Welcome to the daily self defence training tips.
Today we are looking at size and intensity.
2 minute read...
One of my favourite analogies I like to use in class with my students is to have them visualise the ferocity of a grumpy wet cat and tap into that level of aggression and intensity. The cat is small, 4-8kgs right? Maybe 30cm tall? Most of my students are significantly larger. I am 96kg and 185cm tall (around 200lbs and 6ft 1" to all you analog readers out there), yet even with my size I am going to be very cautious about how to handle a grumpy wet cat.
In class, Lotte was quick to point out "But cats have teeth and claws". Which prompted my response "and what do you have?", as she then stared at her hands. We may not have actual retractable feline claws, we have nails, and they are what we have as weapons and we can still inflict damage with them.
Someone of above average physical size can be intimidating. Size is what they have, it cannot be hidden and of course they want use it to their advantage. We automatically equate size to strength and power... yet larger is slower, larger requires more energy, and larger is a bigger target. People of intimidating physique people still have the same physically venerable spots as every other human, the eyes, the throat and the groin are all still exposed and if we train for speed, accuracy and power we can easily stop them.
Don't think of a fight as being you against another. Instead approach it strategically. Think instead about what skills and attributes line up in your advantage. Bigger is slower, so move around, strike and retreat. Do they have a weapon? What are the limitations of the weapon? How is it being held? Of course in reality you don't get time to ponder and come up with a strategy... but this is why we train. We study and practice to form plans in our mind so that if something was to happen in the streets, that plan is already in place and we know how to react and deal with the threat.
In class, Lotte was quick to point out "But cats have teeth and claws". Which prompted my response "and what do you have?", as she then stared at her hands. We may not have actual retractable feline claws, we have nails, and they are what we have as weapons and we can still inflict damage with them.
Someone of above average physical size can be intimidating. Size is what they have, it cannot be hidden and of course they want use it to their advantage. We automatically equate size to strength and power... yet larger is slower, larger requires more energy, and larger is a bigger target. People of intimidating physique people still have the same physically venerable spots as every other human, the eyes, the throat and the groin are all still exposed and if we train for speed, accuracy and power we can easily stop them.
Don't think of a fight as being you against another. Instead approach it strategically. Think instead about what skills and attributes line up in your advantage. Bigger is slower, so move around, strike and retreat. Do they have a weapon? What are the limitations of the weapon? How is it being held? Of course in reality you don't get time to ponder and come up with a strategy... but this is why we train. We study and practice to form plans in our mind so that if something was to happen in the streets, that plan is already in place and we know how to react and deal with the threat.
Thanks for reading,
Benjamin
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