You want to learn self-defense so you can be better prepared if anyone tries to hurt you or your family. Training to fight or learn self-defense is something you need to train in for at least 6 months to a year.
You do not have to train for 3 years or 10 years to get good at defending yourself.
You can’t go to one self-defense class and expect to be Bruce Lee.
Everything is relative so one self-defense class is better than none. Yet, 10 self-defense training classes are even better.
The more you train to defend yourself or learn to fight the better you will be in a real situation.
My son trained in Jiu-Jitsu for 3 years but he has not taken it in the last few years. If a kid came up to him at school and tried to hurt or bully him, my son could still do many of the moves from Jiu-Jitsu.
It’s like riding a bike you may not have ridden one for the last 10 years but could easily jump back on and start riding.
I have trained for 30 years in martial arts that are geared toward fighting and self-defense. I did not train for all 30 years but my skills are always there even if I was not training at that time.
My muscle memory is still there from all the years of training. I may be a split second slower but my skills are still better than 99% of the population.
What moves can you learn to be ready for any attack that may come your way?
Top basic self-defense moves you should learn
Groin Kick
You can do this one to hopefully knock down an attacker and get away. This will not drop everyone because some people can handle pain better than others.
I know if I get kicked there I am going to drop to the ground. You can do a snap kick which is my favorite one to do because of the speed and force it delivers.
Here is a video showing you this kick.
Eye Gouge
If they can’t see they cannot attack you. You need to thrust your fingers into their eyes to make them temporarily blind.
Put your thumbs or fingers into the eye socket to cause eye-watering and vision issues. Once you have done this push them away and run to safety.
Throat punch
You only should use this if your life is threatened. Punching the throat and collapsing the windpipe will make it so the attacker can’t breathe. If you collapse it enough then the attacker will die due to suffocation.
You can strike at the throat using the strike below.
- Straight jab punch
- Rear cross to the throat
- Karate chop hit
- Hammer fist strike
Any of these strikes can be used and once you are able to stop the attacker then that is when you run to safety.
Punch or palm strike to the nose
You can throw a punch or a palm strike at an attacker’s nose. A hit to the nose will cause the attacker’s eyes to water and the nose to bleed.
You can do this strike quickly and easily. If you do not know how to punch it would be better to do an open-palm strike to the nose so you would not break your hand.
Mace or pepper spray
Everyone no matter, if you are a woman or man, should carry pepper spray. It is a great equalizer when it comes to blinding and stopping an attacker.
You also need to know how to use it and how to carry it when walking around town by yourself.
I know this works because I got pepper-sprayed in college when I ran out onto the football field at OSU stadium after a big win.
There were 50,000 other people on the field but I guess the cop was not too happy because he just started spraying everyone close to him on the field.
This did not make sense if the officer wanted to clear the field because once I got sprayed I couldn’t see to get off the field. I think the policeman just liked pepper spraying people if you want my opinion.
Trust me that burned for hours and was the worst pain. I could definitely not see for 20 minutes and was really blurry for another 3 hours.
We recommend pepper spray if you need to get some it is so cheap to buy.
Other weapons
This article discusses the basics of self-defense and fighting back. Carrying pepper spray or any other legal weapons is a must to protect you.
Here are some other self-defense weapons you can use or carry. You need to check with local law to make sure it is legal to carry and use the weapons you buy.
- Cat key chain
- Personal alarms
- Stun gun
- Kubotan
Everyday objects laying around no matter if you are attacked outside or inside. You can grab a brick, rock, stick, kitchen knife, lamp, or any heavy object to deliver a blow to the attacker.
This is like the Jason Bourne movies where he uses a rolled magazine or cord to the lamp to hit and choke the attacker. See clip below
Knee kick
I mention this strike knowing this will be above basic for most people. If you have taken any kind of martial art that does kicking then the kick to the knee will work great for you.
If you have no kicking ability or training then stick with the strikes or pepper spray the attacker.
Not that you can’t learn how to do a kick to the knee if you are new to self-defense training, but it’s not a basic move you can learn quickly.
Head Butt
You can head butt, someone if they get that close and you feel you can do it. Your forehead needs to aim for the nose to break it and cause the eyes to water.
