Fighting Options
Myths

Fighting Options begin with dispelling a few myths:

Myth: Size and strength determine the winner of a violent encounter.

Fact: A fight is not a weight-lifting contest. Sure, size and strength are major factors, but not as important as a ferocious, animal-like attitude that drives you, despite fear or injury, to perform absolutely any grisly tactic necessary to survive and escape an attack. The skills herein are pared down to an elegant simplicity requiring no extraordinary size, strength, or training – just a fierce will to survive.

Determination to win usually decides the winner. You don't win by defending yourself – you win by attacking (and even the biggest thug has delicate eyeballs and testicles).

Myth: Learning to defefend yourself requires years of practice.

Fact: Not necessarily. For instance, the U.S. military doesn’t have years and years to train their elite Special Forces in hand-to-hand combat. They’re quickly taught to blind, deafen, maim, and kill – using simple, non-glamorous, no-nonsense techniques and embracing the motto: “Success in hand-to-hand combat is 10% skill and 90% attitude.”

Myth: The average woman doesn't stand a chance against a man.

Fact: Already, 60 percent of the untrained women who fight back against a rapist successfully prevent the rape. With the power of knowledge, more will succeed.

A criminal predator doesn’t want to choose a tough target and risk being hurt. Instead, he’ll choose a seemingly easy target and scare her into surrendering. His intent will be robbery, assault, rape, or murder. If he wants only your valuables, give them up so you can escape unharmed. If he wants to rape or otherwise harm you, do what you must (as outlined in Victim’s Options: flee, outsmart him, surrender, posture, or fight.

It’s extremely unlikely a highly trained combatant will attack you. Becoming so skilled requires dedication and discipline, and those virtues don’t fit the usual psychological profile of a criminal. The most likely unarmed attacker you might face will probably be unskilled, or at most, slightly skilled, and will likely use the “blitzkrieg” attack – a swarming, windmilling rush. The best response to that is the Clinch-Attack you’ll soon learn.

Enhancing Your Options
Pepper Spray & a Noisemaker visibly ready will greatly enhance your first option – Posturing as a tough target – and probably deter a predator immediately. Your fifth option – Fighting – is enhanced as well.

For convenience, learn self-defense ONLINE:

KRAV MAGA, a practical self-defense system used by many police forces worldwide, teaches you to defend yourself, enhances your survival instinct, and can be applied under extreme stress. It's not flashy, just very effective. I highly recommend it. The Krav Maga TV - Online Training videos are especially convenient to learn at home when your schedule allows or if you don't live near a training center.

Go to
• Fighting Options - Overview: escaping from a violent predator.
• Myths: debunking misconceptions (YOU’RE NOW ON THIS PAGE).
• When to Defend Yourself: acting instead of reacting.
• Sucker Punch: a surprise attack.
• Strategies
• Improvised Weapons
• Choosing a Self-Defense Class
• Pepper Spray, Devices, & Weapons

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