Self Defence for Landlords? :)

Having conquered my weight problem.. I've been thinking about tackling another thing that I've always wanted to do.. learn some form of self defence!

I dunno where to start.. there's Kung Fu, Karate, Tae Kwan Do, Boxing, Ninjutsu, Aikido, Kick Boxing, Kendo, Tai Chi, Dim Sim, and what seems like 100's more.. One called Krav Maga jumped out at me as being an interesting possiblity (apparently invented by the Israeli Army to very quickly give people useful skills).

Anyhow.. I have no real idea, I want skills that make me feel somewhat more capable when threatening situations arise, which is rare, but not completely non-existent.. Interestingly, I nearly got my head punched in outside work a few weeks ago when I, maybe stupidly, intervened when some scrote was about to deck his Girlfriend outside my office.. Was left quite weak-knee'ed afterwards.. And some of my houses are in feral areas.. :)

So for those of you who know this stuff.. do you have any recommendations for a fun, useful, challenging martial art to get involved in?
 
Hi Duncan

I have done a few martial arts and i would say for direct and easy to learn and not as taxing on the body and can be done at virtually any age.

Wing Chun

You can do unarmed combat type training also.

Cheers
BC
 
Hi Duncan

When I was living in Adelaide I also attended Wing Chun classes and I would recommend it.

I have also done other styles but Wing Chun is perfect for the less flexible among us. It is not as acrobatic as some of the other styles but all moves are designed to stop an opponent without the fancy looking high kicks etc.

I would also suggest good old boxing as an alternative. Im not suggesting anyone does self defence to go around bashing heads but I have found if your in a situation that may turn nasty - staying calm and looking/feeling confident can sometimes defuse a situation.

I also remember one Wing Chun excercise we did - form two lines of ten and then each student was told to get to the other side of the room - so when it was your turn everyone ran through the middle of the 2 lines trying to fight their way through to the other side - our instructor walked around the 2 lines and out of the room ...end of lesson.
 
Duncan,

I have been studying martial arts for a fair while - I currently have a black belt in TDK. TKD is excellent for general fitness, flexibility and strength and speed, however it is predominantly a distanced martial art (meaning fantastic for standing away from someone 5 feet and quickly coming in with a side kick etc). It falls down on close contact, as there is limited holds, grapples etc.

I agree boxing is one of the best. Statistics are that most serious fights end up on the ground, so ju jitsu is another consideration.

To be honest, I love TDK for the Art of it, I would avoid a fight at any costs and would be more inclined to arm myself with a small batton or replica pistol for road rage than do anything else. I hate agression.

Tim
 
Hi Duncan

Have you considered origami, from what I've heard it doesn't put a lot of strain on your body as you mainly use your hands.

Just a suggestion.

Cheers :cool:
 
Hi all

I have to agree with Tim avoid at all costs and even walk away if provoked. The best weapon is talking and staying as calm as possible not always easy

Thing is these days there is a pack wolf mentality and if you hurt someone then they go and get more of the mates/relis etc and find you.

I know of Guys that have got bashed have stood up to it and then been beaten up in hospital by the friends of the assailants. (Not uncommon)

If you do come across absolute aholes and you feel your life is at risk just shoot but make sure they don't get up again. It seems its the only language they know some of these thugs.

If they survive they come after you and sue you.

Cheers
BC
 
here is a post on the same topic i wrote for another board

choosing a marital arts school is something id take pretty seriously as it can get serious pretty quick. you say you want to spar, and thats good, think about whether or not youd like to compete or not as well, as this will influence your choice. think about why you want to start? maybe you were faced with a situation where you felt uncomfortable in your ability to protect yourself or loved ones? or maybe your just interested in the fitness side of things? maybe you just want to fight a bit in a controlled environment and have a bit of fun? maybe your interested in studying a historical martial art? work it out as it will help you make a better choice.

