Skip to Main Content
WINNER! Most Outstanding Martial Arts School in North America!
- MP Power Summit (Largest Martial Arts Convention in America)
Learn JKD from 2nd and 3rd Generation
Bruce Lee Students

Effective Close Combat Training Using Elbows, Knees, & Fists

Unless an attacker or mugger threatens you with a gun, most instances where self-defense is necessary will be up close and personal. Learning close combat moves is essential to protecting yourself in these dangerous situations. It can help you defend yourself quickly when in close quarters.

Members of the military, as well as other servicemen and women, frequently practice close combat training so they can safeguard themselves in a hand-to-hand fighting scenario. From elbow strikes and punches to knee strikes and even grapples, these concepts often allow them to defend against larger, stronger opponents.

If you ever find yourself up close in a violent physical confrontation, knowing how to fight in close combat may help you save your wallet or possibly your life.

Close Combat Training Tips

As you learn ways to defend yourself in close quarters, you’ll quickly find which types of strikes and attacks are more effective than others. Practicing combat up close will point to openings in your opponent’s defense as well as ways you can exploit them.

Keep Your Guard Up

Easily the most important thing for you to remember any time you’re in close combat is to always be protecting yourself. An attacker will likely be trying to hit you from every angle, making it crucial that any time you throw a strike that you keep your guard up.

Keep your hands up to defend yourself.

Your hands, arms, and legs should always be ready to block or counter an opponent’s attacks.

Use Knee Strikes

Although you most likely won’t be throwing many kicks when in close combat, you can always strike with your knees when an opponent is near. Knee strikes can be accurate and powerful with plenty of places where you can hit the attacker.

As you throw knees, you can do severe damage to the foe’s face, head, body, and legs. This can include attacks ranging from horizontal knee strikes to devastating flying knees.

Add Elbow Strikes

The human body has been retrofitted with two built-in weapons about halfway down your arms. When your arm is bent inward, elbows become sharp daggers that can easily slice and slash at an opponent. Even someone who isn’t particularly strong can cause some serious damage if they know how to use their elbows.

Using elbow strikes is one of the most common and also one of the fastest attacks you can use when in close combat. You’ll always want to make sure your hand and shoulder are loose any time you throw them to make the attack as effective as possible.

A few of the best types of elbow strikes to try when fighting up close are:

  • Snap Elbow
  • Cross Elbow
  • Up Elbow
  • Down Elbow

Throw Punches

Along with throwing knees and elbows, your fists are yet another piece of equipment you can use while doing close combat training. The nice thing is that with all the different ways to throw a punch, you have a variety of options for where to hit your opponent.

Throwing punches in close combat.

Punches can be thrown to the face, neck, chest, stomach, arms, groin, legs, and more. This opens up the possibility to mix up the type of punch as well as the placement to keep an attacker off guard and cause them damage in multiple ways.

The basic punches you should learn for close combat include:

Side note: It’s important for you to know that punching without boxing gloves or MMA gloves can be painful. Even with the proper technique, throwing a punch will likely hurt your knuckles and last a while. But in a self-defense situation where close combat is necessary, you’ll also likely have a good amount of adrenaline pumping through your veins and it won’t matter until later.

Close Combat Self-Defense Calls for Dirty Fighting

Any time you find yourself in a position where self-defense is necessary, it isn’t about playing fair or following rules. While the UFC and other professional MMA tournaments have standards and regulations that keep fighters from using certain moves and techniques, these don’t apply in real-life scenarios.

The most important thing in self-defense is using the most effective close combat techniques that will allow you to disable an attacker and get away as quickly as possible. Here are a few things you can do if you ever find yourself in a situation like this:

  • Eye Gouge: Use your hands or fingers to scratch, punch, and claw at their eyes.
  • Fish Hook: Putting one or two fingers in your opponent’s mouth and pulling hard on their cheeks allows you to control their head and take advantage of other tactics immediately after.
  • Attack the Groin: Whether it’s with your fists, elbows, knees, or feet, this is one of the most sensitive areas of anyone’s body, making it a clear target for self-defense.
  • Go for the Back of their Head: Strikes to the neck and spine can cause serious injury and instantly disable an opponent.
  • Throat Punch: This allows you to damage an assailant’s windpipe so they can’t breathe.

Learning How to Fight in Close Combat

Using things like elbow strikes, knee strikes, and punches are only a few ways to defend yourself when fighting someone up close. They will help you get in quick attacks while still causing good damage to your opponent.

Watching close combat training videos is another great way to improve your ability to guard against an enemy that is up in your face. These skills are important for self-defense and may even save your life someday.

To learn more close combat techniques in person, make sure you come visit one of NY Martial Arts Academy’s four locations!

Self Defense Training

No one deserves to be assaulted. No one wants to be assaulted. But unfortunately, as anyone who reads the news can attest, the frequency of unmitigated violence is too high to ignore. Whether we want to recognize it or not, many of us will be...

