TBO-TECH

Age is never a strong deterrent to hardened crooks and other criminals. That’s why it’s never too late for any woman to learn how to properly defend herself from all kinds of threat.

Self-Defense for All Generations
In Lawrence Parks and Recreations, a three-hour self-defense class on the afternoon was attended by a family of three-generations: Christine Winters, her daughter Lori Howard, and her young granddaughter Tanner.

The instructor herself proved that not even size could be a hindrance to learning self-defense; Mandana Hurt was forty-five years old and petite at five-foot-one. Also helping her teach her female students was not just her husband but her pre-teen daughter Natasha as well.

Each class began with a warning: no flashy moves would be taught and pain was sure to follow. Students were then summarily taught how to pinch, choke, stomp, bunch, block, and kick their attackers.

Hurt, who also taught science at Central Junior High School during the day, also imparted other important self-defense prevention tactics to her students. She taught them to be aware of their surroundings, remember locking the door, and even why it was best to stand at the side of a tree when they were loading stuff in the trunk of their cars.

Having taught self-defense lessons for eighteen years, Hurt had noticed how attendance rose and fell, usually hitting the highest point when local attacks were also on the rise.

Other Self-Defense Tips for Women
Attacks will most often catch you by surprise and unarmed as well. But if you have the will to survive then there are many ways when you can still defend yourself.

Practice makes perfect
If you’ve got self-defense skills, don’t let them become rusty. Practice regularly so that if you do end up in danger, you won’t suffer even a second of doubt or confusion as to what you should do next.

Look for substitute weapons
You may be out of pepper spray, your Taser is still charging, but that doesn’t mean you have to fight weaponless. Perfume, hair brushes, and lipsticks can all be excellent weapons when used properly.

Hit strategically
Don’t waste time and effort with wild strikes. If you are going to fight, make sure that you target vulnerable areas like eyes, throats, and groin. Decide which angle it’s best for you to strike.

Be prepared
Never underestimate your attacker. Do not hesitate when you strike and never show your fear. Once you let your fears get to you, your attacker will immediately have the upper hand!

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Anyone can be a victim. As such, it doesn’t matter how old a person is or what race he belongs to. A person is always better off knowing how to defend himself if calling 911 proves to be impossible.

Who Says Old People are Pushovers?
In Charlotte, North Carolina, seniors are learning a new use for their canes. At the Atria Merry Wood senior living center, the elderly are benefiting from a self-defense class that’s specially designed for their age – and their use of canes. Combat Cane classes teach the art of cane-fu, a self-defense tactic that would not only save them from the bad guys but are great for exercising and their self-confidence, too!

Although students of the recently introduced cane-fu classes were still somewhat reticent about using their newly acquired skills with the cane, experts have noted the positive effects of the workout on the seniors’ mental acuity as well as heart and lung activity.

Combat cane classes focused on hitting target areas like eyes, throat, and groin. Afterwards, voluntary pairs were selected for mock battles. Euphemisms like dot the eyes, which referred to eye-poking, were used in respect of their students’ advanced age.

Other self-defense tips were also imparted. The seniors were particularly delighted at learning non-physical tactics to avoid trouble and deter attackers. They were advised not to reveal their fear, shout and use foul language, if necessary, just to show they weren’t an easy victim.

Westerns Learn the Eastern Way of Self-Defense
A West Scope center teaches young students how to defend their selves with a little-known Indonesian martial art called “poekoelan tjimindie tulen”. Besides teaching self-defense maneuvers, it also taught kids important values like respect for one’s self and others.

Kids in the center were barefoot, wore white shirts, loose-fitting white pants, and belts of different colors. They learned jabs and kicks, which altogether helped build their physical and emotional confidence.

The same Indonesian martial art style is also taught in public schools in Portland and Beaverton as well as in free clinics. Pronounced as pu-ku-lan chi-min-dee tu-len, the martial art focused on instilling “compassionate balanced action” in the kids.

Prior to the physical lessons, kids were also taught basic self-defense techniques like trusting their gut in order to identify potentially “bad”situations and do what they can to avoid trouble. They were also taught how to defend themselves verbally at first and to use physical force only as a last resort.

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There are numerous ways for a woman to defend herself from all kinds of attack. In some situations, however, such ways could end up with the attacker’s death. If you don’t want that on your conscience, here are a few tips to protect yourself without taking another person’s life.

Focus on Escaping
The only time there’d actually be a viable possibility for you to kill your offender is when both of you are involved in a direct confrontation. But why would you want to do that in the first place? Consider only getting in a tussle with your offender as a last resort. What you should focus instead is finding a way to safety and escaping as physically intact as possible.

