Learn to Defend Yourself - There Is a Huge Difference Between a Fight and a Self Defense Situation!

Do you know the difference between a fight and self defense situation? Many people don't. In fact, I would say that most people actually believe these two to be the same thing.

And yet, they're not!

Knowing the difference between a fight and an actual, dangerous situation where you are trying to defend yourself, can not only help you to insure that you are learning the right self defense techniques, but also that you're enrolled in the right self defense course! Do you want to know the difference between a street fight and a self defense situation? Then read on!

While martial arts schools and so-called experts - people who have never been in a real attack situation - who's only experience with fighting might have come from a pushing, shoving, "tough-guy" match in high school - will try to convince you that there isn't a difference at all. And yet...

The truth is that there is a world of difference between a fight and a self-defense situation. Every expert knows this because, unlike those who only know martial arts techniques, these people have actually "been there," and know what it's really like "inside" of the actual thing itself.

And, while an inexperienced instructor might give you lots of reasons for how and why these two different situations might be different - a true expert will keep it simple and make sure that you know the reasons that are the most important - the reasons that will effect your training, and keep you safe and alive in the moment that you're in one!

They would tell you that...

In one, the fight, you are a willing combatant who is usually evenly matched against an opponent of equal ability, size, etc. In the other, a life-threatening, self defense situation, you will almost always be the underdog - facing an assailant who does not fight fair, has probably surprised you when you weren't expecting anything, and will do anything to get what he wants from you - regardless of whether that's blood, your money, or your life!

Even the adrenal response that you're having is very different in these two situations. In fact, you can learn a lot about this adrenal response and the fight, flight, or freeze response in the book, "The Karate-Myth." But, the short version is that the difference is like wrestling with your brother or cousin as a kid versus being in a car crash. Everything is different, from the way your body responds to signals, to the way you see the world around you.

The point here is that, before you can begin to train AGAINST an attack, you must have someone who has actually "been there", in one, to help you to understand it - to know what you're going to be dealing with, from the inside. Even better would be to find a mentor who has been in many different types of attacks, from punching and kicking, to being grabbed, to having had to face knives and duck bullets.

Because, until you learn what you're going to be dealing with, everything you do will be like feeling your way around in a dark room. You'll have no idea what's going on, where you're going, or what you'll run into.

Effective self defense requires more than just a few "karate moves." It involves the ability to think strategically, and understand how to defend yourself with as little wear-and-tear on you as possible. If you really want to know what most people don't know about how to master self defense and how to survive a real street attack, read my newest self defense book: "Fight Smarter - Not Harder!" It's available free at: http://www.warrior-concepts-online.com/street-fighting-self-defense-book.html Jeffrey M. Miller is an internationally-known self defense expert. He is the author of the self defense book, "The Karate-Myth," and several other books and training videos. Each month he teaches literally thousands of students through live seminars, corporate training events, and his online self defense courses, the lessons to be able to survive in Today's often dangerous world. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jeffrey_Miller

How the Fairer Sex Can Use Self Defense Techniques for a Fairer Fight

There seems to be a severe lack of quality self defense techniques taught to women. This paucity of protection for women is worrying when you consider that they are the victims in the majority of cases. Yet it is noticeable that virtually all courses which profess to be unisex are nothing of the sort. It is idiocy to suggest that an average woman will be able to perform the same techniques based on size and strength as the average man. According to studies, even if men and women were the same size, men would be over twice as strong naturally. So again, why are we still seeing programs geared towards women that are actually rehashed versions of male-friendly courses?

Hand to hand combat training for women has to be specialized. There are certainly moves that can performed by women just as well as by men but there are not enough of them to fully protect the female species. First things first, why do programs insist on telling women to hit men in the groin as their first move? This is exactly what a male attacker expects them to do initially. They make not expect them to strike them in the knee or throat with ferocity however. The groin is the perfect place to hit a man but you have to keep them preoccupied before striking there. Force them to block another blow then unleash a devastating strike to the nether regions. Women can be trained to strike fiercely and such force will certainly surprise any thug.

It is irritating to hear women who refuse to do weight training on the grounds that they don't want to look 'masculine'. In order to carry out self defense techniques with power, you need to increase your strength and exercising with weights is the best way to do this. A million repetitions with tiny pink dumbbells won't get it done either. Women need to learn how to lift heavy. Their fear of becoming 'muscle-bound' is unfounded. If it was so easy to gain muscle, how come 90% of guys you see in the gym everyday are not bulky? Getting huge is hard work and will not happen by accident. As long as you keep the training down to three sessions a week and not eat large amounts of protein, they will be fine.

Aside from having the power to carry out effective hand to hand combat training, women should also carry self defense weapons with them. A stun gun, taser gun or pepper spray are all good choices. The last thing a thug expects to see when attacking what they presume to be a scared woman is a stun gun that will have them twitching on the floor within a second. Make sure that the weapon you purchase is within state laws however.

Women should not have to live their life in fear nor should they have to suffer from poor self defense techniques shown to them by male instructors. If you are considering a self defense course, be sure to find one with a female trainer. Don't be afraid to increase your strength or carry weapons with you either.

For more details about self defense techniques & hand to hand combat training, please visit us online. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bruce_Strong