Self-defense could be very liberating in many ways. If you are a person who worries about your safety and the safety of others, this could be one step to take in order to make you more confident in dealing with a stressful situation. Let me define self-defense for you.Self-defense is protecting oneself from any immediate bodily harm or death that could result from an encounter or an attack from an assailant. Of course, self-defense can come in many forms. Whatever form of self-defense you choose, make sure it is a form that you feel have had some sort of interest in. Studies have shown that humans are more likely to learn what interest them or has at least been of interest to them at some point in their life. If you have never given it much thought you can do a little research first before making a decision. Below I have posted some ideas of self-defense for you to think about. As you will see there are many different forms of self-defense to choose from.
Forms of Self-Defense
Martial Arts: Karate, Aikido, Choy Li Fut, Hapkido, Judo, Jujitsu, Tae Kwon Do and Tai Chi Chuan to name a few. The many forms of martial arts can be very useful in the face of an (unarmed) assailant. With the techniques that could be learned through martial arts training, the confidence to handle any situation is not far away. Below I have provided definitions of each:
Karate: Used in generic terms to describe all forms of martial arts.
Aikido: Emphasizes evasion and circular/spiral redirection of an attacker's aggressive force into throws, pins, and immobilizations as a primary strategy rather than punches and kicks.
Choy Li Fut: Relies on very powerful hand and arm techniques. Four main hand techniques are used, including the straight punch, the back fist, the uppercut and the hook punch.
Hapkido: It is a fusion of Korean Tae Kwon Do and Aikido. It utilizes TKD's many sweeping kicks and acrobatics along with Aikido's defense and joint lock techniques.
Judo: Emphasizes the art of throwing, falling and wrestling.
Jujitsu: It is an art of grappling and wrestling. Uses locking techniques, kicks and strikes.
Tae Kwon Do: Maybe the most popular martial arts in the world today. This Korean art of Kicks and punches displays an amazing array of acrobatic kicks and flying punches.
Tai Chi Chuan: The term "T'ai Chi" refers to the ancient Chinese cosmological concept of the interplay between two opposite yet complementary forces (Yin and Yang) as being the foundation of creation. "Ch'uan" literaly means "fist" and denotes an unarmed method of combat. T'ai Chi Ch'uan as a martial art is based on the principle of the soft overcoming the hard.
Weapons/Training
Guns- I think that having weapons training could be useful. If you plan to own a gun than you should definitely obtain the training to operate the weapon. It would not be wise to be confronted by an assailant and never have fired your gun before. Aside from the shock of the loud bang firing a gun can make, there is also the possibility of a gun jamming and you needing to clear the weapon in a timely manner. If nothing else, training will teach you the basics about you gun like cleaning the gun, loading and unloading the gun and making the gun safe when not in use.
Knives- I was asked a question once during a community meeting I attended regarding the use of a knife. The question was regarding if someone broke into a home and the owner was at home. If the closest weapon the owner had in the house was a knife, could they use it. My answer was, “of course!” you have to protect yourself from harm and if you have an intruder inside of your home that is possibly about to assault or violate you, than you’d better fight with whatever you have. It would just be nice if the owner had some sort of knife training. There are places where this type of training can be obtained. I would suggest that if you are going to use a knife for protection and you know this ahead of time, you get the training. A person using a knife without any training at all could hurt themselves also.
Guard Dog- Having a guard dog is self-explanatory. This is a form of self-defense though if you did not know it. A person with a dog has several options at his/her disposal. The first thing you do is get training for your dog. Train your dog to respond to commands, specifically the attack and hold command. I may not have the terms exactly correct but the idea is to be capable of having your dog attack an assailant and once that assailant has been subdued the hold command will have your dog stand guard while you call for help.
Exercise- Stretching and running can be a great tool. And yes it can be used as a form of self-defense. Remember I said that it is not wrong to run away if you think you can get away? Well, here is where exercise comes in. If you are used to running, and by running I mean sprinting and long distance, you will almost always be able to get away from the assailant. The reason for sprinting is so that your body is conditioned to move away from the place you’re in in a quick manner, almost surprisingly to the assailant. Long distance running will give you the extra energy so if the assailant decided he wanted to try to catch you, you have that extra energy that hopefully he doesn’t have and the assailant should run out of gas long before you do.
Other Tactics
There are some other small forms of self-defense that you can teach yourself. Teach yourself to talk (have the gift of gab). If you are a person that can talk calmly in stressful situations, than you might trying a negotiating tactic with an assailant. I must say, I would only recommend this tactic if you are trying to buy some time. For instance, if you know help is on the way and you are brave enough to keep the assailant there. Again, I wouldn’t recommend this tactic unless you really know what you’re doing. Last but not least strengthening your memory could also help. Your mind notices things subconsciously sometimes. For instance, a tattoo on a finger or a weird looking belt would be important. These things could be the only factors that make a suspect stand out amongst other people dressed similarly. Using mind exercises can strengthen your memory and observation skills.
Self-defense could be very liberating in many ways. If you are a person who worries about your safety and the safety of others, this could be one step to take in order to make you more confident in dealing with a stressful situation. Let me define self-defense for you. Self-defense is protecting oneself from any immediate bodily harm or death that could result from an encounter or an attack from an assailant. Of course, self-defense can come in many forms. Whatever form of self-defense you choose, make sure it is a form that you feel have had some sort of interest in. Studies have shown that humans are more likely to learn what interest them or has at least been of interest to them at some point in their life. If you have never given it much thought you can do a little research first before making a decision. Below I have posted some ideas of self-defense for you to think about. As you will see there are many different forms of self-defense to choose from.
Martial Arts: Karate, Aikido, Choy Li Fut, Hapkido, Judo, Jujitsu, Tae Kwon Do and Tai Chi Chuan to name a few. The many forms of martial arts can be very useful in the face of an (unarmed) assailant. With the techniques that could be learned through martial arts training, the confidence to handle any situation is not far away. Below I have provided definitions of each:
Guns- I think that having weapons training could be useful. If you plan to own a gun than you should definitely obtain the training to operate the weapon. It would not be wise to be confronted by an assailant and never have fired your gun before. Aside from the shock of the loud bang firing a gun can make, there is also the possibility of a gun jamming and you needing to clear the weapon in a timely manner. If nothing else, training will teach you the basics about you gun like cleaning the gun, loading and unloading the gun and making the gun safe when not in use.
Knives- I was asked a question once during a community meeting I attended regarding the use of a knife. The question was regarding if someone broke into a home and the owner was at home. If the closest weapon the owner had in the house was a knife, could they use it. My answer was, “of course!” you have to protect yourself from harm and if you have an intruder inside of your home that is possibly about to assault or violate you, than you’d better fight with whatever you have. It would just be nice if the owner had some sort of knife training. There are places where this type of training can be obtained. I would suggest that if you are going to use a knife for protection and you know this ahead of time, you get the training. A person using a knife without any training at all could hurt themselves also.
Guard Dog- Having a guard dog is self-explanatory. This is a form of self-defense though if you did not know it. A person with a dog has several options at his/her disposal. The first thing you do is get training for your dog. Train your dog to respond to commands, specifically the attack and hold command. I may not have the terms exactly correct but the idea is to be capable of having your dog attack an assailant and once that assailant has been subdued the hold command will have your dog stand guard while you call for help.
The reason for sprinting is so that your body is conditioned to move away from the place you’re in in a quick manner, almost surprisingly to the assailant. Long distance running will give you the extra energy so if the assailant decided he wanted to try to catch you, you have that extra energy that hopefully he doesn’t have and the assailant should run out of gas long before you do.