the best advice i can give you is to try out the main ones your interested in and see which you enjoy most and meets what you want to do most. you should be able to attend one or two classes for free to check it out (if not, i wouldn't bother with that school, as they're probably motivated mianly by $)

its important to pay attention to the people. You're going to be paying money to spend time with them, so try suss them out. is the instructor good natured and knows how to smile? what are the students like? are they arrogant and macho? do they think they're tough as nails? most martial arts fail when faced with an opponent armed with a gun at distance. look at the senior students and realise that with a bit of time and effort youll probably be at their level, are they people youd like to sit next to at a bbq? if you're trained to be aggressive you will be agressive. this can be a bad thing, especially if your inhibitions are lowered by drugs or alcohol. many (i would hazard a guess more than 50%) of injuries sustained in altercations happen when someone is knocked over and slams into the pavement/a chair/wall/etc, and these can be fatal. there are heaps of cases where someone whos trained in the martial arts has joined a fight and ended up killing someone by accident and been charged for murder. check google if you dont belive me. id also google up the head of the schools name and see if anything turns up and ask about their qualifications. they should be happy to chat to you about their experience, but see below for some tall tales.

be wary of paying too much, $80 - $100 a month would be an ok figure for 2 or 3 nights trainging a week in a good (well equipped) dojo. you should be able to pay on a monthly basis, or even a per class basis ($10 - $15 a class maybe). dont sign any contracts untill youve trained there for at least 3 months (i personally would never sign a contract for martial arts training) you will probably have to sign a liability discalimer and thats pretty normal. dont feel pressured into paying six months in advance. be wary of dojos that have "black belt clubs" or equivalent that give extra training/fast track for more $ some clubs also charge to do gradings, be sure to find out if they do, and also how much uniforms/equipment costs and at what stage you should have them by. also find out if insurance is covered in the training fee or if you have to sort it out personally.

look out for macho men/ex-military. the military (and ive served in the infantry) kill people as groups with guns. they dont engage in unarmed combat. also be wary of people who say they'll train you as super street fighters, they're selling a fantasy and its usually pricey.

theres a lot of sharks out there and its very much a case of "buyer beware", but there are also a lot of great teachers and schools. i hope you find what your looking for, just get out there and try a few styles and have fun doing so.

but to throw in my bias check out bujinkan ninjutsu, also check out http://www.nononsenseselfdefense.com/ for some reading, and http://duncan.suddenlaunch2.com/ to find a buj dojo in sa.

good luck and have fun :D
 
Hi Duncan, I'm a southerner myself (H.Valley) and used to train in freestyle Karate called Zen Do Kai, and our club incorporated Muay Thai (I achieved Black belt after 4yrs training - a hard slog, coz you really earn the belt, not just pay for it).
If overall fitness and brutal self defence is what you are after, then Thai is the go. Hands, elbows, feet, shins and knees all become rather nasty weapons for the thai kickboxer. Sparring was fun, and taken seriously, ie no-one is out to knock your nose into your face, rather train you to feel confident in a contact situation. We also trained in grappling, throwing, and a variety of ground techniques. In fact several trainees went on to fight in amateur matches across the country. Other arts were introduced for interest, and you could go on and learn weaponry arts (Escrima, Kendo, etc)
I haven't trained for a year or so, but i think the club still trains at the same bat place, same bat time.
They are (were) at Christies Beach High School Gym (west campus), 6.30 Mon and Tues nights.
cheers
ShaunW
 
bonecrusher said:
Hi Duncan

I have done a few martial arts and i would say for direct and easy to learn and not as taxing on the body and can be done at virtually any age.

Wing Chun

You can do unarmed combat type training also.

Cheers
BC

I'd second that. I also agree with the Tae Kwon Do comment about being more useful at a distance.

Weakness of wing chun is lack of ground fighting and arguably kicking. To plug those gaps I think suggestions of Brazillian Ju Jitsu and Muay Thai (Thai boxing) would be ideal.

