If you’re training or currently thinking of training in self-defense here’s a few things you need to understand:
There is no magic pill:
There is no magic pill, technique, belt / rank or instructor that will save your ass when shit hits the fan. When it all goes wrong; when retreat is not an option and violence is imminent, it’s on you. This is where training matters. This is where your hours and the quality of those hours in the gym, on the mats, or lack thereof will be tested.
It will be ugly:
When defending yourself against a determined and violent attack, it WILL be ugly. Almost nothing will go as you thought it would. Almost everyone trained or untrained has a romanticized idea of how “their fight” will go... Forget it! You will waste valuable time looking for something, a certain technique, that may never materialize. Learn to respond in real time to energies given to you in the fight. Only good and consistent training will provide this type of recognititon for you.
You will more than likely take some damage, particulary if the attakcer gets to go first. If you’re not sparring, rolling, wrestling, and yes sometimes losing, you are not going to be prepared for this. Change things up from your “standard responses.” Challenge the standard, see where it takes you. You will find that every sparring partner, every roll, clinch fight etc. will be different. This is good, because so is every fight. What might work for you in one situation, may not work in another. This is why “standard responses” in real events aren’t realistic... who knew.
You will never have ALL the answers:
At no point in your training, experiences or even in life will you ever have all the answers. So, what’s the takeaway from this? Never stop training, When it comes to violence especially; your skills are perishable. You have to keep your mind and body equally sharp. If you neglect them they will fail you to some degree. You will not necessarily “rise to the occasion.” This isn’t a movie. You will more than likely “fall to the level of your training.” So the question you need to ask yourself is: How far will you fall? When violence is the only option training will matter. No certificate or belt is going to matter what so ever. It will be what you do after you receive that certificate that matters.
Using your brain:
A solid skillset is an asset, but not the be all end all. It will be your ability to recognize and adapt to change that will help you survive. Your ability to recognize and adapt to changes in the fight comes from training with resistance. Level changes push/pulls etc. However an often missed element in training is the ability to recognize and adjust the training itself to the current realitites of violence. A good example of this can be found in the rise of MMA over the last 15 years or so. If you think this didn’t change the way peolpe faught or saw violence you’re missing something big. A person who just attempts a double leg, but may not understand the finer points of execution, is just as dangerous as someone who does, if you (the defender) have never made an attempt to understand and train how to stop it.
Understanding where and when you may be most at risk of being involved in violence, is also part of using your brain. Do some research. Understand crime, violence and the dynamics around where you spend the majority of your time; work, home, school, the route to and from any of these places. Plan and research around where you travel. This does not in any way negate the need to train, however it’s another step to keeping yourself safer.
After all this is the goal when you take up any kind of self-defense training. To keep yourself and your loved ones safe.
Stay safe, keep training and take care of eachother.
- Jamie