Self-Defense Tip #27
The need for proficiency with weapons

by Thomas Kurz, co-author of Basic Instincts of Self-Defense and author of Stretching Scientifically, Secrets of Stretching, and Science of Sports Training.

To read the previous installment click here.

This self-defense tip continues to deal with the need for proficiency with the weapons and tactics that one is likely to encounter.

Commonly shown defenses against weapons (clubs, knives, razors) are even less realistic than those against unarmed attacks. This is because the weapon attacks are done completely wrong—wrong moves, wrong targets, and “dead hands” (the attacker does not use the weaponless hand).

And the likelihood of a blunt or edged weapon to be used in an attack is quite high. “According to the most recent government study of violent attacks, about 80 percent of street altercations involve a weapon of some type. By the way, this statistic does not include guns.”—Paul Vunak. 2001. All-Around Street Fighter. Martial Arts & Combat Sports vol. 22, no. 7 (July 2001), p. 26.

This is why we have released the video Self-Defense: Tools of Attack. Now you can see the other side of self-defense—a street-fighter's practice with such weapons as club, hatchet, blackjack, razor, hydraulic hose, and knives. Once you see how these weapons are used by this experienced and a very successful street fighter, you will not be an easy mark—and even more so if you practice like the fighter shown on the video Self-Defense: Tools of Attack.

When you are attacked you may be able to grab some weapon either because it was lying about or by luck you got it for one of your attackers. Would it not feel stupid to take a hold of something—a sturdy stick, a piece of pipe, a short knife—and lose the fight just because you used it wrong?

You need more motivation to learn? The following quote addresses police officers but it applies to everybody: “The [police] officers are not always motivated to spend time in training for an event that most will never face in a 20-year career. Our point as trainers is that a warrior always must be prepared. With training one will become more self-confident and therefore less likely to have to fight in the first place.”—Sgt. Raymond E. Moore II, Hamilton County Sheriffs Department, Noblesville, Indiana (Moore, R. E. 2001. Training considerations for close-quarter combat. Strength and Conditioning Journal vol. 23, no. 5 (October), pp. 71–73.) My comment: But when that event happens and you are not prepared, it may spoil the rest of your life—if you survive.

To read the next tip click here.

This article is based on the video Self-Defense: Tools of Attack.
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