Good luck Dunc!
Cheers
N.
 
G'day Duncan

I've done Kendo and would love to train again but time/cost/distance. It's fun but expensive and doesn't give you much self defense training. (Sport)

I'm currently training in Tae Kwon Do, it's helped my fitness and flexibility, but has limitations, you learn some holds and self defense against knives, etc so it has some protection benefits but it's a sport, so no weapons training.

I've trained with guys who also box and others who do kickboxing and I reckon both styles teach you a lot, it's good to get the hands up and get some good punches in.

Also done some Karate, not bad, next door neighbours are into Tang Soo Do but that seems a bit expensive, they train on south road at the victor harbour turn off.

Awareness seems to be the best defense, look people in the eyes, make them aware that you know they are there.

Weapons training is fun so if you would like to do that find an art which does it. I'd mix things up as well train in different arts.

I see it as a life long thing, you see the old guys and they are fit and healthy and active and mobile, that's what I would like to be when I'm 70 or 80.

You can always study another art after 5-10 years.

cheers
quoll
 
Hi Duncan.

Baseball bats can do wonderful damage.

Seriously though, some good info here already. My advice is to find something you like and are comfortable with. Most places have a first lesson free introduction, so that may be worth considering. I did a bit of Hap-ki-do years ago and found it good as you learn to use your feet and hands as well as learning actual joint disabling techniques (something like Steven Seagal does, although his specialty is Aikido and I believe extremely difficult to get to a level where you would be confident enough to use it).

Personally if I was choosing a martial art today, I would more than likely choose Muay Thai. Just be careful of the instructor you choose as well, I've seen some ordinary ones out there.

Regards
Marty
 
Duncan,

I have studied the Karma Sutra for quite a few years and find it quite useful in dealing with potentially violent female tenants. :)

A86
 
Ducan,
i have a black belt in no can do,it teaches you to walk away
and let someone else deal with the problem..
good luck
willair.
 
willair said:
Ducan,
i have a black belt in no can do,it teaches you to walk away
and let someone else deal with the problem..
good luck
willair.

Agent86 said:
Ducan,
I have studied the Karma Sutra for quite a few years and find it quite useful in dealing with potentially violent female tenants.


Sim said:
I just want to be able to do what Neo does in the Matrix

You guys crack me up :)
 
bonecrusher said:
Hi all


If you do come across absolute aholes and you feel your life is at risk just shoot but make sure they don't get up again. It seems its the only language they know some of these thugs.

If they survive they come after you and sue you.

Cheers
BC

if they don't, you get charged for murder. Good communication is the key, not violence.
 
bonecrusher said:
I know of Guys that have got bashed have stood up to it and then been beaten up in hospital by the friends of the assailants. (Not uncommon)

If you do come across absolute aholes and you feel your life is at risk just shoot but make sure they don't get up again. It seems its the only language they know some of these thugs.

Hospital bashings, shooting people - where on Earth are you hanging out, Bonecrusher :D

Jamie
 
Hi all

LOL

Of course i wouldn't condone shooting someone.

There is alot that doesnt get to the media.

I can tell you that hospital bashings of patients are not uncommon.

In seriousness though if you fear your life is at risk then one has to do what one has to do. There have been a few cases that self defence has been accepted in recent times with home invasions etc.

Defending yourself is one thing mounting an attack is another.

As i said there is a pack wolf mentality especially with the younger ones. 20 against one or two.

I still think calm and non aggressive communication has more chance than anything else. This is just my observation and experience.

Cheers
BC
 
bonecrusher said:
In seriousness though if you fear your life is at risk then one has to do what one has to do. There have been a few cases that self defence has been accepted in recent times with home invasions etc.

In fact I believe our legendary Attorney General, Michael Atkinson, is in the process (or has just completed) updating the laws in South Australia such that any level of force that a homeowner deems justified in defending themselves or the property has become legal.. Cant find a link, just distinctly remember hearing something on the radio..
 
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