We live in a very dangerous world. Crime is rampant anywhere you go, and it would not be a stretch of the imagination to say the chance of you getting attacked in the street is higher than 20 years ago.
As such, a lot of people are thinking of ways to protect themselves. Products like stun guns have become very popular especially among women. Some resort to buying and carrying firearms. Others beef up their knowledge of self-defense by taking up a martial art.
If you’re one of those people who want to know how to protect yourself in the case of an attack, which martial art should you take up? Here are five martial arts that you should consider:
1. Krav Maga
This martial arts style was developed particularly for Israeli policemen, to help them during high pressure situations. It is a tactical mixed martial art that combines techniques of boxing, aikido, judo, and jujitsu.
In Krav Maga, the primary goal of the practitioner is to neutralize the threat as fast as possible. Because of that goal, you don’t have to worry about your fighting etiquette nor be concerned about your form.
In Krav Maga, you are tasked to do anything to preserve your life. As such, there are no patterns in Krav Maga. You’ll have to learn how to block, hold, and strike your opponent.
Other martial arts treat defensive and offensive moves as separate movements. For instance, you’ll have to block a punch first before you can make your counterattack. Things are different in Krav Maga, as the martial art teaches its practitioners how to transition a defensive move into a counterattack. Hence you’ll be taught how to deflect an attack and simultaneously strike your opponent by going for a part of his body like the eyes.
2. Japanese Jujitsu
Since most fights would have you on the ground, you’ll find Japanese jujitsu very helpful. This martial art will teach you how to disarm an opponent. You can apply techniques like leg locks or calf crush, forcing your opponent to let you go and giving you time to flee or call the police.
Jujitsu will also teach you how to incapacitate your opponent. For instance, a triangle choke combines neck crank, choke, and arm bar. It may also be enough for you to finish off your opponent when you pull off this move.
Or you can also suffocate your opponent to death by squeezing his throat, or the arteries on the sides of his neck to prevent the blood from flowing to his brain. This technique may also kill your opponent.
3. Muay Thai
This Thai martial art is also a good discipline to get into if you’re concerned about self defense. In Muay Thai, you’ll learn how to block a punch, or change the direction of the strike so that your opponent would miss his target. You will also be taught how to move your body out of the way (avoidance) or move it out of an opponent’s range of strike, giving you the chance to counterattack.
Muay Thai also teaches disruptive techniques like low roundhouse kick and jabs, pre-empting an attack of your opponent. You will also learn how to anticipate a strike, like catching a roundhouse kick and countering before it lands to a part of your body.
4. Karate
Karate’s focus on footwork makes it a great martial art for self defense as well. In this style, you’ll be able to move into range, strike your opponent, and move out of harm’s way in a few seconds. It also helps that karate teaches powerful strikes that you can use to incapacitate an aggressor. Karate is also a great martial art for self defense because you can use its moves to take on multiple opponents.
Of course, most fights would have you go to the ground which would put you at a disadvantage if you only know karate moves. So you need to have some level of distance from your opponent.
5. Judo
In judo, the aim is to utilize the strength of your opponent against him. As such, you don’t have to be strong to be able to pull off judo moves.
There are numerous judo moves that would help you resist an attacker. Hip techniques or koshi-waza would enable you to make an opponent lose his balance. Some hip techniques you can put to good use are large hip throw and sweeping hip throw. You can also learn joint locks to grasp your opponent’s joint and bend in the opposite direction to make him virtually helpless.
As you can see, martial arts can help you defend yourself against any aggressor. So what are you waiting for? Look for a martial arts school specializing in any of the styles mentioned earlier, study the basics, train hard, and equip yourself with the know-how to repel an attack.
