Instructor of the Month

Sandra Heudecker, KMG Germany

Age:

31

Marital status:

Single, no Kids

Occupation:

Full time Executive Assistant with ARTDECO cosmetics (degree in Business Administration) and KMG instructor with KMT Munich.

Krav Maga experience:

I started training KM at KMT Munich in 2008. I completed my GIC successfully under Zeev Cohen (also many thanks to Tal and Ilya). It was a great experience. This summer I passed level G4. And now I continue training under our head instructor Jan Tevini, who is part of the KMG international instructor team and Germany’s KMG board of Directors.

Why Krav Maga:

After a career as professional swimmer, I was looking for a new activity. I found my passion in KM because it is an all in one package. KM includes much more than just self defense, it is a workout for the entire body and mental training as well. KM is simple but efficient and still changes my behavior. To give my students useful knowledge and experience makes me really happy.

Weekly training regime:

Being a role model as an instructor I am guided by the demands I place on myself. This means to be in good shape and never stop to expand professional knowledge. I conduct adult classes three times per week and seminars from time to time. Sometimes we are in a set of two or three instructors during these classes. If you have a great number of students, it will improve the training quality a lot. And besides that we use the time after classes for some instructor training.

To improve my fitness I vary my training. In summertime I go out for mountain biking, hiking or swimming. In wintertime I usually do more cardio and strength training inside. But I am also very interested in gymnastics.

Most effective Krav Maga technique:

I really like the “educational block”. Such a small movement shows the aggressor that you are not easy to handle. So you have a good chance to stop an upcoming attack right in the beginning. It is not a strong physical attack but a very strong message you send out – “I know what I am doing. Do you really want to touch me again?”. Especially as a girl you have the advantage that most of offenders will be confused at the first moment. This is your time for more counterattacks or escape.

Tip for KM trainees:

Be open-minded to any kind of training, students, locations and instructors. You can learn from all and everyone. Variety is important. Think about what you do and why when you perform a technique. This way it will not be hard to learn and retain techniques and you will get a deeper understanding of the system.

So train hard and don’t be afraid of getting hurt!