Company Described by some as "human cock-fighting," Vale Tudo is Portuguese for anything goes, and in these competitions they mean it. So violent that it is only available over the Internet in the United States Val...

By Damian Ross and William Pehush of The Self Defense Company Over a half a century ago Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) came into being. It appeared on the grand stage in the early 1990’s hen the Gracie family introduced it to the world. Brazilian Jiu Jits...

By Damian Ross of The Self Defense Company “There I was, in the middle of my fist Black Belt test at the tender age of 22 ready to begin the Random Assault Drill. They were circling me, attackers with knives, bats, clubs and guns, but I was ready. I ...

By Damian Ross and William Pehush of The Self Defense Company Traditional Karate or Karatedo is one of the best known styles of martial arts and is considered to be and competition sport. It first became popular in the west in the 1960's, but Karate wa...