Callaway - Practical Joint Manipulation: For Fighting and Self-Defense

W e often have moments of clarity or realization in life that shape our beliefs and change our future views. Although it has been over thirty years ago, I remember the day my thoughts on the use of joint manipulation for self-defense changed forever. It was early morning, and I was sitting in the bed of a military pickup truck waiting to be transported to my post. Other soldiers were getting their weapons from the armory and starting to climb into the truck around me. It was my lucky day because I had been the first in line to get my rifle and I had the best seat in the bed of the truck with my back against the cab for support. The ride to my post was long, but I would be comfortable. Thats when I heard him. Hey man, Im going to sit there, you need to move! I turned to see one of my fellow soldiers who I didnt know very well staring intensely at me. He immediately told me again that I needed to move because he wanted my seat in the truck. I politely responded that I was not going to move, but he insisted for a third time as he grabbed ahold of my wrist. Im going to yank your ass out of that truck, he said, and he began to aggressively pull on my arm. I tumbled out of the truck but managed to land on my feet and instinctively seized the arm he had grabbed me with. What happened next surprised us both. I was standing over the obnoxious soldier, who was now on the ground in an armbar. Without thinking, I had perfectly executed an outside wrist lock followed by a step across move and I had him under control on the ground. I released the hold and allowed him to get up. Others who were in the truck and standing around started laughing and making comments which infuriated him. He said, You want to fight? as he took off his web belt and gear. I said, no, I dont want to fight, and I got back in the truck which ended the incident. People would talk about what occurred that day for the remainder of my time in the military and the story eventually became exaggerated, but it was a moment of realization for me. I suddenly realized that the joint manipulation techniques I had been practicing for years in my martial arts training could be applied in a real situation against an aggressive opponent. Prior to this incident, I hadnt focused too much on joint manipulation skills in my training. I had been studying the martial arts since the late seventies, and had achieved black belt level, but I was always more into the striking and kicking techniques. While I knew some basic joint locks from my training, I never used them in sparring. This encounter caused me to re-evaluate that. Starting in 1987, I was lucky to study martial arts under Sifu Vic Butler. A significant portion of our training centered around joint manipulation techniques. Over the years I studied other martial arts that focused on joint manipulation such as Jiujitsu, Aikido, Kung-Fu, and Kali. My years of service as a police officer solidified my knowledge of joint manipulation techniques and further confirmed how effective they could be in real life encounters. Eventually, I became a defensive tactics instructor and taught joint locking skills to hundreds of police officers. The techniques in this book are the result of over forty years of martial arts, military, and police training. I know they are effective because I have used them on numerous occasions to subdue people who were resisting, control individuals who were trying to escape, and to protect myself against physical attacks. My goal is to provide you with a basic system of effective joint manipulation skills. I wont waste your time with fancy untested theories or moves. We will cover the key concepts, techniques, and training that you will need to effectively apply these skills in a real self-defense situation. I hope you enjoy the book.

Chuck Callaway

November 2020

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