strength Tag

Learning self defense techniques teaches us many things.  It develops us in our character and confidence, and how we carry ourselves in the world.  The inner strength that comes from being able to defend ourselves, is also one that we can have access to at work and in our home lives, and not just on the street.

Here are 6 key aspects of yourself that you will develop in our 8 week Self Defense Course:

1. How to actually defend ourselves

Firstly, attending a self defence course will teach us that we have everything we need with us at tall times, to defend ourselves – being our hands, arms and legs.  We can use our own body for protecting ourselves, and for striking if needed, and thus we don’t need to rely on a weapon or someone else.

Also, from a skilled self defense Instructor, we will learn that technique trumps strength.  There are actual techniques that can be learnt around how to leverage momentum and our own body weight, to get out of grips or holds, and have an impactful counter response if needed.

Many women, who may be significantly weaker physically, are able to get out of the grip of a very strong attacker, just by being trained in some initially counter intuitive techniques, and developing these skills to become instinctual.

2. How to avoid situations where we might need to defend ourselves

A key component of self defense is to learn to avoid getting ourselves into a kind of situation where we would need to defend ourselves.

Learning to be more aware of our surroundings and what is happening around us, can allow us to have ample time to remove ourselves from a compromising situation.

Also, knowing what behaviours could make us a likely target, and then avoiding those, can go a long way to keeping us safe. For example, looking down at our phone on a street at night, means we won’t notice someone coming up to us until it’s too late. And because we are distracted, we stick out as a possible target.

Learning to make better choices when we are out and about is the foundation to any good self defense techniques.

And this can become a way of life, where we are more alert and aware of not only our surroundings, but others too.  This can be useful in all parts of our live, work and home.

3. Attitude of de-escalating

From learning to avoid needing to defend ourselves, there are still times when we can find ourselves in dangerous or heated situations that can escalate to a possible assault of some kind.

Learning how to think in a stressful situation, and keep our wits about us, is a skill that can be trained and can keep us alert, rather than freezing or panicking.

Also, knowing how to gesture that we don’t want trouble, and yet at the same time that gesture is keeping us protected and ready to defend ourselves if needed, is a useful behaviour to have in our repertoire.

A good self defense course will- in its controlled environment – help us train to “keep our fence up” in our gestures, and to train our nervous system to stay focused and alert, rather than go into freeze mode or start over-shaking from the related adrenaline rush that comes from a stressful situation.

Thinking on our feet during stressful times is useful at work, and having a sense of knowing when to de-escalate and when to assert ourselves, can have a positive impact on our lives in many contexts.

4. Attitude of Assertiveness

The intention to escape from harm is always our first response and aim.  Yet, there are times where we might have to defend ourselves, or we need to be offensive.  A self defense course will teach us when is the moment that we actually need to attack our attacker with a few carefully placed blows, so that we can then run away to safety, and when do we need to try to deescalate the situation.

This attitude of being assertive when needed, can translate not only to moments of physically being compromised, but also it can give us the ability to verbally assert our boundaries with people in the workplace or elsewhere.

5. Accessing our Voice

Part of training to defend ourselves, is we learn to be more verbal and use our voice more.  If we go into freeze mode, we are less likely to say much to deescalate the situation or assert ourselves to break free.

Also, people who are more vocal are likely to call attention to themselves and the situation, which makes them less of a target and can deter the attacker.

This speaking up in moments of stress, which is encouraged and trained in the controlled self defence training environment, is a skill we then have.  We can use this to speak up more in other contexts of our life too, be that the boardroom or the bedroom, or around the dining room table.

6. Inner Strength and Confidence

Confidence comes from practice, and so a longer term self defense course helps us to become more confident in the techniques we are learning, and to develop the muscle memory of the techniques so that they come more instinctually when we need them.

This confidence we then have in ourselves to protect ourselves, adds to our overall self-confidence and can show in how we carry ourselves and show up in the world.

Here in their own words, is what some of our previous students in our 8 week Self Defense Course have learnt:

• “I noticed a shift 5 sessions into the course, where I felt more assertive in the actual techniques, and confident that I can and will be able to protect myself if I ever need it again. This has left me feeling stronger in myself, which is a nice feeling to have with me every day.” – Telana, Coach
  
• “The self-defense class has really helped me to be more confident around my personal space and has helped me to come to redefine my actions and attitudes when faced with confrontational and unsafe situations.” – Ralph, Software Developer

 

To learn more about self-defense techniques and develop the inner strength to protect yourself and have this strength translate into other areas of your life , contact your Self Defense Instructor Leo Ming.

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