You could go to self defense classes every week and feel pretty confident about being able to take care of yourself but unless you have a set of effective self defense tactics, you could be in for a nasty surprise one day. Just because you know a few maneuvers doesn’t mean that you are any less likely to get attacked. A thug will not suddenly look at you and say to themselves ‘oh, that person knows self defense, I better run along’. No attacker knows the strengths of their victim, all they see is weakness. And no amount of martial arts techniques you have learned recently will save you from their clutches unless you have some plan of action. This is necessary to ensure that you don’t freeze when it comes to the crunch.

The first rule of self defense is to avoid placing yourself in a situation where you could be a potential victim. Being a regular member of a Tae-Bo class or practicing self defense four days a week at home doesn’t give you the right to walk down a dangerous looking street at night and expect not to get attacked. Martial arts techniques are nothing without some self-awareness to back them up. Avoiding scary looking shortcuts and being on constant watch when walking is essential because it could help you see trouble out of the corner of your eye. Most thugs are fairly open about their intentions when they are about to attack someone so a watchful person will spot them a mile away.

Staying confident is another effective feature of self defense tactics. People who attack others randomly in the street are generally cowards who will run away at the first sign of genuine resistance. Self-preservation is the name of the game for these creeps who will also flee if it is taking them too long to achieve their objective in case they get apprehended by the police. If you see two people walking, one who has their head up and shoulders back and the other with their head hunched down accompanied by small, scurrying steps, which person do you think is more likely to be attacked? The former target is confident and therefore troublesome while the latter is scared and easy meat for an attacker.

This confidence can be maintained even if confronted. Although some thugs like to stalk their prey, it is more common for the attack to be sudden. This usually occurs if the target is hunched down and petrified as in example B above. If they actually stop you and start with their threats, this means that they have not fully made up their mind. While they don’t know if you are proficient in martial arts techniques just by looking at you, they will be put off attacking you if you keep your ground and show no fear. If they decide on an attack, then it is time to unleash your bag of self defense tricks.

Self defense tactics don’t just involve methods of injuring your assailant, they should also act as a guide with regards to your behavior G19 Freemason Slide when you walk the streets. With just a few subtle changes in your demeanor and body language, you could change from being a ‘victim’ to being safe.