Thank you for all your very informative videos, Sifu Tran. You have an excellent way to demonstrate the nuances of blocking, striking, etc. at the right level of which a student, even as slow in learning as me, can best understand and use. Please don't stop bringing the videos out. 🤜🏻🫷🏻 🙇🏻♂️
There can be differences between practical self defense and martial arts although there is overlap. Martial arts is more about studying a systematic discipline which may also have a curriculum of techniques, history, traditions, a framework/philosophy/approach, and sometimes a lifetime commitment in pursuing the unattainable goal of perfection. It could involve sporting aspects like competition. Self defense - or "combatives" as it is known in more modern terminology - is all about survival and can vary from using any and all means to ensure survival, to a bag of tricks to use in the most common attacks. It could involve elements beyond physical fighting and delve into psychological such as being aware of your surroundings at all times, avoiding dangerous situations (e.g. don't walk down dark streets, or go to rough bars). Being older has certain limitations as is being physically smaller. Before anyone tells you that "size doesn't matter. That it is the fight in the dog..." keep in mind that in nature, predators will almost always attack smaller prey unless they are in a pack. They will also attack injured or weaker animals. That's just nature's way. So a mugger will probably set his sights on you as a victim over a 6'2" 25 year old who is built like Chris Hemsworth because the mugger knows that older people are probably less physically capable than a young athlete in his prime. For self defense, anything is better than nothing. If there is only a karate class at your local rec center then that is better than nothing as long as it teaches you concepts of how to strike without injuring your wrists, distance and range management, and most of all, keeps in shape because - as mentioned above - in nature predators attack weak or injured prey. If you live in a large city that has many martial arts available let's filter out MMA because although effective as it involves real sparring and covers all ranges of fighting it is too physically demanding for older people. The average age in an MMA class is going to be 20's and 30's. I would also forget about starting judo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at an older age unless you are an outlier and incredibly strong and athletic older person because, no matter what people say about how Helio Gracie did it into his 90's, BJJ is very demanding on the body and it is not uncommon for people who do Brazilian Jiu-jitsu regularly to eventually get joint injuries or even arthritic fingers from all the grabbing and holds. Go watch any local BJJ tournament and there will always be first aid attendants helping someone put an icebag on an injury, and at least one or two people being taken out on a stretcher. Judo is even more demanding as you are constantly being slammed to the ground. The sole exception is if you can find a Gracie Academy affiliate that teaches Gracie Combatives which is a gentler way to teach people the foundations of BJJ that is focused on self-defense. For striking, many people will tell you that muay Thai is an exceptionally good martial art sport that translates to self defense. It has very basic but effective moves, devastating kicks to the leg, and addresses clinching range and sweeps if someone should grab you. It has a lot of pad work to help you perfect hitting a target and so I would agree that kickboxing/muay Thai is great for self defense except...it too can be physically demanding if you're a senior. Not so much the sparring because you can always spar light contact which is the reasonable way that most people now spar in muay Thai and kickboxing. But, again, if you are an outlier and exceptionally athletic and strong and have great cardio for an older person then, yes, muay Thai kickboxing. But if you're already feeling the onset of arthritis it is not realistic to be able to regularly attend muay Thai class where most of the people in the class are going to be way younger than you and have VO2 max that is double your's -- no offense intended. I'm just being realistic since you mentioned you probably can't runaway at this point.. So what would I recommend if you have a lot of options but really want to learn practical self defense quickly without it taking 10 or 20 years to become good at it? Surprisingly I would recommend boxing. Not "boxing fit" classes but a boxing gym if they are willing to take you onx. Boxing is incredibly effective. it doesn't have a lot of fancy moves. You just need to have a good right cross and a hook to knock someone out (watch some Tony Jefferies vids). Boxing also has parries and simplifed blocks (e.g. "answering the phone") but more often then not it relies on being able to slip and weave using head movement, get in and out of striking range - distance management - and a good shell or guard as your last line of defense which is more about protecting your vulnerable targets while someone is on the offence. Reflexes are only on part of parrying and blocking. The other is reading the opponent and knowing when a punch is coming which is what boxing imparts on you. Boxing will also keep you in good shape...