Give a Warning
If you are confident about your self-defense skills but are loathe to use it unless necessary, give a warning to your offender! Now, this doesn’t mean laying all your cards down the table but suffice to say, just let him know that you are capable of defending yourself and that you don’t want to hurt him but if he forces you to then you would not hesitate.

If you are under attack against a bully, these words may be more than enough to make him hesitate. Bullies, after all, prefer fighting those who are weak. But if you show yourself to be strong, you won’t appeal to them as a victim. Those precious seconds of hesitation could be more than enough to save your life!

Target Vulnerable but not Life-threatening Areas
If direct confrontation is inevitable and you are worried about ending up killing your offender, the next thing to focus on are areas which will effectively weaken or disarm him but will not cost him his life.

For male attackers, the genital area is of course the most vulnerable. A strong, well-aimed kick could effectively put a stop to his attack. Make sure, however, that you really have the element of surprise working for you because most attackers are prepared against such tactics.

Aim to make him unconscious. Use hard blunt objects to hit your attacker on the head; aim well, strike hard, and you can render your attacker unconscious. Do not use pointed objects; your panic and confusion could make you inadvertently hit him using the pointed side and this could cause greater damage and, in worst case scenario, the death of your attacker.

And of course, don’t forget to scream and do what you can to call for help. This could make your offender panic and leave you alone!

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image credit to newhousedesign

Whoah! Woman! It’s time to celebrate Women’s Self-Empowerment Week, which runs from January 5 to 11. Although being empowered should be encouraged the whole year through, this is one good way to remind those who are being too busy to do so.

And how else could you better celebrate this moment than giving yourself the gift of safety learn self defense lessons! There are many ways you could get into it, you can introduce yourself to self defense lessons via this video from Just Yell Fire. And advance your education learning more self defense moves by watching more videos or taking self defense classes.

You can check out the new gym that does not only keep you in shape but also lets you learn self defense; there’s one in El Paso called “Fighter Physique”.

There is also a women’s self defense training for Elkhart, Indiana residents – Resist Aggression Defensively for Women on February 23.

If you want more varieties of self defense and fitness training programs, check out this list: a Fitness Calendar, which includes a free self-defense intro, Tae Kwon Do for kids to adults, and Body Combat, which is actually an aerobic program combining moves from a variety of self-defense disciplines.

Another Health Calendar, that you should take note of which gives you a choice of Tai Chi for Self Defense and other fitness programs.

Have a safe and fun Women’s Self-Empowerment Week!

In self-defense, the groin kick is considered as one of the most effective means of fighting off an attacker and rendering them helpless. Although the effect is generally temporary, it can buy you enough time to escape or even disarm your attacker. But is it really that effective as a self-defense tactic? Here are some things you ought to know about the groin kick:

If your attacker is a man, he’s probably expecting a groin kick
Men know that a well-placed kick in the groin can be very painful. The groin area, particularly the part where the male genitals are, is extremely sensitive. There are more nerves in this area and the skin and underlying tissues are not as well insulated or protected by a good layer of fat or muscle.

Male attackers know this and are more likely to be wary (and ready) for attacks to the groin. Their instinct will help prevent any part of your body from hitting their groin and thus protect them from pain.

Use the element of surprise
Kicking the groin as a self-defense tactic can be very effective if it is performed at the moment your attacker least expects it. If your attacker can stop a groin kick or if your attack does not have enough force in it, you will simply anger your attacker and give them more reason to harm you physically.

The best and most effective way to use the groin kick as a self-defense tactic is to unleash it as a surprise attack. If your attacker doesn’t see it coming, the more effective and debilitating it can be.

If you must use the groin kick, make sure your attacker doesn’t see it
Another important thing to remember about the groin kick is to use it at close range. That way, you are sure of your target and are more likely to make a direct hit. The crotch area can also be accessed more easily from a close angle.

Don’t always rely on ‘kicking’
When people are instructed to use a kick as a self-defense tactic, they think only about using the foot or the knee as a means for an attack. However, in a real-life emergency situation, your knees or feet may not always have necessary leverage or room to commence an effective groin kick.

If your knees or feet have no room to move to perform a groin kick, consider using other parts of the body, including your hands or elbows. If necessary, you might even consider using a tool such as a stick, a bat or a rock. That way, you are not severely limited by circumstance when it comes to preserving your life.