You should practice on something soft to get a feel for how to do it. You also need to be in close range so this is kind of a last resort strike if they grabbed you and you are close to them.
Combination strikes
I want to make sure you understand that just one of the techniques above will probably not be enough. You will actually have to combine two or more hits to get away from an attacker.
You may get lucky and the kick to the groin knocks them to the ground but if it does not you need to follow up with another strike.
- Groin kick then if the bend overuse same kick to the head
- The throat hit followed by a kick to the groin
- Head butt to the nose then eye gouge
- Pepper spray them and if they lunge at you kick them in the groin
See how we are mixing up the hits and doing multiple strikes. This is what you need to do to get away.
There are so many things we can teach so if you want more in-depth training on how to fight and defend yourself check out our free online training program.
What is self-defense
You may be wondering what self-defense actually means.
According to Wikipedia Self-Defense
Physical self-defense is the use of physical force to counter an immediate threat of violence. Such force can be either armed or unarmed. In either case, the chances of success depend on a large number of parameters, related to the severity of the threat on one hand, but also on the mental and physical preparedness of the defender.
What is the best martial art for self-defense?
You have learned some of the basic self-defense moves that can help you get out of a bad situation. The next step is to figure out which martial art systems teach techniques that work in real-life situations.
If you want a more in-depth article on which martial art systems are the best for self-defense you can check this one out.
- Krav Maga is one system that focuses on self-defense techniques and training
- Jiu-Jitsu is also a great martial arts system to learn how to defend yourself
- Local self-defense classes that offer 8 to 10-week training series is another great option
- I personally like training in MMA but it is really brutal and the focus is fight training not necessarily pure self-defense
- Muay Thai is also a great system to learn to fight but like MMA self-defense is not the main training
There are all kinds of different training you can take to learn self-defense you just need to check out the gym and training to see if it’s right for you.
MMA and Muay Thai not geared to train self-defense
You may hear people say Muay Thai and MMA are not self-defense training and in a sense, it is not really geared towards that. Here is my opinion on training in these two martial arts.
I have trained in both for years and I know that my fighting skills are good enough for me to stop an attack.
Self-defense is using force to counter a threat. It does not matter what martial art you train in just as long as it works in real life.
Nothing is going to work 100% of the time if you are attacked.
You need to find a system that works for you and that will work in real life. MMA fighters are some of the best fighters in the world and so are Muay Thai fighters.
I guarantee not many people can beat them up in a street fight so I guess their training works for self-defense. If you doubt it check out the picture of a guy who decided to rob an MMA fighter.
Check out the picture of a female MMA fighter who beat up this guy trying to rob her. I guess all the people that think MMA does not work in a real street fight were right, NOT!
How do you defend yourself in a fight and fight back
You can use one or all of these to defend yourself if attacked. The key is you need to do enough training to have it be muscle memory so you can react and not think about it.
The best way to win a fight or attack is to try and avoid it. I know this may be tough but there are things you can do to put yourself in less risky situations.
Here are some things you should not do:
- Ride your bike home from the bars at 2 AM in the morning. I did watch an investigation special where a college woman was kidnapped off her bike at 2 AM and killed. You should not be in a big city riding around on your bike at 2 AM, that is just not safe.
- Walk home late at night on streets not well lit.
- Jogging around town with a headset on your head and not paying attention to what is going on around you. I saw a lady who was jogging and A guy pulled over and tried to grab her and throw her in the van. This was in the middle of the day. She fought back but that was really scary.
- Have a guy you do not know to walk you home. Just call UBER if you need a ride home.
You can avoid attackers if you make good decisions when it comes to safety. This will not stop all chances of someone attacking you as you go through life.
We are just saying to be smart about your life and safety to reduce your risk.
If you do get into a fight with an attacker use the techniques above and fight with anger. You need to fight like your life depends on it. This holds true for both men and women.
Conclusion
The techniques we reviewed work you just need the training to use them. You need to take a class or do our online training like what we offer for free until your skills reach a level you feel good about.
If you do not want to train or do not have the time then carry a weapon like pepper spray. I am telling you that stuff will knock an attacker down.