The Ultimate Self Defense Moves Are Basic

There are a great many myths out there regarding the subject of self defense. Among those myths, we see a range of poor advice that really misleads people. Such advice can include everything from the notion you need to be an ultimate fighter to defend yourself or the belief you need to develop mystical ancient prowess or the ill advised advice you should carry deadly weapons with you at all times. Again, these myths are just that – myths. While it certainly does not hurt to have a lot of training in a variety of spears of martial arts, self defense is often best served by learning a few high percentage basic self defense moves.

Such personal protection self defense moves are not flashy or spectacular. Rather, they are simple, straight forward, and to the point. Most importantly, they need to be applied by anyone regardless of age, height, or weight against a much more aggressive and larger opponent. Can this be done? Not only can it be done, it has been done.

One of the most stirring accounts that points out this fact is found in the tale of an 8 year old boy who successfully protected his 4 year old sister from being abducted. In May of 2010, a man attempted to abduct Josie Kuhns, while the family was on vacation. Her older brother, Nathan, (Again, “older” in this scenario is 8 years old) came to her rescue. As an unidentified man tried to pull her into his car, Nathan ran up to the man and started kicking and scratching him. Stunned at the response, the abductor let go of Josie and drove off in his car.

The only personal protection techniques Nathan used to defend his sister were kicking, scratching, and taking the fight to the assailant. Again, basic self defense moves are often the key to extricating yourself from a serious situation.

This incident also explains a few very important facts about self defense: predators prey on those that are weaker, predators do not want to get caught, and simple basic self defense moves can cause an attacker to flee. Again, an 8 year old child stopped a predator by simply scratching and kicking at him.

Now, no one is making the suggestion that it is easy to diffuse a serious predatory attack. Such incidents are extremely dangerous and stressful. However, in order to provide a successful and appropriate response, you will need a few basic self defense moves that can offer adequate protection when things get rough.

The basic self defense moves are not complicated or flashy. They are moves designed to work well under stress and pulled off in a simple and effective manner. The common self defense techniques that are highly effective would be a series of open hand attacks. Slapping, palm hand strikes, scratching, and eye pokes are fairly easy to perform. They are simple and direct and place you at very little risk for breaking or injuring your hand. (Closed fist strikes lead to broken hands due to the compression of the knuckles when the hand is not wrapped and placed in a glove) For those looking to knock out an opponent, the ‘heavy tools’ of knees, elbows, and head butts can be brutal tools that can deliver overwhelming force. (Please note: only use the appropriate level of force to handle a specific situation. Excess force that exceeds self defense can be considered assault) While these tools require a little additional training to make effective, the amount of time required to make them effective is not long as you would initially be led to believe.

This is not to say you never have to practice the material. A few short practice sessions a week would certainly aid in boosting skills in the delivery of the basic self defense moves. You do want to develop some proficiency in the delivery of the moves in a practice session. This way, you can be more confident that you can provide an effective response if a serious situation develops.

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