You need to know how to defeat someone if you are ever attacked. I think everyone should learn basic self-defense in today’s world.
You can learn how to protect yourself no matter your size and athletic ability.
How do you fight back against an attacker and win? The number one thing is to not put yourself in a bad situation so you don’t have to fight. Most people walk through their day not paying attention to what is around them.
Everyone needs to be aware of and avoid dangerous situations.
You do not need to be a badass to stop an attacker and get away. You only need to incapacitate someone for 15 seconds or more to get away.
What is considered self-defense?
The dictionary definition is the use of reasonable force to protect oneself or members of your family from bodily harm from the attack of an aggressor.
You need to be using your hands, feet, legs, knees, arms, elbows, and head to disable or incapacitate an attacker.
If attacked you need to use any means possible to stop someone from hurting you.
Using weapons such as pepper spray or a taser is also a great way to keep yourself protected.
What do you need to do to fight back?
Everyone can fight but do you have the skills to fight back and win? To be good in self-defense requires training.
You cannot just take one self-defense class and expect to be good at self-defense.
Everyone needs training on a few effective techniques that will incapacitate an attacker.
Will the few techniques you learn how to do work against an attacker? I have no idea because it all depends on what you do and how you do it.
It will also depend on the type of attacker that is coming at you.
I know this, I would rather know a few self-defense techniques when attacked than nothing.
If you do not want to train in self-defense then at least carry pepper spray with you or another weapon. This will at least increase your chances of escaping.
If you pepper spray an attacker they will not be able to see for at least 15 minutes which is plenty of time for you to get away.
What are the benefits of learning self-defense?
You are more confident when you know how to protect yourself. A person is not scared or in fear of doing things because they know they can take care of themselves.
No matter what you know you still need to be careful about where you go and who you see. Just because you can fight back does not make you invincible.
You will gain some cool benefits when taking self-defense training
- Awareness – You will be aware of what is going on around you. This will allow you to possibly avoid bad situations. Instead of walking through your day unaware of your surroundings, you will notice things that you may have missed before training.
There is a strange guy at your door during the day and you had nothing set up with any companies. You tell him to come back later your husband is downstairs on a business call and he can’t come to the door.
It does not matter if your husband is at home or not you lie about it to keep yourself safe. You say he is home so they do not think you are alone. Do you see the thinking you need to have in keeping yourself safe? - Self-Confidence – You are confident in your ability to do a few moves to get away. Having confidence helps with every aspect of your life. You live life and are not in fear.
- Keeping the family safe – You know enough to keep the family safe no matter the situation. I know you may not be prepared for everything that could happen but with the training, you know more than most people.
- Fitness – If you train like I do when I do MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) training it is intense and hard. Your fitness level will skyrocket just by doing martial art self-defense training. We do about 4 or 5 rounds at 3 minutes each round with 2 minutes of rest in between.
We train like we are in a fight. That is what you need to do to get your fitness at a high level. Not only do you get better at self-defense you also get into great shape. - Reflexes – You will have faster reflexes. The more you train the better your muscles get at remembering moves so you get faster with your reflexes.
- Balance – You gain balance as you train. Understanding how to control the body with each move and strike.
Which fighting style is the best
The best is Jiu-Jitsu for self-defense.
Others that you can train in include:
- Muay Thai
- MMA
- Jeet Kune Do
- Krav Maga
- Judo
- Any self-defense classes
Most martial arts will teach some type of self-defense. The question is which martial art actually works in a real-life situation.
I have not taken every system out there so I can only base answering this question on what I have trained in for self-defense.
The 6 fighting styles above are the ones I know and have trained in for decades. If you train in these disciplines you will have the basic skills needed to defend yourself.
Can you win the fight and escape an attacker? It all depends on how you train and how long you train.
All these fighting systems work but will you train enough to make them work in a bad situation?
You can train to fight for free using our training, just go to the free training page to sign up. You can also find a local martial art gym to train with if that is more what you are looking for in doing training.
How can I teach myself self-defense?
We just talked about our online course that can help you train in self-defense.
You would have an online instructor (Like our free training). The other way to train is you buy a DVD training program. Here the instructor will walk you through different fighting drills.
Training online or by DVD is easy. If you want to learn rear-naked choke then you go to that video and watch how to do it.
You may not know how to punch so you want to learn how to throw a lead jab properly. The video teaching walks you step-by-step through how to do it.
You can use a punching bag or a Jiu-Jitsu dummy to train at home. You definitely need this if you do not have a partner to train with.
I train at home all the time even now that I am highly skilled. It keeps me in shape and I don’t get too rusty.
You can also ask a friend or relative to train with you so you can both practice the moves. This is a great way to also stay motivated when working out at home.
How do you defend yourself in a fight and how to fight back
The basics of self-defense what does mean? Like anything, you learn there are certain elements that are the base of that system. For Martial Arts, the basics are listed below.
The basics
- Punching
- Jab
- Rear cross
- Uppercut
- Hook punch
- Kicking
- Front groin kick
- Knee kick
- Elbows
- Strike to face or head
- Knees
- Strike to the head or body
- Chokes
- Rear naked choke
- Guillotine choke
- Ground fighting
- Mount position
- Control
- Awareness
- Awareness of surroundings
- Blocks
- Basic blocking
- Body Movement
- Basic movement
- Body position
- How to stand to fight
- Balance
- Head Movement
- Bob and weave
- Weapons
- Pepper spray
- Stun Gun
These are the basics you would need to learn to get decent at self-defense. This would give you a great base and you would have skills in the 3 ranges of fighting.
We show some basic punches in the combo set below. Jab the hook then throw an elbow.
The 3 ranges of fighting
- Long-range like kicking
- Close-range punching, elbows, and knees
- Ground fighting chokes, armbars, mount position, etc.
If you just want to learn a few techniques to get out of a bad situation that is also an option. You can learn the snap kick to the groin or kick to the knee.
Other quick hits that may allow you to escape an attacker include a punch to the groin, eye-gouging, a throat punch, and a hit to the nose.
Self-defense is all about training the more you train the better you get. How good in martial arts do you want to be?
Do you want to be a skilled fighter or just know a few moves to help you get out of a bad situation?
We reviewed the basic fighting techniques you would need to know to help you in a bad situation. Training can get you into shape, give you confidence and help with a positive image.
You should also include weapons training in your overall curriculum. This is as simple as buying pepper spray and just watching a video on how to use it.
I know it sounds easy just point and spray but if you are distressed easy things become hard. Practicing how to use it will help when you need it most. Video how to use mace
Fight back mad
When you are defending yourself from an attacker you need to get mad. Freezing in fear will get you hurt or killed.
When training you have to imagine an attacker and what you will do to disable them and get away.
When I train I work through scenarios like they are real. You may one day be in a fight for your life and you need to be mad as hell.
You need to fight back with everything you got. If someone attacks you and tries to take you to a second location your chances of living are low.
If it’s a robbery just let them have it and do not put up a fight unless they want to hurt you or the family. Then you have to make that quick decision to fight.
Having a weapon really equalizes these bad situations if you were ever to get into one.
Conclusion
You need the skills to be able to defend yourself. Taking classes online or finding a martial art gym that is local is two ways you can train.
You need to be prepared for anything and the only way to do that is by being prepared. Get some pepper spray or a stun gun to carry with you on your keychain or in your purse.
Be aware of what is around you so you can be aware of a possibly dangerous situation. If attacked you need to fight back mad because your life may depend on it.
You may also like: Weakest part of the body to punch