Three Simple Self-Defense Moves EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW!
Sep 03 '08 (Updated Sep 04 '08)
The Bottom Line These simple techniques will give you increased confidence and a feeling of well-being!
BACKGROUND
We live in a dangerous world, and I suspect it's always been that way. Crime is always on the rise, and common citizens, as well as the police, seem to be on the defensive side, while criminals pillage and rage. Too often, the victims tend to be women. As a student of Shotokan Ohshima Karate for 19 years, I've acquired some knowledge which any person-whether they be a man, woman, or "child" needing some simple means of defending themselves should they experience bullying at school-can learn with very little practice. These techniques could literally save someone's life, or prevent rape/injury.
I say "child" cautiously. If a child is experiencing bullying (and I don't know what child hasn't--myself included), then I firmly believe that they need to be shown how to empower themselves. Even if they are of a "big enough" size, they may be pestered by smaller children (who may even be older), due-possibly-to being taught "not to fight back" (as I was), and led to believe that they will be "protected by adults." As an instructor in public schools, I can say with authority that many of the teachers are either as fearful of the perpetrators, or legally constrained from acting (some schools require you to call on trained staff assistants, and there may be legal consequences). But, again, a child needs to learn these types of techniques in an environment supervised by responsible adults--preferably, a karate dojo, or self-defense class/seminar. Practicing alone, they might hurt themselves or others, so I am NOT suggesting or promoting that "children" (in the broad, legal sense of the word) practice these techniques without attentive adult guidance and supervision.
Additional Disclaimer: IF YOUR ATTACKER HAS A WEAPON, then I cannot suggest any of these moves, unless you are CERTAIN that you will be killed, no matter what. If all they want is your money, car, or some other material thing, then consider your life, any loved ones with you, and how much you will be missed, or miss them, and just give it to them! IT'S NOT WORTH IT!! Material things can be replaced, but living things cannot--besides, "You can't take 'it' with you anyways."
OVERVIEW
I will describe these simple moves as accurately as I can, and will be open to feedback and questions, via the "comments" section. If you practice them-first, on yourself, and then, on someone you mutually trust-you will instantly see how simple and effective they are. Traditional martial arts take YEARS of arduous practice-for most people-but self-defense can be learned in one sitting, and practiced occasionally. It's that intuitive! BUT--if you don't "get them," for any reason-be it cognitive, developmental, you don't learn by reading, etc.-then DO NOT ATTEMPT THEM IN A REAL SITUATION! You, my friend, need to be shown, in person, by a professional!
A STORY
If you're old enough to remember Los Angeles' infamous "Hillside Strangler" (late 1970s), then you'll want to know what became of him (they were actually 2 men-cousins-the subject of several movies, books, and a play). His last target was a very feisty woman--the daughter of a general in the U.S. armed forces. He entered through her window and attempted to overpower her, in her bed, through smothering. This woman felt incredibly helpless--except for one thing.
Dangling near her mouth was the killer's hand. She said she had "nothing" else--and was almost completely helpless. So what did she do? She bit one of the Hillside Strangler's fingers off-completely-and he reeled back, screaming in pain. The strangler left the scene, she contacted police, and they simply followed the blood trail and found the "fingerless man." How do I know this? My friend and karate/self-defense instructor & bodyguard to the stars, Tom Muzila,(http://www.tommuzila.com), interviewed her, as he has many other crime victims. The link to my review of his book is below.
Why do I mention this story? Because this woman had the presence of mind to act on the only thing she had. And you may-God forbid-find yourself in a situation where you have extremely limited choices, but an opportunity arises that exposes a weakness of the part of an attacker that you can utilize to save your life--you, too, will need a strong, clear mind to do what is necessary to save your life, and ward off an attacker! Also, to demonstrate that these techniques are coming, not from a book or hokey pretender--but from real-time experiences, a Green Beret/Special Forces veteran, and instructor to police forces and S.W.A.T. teams across the country (Tom Muzila).
TECHNIQUE #1 "JUGULAR NOTCH BACK-OFF"
If an attacker attempts to "bear hug" you from the front, or simply approaches you this way, you can push them away and repel them, using very little energy, and only using 2 fingers and your extended arm. You may end up with a temporary red mark, and a little discomfort, practicing this technique.
Take your finger and place it in the concavity between your collarbones, a few inches below where the "Adam's Apple" would be on a male. You have just found the "suprasternal notch" (also known as "jugular notch"). Take your finger and carefully press in, and slightly down (be extremely careful if you have long or fake nails!). If done correctly, you will start to feel an impulse to gag ("gag reflex"). Now, standing, with a trusted partner about half an arm's length away (also standing), place TWO fingers on their jugular notch. Your arm should be bent at this point. S-L-O-W-L-Y start straightening your arm-sensitive to your partners' reaction, and have them TELL YOU when to STOP(!)-and start walking toward them (make sure there's room for them to move back, and nothing in the way to trip on). You will find that, with only the energy of straightening your arm, they will back away, and very sensitive people may start to "gag" right away.