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The art and science of self-defense is not something you inherit. Even the best fighting families have to teach their young in order to train them about the best ways to utilize certain techniques. If you’ve decided to learn self-defense for protection or for fitness, you must understand that you will not only be investing your time and effort on it, you will also be investing your commitment. Here are ways to hone your self-defense skills:

Learn from the right source
Honing your self-defense skills is like learning to play the violin. You could probably learn on your own and could very well execute the right moves decently but you may not be able to learn the proper techniques on how to utilize the moves properly.

When it comes to honing your self-defense skills, it’s important that you learn from someone who has been properly trained and have the right certifications. It’s quite easy to hurt yourself unnecessarily if you learn self-defense from the wrong source.

Take time to develop your skills
Learning a self-defense skill is not something that happens overnight. Some kung fu legends even tell of masters who teach their students one move and tell them to practice the same move again and again for a year. Within that period, the master doesn’t teach anything else. Extreme, probably but it does teach you about persistence and practice.

The key here is to allow your body to become familiar with a move. To execute a self-defense skill correctly, you must be able to know which parts of the body are utilized and how. You should also be able to understand why such a move is being used and for what. Once you have built muscle memory, it will be easier for you to execute the self-defense moves correctly.

Find a sparring partner
You could probably practice using a punching bag or a dummy but nothing beats a breathing, living, moving partner to spar with. A sparring partner will teach you many things that no dummy could – how an attacker could move, from where you could be attacked and how exactly you could execute a self-defense move. With a sparring partner, you could also learn the right pressure to use in order to subdue an attacker completely.

Practice, practice and more practice
To hone your self-defense skills, it’s important that you practice as much as you can. If you’re still a beginner, try to find the time to practice everyday. If the moves are unfamiliar to you, your muscles have to learn them over and over again in order for you to remember the sequences. If you’ve been learning self-defense for a while, it’s still important for you to practice in order to build your skills and make you an efficient and effective fighter.

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A lot of your efficiency and efficacy when it comes to self-defense will depend on your instructor – how well they can transfer their knowledge to you as their student and how effective their techniques are for real-life self-defense. Once you’ve decided to learn self-defense, your most important consideration is who to choose to learn from. But how do you check if your self-defense instructor is actually teaching you the right moves? Here are ways you’ll know:

He’s trained and certified in the self-defense course you want to learn
Decide on the type of self-defense class you want to learn first and then look for a teacher who has the appropriate training and certification in that discipline. This is because you can’t realistically expect a taekwondo instructor to teach the art of Krav Maga simply because he/she doesn’t have the proper skills and knowledge.

Always look for a self-defense instructor who is certified in the self-defense style you want. That should give you a pretty good idea if he/she is capable of really teaching you the right moves.

Check local credentials, certifications or national affiliations. Internationally trained and affiliated self-defense instructors are usually more expensive but you could have the assurance that you will be trained under the best. Ask for referrals from associations and clubs. Many of these are nationwide networks, which should allow you to find certified instructors in your area.

Ask for referrals and reviews
If you can, look for former or current students of the self-defense instructor you want to take classes under. Ask these students regarding their experiences – the techniques taught by the instructor, how well the lessons are structured and shared, how long each sessions are and the kind of progression you can expect.

Checking if your self-defense instructor is really going to teach you the right moves and will not merely take a move on you is sometimes just a matter of learning from others’ experiences. Do this before you sign up for any lessons.

Do your own research
It pays to have enough knowledge or background regarding the type of self-defense discipline you want to learn. That way you will be more familiar with the type of moves involved, including the kind you can expect an instructor to teach you.

There are plenty of books, magazines, videos or websites that can offer you excellent information regarding self-defense instructions. Learn from these. Once you know the kind of moves used in a particular self-defense discipline, you could easily check whether your self-defense instructor is really teaching you the right moves and not just taking a move on you.

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Most people consider boxing more as a sport than as a self-defense discipline. Thanks to the studied elegance of the sport and the big-name athletes associated with it, boxing is not always viewed as a useful self-defense style. However, this is inaccurate. Boxing can be very effective for self-defense. In fact, some aspects of it were even incorporated by the late Bruce Lee into his martial arts discipline, Jeet Kune Do. It’s only a matter of understanding how the principles of this discipline work and how to use them in case of an attack.

Here are some of the most important technical aspects of boxing:

The punches
There are 3 kinds of punches in boxing that may be used for self-defense. These are:

Straight punch. This is executed usually when the opponent is at arm’s length or a bit further. The straight punch is simply that – a straight blow with a closed fist, with the striking arm a little closer to the body.

If you’re standing head to head with your opponent, the straight punch should hit him on the bridge of the nose or the cheeks. It could also be used to hit an opponent’s chest or stomach.

