Is Martial Arts Training Fun for Men and Women?

Fun? Really? I guess it depends on what you are doing in the martial arts to classify it as fun. Or if you are a sick, twisted fool that is into self-abuse and mayhem, brutal martial arts training can be fun. It boils down to what your motivation for training is. If you are into competition, patches, trophies, name recognition and glory then a commercial school oriented to the sporting aspects of martial arts is where you want to go. If you want realistic self-defense training perhaps going to a dojo with fewer trophies on the wall is something you want to seek.

Different cultures have different martial arts and it may take a few tries to find one that fits you and your personality. Personally I have been seeking my path in the martial arts for over forty years. I have found some really great schools and top-notch instructors and I have found some schools that I would not waste another second investigating. But my motivation for martial arts training is not the same as everyone else's motivation. It may be similar but it is not the same.

My martial art training is not done as a hobby or a sport or even a pleasant past time. Sometimes it just plain hurts. Yes there is pain involved but that does not mean that the training does not have its own rewards. The camaraderie and bonding that takes place when you place your life in the hands of your training partner achieves a very high degree. It is true that we do not train for fun but occasionally we can have fun training.

If your goal in the martial arts is to achieve a fairly high degree of physical fitness, to maintain good muscle tone and flexibility then you may want to participate in such things as tournaments, and or demonstrations and that is an excellent goal. It can be fun and provide motivation for setting goals or meeting people of similar interests and abilities.

If your motivation to train in the martial arts is to provide yourself a venue to learn to fight and defend yourself you can still find an enjoyable experience but the bumps and bruises will be more extensive.

To seek "budo" or the way of the warrior your path will be quite different than if you were seeking the thrill of competition. The possibility of female participation is reduced but not eliminated. The concept of having fun is pretty much out the window. The training will be brutal by necessity. On the warrior's path you are not training to compete, you are training to survive.

Back in 1967 when I began training in Shotokan my goal was to become a professional soldier. Vietnam was in full swing and I knew if I wanted a military career, I would have to have combat experience. My dream was to join Special Forces (Green Berets) and to command an SFOD - A. I thought I would be more and better prepared if I had some real martial arts training. The club I joined was the Brigham Young University Shotokan Karate Club. There really was not a choice if I wanted good martial arts training. There was nothing else available. The training was brutal. If we did not draw blood during a workout, it was not a good workout. That intense training served me very well when I entered the military in 1973. I missed out on Vietnam (darn the luck! Shucks, I really wanted to go. Not!) as well as all of the other live fire exercises the United States became involved in up until 1990 when I was medically discharged. The martial art training during those early years was not fun but it saved my butt several times. Just being able to push myself beyond my perceived limits of physical endurance was a direct result of my martial arts training and it served me well. Now my martial art training is very different from that in 1967. It is more intellectual and spiritual and has much more potential for severe physical damage. It still is not fun because pain is involved but we can have fun during the training. The close-knit group of students who care about each other's safety is very much different than in the early days. I run classes in my dojo in the basement of my house and training is done by invitation only. Many of my students are prior or current military. Some have had law enforcement experience. The training is hard but the banter and joking provide an environment that is "fun".

Karate is up close and personal. Jujutsu is intimate. This makes some people uncomfortable until they get past the ma-ai barrier and learn to get close to their training partner and maybe their attacker. We must learn to leave our ego as well as our gender at the door. The focus should be on training and learning. Leave the sexist crap outside. That said, then training can become fun.

I have had several junctures in life that if I quit training, retired my uniform and belt and pursued other interests in life it would be permissible. I've broken my back twice, broke my leg really bad and dislocated my ankle, got hurt on a night parachute jump etc. etc. But I discovered that I can't quit. The martial arts have become quite addictive. Perhaps it is the flood of endorphins that keeps me coming back. Maybe I am just waiting for the fun to happen?

Larry G. Bethers
6th Dan Chow-Hoon Goshin Jitsu
Introducing principle based training and teaching.
http://www.oneartmartialconcepts.com

42+ years experience in the martial arts
former Green Beret Officer (Major)

Self Defense For Women - 3 Types

Self defense is essential for men and most importantly for women. Some people mistake self defense for fighting. That is one thing that you should know. Self defense is not fighting.

Self defense refers to actions taken by a person to prevent another person from causing harm one's self, one's property or one's home. Self does not necessarily mean knowing kungfu or having a weapon. Sometimes, self defense is simply about taking precautions.

There are 3 categories of self defense for women. There are unarmed self defense, armed self defense and personal alarms.

