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Knock Outs Don't Work, Truth about the Knock Out

Knock Outs Don't Work
December 1998
By Erle Montaigue

So many so-called 'knock out experts' travelling around the world still knocking people out all over the place. However, if they were true to themselves and those they teach, they should preface each lesson with the warning that they cannot actually knock anyone out! OK, so you have seen people falling like flies at seminars due to the huge egos of these individuals so you know that knockouts do work. So what am I on about?

It's no use at all and a waste of time and often huge amounts of cash, going to a seminar, thinking that you will learn how to knock someone out in a couple of hours but never actually learning how to do this in a real situation or when the recipient does not wish to be knocked out!

It works like this and I am sure that many reading this article has seen the same scenario at many seminars. The seminar will get onto talking about knock outs, then walk over to some unsuspecting person, a sitting duck, and slap him on the Stomach 9 point on the neck causing this usually larger person to drop onto the ground unconscious, hopefully for only a moment depending upon the severity of the strike.

People watching this, those who are perhaps only at a very basic level are always very impressed with this thinking that they will go away and be able to use these methods in a realistic situation. Wrong! You have only been shown how to medically knock someone out using some very simple methods that anyone can use. Even the proverbial little old lady is capable of knocking someone out after being shown how and where to strike. But put her in to a situation where she has to defend herself and she will of course not be able to use her newly found knock out methods.


Now this is nothing special as I have known experienced kick boxers who have challenged some of the better known knock out specialists to KO them when they are simply covering up as they would normally do in a match. The 'expert' was in all instances unable to get anywhere near the recipient. For this you have to have the 'opening techniques' using fa-jing or explosive energy.


You cannot be thinking about what point does what and what other points you have to strike in conjunction so that the point works. You have to have done the training first of all to learn how to strike subconsciously at any combination of points instantaneously when the situation arises. For instance, you might find yourself fighting against a grappler who has closed with you. IF this happens of course, you should have a re-think about your martial arts training! However, if you do find yourself in this situation with perhaps your hand around the back of the attacker's neck, you would instantly strike into BL 10 to cause a knock out. But if you had to think about it first, you would be done for. This type of specialist training is all included within the 'internal martial arts'. Your palm might end up near his elbow where you could strike instantly to LU 5 to either cause a knock out all by itself or used with ST 9 or ST 10. But again, if you had to think about it first, they window of opportunity would have been lost.

You have to learn to fight like a wild animal, like a raving dog who has gone into reptile brain mode. Our survival brain mode (Reptile Brain) causes us to fight for our survival subconsciously like an animal where anything goes, instantly and deadly. A wild animal does not learn about where to strike and then thinks that it is able to defend itself, it already has survival in its genes. We humans have bred out our survival mode and so must re-learn it in order to survive street attacks.

I had an E-mail recently from a jujitsu person who attended a seminar given by a knock out specialist. He we quite impressed as he told me that he could not stop from being knocked out. After a couple of E-mails back and forth, I found out that this chap had literally just stood there trying to flex his muscles in his neck to stop the strike! This of course does not work unless you are Adonis. So I asked him if he actually tried to stop the expert from getting near him and of course the answer was no. I then asked him if he was now confident that he could knock anyone out, someone who did not wish to be knocked out. He answer was again, no. I then asked him what blurb was given that got him to go to the particular seminar and he told me that he was under the impression that he would be able to knock people out safely after it. I asked him if that was what he got and he had to answer again in the negative. Although he now knew exactly where and how to strike to KO someone, he could not actually do it in a fight! I do not mind people holding seminars where they tell the truth about what they teach, like that they are only showing some physiological points that will cause someone to be knocked out for information purposes only. But I have never heard of anyone telling people anything other than that they will learn how to knock someone out in a self-defence situation.

I guess it all gets back to why someone attends a seminar such as these. If you wish to simply learn a couple of party tricks, (dangerous ones at that), then sure, go along. But if you wish to learn about self-defence in a realistic situation, then go somewhere that teaches self-defence.

Knocking someone out using physiological methods is easy, something that can be taught in a matter of minutes, it's that simple. Learning about real self-defence takes much longer.

In my books and video son Dim-Mak, I always tell people that it does not matter how many points you learn nor from whom you learn them, it will mean nothing if you do not know firstly how to fight! Unfortunately, I too have people buying my books for all the wrong reasons, simply to show how easy they can knock people out. My books in particular are for information purposes only and they all come with the warning that in order to actually use the information contained in them, the reader must know how to fight. So I always try to give as much information on the fighting system that I teach, as well as the point locations and antidotes etc.