Modern self defense techniques for women and men & anyone who does't want to be treated like prey!

[aethyrflux]

I spent many years of dealing with gang violence, and learning how important it is to employ non-violent alternatives whenever possible.

Confrontation management skills, speech choice and escape techniques need to be stressed for women and men equally when they are faced with a fight. The best fight is the one you don't engage. If you must defend yourself then you have to fight smart.

I have traditionally preferred the softer martial arts, myself: Aikido & Tai Chi are my personal favorites! But the more I talk to women about their experiences, I am inclined to promote modern fusion self defense courses. A number of ladies I know have recently communicated to me that they think that they would have benefited from an effective self-defense course earlier in their lives. So, I did a bunch of research & found out that there are a number of modern self-defense courses that are professionally recommended for women.

...I suppose I should update this post with suggestions of lower-impact exercises to start
with (Core exercises, Breathing techniques, Yoga, Qigong, Tai Chi, Falun Dafa, Swimming, Bicycling, Walking, Climbing, Dancing, Pilates, Arial Ballet, etc.) so that people who are not used to exercise can prepare themselves for full-contact self-defense...

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Here are some local Austin options:

Krav Maga
http://www.fitandfearless.com/kravmaga/cat-index/C27/

Systema (Russian martial art combining defense from aikido & offence from krav maga)
http://www.austinsystema.com/

IMPACT Self Defense - Austin
http://www.impactselfdefenseaustin.com/RegainYourTime.com_Sponsors_IMPACT_Womens_Self_Defense_Class/About_Impact.html

Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) System
http://www.utexas.edu/police/rad/

Sun Dragon Martial Arts
http://sundragon.org/resources-and-links

CHL Qualified Handgun Instructors
http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/administration/crime_records/chl/handgunInstrOptIn.htm

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also q.v. these (non-local Austin) resources:

Model Mugging
http://modelmugging.org/philosophy_women_self_defense/

Bay Area IMPACT Self-Defense
http://impactbayarea.org/impact.php?about

IMPACT Personal Safety
http://www.impactpersonalsafety.com/?q=node%2F6

The Rape Aggression Defense System
http://www.rad-systems.com/offer.html

Mona Lisa's Sword
http://www.monalisas-sword.com/mysd/index.php?id=212
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mona-Lisas-Sword/162038170538220

Strategic Living
http://www.strategicliving.org/resources.htm

Dr. Ruthless:
http://www.dr-ruthless.com/articles.php

10 Things Every Woman Should Know About Self Defense
http://appliedmartialartstraining.com/content/10-things-every-woman-should-know-about-self-defense-0

International Personal Self-Defense Blog by Robb Hamic
Women's self defense seminars, including:
Are You Being Stalked? A Women’s Survival Guide
http://www.personalselfdefense.info/my_weblog/womens-self-defense-seminars/

"Legal Self-defense: A Layman's Guide for Non-specialists" by Joseph
R. Svinth, pub. in Journal of Non-lethal Combatives, November 1999
(what are you willing to die for, kill for, and live with afterwards?)
http://ejmas.com/jnc/jncart_svinth5_1199.htm

Firearm Safety
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_safety