Women’s versus men’s self-defense?

[Buka]

That's correct, so many points to add on the script, for most of them I advice that they require tecnique or they are not reliable to end a fight, just some good spot to attack during an already active fight, I wish I could advice the same with liver shot, too late now. Anyways, I point at the end that all this is useless without a solid base.

The video is humorous in nature, I plan to make more videos with tecniques in detail when I can improve equipment and have full body tracking.

Also I would love to analize some martial arts., expose fake lineages and ninja bullshido, the useless, always against cooperative oponents tacticool systems, how russian systema gran master loses it and now is doing no touch ki magic, Xu Xiaodong...

What type of content would you like to see?

I enjoy watching anything anybody on our forum posts. Sometimes I’ve sat through hours long videos. Sometimes I wish I had some of those hours back. But not always.

Please keep in mind, though, that “style bashing” isn’t allowed, nor is it useful.

I don’t know what “full body tracking” means.

Humor can be good, wonderful even. But it’s tricky. It helps to know your audience.

“Analyzing some Martial Arts” is not something anyone should do unless they have decades of experience in that particular Martial Art. As well as those same decades spent studying that Martial Art from an opposing organization’s standpoint in the same Martial Art, just done in different ways.

So, whatever you want to do, have fun doing it. I’ll enjoy watching it.

 

[Hot Lunch]

It seems to me that men best avoid violence through projecting confidence and not challenging other men, Intentionally or unintentionally. There are men who look for reasons to fight other men...

There's a fine line that men have to walk, and I believe I mentioned this in another thread.

That is, avoiding making yourself look like a soft target, while also avoiding making yourself look threatening.

There is a third that I want to add, though it only applies to those men who are incapable of looking threatening. That is, you want to avoid looking like a soft target; but you also don't want to try project an image of badassery too far beyond how you're normally perceived (false flagging). That's an easy way to get G-checked.

 

[Dirty Dog]

Also I would love to analize some martial arts., expose fake lineages and ninja bullshido, the useless, always against cooperative oponents tacticool systems, how russian systema gran master loses it and now is doing no touch ki magic, Xu Xiaodong...

Be aware that the Terms Of Service here are Martialtalk specifically disallow any fraudbusting.

 

[GreenieMeanie]

For one thing, the video has swearing in it, even a few F bombs. Might not be approved.

And while some of the information might be useful it’s not presented accurately.

Consider the liver shot. The vid makes it sound like you can drop anybody with a liver shot anytime you want. Part of that is correct. You can if you hit them in the right place.

But how many fights have you seen where it happens? How many times have you hit someone in the general area and have it happen to them? How many times have you been hit in that area and have it happen to you?

All competitive fighting would be over real quick if you could hit that on/off switch that easy. Street fights as well.

That’s wut.

I see that everyone here has either been approving what I’ve summarized, or responding without reading the discussion.

My work here is done

 

[Cri70]

What would you say are the key differences between women’s and men’s self defense?

The generics of self defence (awareness, don't be there, read your surroundings etc) are identical, I'd say.

The same for the importance of stress test - replicating the emotional state tension of being attacked and train to counter the cognitive reduction that ensues (and just as hard for a woman as for a man).

This leaves actual combat. For that, I'd say it's mostly about height and weight difference.
As a woman, it's likely that your assailant will be taller, heavier and stronger than you.

So one would have to focus on the stuff that has a chance to work in these conditions, such as truly owning the principles of close-range combat, rely heavily on biomechanics (technique) and momentum rather than strength, really train the reaction (like the old saying goes, "when startled, move forward"), stuff like that.

 

[Krisxylove]

It seems to me that men best avoid violence through projecting confidence and not challenging other men, Intentionally or unintentionally. There are men who look for reasons to fight other men, but you don’t see this so much with women. Women on the other hand are often seen as prey by default, underestimated, and quick to kindness in the face of clear boundary violations. Thus, women have to project an aura of “don’t f— with me” when they feel threatened, and be prepared to immediately stab the man in critical areas if necessary. I’ve heard that an issue with women‘s self-defense classes, is that they don’t actually give women a taste of the extreme violence they’ll face, and then they’re completely caught off guard when a real sexual assault or rape happens.

What would you say are the key differences between women’s and men’s self defense?

I'm very interested in this topic and love your thoughts. I don't know anything but I imagine a higher sense of situational awareness and easy access to a fixed blade knife along with projection like you said, is the only way. I saw some videos of Craig Douglass (shivworks). He is considered an authority I believe. It looks like even men need to be heavily pressure tested with getting to the knife while in a struggle and further using it while in a struggle.

 

[Cri70]

I'm very interested in this topic and love your thoughts. I don't know anything but I imagine a higher sense of situational awareness and easy access to a fixed blade knife along with projection like you said, is the only way. I saw some videos of Craig Douglass (shivworks). He is considered an authority I believe. It looks like even men need to be heavily pressure tested with getting to the knife while in a struggle and further using it while in a struggle.

