There is a difference between my martiual art and self-defense classes.  Although components of martial arts are in self-defense, when I teach self-defense, the strict rules are removed and the basic, general concepts are taught.

In martial art class, students do not have to fight to save their lives; rather, they are learning the intricacies of an art that includes martial fighting and skills.  Their only opponent is a classmate or maybe a punching bag.

A lot of martial arts are made up of choreographed techniques that use kicks and punches in a very manipulated, contrived way in order to learn proper technique and form.  While that proper technique is critical in performing the skill, in self-defense, some bigger, more exaggerated movements take the place of little perfect intricacies.  These are adapted so the average person can remember them and so they are simple enough to be used in a real life attack situation.

Here’s five great examples that show exactly what I mean.

1.  Kicks- In martial art class, flexibility, bringing the knee up high before thrusting the kick, and the ability to break boards all have relevance in the skillful accuracy of a kick.  Those who execute incredible taller-than-the-sky kicks are coveted because the beauty and height of the kick are so darn impressive.

But, none of that is really necessary in self-defense.

Women who come to my self-defense classes, who have no martial arts training, don’t have the time to learn the small fine points of performing a kick correctly.  In order to give them a fighting chance, I remove some of the details so they can focus on the actual act of kicking.

I start by letting them kick the bag.  For a front kick, the main points I ask them to remember is to bring the knee up first because that helps with power, and to strike with the ball of the foot.  For the side kick, bringing the knee up front feels less natural for most.  At the least, I tell them, striking with the heel of the foot creates maximum impact.

I give them a few chances to kick the bag.  Some have never felt the tough texture of the bag on the bottom of their foot before.  It’s a chance to focus and acknowledge their power for the very first time and to test where the comfort is in their kick.  In self-defense, a kick to the shin or groin will do the trick, and most can do that.  In self-defense I remove the demands to kick higher or better.  I want to see that they can kick any area on the opponents body that will elicit some quick pain.

In martial art class, I approach kicking as a skill to be mastered.  In self-defense class, it is a kick for survival.  In martial art class, we kick bags, targets, and the air, sometimes doubling up, or keeping balance from one kick to the next.  In self-defense, I ask the women to kick only as high as their balance allows.

Knee up, ball or heel of the foot, kick.  That’s it.

2.  Wrist and Neck Grabs

In class, I teach some aikido and ju jitsu.  I implement  a full range of techniques from beginner to advanced.  Some of the advanced skills are really fun to learn and exciting to watch.  They have intricacies and fine points and if not done exactly right end up not working at all;  or, on the other end of the spectrum, are so powerful they unexpectedly bring a classroom opponent to his knees in seconds flat.  The higher the student’s belt rank, the more she can learn and it is a never-ending battle as an instructor to keep things flowing at a good learning curve for the student.

In self-defense class, the basic concept that I teach about wrist and neck grabs is that the fingers and thumbs of the attacker make up the hold that needs to be broken.  I try to train the women to not focus on the size of the opponent because if he is grabbing her wrist or neck, the escape focus can be shifted to his hands where his fingers and thumbs meet.

I show the most basic escapes for these grabs, because nothing more is necessary if you are trying to save your life.  They are the same escapes I would revert to, if attacked.  It’s awesome to watch some of the Masters out there, manipulate a potential attacker with their quick expertise.  At times it is so detailed, though, that you cannot even focus on all the small moving parts that they have so expertly executed.

Those complicated defenses don’t work for the non-martial arts woman, like a mom who is leaving the grocery store in the dark, a grandma who is trying to unlock her door, or the girl who feels like someone is following her.  No, martial art defense and self-defense do not necessarily share the same concepts.

Break through the fingers and thumbs holding on to you and run.

3.  Yelling

Kiai’s are awesome, aren’t they?  I can’t wait to get to class so I can let it all out.  One pattern or form and I gladly sing the loud, quick notes, or give a holler when I flip someone over my hip, or when I practice punches over and over.  The sense of power, the extra energy it elicits is electrifying and clarifying.

In real life, a good yell actually works.  Stand in front of someone and yell loudly in their face.  Even if they know what you are going to do, they will be unable to keep their eyes open for that brief time.  For an instant, they blink.  The blink is the key to the defense that I teach these self-defense students.

