Chokes and Sleeper Holds are great techniques to add to your self-defense tool box. Sometimes, due to a variety of reasons, pain compliance techniques have little or no effect.\u00a0 This may be due to a drug that alters the attacker’s mentality and pain perception, or possibly plain old determination that allows a person to continue through the worst pain and injury.\u00a0 Regardless of the reason, we don’t want to solely rely on pain compliance techniques to defend ourselves or control others.<\/p>\n

This is one of the reasons I like chokes and sleeper holds, and believe it is important to learn and include training in these involuntary compliance techniques with our self-defense and defensive tactics programs.\u00a0 Okay, I understand that many law enforcement and security departments now prohibit the use of coke or sleeper type techniques.\u00a0 While I don’t necessarily agree with this, by all means, obey your department’s policies and don’t get yourself in trouble.\u00a0 However, I’d still advise learning and practicing various choke and carotid restraint techniques to have in your arsenal \u2013 just in case.<\/p>\n

Of the two, chokes that restrict airflow to the lungs and sleeper holds or carotid restraint techniques, I prefer the latter.\u00a0 If you cut, or actually reduce, the blood supply to the brain, an attacker has no choice but to go to sleep.\u00a0 I don’t care how much pain a person can feel or withstand, if blood to the brain is reduced by cutting it off by applying pressure to the carotid arteries, the person will go out.\u00a0 No ifs, ands, or buts about it.\u00a0 Apply a proper sleeper hold and the person goes night-night.\u00a0 I don’t care how tough a guy is or if he’s on drugs. Absence of oxygen will make him sleep.\u00a0 This can be from either a choke or sleeper, but sleeper holds will put him out more quickly. (Think about how long you can hold your breath.\u00a0 Chokes restricting oxygen to the lungs can take time to render a person unconscious. However, cut the blood supply to the brain, and a person can be out in only a few seconds.)<\/p>\n

Therefore, I believe everyone who trains in martial arts or self-defense programs should learn and practice chokes and sleepers.\u00a0 Personally, I’m always looking for ways to apply these techniques, and they have saved me on a number of occasions.\u00a0 (They have saved the other person too, since putting him out with a choke was a lot better than hurting him bad with striking techniques.)\u00a0 This does not mean you should forgo all of your other training.\u00a0 You need those techniques too.\u00a0 Sometimes you’ll need those striking techniques to end confrontations, and other times you might need them to set up your choke or sleeper technique.\u00a0 The goal it to be prepared, and knowing different techniques to handle various attacks and situations increases your preparedness.\u00a0 So make sure you learn and practice these fight ending techniques.<\/p>\n

\u00a0This is a sample we filmed before filming my\u00a0Chokes and Sleeper Holds<\/em>\u00a0DVD\u00a0 with Aiki Productions:<\/h3>\n