Notes & Resources for the "Jugular Notch Back-Off!"
If you're having trouble finding or visualizing where this is, examine this Wikipedia entry--http://www.answers.com/topic/suprasternal-notch
* Your fingers MUST BE STRAIGHT, and not BENT!
* Your arm also must end up straight, to transfer the energy of your forward motion.
* The goal is to repel an attack, enough for you to escape and RUN AWAY from the attacker! Don't try to capture your likely larger and more powerful assailant!
*This relies on the element of surprise from the attackers' own gag reflex--if you linger around, they may recover, and kick or grab you!
*This may not be that effective on someone with a very strong, thick neck (or someone in a "drug rage," a whole different story), but it could-if you, again-CATCH THEM BY SURPRISE! Remember, most sexual assaults are initiated by someone relatively close to the victim-someone he/she knows-so you know not to be around someone with a drug problem.
*You cannot feel "dainty" about this, or feel sorry for your attacker. If you feel that you may hurt him or her, you have nothing to fear legally. They initiated an affront and assault on your personal body, and you have the right to defend yourself! They took the risk that they might get hurt, or even killed, by attacking someone else, and courts have historically been on your side.
TECHNIQUE #2 "The Nose KNOWS!"
This technique is so simple and effective, that you'll wonder why you never knew. It's a little wordy to explain, but worth the effort to learn!
1. Clap your hands together in front of you, keeping the surfaces absolutely flat. Bend your thumbs in towards your body a little--they will angle in towards the palms of your hands, but that is normal.
2. Remove your non-dominant hand (just let it drop to your side). You should be looking at a karate "sword hand"- shuto" in Japanese-and the long, skinny side of your smallest finger is the "blade."
3. Keeping your (sword) hand in place, lift the elbow of that arm to the level of your shoulder. Your fingers should be pointed to the left, if your are right-handed, and to the right, if you are left-handed. Your arm should be horizontal and your hand, right in front of your nose.
4. Rotate your wrist, down (counterclockwise--the thumb will "dip" down), until the palm of your hand is facing away from you. You should be looking at the back of your hand, and your knuckles; your bent thumb will be closest to the floor.
5. Bend your arm towards you, so that your hand ends up right under your nose, maintaining the "sword hand" shape. With the fingers still lined-up ("stacked"), the side-edge of your little finger (the "blade") should be under the bony part of the base (bottom) of your nose, at a 90-degree angle.
6. Apply upward pressure to the base of your nose, letting your head move back, but rotate your wrist so you maintain the 90-degree angle between (the plane of) your lined-up fingers, and your nose's base, as your head moves up and back. I don't know how fragile your nose is--but the nose knows, so be careful! You will not feel this as much as an opponent will, so let's get one (and-believe me-they will FEEL this one..)! KEEP YOUR SAME HAND POSITION, palm facing away.
7. Have a partner stand, facing you--about an elbow's length away.
8. Keeping the exact same hand position, simply bend your arm towards them, moving your hand right under their nose, so that your "blade" (the side/edge of your little finger) is at a 90-degree angle to the bony base of their nose.
9. Now, S-L-O-W-L-Y apply upward pressure, keeping that 90-degree angle as their head moves up and back. Your partner will, in all likelihood, immediately experience some unexpected discomfort.
10. With their head moved halfway (back) through it's range-of-motion, tell your partner to try to move their head back down, while you apply GENTLE PRESSURE to prevent this. Done properly (and with the application of EXTREMELY LITTLE FORCE), they will not be able to do this, and they will experience more pain (although they are more in control of this pain than you are--the point is to get the attacker to "back off").
11. After practicing this a few times, let your (trusted!) partner go through the steps with you.
SOME NOTES on The Nose Knows!
*I don't care how strong someone is, this is a weakness--even one of the founder of karate's MENTORS said (Azato, for you history buffs; Itosu is the other one), "The tip of my nose is the only part of my body I don't know how to make stronger." I once met someone who had spent some time in prison, and he said that a variation of this move saved him from getting raped!
* Notice how many times I have 90-degree angle in bold print--unless you are reasonably close to this, it will not be as effective. Don't be afraid to dust off a geometry book here!
* The plane of your lined-up fingers should be at EXACTLY a 90-degree angle to the bony base of your nose. Some people I've shown had their "sword hand" applied to the fleshy tip of the nose and-not surprisingly-it wasn't working. If you see the nose cringing up and giving way too much, your hand is not far enough under their nose.
* In a "sword hand," your four fingers are exactly lined-up and your thumb is bent, but towards your palm, not the back of your hand--there should be little or no tension or discomfort at the base of your thumb at all (unless you are arthritic, but your body may have to get used to this)!
TECHNIQUE #3 "EYE GOUGE"
1. With your partner facing you, grasp the sides of their head, with your palm about covering their ears, and your thumbs right in front of their eyes. You can practice by placing your own hand on the opposite side of your head--reaching across. The thumb of your right hand would cover your left eye, and vice-versa.
