Unarmed Combat

Have you been in unarmed combat? It is much different than depicted in the movies and is generally life or death. The great lack of courtesy and respect in today’s society makes personal confrontation with another an ever greater chance of occurrence.

Unarmed combat (what Dr. Tindall terms CQC – close quarters combat) is a generic term for close quarters fighting, particularly when the outcome is potentially fatal, as in multiple opponent ‘gang’ attacks, military combat, or a duel. This distinguishes it from combat sport, which is not what Kenpo is about.

In the past the phrase "hand-to-hand" has indicated unarmed combat or combat using improvised "field expedient" or contact weapons such as clubs, knives, or bayonets.

Therefore CQC is the more preferred term for combat within close range. It may include lethal and nonlethal methods across a "spectrum of violence" or within a "continuum of force." Unlike the military or Geneva Convention rules that has established by rules of engagement, there are actually no such rules on the street, which is what Kenpo is designed for.

Combatives is a term used to describe various hybrid martial arts, which incorporate techniques from several different martial arts and combat sports. Again, Kenpo is not one of these hybrids as it was developed from the beginning for CQC and self defense.

Kenpo is actually the oldest form of martial art thus, close combat is the most ancient form of fighting known to man. A majority of cultures have their own particular histories related to close combat, and their own methods of practice.

There are many varieties of combat within the martial arts, including boxing and wrestling. Other variations include the gladiator spectacles of ancient Rome and medieval tournament events such as jousting. Military organizations have always taught some sort of unarmed combat for conditioning and as a supplement to armed combat. Soldiers in China were trained in unarmed combat as early as the Zhou Dynasty (1022 BC to 256 BC).

Despite major technological changes such as the use of gunpowder in the Napoleonic wars, the machine gun in the Russo-Japanese War and the trench warfare of World War I, hand-to-hand fighting methods such as bayonet remained common in modern military training, though the importance of formal training declined after 1918. During the Second World War, bayonet fighting was often not taught at all among the major combatants. German rifles by 1944 were even being produced without bayonet lugs.

This section of tips will help you develop your Kenpo for real-life, unarmed combat where the outcome could mean your very survival or certain death! Remember – every appendage on your body and every item around you is a potential weapon – we will teach you how to efficiently use all of these in Unarmed Combat or what we term CQC.

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Unarmed Combat Archive