Self Defense

[AlephZero]

I'd like to know the ways of self defense you guys have gathered over the years... Please keep guns out of this thread

So, Martial arts, hand to hand weapons, all you got

And if this is against the forum rules, please delete this thread

[Taxi Dad]

"running away" has always served me well 

[sawman]

A nice baseball bat will make'em understand 

[lister]

I am tall and live in a rather safe country so I never had any need for self defence.

As for ''martial arts'', parkour would be my first choice followed by a long distance running... It could be said that I follow rincewind philosophy of self defence (run away to run away another day). 

[AlephZero]

"running away" has always served me well 

Well, that's always the first choice, but if you HAVE to stand and fight...

[jcr]

stop washing. it costs nothing and you will smell so bad that no one will come within 10 feet of you

[N_N_R]

Hi, I've also been interested in the subject as for some time i've been living alone and I've had some.. uninvited guests jump over my yard fence... I've asked around and read as well.. everyone recommended me to buy a pepper spray, which I did. I hope I'll never have to use it. I've watched some YT videos and it seems to be a really efficient way. However, you ... spray and run. No fight. i can't fight, anyway.

[lister]

stop washing. it costs nothing and you will smell so bad that no one will come within 10 feet of you

It is also a good form of contraception. 

[dks]

A friend of mine that lived on the streets (UK) said just punch, kick throw anything in the right general direction and if they are more than one then scream and run fast... Most people will give up after a good hit.
Being big and trained is nice, (I do OK) but do not expect that you will have a fair, one to one facing each other type of fight.
The bigger you are, really, the least likely it is that you will be attacked, but when you do they will make sure that they are many.

[Mr. Whippy]

If you're serious and in a high risk area, taser and pepper spray is a potent combination .  Distance from attacker is always preferable. Hand to hand combat (martial arts, knives, pipes, clubs, etc) imply the attacker is on you.

[Smashie]

Pencak silat and years of military service have taught me to keep my eyes open and watch what's going on around me, if it looks dodgy, get out of dodge (I nicked that from someone else).

Not being there is by far the best form of self defense.

Peace

[Taxi Dad]

I must admit , getting older makes running away much less of an option. never had too many problems (being large, but not a huge 'target' of a man) I do find I don't go to dangerous places as often now, rarely leave the comfort of MT.o after dark these days 

[AlephZero]

Well, I am fairly large (188cm, 120kg) and I've always thought that if you can't run, a front kick to the knee should stop any fight but don't quote me on that...

[Mr. Whippy]

I must admit , getting older makes running away much less of an option. never had too many problems (being large, but not a huge 'target' of a man) I do find I don't go to dangerous places as often now, [/b]rarely leave the comfort of MT.o after dark these days  

An excellent plan.

[detron]

Take off all your clothes,  no one wants to fight a naked guy!   

.50 cal rounds make good improvised kubatons.

Aleph,  I know you like the paracord, so make one of these



and apply super glue and let it soak in.

here is a video that i made showing how hard it gets




now it is a kubaton

[N_N_R]

Mmmm, for some reason I think that.... training and.. general ... training in martial arts, let's say, twice a week for two hours or less.. won't really be helpful... so I'd rather rely on improvisation... another good tip I've read about is... don't look like a victim. Walk with your back straight and put a.. "proud" face on. Walk like you know your surroundings, as if you're confident in where your'e going and how you'll dominate any situation.

Another self-defense.. technique for women/or not only/ I"ve read about.. before punching, if you have time, clutch your keys, placing each key between your fingers... this way you'll have a quite sharp improvised brass knuckles thingie..

[AlephZero]

Pencak silat and years of military service have taught me to keep my eyes open and watch what's going on around me, if it looks dodgy, get out of dodge (I nicked that from someone else).

Not being there is by far the best form of self defense.

Peace

That's interesting, I have thought I should learn Pekiti Tirsia Kali or maybe Latosa Eskrima...

But in any case, keeping eyes open and leaving is always the best option

[AlephZero]

Mmmm, for some reason I think that.... training and.. general ... training in martial arts, let's say, twice a week for two hours or less.. won't really be helpful... so I'd rather rely on improvisation... another good tip I've read about is... don't look like a victim. Walk with your back straight and put a.. "proud" face on. Walk like you know your surroundings, as if you're confident in where your'e going and how you'll dominate any situation.

Another self-defense.. technique for women/or not only/ I"ve read about.. before punching, if you have time, clutch your keys, placing each key between your fingers... this way you'll have a quite sharp improvised brass knuckles thingie..

Also a good advice... Punch or knee kick to the groin, the stalker will drop at the spot, but only if they don't have a weapon

[Smashie]

That's interesting, I have thought I should learn Pekiti Tirsia Kali or maybe Latosa Eskrima...

But in any case, keeping eyes open and leaving is always the best option

I studied Silat purely because of where I was at the time, the local kids all did it so I wanted to (I was the odd one out and you get your arse kicked), I've been trying to learn it for 35 years and I'm nowhere near as proficient as I'd like to be.

If you want to learn one, learn one that focuses on control and discipline, not trophies or medals. If had to do it over again I wouldn't choose anything different although I do like good Kung Fu, Wushu specifically

[AlephZero]

That's interesting, I have thought I should learn Pekiti Tirsia Kali or maybe Latosa Eskrima...

But in any case, keeping eyes open and leaving is always the best option

I studied Silat purely because of where I was at the time, the local kids all did it so I wanted to (I was the odd one out and you get your arse kicked), I've been trying to learn it for 35 years and I'm nowhere near as proficient as I'd like to be.