Uppercut. The uppercut is a strike executed with a closed fist coming from the side of the body and moving up. This will land on the jaw, knocking the opponent backwards.

Hook. The hook is also known as the side winder or the side punch. It is made using a closed fist, with the striking arm coming at the opponent from the waist or slightly above it. It then curves to hit the opponent from the side.

Footwork
If you’ve watched boxers fight on the ring, you’ve probably noticed that they are constantly moving. This is to make them more difficult to attack and to allow them to move more quickly into a defensive or an offensive position.

When using boxing as a self-defense style, it’s important to remember to keep moving forward and backward and side to side. Use your movement not just to confuse your opponent but also to assess their next move. Footwork is also important for evading blows.

Strike points
When using boxing as a self-defense tactic, attacks should be considered based on the most vulnerable parts of the opponent’s body. These include:

- eyes
- jaw
- nose (especially the bridge)
- sternum
- sides of the torso
- groin (illegal in professional boxing but works well for street fights)

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Krav Maga is considered as one of the best and most effective self-defense systems for hand-to-hand combat. It is a Hebrew term that means ‘close combat’. Although it is commonly known as the fighting style of Israeli soldiers, it was actually developed in the 30s in Czechoslovakia and Hungary. Krav Maga was initially used to help teach the Jewish community to defend itself against the Nazis.

Today, Krav Maga is a self-defense style that is increasingly becoming popular. With its emphasis on using calculated responses to attacks and implementing defenses, it has become a favorite among self-defense students.

How it works
Krav Maga is a combination of many martial arts techniques, including karate, jujitsu and judo. It doesn’t actually have set rules of fighting and unlike other self-defense disciplines, it can be used by either men or women. Techniques are used to effectively and efficiently neutralize an attacker while allowing the person to escape.

To use Krav Maga as self-defense technique effectively, the direct threat must first be assessed and then dealt with accordingly. The type of force used on the attacker will depend on how serious the threat is, eliminating the need for unnecessary force and conserving the user’s strength.

Once the immediate threat has been managed, the next step is then to prevent any attacks coming from the opponent. In case the attacker does make any moves, techniques to neutralize them must then be implemented.

Training
Krav Maga is frequently taught by using physical and sensory distractions, including smoke, loud music or noises and flashing lights. This is to train the student to learn to focus on the more important aspects of the combat (i.e., the immediate threat). Often, the student is even trained to the point of exhaustion or blindfolded before an attack is initiated.

Training is also conducted on a variety of surfaces, including flat floors, dirt, mud, rock, concrete, etc.

Krav Maga is best for close contact man-to-man fighting and for situations when the user is disadvantaged, such as when there are multiple attackers, when attackers are armed or when the user is hurt. It is also very effective when trying to parlay attacks while defending another person.

Guiding principles
There are 6 guiding principles used with Krav Maga techniques. These include:

- Avoid getting hurt.
- Neutralize your attacker as fast as possible.
- Quickly switch from defensive to offensive techniques
- Use the body’s natural reflexes
- Use all the vulnerable areas of the body
- Use any objects that may be at hand

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You have already watched countless Martial Arts lessons in CD’s. You have your tools and gadgets handy. But do you really know what to do and how to execute the moves when you need them the most? Do you know when to fight or flight? If your response is “Ummm, not really”, you are in big trouble. Why not go to self defense trainings then? Don’t know where to find groups offering these trainings? Learn how to choose the best self defense lesson for you first.

To be able to make an informed decision in selecting a training course for you, it’s important that you know what you need and want to gain from a lesson. There are those who’d like to master these methods for fitness purposes, not only physically but also psychologically. Some would want to learn to better protect themselves. Some would want to join competitions instead.

In finding self defense lessons to join, schools can be a great help. Schools in the vicinity of your neighbourhood would be good sources of these trainings. Ask for flyers, brochures or simply meet with the instructors to get more information about the offerings. Before saying yes and paying anything, don’t forget to ask for recommendations so you can have more options. Another factor that should help you decide in choosing lessons is whether the school or training offers safety equipment or facilities. You can also scour the web for more information about current self defense courses or trainings available. Here are some of the upcoming self defense trainings that might be near your place:

Self Defense Seminar at Lamy’s Black Belt Academy, 183 Elm St., Milford, Nov. 22, from 1-3 p.m.

Self Defense for Women with Brynda Ivan, second-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do, brown belt in Kajukenpo karate, Dec. 8, 6:30 to 8 p.m.; at The Summa Wellness Institute

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