Self Defense is the mental and physical preparedness to counter an immediate threat of violence armed or unarmed in any place or situation. Self-defense is your personal responsibility to yourself and your family.
A non-conventional confrontational situation, e.g. street fight, school bullying or sexual harassment, has no rules and is not a game. Sometimes can be a life or death situation, or it could leave emotional and physical traumas for the rest of the life. The code of honor which governs the martial arts clubs is in marked contrast to the behavior of the undisciplined street aggressor.
Any law-abiding citizen should develop the mental state of awareness and alertness to recognize the dangers, and the positive mental attitude to counter violence, but also to limit his action directly proportional with the threat encountered.
For this reason the Self Defense is a standalone art encompassing elements from various contact sport styles suitable for different grades of danger, but also street wise tactical techniques.
By limiting the action directly proportional with the threat encountered we mean to use the appropriate techniques strong enough to mitigate any trouble, but mild enough to avoid harming the aggressor as much as possible. Even if we develop the capabilities and the skill to apply a punishment to the aggressor, as sometimes we might consider he deserves, in a law driven society as Dubai, this responsibility would come under the state’s law enforcement and justice institutions. We have to avoid becoming an aggressor while defending. Hence the explosive Muay Thai is not justified when somebody is verbally harassing you, Judo is not recommended if the aggressor has a knife, and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is not a good choice in a crowded place or MMA against aggression from armed or multiple opponents.
Usually the non conventional conflicts are also asymmetric. The aggressors choose to threat or attack when they feel they are stronger, armed or more in number. By street wise tactical techniques we understand the useful tips and diversions that might compensate the handicap in an asymmetric conflict and help you avoid trouble, such as using a key or a pen as a defense weapon.
Self Defense is the art of avoiding trouble. Indeed most of the fights are avoidable. Around 90 per cent of successful self-defense has to do with avoiding violence, its unwanted effects and legal implications. Getting into a fight is easy. Avoiding a fight is more difficult. A good self-defense is more about preparedness and knowledge than about physical skills. It is about learning the mentality, the probable physical limitations of your attacker and about adopting the appropriate psychological approach for the given threat (robbery, bullying, sexual assault or drunken brawling).
In most of the cases the self-confidence alone will probably be enough to defuse the threat of violence. In the cases of very asymmetric conflicts when the aggressor is much bigger and stronger, such as of sexual assault, the self-confidence alone might not be sufficient. The victim can add a simulated cooperation as a strategy to gain the aggressor’s trust and, hence access to finger pressure on his vital points situated at the head or neck level (eyes or Conception Vessel 22 pressure point).
If, despite all the efforts, the conflict is inevitable, act with maximum determination.
The best way to learn and practice how to counter a physical attack is to attend specialized Self Defense classes. Together with the instructor you will identify the most likely potential threats that you might face depending on your age, gender, physical aspect or habits. The trainer will customize the street self defense classes according to the practitioners’ characteristics and needs, and cover multiple topics and techniques such as:
– Attitude, stance, breathing, mediation, movements, falls
– Defense techniques: blocks, defense against grab/strangles/baton/knife/firearm
– Targets: pressure points, head, torso, arms, hands, legs, feet
– Strikes: hands, elbows, knees, feet
– Throws, chokes, holds, ground fighting
– Conditioning: strength, speed, cardiovascular endurance, flexibility.
The Self Defense classes are available in Dubai having John Ventura, a former police officer with a Ph.D. in security as instructor. John has an extensive experience in different martial arts and conducted Self Defense seminars and classes for the last years in Marina area in fitness facilities such as Tribe Fit. He also served as General Manager at Red Dragon Gym in JBR.
If you live in the UAE, join the Self Defense group classes available every Sun/Tue/Thu from 19:30 to 21:00 at KO GYM (Dreams tower, Dubai Marina) or, book a private Self Defense, weight loss or body shaping class for adults, ladies or children at john@dubaiselfdefense.com or call 056 231 5695.
Being able to defeat yourself is an important skill, even nowadays, especially if you travel the city at night. Thanks for the article, keep up the awesome blog!