(always check with your doctor before...blah, blah, blah medical legal disclaimer). My other choice is also surprising and I would have never thought I would recommend it to anyone and that is krav maga. I mean a proper krav maga school with a lineage or pedigree, not one that is just slapping a bunch of martial arts together and calling it krav maga. Now, just a disclaimer that I have never taken krav maga (I have taken the other martial arts I have mentioned) but from what I have seen a proper krav maga school will address the psychological aspects of being attacked. I also like the fact that it is practiced relatively safely so people of all ages and physical restrictions can practice it. And they do address most of the fighting ranges: punching, kicking, clinch, takedowns, some ground work borrowed from BJJ, and multiple attackers and how to get out of a swarming attack. Is it realistic in the sense like BJJ where you roll at 100%? I don't know -- probably not but I like some of the things I see. But, again, something is better than nothing...especially something that you can practice regularly, will give you confidence, avoid chronic injuries, and keep you in shape. In closing, the one main theme I have in all my recommendations is that being as fit as possible is important if you fear ever being assaulted and that you may need to defend yourself. In a real fight, or assault, the chances are likely that you will get hit even if it is one time - perhaps even with a weapon - and you will need to be able to endure and survive that hit or first assault so being physically fit as possible is paramount. If you are not physically and psychologically strong your body will go into a state of shock, fold, and you will get mentally deflated upon getting hit and won't be able to fight back. Being competent in a self-defense situation isn't just about knowing techniques but also being mentally and physically strong and developing one helps develop the other. This is what people talk about when martial arts gives them confidence.
How do you train your deflecting techniques?
Exactly what I asked a few weeks ago 😄
@@amplayz keep those questions coming.
@continuousfist 🫡
Thank you for all your very informative videos, Sifu Tran. You have an excellent way to demonstrate the nuances of blocking, striking, etc. at the right level of which a student, even as slow in learning as me, can best understand and use. Please don't stop bringing the videos out. 🤜🏻🫷🏻 🙇🏻♂️
Thank you very much for your support. 🙏
Blocking as an attack is a popular concept in Wing Chun...
@CoachSteveJandS i bet it is. Thanks for sharing.
How can older people be effective when they can not run?
I guess I will have to do another video for that. Thank you and keep the questions coming.
There can be differences between practical self defense and martial arts although there is overlap. Martial arts is more about studying a systematic discipline which may also have a curriculum of techniques, history, traditions, a framework/philosophy/approach, and sometimes a lifetime commitment in pursuing the unattainable goal of perfection. It could involve sporting aspects like competition.
Self defense - or "combatives" as it is known in more modern terminology - is all about survival and can vary from using any and all means to ensure survival, to a bag of tricks to use in the most common attacks. It could involve elements beyond physical fighting and delve into psychological such as being aware of your surroundings at all times, avoiding dangerous situations (e.g. don't walk down dark streets, or go to rough bars).
Being older has certain limitations as is being physically smaller. Before anyone tells you that "size doesn't matter. That it is the fight in the dog..." keep in mind that in nature, predators will almost always attack smaller prey unless they are in a pack. They will also attack injured or weaker animals. That's just nature's way. So a mugger will probably set his sights on you as a victim over a 6'2" 25 year old who is built like Chris Hemsworth because the mugger knows that older people are probably less physically capable than a young athlete in his prime.
For self defense, anything is better than nothing. If there is only a karate class at your local rec center then that is better than nothing as long as it teaches you concepts of how to strike without injuring your wrists, distance and range management, and most of all, keeps in shape because - as mentioned above - in nature predators attack weak or injured prey.
If you live in a large city that has many martial arts available let's filter out MMA because although effective as it involves real sparring and covers all ranges of fighting it is too physically demanding for older people. The average age in an MMA class is going to be 20's and 30's.