Read Reviews from Our Students

My son has been training at New York Martial Arts Academy for a few months and absolutely loves it! The students learn to focus, follow directions and coordination all while having fun with other kids their age! The children also have discussions about topics such as discipline, politeness, respect, etc. If you are looking for a martial arts school that respects all students and works one to one with them to help them improve their form, look no further. I highly recommend New York Martial Arts Academy! Phyllis Trilivas | Queens Phyllis Trilivas | Queens's Rating
My son has been attending classes here for two years and I only have the best to say! He has learned so much and loves going each time which is a testament to the amazing coaches and staff. We will be going for years to come! Dimitra Stellatos | Queens Dimitra Stellatos | Queens's Rating
I am truly honored to have my daughter attend here, I am satisfied with the teaching here, the instructors teach with passion, the place is welcoming, I love the bully prevention, the defense moves, and the confidence she is gaining. My daughter enjoys coming here, I highly recommend! Thank you guys and keep up the great work???????????????? popping up | Brooklyn popping up | Brooklyn's Rating
My daughter and I couldn’t be happier with our experience at NY Martial Arts Academy. She is treated with respect and also shown how to treat others with respect along with learning important self defence which I’m sure will lead to boosted confidence in the long run. Such a great place for kids to attend! Kimberly Ross | Brooklyn Kimberly Ross | Brooklyn's Rating
My son has been attending NYMAA for over a 1.5 year and overall he has gained more confidence, discipline, and love his classes. We had the pleasure of working with many of their Sifus and they are all amazing. Special thanks to Sifu Chuck, Sara, Carlos, James and everyone else that my son has worked with. We started doing private classes and then switched to group classes. Great place to have your child gained discipline and learned martial arts. Marcia S | Astoria Marcia S | Astoria's Rating
I am extremely pleased with instructors Sifu James, Sifu Carlos and Sifu Dino. My son has participated in their classes for the past 3 months now. have noticed a great change in my son's school work and how motivated he is to come to class! They are the best of the best!!!!! Would recommend for all ages! Víctor Santamaria | Astoria Víctor Santamaria | Astoria's Rating
My daughter loves it here, and I can see improvements in her character. Lenny Lam | Astoria Lenny Lam | Astoria's Rating
I've been training here for almost 3 years now and it has allowed me to meet great people and form strong bonds with the people I train with. It's a great environment to learn martial arts because not only are you surrounded by good people, you also have a lot of fun training as the instructors tend to crack jokes throughout the classes. Great place get in a hard training session, and a real confidence booster as you will be pushed to your limits and be encouraged by the instructors and your teammates to continue despite being tired. Great instructors that know their stuff and will explain why we do certain techniques or drills a certain way. More importantly than that, it's great for personal growth as it also tends to highlight the more philosophical aspect of Bruce Lee and martial arts as a whole. mcgregor conner | Queens mcgregor conner | Queens's Rating
I have been a student at New York Martial Arts Academy for about 10 years and it is such an amazing opportunity to be a part of this school! All of the instructors are very knowledgeable and are always there to help you. You can tell that all of the instructors love what they do and they want to see us become the best version of ourselves, both on and off the training floor. The instructors and students at New York Martial Arts Academy have created such a welcoming and fun environment for anyone to learn martial arts in. I would definitely recommend training at New York Martial Arts Academy! Angela Gallo | Queens Angela Gallo | Queens's Rating
When I was looking for a martial arts to try, for the first time ever, I was very nervous especially starting at the age of 30 and not having had any prior experience. Starting from day one I felt comfortable with the trainer who was amazingly patient, had a positive attitude and didn’t make me feel self conscience about my inability to land a half decent kick. But after attending for many months I started to get the hang of it. The instructors here as well as my fellow students who I have the privilege to train with are top notch. The culture is amazing, you will never feel out of place and the teachers here are absolutely amazing, they will provide you with all the tools you need and all the attention you need to make sure you succeed and achieve your goals. I Highly recommend you check this place out! Dan B | Queens Dan B | Queens's Rating
I've been a martial arts practitioner for 12 years now, and have trained in different countries around the world. New York Martial Arts Academy has, by far, the best facilities of any school I've been a member of. The instruction is top tier as well. I haven't met an instructor here that doesn't have at least 10 years of experience. You can tell that they all really love what they do. Whether your goal is to get in shape and have some fun, fight in a cage, or defend yourself in the street, NYMAA will be able to accommodate.

One of the things that most impressed me about the school was the camaraderie between students. You won't find cliques here. Advanced students are encouraged to help newer members, and I've never seen anyone be disrespectful or intentionally try to hurt anyone else.

If you want to learn a skill that helps your confidence, increases your fitness, allows you to be able to defend yourself, and make some good friends at the same time, then I would de initely recommend checking out NYMAA.
eassae | Queens eassae | Queens's Rating
Growing up, I have always admired Bruce Lee's unique fighting style, so I was extremely happy when I finally found a Martial Arts Academy that based their instruction on jeet kune do. I have tried several different academies, and I can proudly say that none of them met the exceptional experience that I received from NYMAA. In here, the instructors, staff, and even students form a team based on mutual respect, creating a great atmosphere. I also love how the instructors pride themselves in teaching their students a new way of life rather than just self-defense. I would highly recommend this place to anyone who is interested in seeking new opportunities to better their life. Elke Xenophontos | Queens Elke Xenophontos | Queens's Rating
Joining was the best decision I've ever made. It's an amazing workout that I genuinely look forward to everyday and I have never felt better.

I highly recommend the NYMAA to anyone looking to take martial arts for any reason.
Richard Boehm | Long Island Richard Boehm | Long Island's Rating