When the attacker’s blink occurs, the victim can break through the fingers and thumbs hold, or kick the shin, or stomp on the foot, or add another distraction like spitting in the face, striking the bridge of the nose with their head, or biting.  If they do all or some of this, then they have the chance to get away.

I said a “chance.”  Nothing, and I mean “nothing,” is guaranteed to work.

Yell in the opponents face and use that moment to break free.

4.  Combinations

In patterns, there are a myriad of combinations that come into play.  Simple moves like a down block, punch, or  a cross block , kick.  In warm ups, we also practice hand combinations, such as three front punches followed by a reverse punch.  In drills, we move all the way across the floor working leg and hand combinations with power and fluidity.

In self-defense, nothing needs to be fluid, but there does need to be some power.  And with that, a few combinations won’t hurt.

“Not one punch, but two or three or four, until you break free,” I tell the group.

“How about a punch and some kicks, all while yelling,” I bellow.

It is not easy to get them to do so many”violent” actions after being told all their lives to act properly as a woman.  Some are excited and happy to try, others are shy and worried.  The shy and worried ones need the most practice and motivation.

My mantra is always the same about combinations in self-defense class.

Generally one move may not work, so keep doing something until you get your chance to break free.

5.  Verbal De-escalation

In martial art class, I don’t work much on the verbal defenses very frequently.  On occasion I do teach the kids to yell “no,” or to scream certain things if they are being grabbed or feel uncomfortable.  If we are working a weapon knife or gun drill, I may give some pointers on what to say if words are even necessary or timely just long enough to get out of harms way.

To de-escalate a situation verbally takes a lot of thoughtful effort.  On an initial level, some awareness and the ability for the victim to trust his own instincts is necessary.  If something does not feel right, if someone seems to be moving toward the person or surrounding him, but has not yet reached out to touch or grab, then verbal de-escalation may work.

The simplest distraction word is simply “no!”  If the attacker knows the  potential victim has some awareness of what he’s up to, if he feels he won’t easily be able to use them as his victim, then the victim has succeeded in de-escalating his attempts.

If the potential attacker gets verbally confrontational, then I do not promote being confrontational back.  I advise the women to readily give him a purse, wallet, phone, or anything for which he asks.

If there seems to be no way out, verbal techniques still may work.  A friend of mine indicated that he would just start talking complete gibberish, which made the attacker so befuddled that he lost concentration on what he was trying to do.

“My mother’s peanut butter sandwich is in the sink downstairs by the flowers.”

“I don’t like aardvarks, but ants are okay because they line up like little soldiers.”

Whatever does not make sense, but is said in all seriousness, can actually help to deactivate the mind of the attacker for perhaps a short enough time to offer a moment to escape as he starts to try to figure out what these words mean.

In class, I like to have students talk as little as possible.  It seems, if given a chance, the they would talk or ask questions the entire class!  In self-defense class, I want to hear the attendees practice their words with each other because words can be extremely effective in de-escalating a bad real life situation. Showing a level of compassion to a potential attacker, through words,  may be all he needs to stop his impending plan.

In self-defense, talk your way out, if you can.

Yellow Flags…

Right now, all the referee type martial artists are throwing yellow flags on the field.

“None of that will work,” they think.

I don’t claim to be the only one who knows anything about teaching self-defense; however, I have enough experience under my belt to have my own substantiated opinions.  There are tons of martial arts instructors out there. Some have taught years longer than I have, and others who are new instructors.  I will never say that my ways are the only ways.  I will say, however, that women who take a self-defense class realize, at the very least and for the very first time, that they are capable of defending themselves.  I don’t call it martial arts for the very reason that it isn’t either one of those things.

Many will say that taking only one self-defense class is  a false confidence.  I say that it’s a small confidence that may save a life.  I’d even say a false confidence is better than no confidence.

Sure, martial arts and self-defense are two different things, but they are related.  I adapt martial art techniques into big chunky skills that everyone can learn, that are simple, and that really work.

The refs can keep their yellow flags.  Unless there is a  guaranteed way to defend against any attack, then a flag means nothing, in my book.

If you are a woman, take a self-defense class.  If you want more, learn a martial art.  Both will help you become a stronger, more confident person; and both can help to save your life.

Andrea