I would also forget about starting judo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at an older age unless you are an outlier and incredibly strong and athletic older person because, no matter what people say about how Helio Gracie did it into his 90's, BJJ is very demanding on the body and it is not uncommon for people who do Brazilian Jiu-jitsu regularly to eventually get joint injuries or even arthritic fingers from all the grabbing and holds. Go watch any local BJJ tournament and there will always be first aid attendants helping someone put an icebag on an injury, and at least one or two people being taken out on a stretcher. Judo is even more demanding as you are constantly being slammed to the ground. The sole exception is if you can find a Gracie Academy affiliate that teaches Gracie Combatives which is a gentler way to teach people the foundations of BJJ that is focused on self-defense.
For striking, many people will tell you that muay Thai is an exceptionally good martial art sport that translates to self defense. It has very basic but effective moves, devastating kicks to the leg, and addresses clinching range and sweeps if someone should grab you. It has a lot of pad work to help you perfect hitting a target and so I would agree that kickboxing/muay Thai is great for self defense except...it too can be physically demanding if you're a senior. Not so much the sparring because you can always spar light contact which is the reasonable way that most people now spar in muay Thai and kickboxing. But, again, if you are an outlier and exceptionally athletic and strong and have great cardio for an older person then, yes, muay Thai kickboxing. But if you're already feeling the onset of arthritis it is not realistic to be able to regularly attend muay Thai class where most of the people in the class are going to be way younger than you and have VO2 max that is double your's -- no offense intended. I'm just being realistic since you mentioned you probably can't runaway at this point..
So what would I recommend if you have a lot of options but really want to learn practical self defense quickly without it taking 10 or 20 years to become good at it? Surprisingly I would recommend boxing. Not "boxing fit" classes but a boxing gym if they are willing to take you onx. Boxing is incredibly effective. it doesn't have a lot of fancy moves. You just need to have a good right cross and a hook to knock someone out (watch some Tony Jefferies vids). Boxing also has parries and simplifed blocks (e.g. "answering the phone") but more often then not it relies on being able to slip and weave using head movement, get in and out of striking range - distance management - and a good shell or guard as your last line of defense which is more about protecting your vulnerable targets while someone is on the offence. Reflexes are only on part of parrying and blocking. The other is reading the opponent and knowing when a punch is coming which is what boxing imparts on you. Boxing will also keep you in good shape...(always check with your doctor before...blah, blah, blah medical legal disclaimer).
My other choice is also surprising and I would have never thought I would recommend it to anyone and that is krav maga. I mean a proper krav maga school with a lineage or pedigree, not one that is just slapping a bunch of martial arts together and calling it krav maga. Now, just a disclaimer that I have never taken krav maga (I have taken the other martial arts I have mentioned) but from what I have seen a proper krav maga school will address the psychological aspects of being attacked. I also like the fact that it is practiced relatively safely so people of all ages and physical restrictions can practice it. And they do address most of the fighting ranges: punching, kicking, clinch, takedowns, some ground work borrowed from BJJ, and multiple attackers and how to get out of a swarming attack. Is it realistic in the sense like BJJ where you roll at 100%? I don't know -- probably not but I like some of the things I see. But, again, something is better than nothing...especially something that you can practice regularly, will give you confidence, avoid chronic injuries, and keep you in shape.
In closing, the one main theme I have in all my recommendations is that being as fit as possible is important if you fear ever being assaulted and that you may need to defend yourself. In a real fight, or assault, the chances are likely that you will get hit even if it is one time - perhaps even with a weapon - and you will need to be able to endure and survive that hit or first assault so being physically fit as possible is paramount. If you are not physically and psychologically strong your body will go into a state of shock, fold, and you will get mentally deflated upon getting hit and won't be able to fight back.
Being competent in a self-defense situation isn't just about knowing techniques but also being mentally and physically strong and developing one helps develop the other. This is what people talk about when martial arts gives them confidence.
能打不閃 能閃不招 能招不架 能架不擋 strike>dodge>tag>parry>block