Krav Maga - Elbow #1 (Power vs Cutting Style Elbow)

The Horizontal Elbow to the Front (Elbow #1) is a relatively easy combative for most beginners to learn. However, one issue that does come up occasionally is students scrape the skin off their elbows while performing this technique on a practice target.
This video shows what the difference is between a "cutting" style elbow and a "power" style elbow. The cutting elbow is what causes students to scrape their elbow. By switching to a power elbow, they will avoid this while training.
In addition, the video explains why a cutting elbow is generally preferred in "sport" fighting but the power elbow is usually better for "street" fighting.
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The videos on this TH-cam channel are NOT a replacement for actual instruction. They do not teach techniques, but instead isolate and fix problems within the technique or its individual components. The videos are designed to help the student who has already learned the technique under the instruction of a qualified instructor.
Important Note: These videos are specific to the techniques and curriculum taught to the students at our facility. Students from other Krav Maga schools and organizations are more than welcome to watch and use these videos and we hope they find them useful! However, variations may be taught that are different from the techniques taught at other Krav Maga locations. This doesn't mean one variation is wrong or the other is right. They are just variations...plain and simple. The most important question for any technique or defense should be this: Does it work for the individual who is performing it? As long as it does, then the technique or variation has merit, regardless of where it comes from! That's the number one principle that we emphasize at our school.
Transcript:
"How's it going? This is Randall with KravMagaTraining.com. And in this video I'm going to discuss the Horizontal Elbow to the Front or what's more commonly referred to as Elbow #1 in the Krav Maga system.
What I'm going to specifically discuss with this particular elbow is the difference between a 'cutting' style elbow and more of a 'power' style elbow. The reason why I'm going to discuss this is because the biggest complaint that beginner students have when it comes to doing this elbow, if they are delivering it improperly, or using what I refer to as a cutting elbow, is that they're practicing elbows in class, they are doing them on the pads, and they start getting their skin scraped up. They start getting these little scabs torn up. You see them in their next class and they have a bandage on their elbow where it's all scraped up. They got a nice, it looks like a rash burn or a mat burn on it. And I'm going to discuss how you guys can prevent that.
Overall, when it comes to Elbow #1, most students pick it up pretty quickly. I don't think it's a really difficult combative to do. But let me discuss how to prevent that one minor problem. Because it makes training unfun if you got your elbows all scraped up. Or for some people, due to their line of work, they can't be having their arms all cut up and looking ridiculous.
Okay. This is what I mean is, first of all, the cutting elbow is you hit the target and then you slice through it like that. All right. Now, if you do that type of elbow, that's the reason why you're getting your skin torn up. In that, you hit the person or the pad like this. And then, instead of knocking the target backwards, it ends up ricocheting off to the side and you can hear this, that scraping motion. But if you're doing it full speed, and then the skin on your elbow is getting caught on that material and after multiple reps, you know, of dozens and dozens of reps, that's why your elbow is getting all cut up.
Now, before I get into explaining how to prevent that, I want to make sure that you guys know that this isn't necessarily an obsolete way to throw an elbow. As a matter of fact, in a lot of sport type of combatives, such as Mixed Martial Arts or in a Muay Thai Kickboxing match, they actually prefer this type of elbow. And the reason why is because if you throw this type of elbow on your opponent and do that to their skin there's a good chance that you are going to cut them open. You're probably going to cut them, especially around the eyebrows where the skin is thin. There's that sharp bone underneath. People get cut, blood gets into their eyes and impairs their vision. It looks, if the fight goes to a decision, it looks good to the judges in that it looks like you busted up the other guy pretty good. It's going to increase your chances of winning by decision..."
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