In passing, there are techniques (and to a point, it could be argued even entire systems) that are better suited to smaller people against bigger and stronger opponents. Your average Okinawan today is on average 169cm tall: this means both that there's lots of people far shorter and that probably the average was even lower in the past. When confronted with western people - especially American - differences in height and weight are huge. This has been true for the past as well, so quite a few katas for example are oriented to give you a chance in these situations. at least the variations of certain styles.

The unfortunate bit is the usual - very few people, if any, know the exact meanings and purposes of each part of the katas and most of what we know is due to reverse engineering, usually by westerners. And if the guy doing reverse engineering is tall and big or thinks usually in terms of opponents of pretty much his/her weight and size, it's hard to rediscover that specific meaning. So it's very difficult to know someone who "knows" them, let alone teaches them.

Since my older son is about 20cm taller and 30Kg heavier than me, if I drill karate with him I am in exactly that situation

So far I've found that moves which in the kata come from "under" when you drop your weight (such as the age-uke like movements) or I interpret as high grabs (many jodan "punches", which I mostly don't think are punches at all), or the sudden knee drop (like in Kanazawa's version of the start Empi) are very useful, as you basically you leverage your entire body weight into a specific point which is mechanically weak regardless of the opponent size and weight.

These are all quite unorthodox interpretations and let's say you don't find many youtube videos on the subject.

Obviously the flip side is that even as you find or learn these applications, you have to become very good and practiced... as a single hit from a bigger opponent can do big damage. There's no going around that a bigger and stronger opponent is at a huge advantage, and you have to work constantly to put him in a position where it can't make use of it.

 

[Krisxylove]

In passing, there are techniques (and to a point, it could be argued even entire systems) that are better suited to smaller people against bigger and stronger opponents. Your average Okinawan today is on average 169cm tall: this means both that there's lots of people far shorter and that probably the average was even lower in the past. When confronted with western people - especially American - differences in height and weight are huge. This has been true for the past as well, so quite a few katas for example are oriented to give you a chance in these situations. at least the variations of certain styles.

The unfortunate bit is the usual - very few people, if any, know the exact meanings and purposes of each part of the katas and most of what we know is due to reverse engineering, usually by westerners. And if the guy doing reverse engineering is tall and big or thinks usually in terms of opponents of pretty much his/her weight and size, it's hard to rediscover that specific meaning. So it's very difficult to know someone who "knows" them, let alone teaches them.

Since my older son is about 20cm taller and 30Kg heavier than me, if I drill karate with him I am in exactly that situation

So far I've found that moves which in the kata come from "under" when you drop your weight (such as the age-uke like movements) or I interpret as high grabs (many jodan "punches", which I mostly don't think are punches at all), or the sudden knee drop (like in Kanazawa's version of the start Empi) are very useful, as you basically you leverage your entire body weight into a specific point which is mechanically weak regardless of the opponent size and weight.

These are all quite unorthodox interpretations and let's say you don't find many youtube videos on the subject.

Obviously the flip side is that even as you find or learn these applications, you have to become very good and practiced... as a single hit from a bigger opponent can do big damage. There's no going around that a bigger and stronger opponent is at a huge advantage, and you have to work constantly to put him in a position where it can't make use of it.

Thank you for your thoughts!!

 

[drop bear]

Who ever is the best technical exponent of your system. And whoever can translate that best to you is the best suited to teaching you self defence.

 

[isshinryuronin]

In passing, there are techniques (and to a point, it could be argued even entire systems) that are better suited to smaller people against bigger and stronger opponents. Your average Okinawan today is on average 169cm tall: this means both that there's lots of people far shorter and that probably the average was even lower in the past. When confronted with western people - especially American - differences in height and weight are huge. This has been true for the past as well, so quite a few katas for example are oriented to give you a chance in these situations. at least the variations of certain styles.

I don't think traditional Okinawan kata were designed with size differences in mind. There was little contact between them and Westerners before WWII. They would have designed the art against people close to their own size: other Okinawans and Japanese primarily, but also SE Asians and Chinese, people they would commonly come across.

But after WWII and having big and strong American servicemen as students, the karate they taught was likely focused more on power and less on finesse technique for two reasons: First, the Marines were used to rough and tumble fighting. Second, they were stationed in Okinawa for less than two years as a rule so there was not time to teach them the fine points which typically take longer to master.

I can't say if the Okinawan students were taught differently after the coming of the Americans - they often lost to them in kumite as size and strength definitely matter. While the kata may not distinguish size, certain techniques may be more, or less, effective against larger opponents. I would think the main change would be in tactics to neutralize the opponent's superior size and to safely get in close range to land their technique.

very few people, if any, know the exact meanings and purposes of each part of the katas and most of what we know is due to reverse engineering, usually by westerners. And if the guy doing reverse engineering is tall and big or thinks usually in terms of opponents of pretty much his/her weight and size, it's hard to rediscover that specific meaning.

This is a good point to consider. But a fuller understanding of the principles of kata would take some of this bias out of the reverse engineering and understanding of the bunkai.