Groin Strike – Does it work?

There are many who say that the groin strike is not a useful self defense technique.  I know of a local school with a well known self defense program run by a former police officer who markets on the fact that groin strikes and kicks do not work.  I have read articles with titles like Martial Arts Myths – The Groin Kick.  There seems to be alot of information concerning how the kick doesn’t work against an enraged attacker, or how it is a difficult target and people will quickly protect that area, or even how the tightness of jeans will protect that area, rendering the strike useless.

But talking about doing something and actually doing something is quite different.

One of the measures I use to ascertain the viability of a self defense technique is military combatives.  They are far from perfect, but they have always done their best to be as real as possible, with no intent of making their soldiers martial artists.  They typically want to give them the quickest, easiest, most natural defensive tactics for a combat situation.  The military has been using the strike to the groin for over 100 years.  They use it in armed and unarmed combat tactics.  Another measure I use, with the availability of video on the internet is studying video of actual fights.  There are many altercations that have been caught on video that show both men and women being struck in the groin and all seem to have the same reaction.  There are also many non-violent encounters caught on video where people are struck in the groin and bend over in pain.  Heck – half the World’s Funniest Home Videos involve such reactions. (Stay away from children, pinatas, and wiffle ball bats)

So why the aversion to the groin strike by trained martial artists?  I have NO IDEA.  It is one of the most effective “motivators” in the self defense world.  There are very few people on the planet who will stand with no reaction to being kicked in the groin.  Sure, there are some who have trained themselves to withstand such a blow – but they are novelties.  It is the same as “martial artists” who break steel bars on their heads, or put their fingers through an apple.  It is a display of focus and control – but mostly useless in real life self defense situations.  There have been one or two martial artists I have met over the years who felt these strikes were not effective, and they all had the same reason.  From their experience (sparring in class) they were not often able to execute a successful groin strike.  Usually they were speaking about a kick.  The opponent saw it coming and covered that sensitive area quickly.  Is this the only reason?  Is there some other science or experience out there?  Are they only pointing to the fact that a groin strike doesn’t work in a competition environment where the opponent is prepared?

Lets take a brief look at that.  It would be an understatement to say that MMA is the king of martial arts competition.  Highly trained athletes, the best trainers in the world, practicing what really works against another trained athlete.   What can this combat style tell us about the effectiveness of a groin strike?  How about the fact that groin strikes are against the rules.  You are not allowed to kick someone in the groin, and if it happens by accident, the athlete who did the strike gets points against him for such a strike.  Why?  Because it is dangerous, and immediately puts the opponent out of commission, allowing the person who did the kick to quickly dominate and destroy the man crouched on his knees grabbing his crotch, unable to continue to defend himself.  I am thinking this is pointing directly to the effectiveness of the technique.

So lets get to it – is it effective?  YES.  Will it work?  YES.  Will it render the opponent ineffective in continuing attack?  YES.  Will the opponent be able to block your strike?  Potentially, if he sees it coming.  But that is where effective training comes in.  You need to know how and when the strike should be done.  Most times an attacker is concentrating on other things, like his fear, your fear, dominating you physically and mentally, being violent, getting your money, etc.  How high is the potential?  LOW.  Should you use a kick, knee, hammer fist, ridge hand, palm heel to the groin as an effective self defense technique?  YES!!!  Will you be safe following such a strike?  NO!  Use the strike to gain control over your opponent, then dominate.  Throw the person to the ground and ESCAPE.  Remember, this is Self Defense, not competition.  ESCAPE is always the goal.