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your level 1 test


East Texas Krav Maga — Student Guide
Your
Level 1
Test
What it is. What it measures.
How to prepare. What it means.

Purpose
What This Test Is About
One word: proficiency. That’s it. The Level 1 Test exists to answer a single question — can you demonstrate the foundational skills, tactics, and mindset needed to protect yourself at a real, functional level? Not perfectly. Not impressively. Proficiently.
This test is not a performance. It is not about impressing your instructors. It is about proving something to yourself — that when it matters, you have what it takes to fight back.

Scoring
The Basic 3
Every student is scored across three dimensions simultaneously — what your hands do, how you think, and how you carry yourself under pressure.
Mindset
Fight Back mentality. Finish every drill. Shake off mistakes, breathe, fix it, move forward.

Tactics
Hands up. Get off the X. Create distance before stopping. Sound decisions under pressure.

Skillset
Proper mechanics, correct targets, right range. Execution without thinking it through first.

Technical Scoring Detail
Combatives: Proper striking surface, correct targets, appropriate range, how the body generates and sponsors energy for the strike, non-striking hand stays up to protect.
Defenses: Address the immediate danger, counter-attack, create distance, get away from the threat. Aggressive defense. Fight Back mentality.
Focus across all scoring: Breathing, hands up, mobility, spatial awareness, and an immediate proactive reaction to being attacked.

Preparation
What to Work Toward
Mindset
  • Fight Back mentality. No matter what happens in a drill, you finish it.
  • If you make a mistake: shake it off, breathe, fix it, move on, do better.
  • The test measures your ability to keep going, not your ability to be perfect.
Tactics
  • Hands up — every time, every drill.
  • Get off the X — train the instinct to move out of the threat line.
  • Get away from the threat before stopping the drill. Distance is a decision.
Skills
  • Start slow and intentional. Keep it clean first.
  • Then speed it up — test yourself. If it breaks down, back off and rebuild it.
  • The goal is execution without thinking. That takes reps, not just rehearsal.
Fitness
  • Breathe through movement. It will be tested — don’t overthink it.
  • Cardio: jog → run → sprint → jog. Pressure-test your limits safely.
  • Strength: push-ups, sit-ups, squats, lunges. Set a number. Add to it weekly.

Key Principle
Stress drills in class are built to prove something to you, not to your instructors. Go all out. Use class time to find your limits in a safe environment — so you already know what you’re capable of when test day comes.

What “Ready” Looks Like: The test runs approximately three hours with a decent pace and scheduled breaks. It is physically demanding, but nothing you haven’t already done in class — just more of it, with more focus. If you’ve been showing up and going all out in class, you’re more ready than you think.

Test Day
What to Expect
1
Arrive 15 Minutes Early
Shake the nerves off before you walk in. Stretch, warm up, talk to fellow students. Bring a towel and a change of clothes. Set yourself up for success before the clock starts.

2
Quick Review
We open with a brief run-through of any material students want to see again. Not a teaching session — just a quick refresh on anything uncertain before scoring begins.

3
Partners & Groups Organized
Instructors will pair you up and organize groups across the floor. Pads are set. You know what’s coming — now you execute.

4
Combatives Scored Top to Bottom
We work through the skills and drills sheet in order, scoring each student on each item. After all combatives, a 5-minute break to hydrate and refuel.

5
Defenses & Drills to Close
The final section covers all defense scenarios and drills. This is where everything ties together — mindset, tactics, and skills all on display at once.

What Passing Means
When you pass, we see you as having a strong, functional knowledge of Level 1 material — proficient enough to build more on top of it. You earn access to Level 2 training, and we onboard you into that level the same way we brought you in here: structured, supported, with a foundation already under you.

But the real change is internal. The confidence that comes out of this test is not manufactured — it is earned. You’ll feel it the moment it’s over. Every student does. It’s real, and it’s yours.