Real Life Self Defense: Some Facts on How to Defend Yourself

This article is aimed to increase the knowledge about Self Defense in Real Life to help the average persons to increase their chances of surviving an attack. In these difficult times knowing Self Defense is the best thing you can do, because criminals are everywhere.

Self Defense is one of those skills that everyone should know, at least a little. The world has become dangerous again and Self Defense can keep you alive. There are many legends about how to defend yourself, but the real life is not a movie, and there are no referees in the streets. If you need to save your life real facts on Self Defense is what you need.

Warning: this hub won't be politically correct but based on real life.

To be good at Self Defense usually means one of three things:

1. You are a martial art practitioner above black belt
2. You've had a "training" in brawling or street fighting
3. You are wise and know at least in theory what to do to avoid dangers or survive an attack

The first two are fine, but what if you are the average person? With no training, an average body, a female, over 60 years or under eighteen, or pregnant? Is it possible to "distil" some self defence practices that everyone under any condition can use to remain alive and possibly unhurt? Well, this article aims to be of help for the reader who wants to be part of group N.3.

Now before we begin have a look at this hub from a fellow about Awareness and Attitude. It's really worth reading as it contains 90 % of what's needed in real self defence.

1. Self Defense is allowed, at different degrees, all over the world. Usually you can defend yourself with a strength equal or less than the one of the attacker. How do they know the strength of the attacker is still unknown. As much as how they can weigh up your chances of remaining calm and in control while attacked. While sleeping maybe.
2. If something goes wrong it's quite impossible that you get judged by someone who knows first hand what does it means to be attacked. And everyone is able to talk about excessive force while under a safe roof.
3. Most of the times you'll be attacked while in an unfavorable position, searching for your car's keys, when full of bags, behind your back, by more than one thug, by someone bigger than you, or stronger, or faster, or more trained.
4. Most of the times you'll be alone and could count only on yourself. If help arrives usually is too late to help you. If you're lucky maybe they will find the attacker later but then it's too late for you.
5. Formal training has the big disadvantage that, at different degrees, is not based on real life scenarios. Usually criminals use a blitzkrieg attack with all their force and power when you are less ready to defend yourself and this kind of attack usually last at most five seconds, then the fight is over. You have the time to apply one or if you are lucky two techniques. Can you imagine for real the level of training required for a girl weighting 50 kg to defend herself with some fancy judo moves against a 100 kg thug? Do you think that a trained by real fights criminal, or even a drunk can be scared by someone who screams "No, No, No" while hitting him on shin bones, or even on face? Do you know that even the greatest female boxing champion if attacked by a same weight male boxer outside the ring can resist just one, maybe two hits? Imagine if the thug weighs 20 or 30 more kg.
6. A lot of books, and a lot of self defense schools, teach about Pressure Points or specific targets to hit. These are very useful but can you use them against a drunk or someone under the effect of met-amphetamines? Do you know that they feel no pain and could try to hit you even if their knees or elbows are broken? Not to talk about how much power is needed to break a knee or elbow in real life. And if the attacker wears shoes? Or a heavy jacket?
7. Criminals usually have the bad attitude that they don't want to put themselves in the right position for you to apply that wonderful technique you just learned. They have the bad habit of moving continuously and hitting you in the same time.
8. Brawlers are not gentlemen. If while you are still talking they find nice to throw an ashtray or a glass at your face they'll do, because they don't care at all about you and your life. They usually don't work alone and if you try to use that fancy ground fighting technique their friends will hit you in the head with their boots.
9. A lot of times martial artists too loose against brawlers and street fighters because in real life fights there are no rules, no referee and no time-out. And concrete is harder than tatami too.
10. Sometimes there are no reasons but you get attacked anyway. I once heard a story about a man who, when drunk, found good to beat the head on the wall of people who looked at him just because he didn't like being watched.

Unless properly trained it's difficult to defend ourselves. But we can always do something. You can find a lot of good information about what to do to avoid being targeted as a victim, like the link above, and beside Awareness and Attitude I would add also Avoidance, that is if you can run then run, as fast as you can. Of course without leaving someone else in troubles, but if you are alone and attacked leave everything and run.

Too many things can go wrong in a fight. Unless you are a kind of Bruce Lee or Morihei Ueshiba, but in this case you probably can't be involved in a fight against your will.

When attacked you'll be always in the worst position to defend yourself, attacked by one or more aggressors better skilled than you and probably while alone without someone to back you up. 90 % of times what is generally taught about Self Defense won't help you as your aggressor will be either dunk or under drugs, probably both, and under those conditions even a gun shot is effective after some seconds, imagine a punch. Commercials are one thing, real life is another, only knowledge can save you.

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And go here to learn the two best Self Defense Techniques.

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