Do you know where you are most likely to get attacked? Do you know when?
Sure you can make a few guesses, but do you actually know? The answer
is obviously NO! Violence happens all the time, in all kinds of
locations, it’s unpredictable! So how should you train and prepare for
it? If you train to fight in a well lit area, what happens if you are
attacked in a low light area? If you are attacked outside in the rain,
but have only trained for fighting inside how do you think you’ll do?
The master of an hapkido dojo I used to attended like to drive this
point home by never turning on the a/c. He said “If you can’t practice
in a hot room, how can you survive in a hot parking lot?” I always
thought he was just being cheap and didn’t want to spend the money on
electricity, but he was right. At the time I lived in Florida, during
the summers the average temperature was in the 90‘s! Doesn’t make sense
to get used to combat in a nice controlled 70 degrees when you’re likely
to get attacked in an area with a temperature near 100 does it?
I’m not saying you should put your heath at risk practicing in extreme
conditions, but you might want to consider becoming accustomed to them
at the very least. If you live in an area that gets very hot or cold,
don’t spend all your time indoors. Be safe, but get some exposure.
A great way to do that is to start running outdoors, if you don’t
already. Of course, it’s best to consult with a doctor first, but
spending some time running outside in whatever conditions your region
goes through can make sure that you are able to operate in those
conditions. Plus, being a good runner can be a great survival tool.
And before you start complaining about your area is to hot, or to cold,
or to rainy or whatever, let me tell you, in my first year in the Army I
trained in it all. I went to boot camp in Ft. Benning G.A. during the
summer, running in the heat and rain. Then I got shipped up to Ft. Drum
N.Y. and got to spend the winter running in sub zero temps. I went from
extreme heat and humidity so thick it was like swimming, to running
while it was snowing and my clothes were literally freezing over. We
trained in sand and mud. Forests and fields. Flat land and hills. We
trained for every condition imaginable so that we could fight in any
condition. I’m not saying you have to go through such extremes, after
all, you know what kind of conditions you’re most likely to face in your
home town, but get yourself used to those conditions. That way, if the
time comes, you’ll be able to defend yourself in those conditions.
Just some outside the box thinking for you. Knowing some basic self
defense techniques is great, but sometimes your safety has to be a bit
more proactive. The best way to be safe, is to be prepared.
http://selfdefensetechniques.org
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