The Worst Self-Defense Advice to Give to Women
I tend to beat dead horses a lot around here, but I thought I should put into writing something I often talk about in my classes and seminars. It’s part of my response to this common question asked by women:
Which martial art should I learn to defend myself?
If you have read my article Why Punching and Kicking for Self-Defense is Bad Strategy, then you may know where this article is going.
It is often suggested to women that they learn kickboxing or some other striking-based system to defend themselves. Clearly, if female MMA fighters are using kickboxing successfully, then surely your average female can do so on the street, right? Not so fast. Before we get into that, however, let’s do a brief review of why striking in general should not be your go-to strategy for self-defense.
Size discrepancy. If you are being attacked by someone who is unarmed, chances are they have a physical size advantage. Denser bone structure and more muscle mass means more damage from his/her strikes, less damage from yours, and greater risk of injury to your hands.
Risks of traumatic brain injury or death. Trade punches on a hard surface with someone capable of knocking you out, and you’re playing with fire. Human skulls and concrete do not mix well for obvious reasons.
Kicking. Throwing a kick is not going to stop anyone unless it is to the groin or well-targeted to the liver or solar plexus, and head kicks are too impractical in self-defense situations. You also increase the risk of falling when using kicks on slippery, inconsistent, or uneven surfaces.
Now that we have reviewed some reasons to avoid a striking-based strategy for self-defense, let’s examine why kickboxing is so effective for women in MMA using the same points from the list above.
Size discrepancy. Women are always fighting other women within a few pounds of their own weight, so there are no significant size discrepancies to worry about. Hand injury is also mitigated through the use of gloves. With all things relatively even, the efficacy of kickboxing techniques is mainly determined by skill alone.
Risks of traumatic brain injury or death. Fighting on a canvas is far more forgiving than a sidewalk, so the potential lethality of the resulting fall from a knock out is virtually absent.
Kicking. Clothing is tight or skin is exposed, which makes throwing and targeting kicks much easier, and they can be thrown with confidence from a level, consistent, and semi-soft surface. Slipping and falling is unlikely to result in serious injury.
As you can see, the MMA environment and rule-set mitigates all of the risks found on the street, allowing women to use kickboxing extremely effectively. Outside of that controlled environment, however, things dramatically change.
So taking all of this into consideration, what might be the worst self-defense advice you can give to women? If you guessed…
Take a kickboxing class!
…you were correct.
To be clear, there is certainly value in kickboxing for self-defense, particularly the elbows, knees, and clinching of Muay Thai. But learning these skills should by no means be your primary focus for self-defense training. Awareness, de-escalation, and weapons training are of far greater priority.
Whenever I am asked to suggest a specific martial art for self-defense, the answer is never straightforward. Many martial arts skills do not actually translate very well into self-defense without modification (if at all), and most systems are missing crucial elements necessary for modern self-defense.
So what do I say? My best answer is:
If you want self-defense training, then you should train in a self-defense-focused system.
Then I give my two cents on kickboxing.
If you’re wondering what you should look for (and watch out for) in a self-defense system, I recommend reading Red Flags in a Self-Defense Class.
