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What does Self-Protection mean

Self-defence or Self-protection, is there a difference and does it matter what we call it?  Everyone you ask has a different view, it’s not that one person is correct and the other wrong, we just interpret it in different ways.   The self-protection courses I hold are designed to keep you safe and be prepared, the aim is for you to be healthy and enjoy life safely.  Learning useful tips and developing safe habits will allow you to live confidently, whilst being prepared for any emergency situation.

My interpretation of Self-defence is it’s the physical tactics used to defend oneself or another from unlawful harm, or the ‘hard skills’, such as how to punch, kick etc.  Self-protection is self-awareness and understanding of personal safety, or the ‘soft skills’ such as conflict management, avoidance, deterrence, body language, verbal distraction, de-escalation techniques, and the legal uses of force and pre-emptive strikes.

What I include in my Self-Protection courses:

It’s an interactive course, not just me talking at you.  I’ve always found the best way to develop an understanding and gain knowledge is to share ideas with other people.  I presume that we’re all on the course to gain these benefits, so encourage everyone to share their experiences with the group.

I want you to gain practical tips on personal safety that you can utilise immediately.  For example, what to consider before planning a car journey in the dark evenings, we focus on self-awareness and avoidance.

We discuss our understanding and conception of what violence is, and the different forms we encounter, e.g. verbal and physical assaults.  How we can use stances and body management to position ourselves in any conflict situation.  Physical responses are scary, and not something that most of us are comfortable with, so we explore de-escalation and how we can use a verbal response to resolve the situation.

Then obviously there is a practical physical element to it.  How can you response within physical confrontations without having to be a black belt in karate!  We cover how the skeleton works.  By understanding our own skeleton and how it works we can then apply that to others.  During a face-to-face course the physical element would be practised with a partner, this is not always achievable for the online courses via zoom, however we still cover the same principles and drills.

The courses are limited in numbers allowing you time and opportunity to ask questions and participate in the group discussions.  You’ll probably find that you’ll want to repeat the course as well, like many courses it’s useful to re-attend as our environments change.  Also, we change personally, our needs, understanding and life experiences.

Anyone can learn self-protection skills, it’s not a form of exercise, it’s an understanding of your person, your own self-awareness, and how by taking certain steps you can manage your personal safety.

If you enjoyed reading our blog, please click here to read - 'Benefits of Karate Training'