Unarmed Self-Defense

Unarmed self defense basically means martial arts. Many types of martial arts are usually Asian styles. Some of these Asian style martial arts are Karate, Taekwondo or Wushu. These are some forms of martial arts that do not require arms.

Self defense courses are intended to give a person some instruction in self defense in a short period of time.

Armed Self-Defense

In some countries, it is legal to carry weapons such as firearms or pepper spray. However, sometimes weapons such as firearms are misused by many. Sometimes, everyday objects can be used for self defense.

Personal alarms

Personal alarms are a passive way to practice self defense. A personal alarm is a small; hand- held device that emits a strong, loud, high- pitched sound to deter attackers as the loud noise can draw the attention of passersby. There are different models of personal alarm available. Some are designed as key chains while some are designed to be hung on a cell phone.

These personal alarms can come in handy when you are terrified and do not have the guts to fight the attacker. You can simply trigger the alarm and it will scare the attacker off.

It is important to ensure that if you are armed, you need to make sure that the weapon you are carrying is legal. It will get you into serious trouble if you do not do so.

Now that you know more about self defense do make sure that you are always alert and beware of people behaving suspiciously around you. It is better prevent than to have to fight an attacker.

Self Defense is important and all women should learn about it. You can find out more about self defense for woman by visiting this website for more information ==> http://www.selfdefense4women.net

Top 3 Reasons Why Why Self Defense For Women Is Different From Self Defense For The General Public

There is a big misconception among the public regarding self-defense - Self-defense tactics and strategy for the general public is the same as self defense for women. Let me tell you a shocking truth that some techniques and strategies taught in general self-defense classes are not practical and effective when applied by women! I am not trying to say that women are not capable. But what I am trying to say is that some of the techniques taught are more suited for guys defending themselves against guys. There are differences between general self-defense & self-defense for women and that is what I am going to cover today. So what are there any common grounds between self-defense for the general public and self -defense for women? It is when the attack involves material gains for the assailant such as robbery and extortion.

1. Nature & Objective of Attacks

Firstly, the nature and objective of attacks on women tend to be more sexual in nature as compared to attacks on men. Women rarely get involved with a one-on-one duel with a man, if ever. So should be a heavy importance on training for scenarios whereby the attacker would attack you in a street brawl manner? No! It is unlike a fight between two men. When two men fight, the objective tends to be a show of power, egos or in some cases revenge and anger. The common mentality is that "I am going to beat you to show that I'm BETTER and STRONGER than you". As such, there will usually be a challenge by one side first. So a sort of confrontation exists. However, when a woman is assaulted sexually, the assailant has an objective which ends with a penetration. Rape is about dominance not about simply beating the daylights out of another man.

2. Distance of Attack

Secondly, the distance/range of attack involved in a sexual assault is always in close range. This differs from other self-defense situations which can happen in all types of ranges. This means a rapist would rarely, if ever, come from a full view of a defender and started to "attack" you in that normal sense of the word. Sexual predators will more likely to attack a woman in close quarters and in an ambush-like manner. They will aim to take you to the ground. So that is why it is crucial that EVERY woman should know how to defend herself on the ground.

3. Type of attack

Thirdly, the type of attacks most used would be slightly different. In a fight between men, it is known that punches to the face is the most common type of attack while in a sexual assault, bear hugs and chokes are more commonly used. Besides that, the assailant will be more inclined to control the arms of the women as well as the other limbs. However, fights between men tend to be more bloodied since they are more concerned about slugging it out with punches and kicks. They are not aiming for penetration.

As you can see, there are 3 concerns which arise from understanding the nature of women self defense. A woman MUST know how to fight on the ground as well as defending herself in close quarters such countering a bear hug and a choke. If you want to learn how to defend yourself in close quarters and equip yourself with techniques on ground fighting especially for women, then go to http://www.womenself-defense.com

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Ahmad Mutammim is a recognized authority in the Self-defense industry. He has a Black belt in Taekwondo and is also trained in other Martial Arts such as Judo and Silat. He has fight experiences in street encounters and is also a former police officer in the Singapore Police Force. His self-defense book, which is a must-have for all ladies looking for sufficient knowledge of defending against rape, can be found at http://www.womenself-defense.com

Women's Self Defense - 3 Critical Differences Between Self Defense Training For Men and Women

If you're a woman who interested in getting effective women's self defense training that will enable you to successfully protect yourself against a real-world attack - there are some important things that you need to know. The first thing is that, while many of the concepts and principles are the same, there are some critical differences between defensive training for men and women's self defense!

