Sharpen your Ax
BY MOSHE KATZ 
CEO
ISRAELI KRAV INTERNATIONAL

May 3, 2026, Tirana, Albania

There is an old tale of two loggers, (not bloggers), woodcutters. They compete to see who can chop the most wood in one day. One chops relentlessly the entire day without taking any breaks while the other takes an occasional break. The one who does not take breaks is convinced that the other is tired, and weak, and therefore he, the non-breaker, will surely win the contest. 

To his utter dismay the "non breaker" loses the competition. This is an outrage, but I worked much harder! How could this be?

The answer is that while the non-breaker saw the "take a break" guy as weak, tired, giving in to his need for rest, this in fact was not true.

Rest and self-improvement.

What the non-stop worker/chopper did not realize was that the guy taking a break was not wasting his time. He was accomplishing two objectives that actually helped him achieve his goal faster. 

First, he was recharging his energy. And he was also taking time to examine his tool, his ax, and sharpen it. The logger who takes time to rest, eat, nourish his soul and his mind, who takes time to sharpen his tool, will ultimately end up ahead. That is the moral of the story, it is not who works harder, it is who works, and lives, smarter. 

There are gyms where people train very hard, they hit the bag, they lift weights, they jump rope, they do endless push-ups, but in terms of self-defense, that is the logger who never takes a break, there is little growth over there, and they are not preparing for real self-defense. You can't box your way out of a gun shot or a stab. For this you need a different approach, you need to take a break, let your brain work instead of just jumping rope. You need to think of how to improve. 

In addition, there are many, or most, who do not have the time to train this way. They cannot spend hours daily in a gym, lifting weights, hitting the bag etc. For them and for all of us, we need to take a break, think, research, and find a smarter way to self-defense. In every field things are changing. In High Tech, in AI, but with self-defense it seems people just stay put, no growth, no real progress. Just more of the same. 

We need to research and find faster methods. We need to find ways that do not require endless hours of repetition to master a technique. Nothing makes me happier than when I see a student understand and master a technique immediately.

We need to invest in our training, I am in Albania because someone felt it was important to bring me over for a week of training. They want to progress, to be up to date. Yet others feel why "waste" money on seminars? Let's just do more push-ups. And the logger who worked harder lost the competition.

We need to sharpen our ax. A dull ax means more work, harder work, and less results. A tired, hungry logger means less productivity. We need not only "matt time "but also research to improve our training so we can accomplish more in our matt time. The result we want is to accomplish more in less time.

Years ago I was advised to hit the bag 500 times each day with each hand. But it led to worsened arthritis rather than improved striking ability. But then I discovered more effective ways to strike, ways that did not involve deforming my hands and destroying my body.

Not just endless training but better quality training. 

Moshe2021

Moshe Katz, 7th dan Black Belt, Israeli Krav Maga. Certified by Wingate Institute. Member Black Belt hall of fame, USA and Europe.

Understand the Israeli Fighting Mentality - Israel a Nation of Warriors by Moshe Katz

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What is the cultural background of Krav Maga?  What makes it unique? What makes the Israeli military so effective? Why are Israeli security systems used all over the world?

What are the Biblical origins of Krav Maga and who was the first Krav Maga instructor?

What weapons and military strategies did our Biblical ancestors use?

How has Krav Maga developed in Israel and what are its goals?

All that and more in this unique book.

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