Learn to Defend Yourself – Why You’re Never Unarmed in a Self Defense Situation
In the realm of self defense thinking and training, there is the idea of being “armed” and “unarmed.” This idea presupposes that you are either carrying a weapon or “empty-handed.” And yet, if we consider that our ability is only as limited as our ability to recognize options, we can see that there is no such distinction to the person who is really skilled at self defense.
This article takes a look at the real ability to be able to defend yourself against a brutal attacker who will be taking advantage of your limiting perceptions and recognition of options.
It’s funny how, once they find out that I teach self defense, many men take this opportunity to puff out their chests and let me know, in no uncertain terms, that they don’t need self defense training because they’ll “just shoot ’em!”
But, when I ask them to allow me to see their weapon, they admit that it’s at home in their dresser drawer, gun safe, or anywhere but on them at the moment.
I then remind them, showing my fists that, “my weapons are right here!”
Now, I don’t say this to intimidate or impress them, and I’m not saying here to impress you. What I am doing is impressing upon you the point of this article – the point that to rely on physical weapons like guns, knives, or any other special tool that has the title of “self defense weapon,” is to ignore not only all of the body weapons that you possess, but to ignore the most powerful weapon you possess – your brain!
I also want you to think about the fact that, if you rely on a weapon for self defense, then you will be practically powerless without it!
In a self defense situation, you must have the ability to:
Adapt to the unique situation in which you find yourself
Recognize and use everyday items for self defense – regardless of whether or not they are commonly perceived as weapons or not
Deal with any weapons he might have brought with him – and even to be able to use his own weapons against him
And, there is also the reality that, even if you have a weapon, you may not be able or justified in using it.
An example of this comes from my days as a police officer. Just because I had a firearm doesn’t mean that I could use lethal force against someone who was trying to punch or wrestle me to the ground. So, not only was my sidearm useless in those situations, but it could also be a liability in that I had to deal with the perpetrator AND guard my weapon against him taking it – AT THE SAME TIME!
Another thing that I talk about in my combat handgun and other weapon training courses is this:
Just because you have a weapon, doesn’t mean that you’ll be able to get to it before he can do damage to you! Imagine having a handgun holstered on your hip while simultaneously staring down the barrel of your attacker’s own gun. If you try to go for your own weapon in this moment, you’ll die.
So, try to avoid falling into the trap of seeing yourself as “armed” if you have a so-called “official” weapon, and “unarmed” if you don’t. Instead, train to be able to:
1) Develop more of your own natural body parts AS weapons, rather than just your hands and feet
2) Recognize everyday items as potential weapons, and…
3) Use even your environment as a tool for self defense.
This way, you’ll never see yourself or feel as if you’re unarmed in any situation.…
Being aware of your surroundings as you are walking to your vehicle is one of the most important things in your day-to-day life to protect yourself and avoid a self defense situation. If you park in a garage where you work and are assigned a space, become aware of the vehicles parked around your vehicle. If possible, get to know the other vehicle owners. New friends are always a positive thing in your life. You will be more conscious of an out of place vehicle or person in your area if you know those who should be there at any given time.
When you hear the term ‘military self defense’ you automatically think of Green Berets dismantling an attacker with precision moves that an ordinary person could never learn. To be honest, no regular citizen will be able to fight like a marine or soldier because they have years and in some cases decades of training behind them. Yet you have instructors trying teach some of these martial arts techniques in the same way as it would be taught to a military person which is completely wrong. As already stated, these men and women are physically elite so what is taught to them is not applicable to 99% of the population. While this doesn’t mean that the techniques they learn are redundant, it is clear that there are problems with the way they are taught.
Your aim with self defense should be to avoid confrontational situations altogether. Being aware of your surroundings and the people in it is key to this. However, there could be a time when you find yourself in a situation where someone is being verbally aggressive towards you.
You probably have a pretty complicated life. Between work and family commitments it can be hard to pursue other activities that are important to you. Nothing is more important to you than your safety and the safety of your loved ones. Since this is something that is so important you need to find a martial arts course that allows you to learn self defense without having to drive back and forth to classes.
Installing additional locking devices on windows and sliding glass doors in your residence is an inexpensive and effective way to defend yourself. Most windows and sliding doors come with locking mechanisms but they are not really designed for self defense. They are merely designed for low end use. If you have a dog or cat door between the sliding glass door and the wall the locking mechanisms are sometimes even less effective.
A head lock is one of the most intimidating and most excruciating ways to be attacked. The attacker can apply enough force to quickly render a victim unconscious or break the neck. One needs to be able to escape a head lock very quickly. In this article we will discuss two self defense techniques to escape from a head lock.