Unfortunately, it's not always easy to find solid, reliable information about self defense for women and teenage girls. This is true in both the online world and off. One school-of-thought tends to make no difference between self defense for men and women. This perspective says that an attack is an attack and the same techniques work, regardless of who's doing them.

The other primary belief is that there is a difference. Unfortunately, most of those taking this view tend to limit their focus to size. While size is a factor, men very often find themselves smaller, weaker, or less-skilled than their assailant as well.

So, size-aside, in this article, I want to shed some light on several critical differences in how self defense should be approached - especially for women. These differences, when lacking in a program that's supposed to be designed for women - or to at-least include women's self defense issues - can actually put you at greater risk than if you knew nothing at all!

Remember, the way you think about a given problem sets up everything else about the way that you'll go about solving that problem. And women's self defense is no different. That being said, here are 3 critical differences between self defense for women and training offered to men.

1) Attacker Intent & Strategy - In the realm of male-female interpersonal dynamics, there is an area where the way we think about the other gender, is a primary factor in how we operate without and around them. This is guided, in part, by gender roles that were learned when we were children.

When boys wrestled, got into fights, and participated in contests to see who was the biggest, baddest, and best - this was seen as "boys just being boys." Girls were taught that "hitting was not lady-like' and fighting was not the way to solve problems. And, while it was usually acceptable for boys to smack their friends around, it was never okay to hit a girl. While it may come as no surprise, it still requires saying that, attackers were raised in this same paradigm and belief system. So, it should come as no surprise either, that the male assailant will approach men and women differently when seeking out victims of his attack.

Generally speaking, men will most often be attacked where the goal is to "destroy the enemy," while women are usually attacked in ways meant to control, possess, and "take as a prize."

This intention, or strategy, must be factored into any self defense program - regardless of whether it is designed for men, women, or both.

2) Male-Female Strength Ratio - The "size-factor" that I talked about earlier is not what it would normally appear to be. In fact, when you think of size, you probably think of the woman being physically smaller than her larger, male attacker - right?

In reality, the strength factor is much more important than size. Not that size is not a factor - it's just very different.

Here's what I mean: The strength ratio between a man's body and that of a woman is 7:3. What that means is that, if you had a man and a woman who were the same...

Height
Weight

Build

Fitness level

...and all things considered...

The man would still be two and half times stronger than the woman!

Can you see why we can't rely on the so-called "size factor?" It's because, even if the size of the female defender was equal to her male attacker - she'd still have a distinct disadvantage!

3) Belief System - While both men and women can choose to abdicate their security and safety to others, men typically know that, when face-to-face with an assailant - they're expected to fend for themselves. Not so for women.

In fact, when the subject of self defense comes up, I tend to hear one of 2 typical responses from most of the women I encounter. The responses are either...

I'll just kick him in the "you-know-what," or...


"That's my husband/boyfriend's job"
Regardless of the fact that a man's groin is a relatively small target (no pun intended) and you have to be within your attacker's reach to effectively attack it, it seems to be the only thing women focus on. Contrast this with the fact that men learned somewhere around the age of 3 or 4 that this area was to be protected, AND the fact that hitting the groin may actually infuriate him, rather than shut him down, and you have the makings of a bad strategy.

As for the, "it's my boyfriend or husband's responsibility," all you have to do is ask yourself two questions to know whether this is something you want to bet your life on. The first question is:

"How many waking hours in a day are you with him?" And the 2nd question is:

"Does he have the skills to protect you AND HIMSELF should something happen?"

All too often, we try to "excuse" our way through certain problems. This denial or "escapism" only works to distract us from the real issue until we come face-to-face with it, and are forced to deal with it.

In the case of a situation that requires the need for skills designed for self defense for women..."too late" could be a position you can't afford to find yourself in!

Are you looking for solid, reliable women's self defense training? Do you want to be able to defend yourself against a bigger, stronger attacker - or even multiple attackers? Then you must know what questions to ask and have a system that's designed for your specific needs.

Download my new Self Defense Book that will put you on the right track and teach you about things you didn't even know you should be asking about.

Jeffrey Miller is an internationally-recognized self protection expert who teaches literally hundreds of students from every corner of the planet each month how to develop the skills that you need to be safe in this often unsafe world. Jeff says, "If you really want to feel safe, secure, and more confident, then you must be able to handle this part of your life. And I can teach you how to do just that!"