Bad guys love using knives.
Easy to get a hold of. Impossible to trace. Quiet.
And seeing a glistening blade in the hands of a thug can be pretty scary, even if you’ve “seen it all” and know how to handle a knife.
Fear is a natural response, and you want to feel it, so you can channel the fear into practical defense.
Because trying to disarm a person with a knife is dangerous.
No matter what you do, you’ll likely sustain some injuries. But the goal is to minimize them and only get superficial cuts, if anything.
You should never attempt to disarm an attacker if you do not have a basic idea of what to do.
So let me give you some quick advice that I gave both my 83-year old grandfather and my girlfriend.
They both picked this up within 5-10 minutes of practicing.
#1: Start with Blocking
The first thing you should do is to block the stab.
It’s best to use the arm near the weapon to disarm the attacker.
For instance, you should use your right arm to block a right-handed stab and your left arm to block a left-handed stab.
After blocking the stab, you should take a safe position.
#2: Go for the Wrist
The best thing to do is to grab the attacker’s wrist.
Once you get hold of the wrist, move it to your right side and pivot clockwise.
Ideally, you’re shoulder to shoulder with the attacker after you pivot clockwise.
Proceed to distract the bad guy using destructive counterattacks like elbow or palm strikes.
Fists are smaller than your hand or elbow, making it harder to land a blow.
#3: Take The Knife Away
The priority should be to make a quick escape if you have managed to knock out the attacker, but…
You should take the blade away from the attacker if you suspect the person might attack you again.
Focus on immobilizing the weapon by placing the attacker’s arm in a lock.
Try to take the knife away from the guy once the arm is in a pin using one of the following techniques…
#4: Use the “Butt-End Strip”
This technique will only work if the attacker has a large knife with a butt-end.
Your focus is to push the end of the blade towards the weak point, the thumb.
Grab the knife if you can. Let it fall if you cannot grab it and position your legs in a safe position.
#5: Try the “Finger Peel”
You can use this technique to force the assailant to release the blade.
You should dig your fingers into the attacker’s palm and squeeze the fingers to force the guy to let go of the knife.
That’s all you need to know.
No need to go crazy with ninja moves and action movie hero antics.
Focus on blocking, grabbing and disarming.