If you want to learn one, learn one that focuses on control and discipline, not trophies or medals. If had to do it over again I wouldn't choose anything different although I do like good Kung Fu, Wushu specifically

Well, those i mentioned are good like that, discipline based... Wushu is like that as well

[sawman]

I like the pepper spray idea. Spray them right in the eyes then repeatedly punch them in the bridge of the nose until your hand hurts really bad, then kick them in the nose. That should get their snot locker gushing good!

[styx]

Considering I haven't practiced traditional martial arts in well over 10 years I can't say how effective they would be. Just target the eyes, nose (try to bloody it), neck, groin, knees or ankles and that should give an opening to start running. If you're not seriously trained the key is to break contact.
Also forget about the solar plexus (or how ever it's spelled). It's takes a good amount of force and you need to be very precise so without training it's just not worth it.

Oh yea, and it might be good to punch with an open palm as you surely won't break your own bones that way.

[Taxi Dad]

Oh yea, and it might be good to punch with an open palm as you surely won't break your own bones that way.

VERY good advice ! (IMO)
but it would be better to break your hand/knuckle than do nothing

[CanadianLMfan]

Just kidding.

[Grant Lamontagne]

Mmmm, for some reason I think that.... training and.. general ... training in martial arts, let's say, twice a week for two hours or less.. won't really be helpful... so I'd rather rely on improvisation... another good tip I've read about is... don't look like a victim. Walk with your back straight and put a.. "proud" face on. Walk like you know your surroundings, as if you're confident in where your'e going and how you'll dominate any situation.

Another self-defense.. technique for women/or not only/ I"ve read about.. before punching, if you have time, clutch your keys, placing each key between your fingers... this way you'll have a quite sharp improvised brass knuckles thingie..

If you have the time to splay out your keys you probably have enough time to get away.  Also, those keys are going to make a real mess of your fingers.  I'd pretty well discount this as an option for self defense.  Much better to have a good sized keyring that you can grab so you can use the rest of your keys as a flail.

Self defense is a mindset, not a matter of fancy belts or labels.  The things you learn in martial arts are simply tools that you can use if the mindset is already there.  Kind of like multitools- just because you have a Leatherman Charge doesn't mean you can fix a car.

I studied a few different martial arts and different defense styles and working in the bars very little of it meant much of anything.

Def

[jzmtl]

I always thought SAK makes a good punching aid, you can quickly open the corkscrew while it's inside your pocket and have it ready inside your fist.

Don't know how practical it is since I've never tried it.

[JAfromMn]

I keep my head up eyes on my work and I keep a toolbox full of blunt objects close by.

edit

I'm also a fast runner.

[RamoN]

Well ive dedicated some long years to training and encountered more than one dangerous situation (never looked for them) and believe me they always come when you are distracted and unprepared.

The thing with martial arts or any other kind of training or self defense course, is that very few teachers have real experience in the matter. A lot of them are just "gym" teachers that never really used their knowledge in a real threatening situation so how do they know if what they are doing works?

Also any training to be of any use as self defense has to put you in menacing and/or painful enough situations so that when you encounter that in real life you know how to withstand them, but how many people would do the course or go to the dojo if someone would teach that way? almost none.

So unless you are very serious about learning and are lucky enough to find an experienced teacher in real life situations, i agree with all the running away posts and if you want to do something just do something that lets you gain enough seconds to run away like a spray, spitting, shouting or whatever, remember that the menace you see its not the only one so thats why is a good idea to get out of there fast, you can beat the crap out of someone but what good is that if you didnt see the little guy in your back that is going to beat the crap out of you because you are unaware of him. 

Always be aware of your surroundings when in unknown or places you feel unsafe, that way you know were to run and if you have to confront someone its nice to know where to move, for example near that rock on the floor or glass or piece of wood, but do you have the will to hit or stab someone and can live with it? im not saying you dont just saying that you dont know until you have to do it.

It would be good if you can tell if you are talking about general hipothetical self defense or if you are having a particular situation.

In any event remember that in those situations thinking is your enemy and doubt is the devil, fear is good though. 

 

[tattoosteve99]

Karate, kickboxing, jujitsu, hapkido, and old school knock your teeth out. Never had to use but once, and that ended without injury to either party, so that's even better.

[Aloha]

i have always felt the best form of self defense is staying alert.  NNR you are right about keeping your head up and "owning" your surroundings.  like when i played ball "keep your head on a swivel" take account of your surroundings and be aware.  don't place your self in situations where the hair on the back of your neck stands on end.

pepper spray or a taser are excellent options and a loud arse voice letting the would be attacker know you are not playing.  my friend walks to a parking garage after work and ive said keep your pepper spray in your hand ready to fire!  if someone is walking behind you and you feel uneasy you should get away fast as your first option.  if they close the distance FIRE and be ready to fight like mad.   im not one for fighting and again my first option is to be aware and avoid trouble if possible.  i have pepper spray and will take an aggressive stance if need be but id rather not.  there maybe a time where you are surprised and my advice is very simple, if you are grabbed go ballistic and fight with everything you have going for the eyes.  NEVER LET THEM TAKE YOU!!!!  NEVER LET THEM TAKE YOU!!!!!!!!

Sanford Strong has some great advice and i encourage anyone to have a look into his videos.  if anyone has a way of getting cd's to MTo members i have a copy id more than happy to burn.  my friend went to his training and it was an eye opener to say the least.