2. Be careful here, but imagine (ONLY!) that, firmly grasping their head, you DIG YOUR THUMBS INTO THEIR EYES, by simply bending your thumbs into their eye sockets, keeping your hands firmly in place on their head. With your partner (and yourself!), just wiggle your thumbs a little bit. With your hands in front of you, in the air, you could go through the full range-of-motion, and I suppose you could also use a pumpkin (it is getting closer to October!), a pillow, or some other compliant object for practice.
POINTERS on the "Eye Gouge"
* It could be done standing up, facing the assailant, or if they are on top of you.
* I wouldn't practice restraint here, as you will probably, even in the face of possible death, be very reluctant to do such a thing, and your movements-no matter how practiced-will be more shrunken. Helpfully, just pretend that this person is attacking a loved one-such as your child, mother, father, etc.-and, believe me-your restraint will melt away.
* As gruesome as it sounds, you want to imagine your assailant's eyeballs popping like grapes!
OTHER TECHNIQUES
The best technique of all is to be alert, aware, and smart. Don't find yourself alone, in a dark parking lot, fumbling for some keys. Try to go out with a larger group, or at least, someone you really trust, but remember--most female assault victims know their attackers in some way. Those are hard statistics. And especially don't find yourself in any of these situations, in a combination with alcohol or worse--your judgement will be severely impaired! Have a designated driver, and keep ICE ("In Case of Emergency") numbers in your cell phone, with those letters in front of names of nearby, trusted friends and relatives.
MORE DIFFICULT TECHNIQUES
Some techniques require more practice (with a professional)--one of these is "stomping kick." In its most basic form, an attacker comes at you from the front or back, may or may not bear-hug you, and you lift the knee of your dominant leg as high as you can, and forcefully kick down, at the center of their foot, as hard as you can. If you are wearing heels, then this works especially well.
POINTERS for STOMPING KICK
1. Have a (trusted!) partner bear hug you from the rear (both of you are standing). Your arms will be effectively trapped, but your legs are free.
2. Lift your dominant knee as high as you can, and slowly & carefully let it go, landing (gently!) on your partner's foot (middle is good) with your heel.
That's it, but there are some pointers and notes...
* Without a partner, practice lifting your knee high, and holding it close to your chest (you may have to stretch before this, and like any exercise--check with your doctor that you are "clear" for this kind of activity). Now let it go, kicking down, forcefully towards the floor--so that your heel will be making contact BUT DON'T TOUCH THE FLOOR!!!
* With some practice, your buttock on the kicking leg side will firm up with the kick, and your hip will lower somewhat with it.
*MAKE SURE that you are able to maintain your balance during this technique, and that you're in a clear area, free of hard-edged furniture or other obstacles!
*THIS IS AN ADVANCED, DIFFICULT KICK EVEN FOR CONSISTENT PRACTITIONERS--I'm just "putting it out there." If you think you can lift your foot up and put your shoe's heel into an attacker's foot, then I have at least made you aware of that. If you feel you cannot, then seek more training from a qualified instructor.
The "Pinkie Grab"
If you could grab someone's pinkie and bend it backwards, you would be amazed at the resulting pain. This is more free-form, but there is an entire martial art based on manipulating the fingers. Even a thumb could be effective, or any number of adjacent fingers, with a suggested maximum of 3--preferably the pinkie and the 2 next to it. Smaller hands will want to grab the pinkie alone--and maybe just the next finger with it. Gently practice with a partner.
SUMMARY
I hope and pray that you never find yourself in a life-threatening situation, but it never hurts to be prepared. I know a woman who, with no prior training, was attacked by a man and pulled his tongue out--completely! Although untrained, she was ALERT and maintained the presence of mind, like the "Strangler's" would-be victim, above, to improvise and save herself from a vicious attack. It is my hope that you will be able to learn at least one of the simple techniques outlined above, so that, in the event that the unthinkable occurs, you at least have some resources at your disposal. And just appearing to have increased confidence from this knowledge and thus not appearing to be "weak," may be enough to make an attacker change his or her mind. After all--they prey on the weak and defenseless, and can't afford to be injured, detained, or caught. Remember-"knowledge is power"-and don't be afraid to seek more training by an expert!
To see me practicing "restraint" in Rome, click HERE!
Here are a few of my fave reviews--
Tom Muzila's new book-Mental Karate
How to Find Computer & Electronics Deals
2002 Buick Regal LS
Microsoft Vista Home Premium
Ahead Nero Ultra v.6 CD/DVD-burning software
Rubbermaid Soap-dispensing Dish Wand
Tomtom One 3rd ed. GPS
Whistler XTR-330 Radar Detector
Kenwood KDC-MP435U CD/MP3 Car Stereo
You can see a generous preview of one book examing the mind of one of the most notorious serial killers in American history, the Hillside Strangler, here--http://books.google.com/books?id=DsMjwZgPuOMC
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Member: Kevin England
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