Kind of a wordy title for an article I know, but I could not figure another way to put it.

I am not sure of the age demographics of the folks that come to www.moderncombativesystems.com but if any information can be obtained by e-mails, phone calls and the folks who attend courses it would be safe to say that there are few youngsters in the crowd.

The older you get the more damage you do to your body. For most people here that comes from three general areas, service related injuries, martial arts injuries and sports injuries. The fact that you suffer from these issues the same as I do and continue to research and train means that you realize that the Bad Man will not care about your physical infirmities.

Seems that the older and more banged up we get the more our mindset changes from the platoon mindset where everyone is with you so you can just charge in and take on anything, to that of a sniper mindset where you watch and study, before picking your shot. A sniper knows that he has to strike suddenly and then move since failure to do so will result in his demise.

Another example is a wounded dog that finds somewhere to lay down. Everyone knows that a wounded animal is very dangerous and avoids them. Naturally the animal knows its limitations and fights with them. They are most dangerous when you get close or corner them.

If you have the common shoulder and knee injuries etc it would behoove you to recognize the limitations of your range and fight within them whenever possible.

That makes it even more important for you to realize when a confrontation cannot be avoided and to recognize the appropriate instant to Counter Attack with the appropriate level of violence and force of action. This should also end up as part of your defense in any departmental, criminal or civil proceeding.

Again going back to the sniper or injured dog analogy, it is imperative that you be hyper vigilant and identify threats as far away as possible. This will provide you with a Rolodex of options, the closer they get the less cards you have.

You need to understand Combative Anatomy. If you get one shot, where should it be? Keep in mind the place that you cannot afford to get struck, pulled or twisted.

Come up with a simple program based on concepts that can be adapted to fit your lifestyle and take into account your limitations.
Remember when all else fails, come violent or don’t come at all.