Does Krav Maga have a ranked belt system?

Founded in the 1970s, Krav Maga is an Israeli martial art that is based on survival by any means. As a result, it has earned a tough reputation over the years and this is to be expected, considering it was formed in the military. Because of its military background and being fairly modern, Krav Maga is quite modern compared to most traditional arts.

This brings us to the topic of belts in Krav Maga. As ever in martial arts, the belt system will always bring up debate. Here, some will argue that belts are irrelevant, whilst others believe it’s a good way of ranking practitioners and enforcing hierarchy. Moving on, we shall also look at whether Krav Maga uses belts.

Krav Maga uses belts…kind of

When it comes to graded belts in Krav Maga, the history can be a bit vague and hard to understand at times. Basically, some Krav Maga gyms use belts, whereas others don’t. On the one end of the spectrum, some use a system that is almost similar to Judo. On the other end, some don’t use belts or rankings at all with no uniform. Somewhere in the middle, some gyms have patches or sashes to denote rank, like those used in Kung Fu.

Basically, the use of belts in Krav Maga is completely up to each individual school. What may be the norm in some gyms may be completely different in others. As you can imagine, this lack of solidarity can arguably make black belts worthless if there are advanced practitioners walking around without them, or fairly low-level guys wearing them.

Has Krav Maga always used belts?

The story goes that the Krav Maga founder, Imi Lichtenfeld originally started Krav Maga without using a colored belt system. As he was interested purely in self defense and survival, he didn’t really care. Thankfully, much of this logic has remained in Krav Maga to this day. So, initially, Krav Maga didn’t use belts.

However, after a while, Imi actually implemented a belt system or at least consented to it. The argument behind this is that it adds structure to training and is more attractive to the masses. So, at some point quite early on in the history of Krav Maga – a belt system was adopted. Even these days, a lot of legitimate Krav Maga gyms still adhere to the belt system, so it’s certainly not a bad thing.

Sometimes, Krav Maga belts aren’t physical

An interesting quirk of Krav Maga is that sometimes, its belts aren’t physical. This differs from many martial arts ways of thinking that use a physical belt to signify rank. Instead, a belt will be awarded to a Krav Maga practitioner verbally. In short, one day you may be told you’re a new belt or a higher grade, which is dependent on your teacher.

The idea behind this is that higher belts should be more knowledgeable about the Krav Maga curriculum. Therefore, they can be used to train with each other or teach newcomers. Honestly, this system sounds a bit strange, considering it functions like physical belts yet neglects them. Perhaps this is purely to be original and different compared to other martial arts.

So, how do Krav Maga belts work?

Typically, there are seven belts to obtain in Krav Maga. This starts at white belt and ends at black belt. Sometimes, very experienced black belts who are well respected are referred to as ‘grandmaster’. As you may have figured, a system that begins at white belt and ends at black belt is pretty standard within the martial arts community.

There are then the in between belts, which are yellow, orange, green, blue, and brown belt. So, a brown belt within Krav Maga is pretty experienced, whereas a yellow belt is still a rookie. Sometimes in terms of technique, there’s little in it when comparing an orange and green belt which is similar to the other middle belts in martial arts.

As mentioned earlier, the Krav Maga belt system was heavily inspired by the Judo one. It’s no secret that Imi respected the Japanese martial art. As a result, both have similar colors and ranks.

How long does it take to become a Krav Maga black belt?

Whilst any belt promotion is subjective and depends on a lot of context, the average person should take around 5 years to become a Krav Maga black belt. In some quicker cases, this can be done in 3 years if a student is truly dedicated. For slower students, this process could take closer to 8 years. However, if you’re committed, consistent and respectful, then you can probably become a black belt around the 5 year mark.

At the same time, every place is different. Some Krav Maga teachers will have very strict criteria for promoting to black belt, whereas others will be more relaxed. Basically, every place is different and it really depends on each individual gym. This is why it’s hard to pin down how quickly a promotion takes and it’s impossible to give a definitive answer.

Similarly, it’s not good to chase belts. If you want a black belt then you can go and buy one if you’re desperate. A black belt should be hard-earned and carries a certain status. As well, if you truly want a black belt then some martial arts will probably promote quicker than Krav Maga anyway.

Once again, you may have noticed some similarities with Judo. Generally, it also takes around 5 years for the average person to get a Judo black belt. This is yet another example of how Judo impacted the culture of Krav Maga.

Conclusion

The rule of belts in Krav Maga can be confusing at the best of times. The reason for this is that there isn’t a unified system like those found in other disciplines. This results in a degree of interpretation amongst gyms and owners which means some people take grading very seriously, whereas others don’t even give out physical belts. On the other side of the coin, some don’t even do belt promotions at all.

In summary, Krav Maga does have black belts and sometimes these are given during ceremonies. Having said this, it’s generally safe to say that Krav Maga is more relaxed and casual with belts compared to most other martial arts.

If you want to know what it takes to become a Krav Maga black belt then check out this book which gives a good technical overview of things.