“Does Punching Beat Kicking ‘On the Street’ – in Self-Defense Scenarios? Read On To Find Out…”

Every Man – and Woman – Should Do Some Basic Self-Defense… Here’s The Very Least You Should Know…

By Elliot Newman

You’re about to discover the 3 best ways to get out of a Street Fight ALIVE, and hopefully without INJURY.

So, pay attention. Because this could save your life (or the life of a loved one).

First thing I gotta say is that there isn’t a best ‘Self-Defense System’ or ‘Martial Art.’

I know people love to debate which one is the best, but the truth is really this…

It really all comes down to the individual.

I’ve seen guys with Multiple Black Belts absolutely fall to pieces in Street Fights. And get their asses whopped.

Sure, if you’d have seen these guys practicing their art in the gym – or Dojo – you’d have thought they’d have been able to handle anything. Yet, the reality is – when ‘the shit hits the fan,’ and it gets REAL…

Sometimes even guys who’ve been training for years can’t ‘bring it’ when it’s really needed.

In contrast, I’ve seen guys who haven’t ever trained even a single day, in any Martial Art, or Self-Defense System, end Street Fights in seconds!

How’s that work?

Because oftentimes, in a Street Situation – it’s more about ATTITUDE than it is ‘what techniques you know.’

Honestly, in my years of Powerlifting I met some really STRONG, AGGRESSIVE dudes.

I remember seeing a few of these guys get ANGRY with people – and all I could think was:

“Holy crap. I don’t ever wanna get on that guys ‘bad side’ – no matter how much Boxing and Self Defense I’ve done”

In a Street Fight – that kind of AGGRESSION, and FEARLESS attitude, is worth a lot.

All that said, I’ve had the pleasure of learning from, and training with, many professional fighters and exceptional Self Defense Coaches. Including Matty Evans – a guy Geoff Thompson* called the best Self Defense Instructor in the United Kingdom.

*In case you don’t know who Geoff Thompson is – he’s regarded as one of the best Self Defence Teachers of all time. I highly recommend you read his book ‘Watch My Back’ – and check out his many DVD’s, including ‘The One Punch Kill’

Now, listen closely, and you’ll discover:

The 3 Simplest, and Best Ways to Get Out of a Street Fight In One Piece – Alive and Well…

1. Be Aware and Don’t Be There

This might sound so obvious it’s not worth stating – but I’ll say it anyway…

The best ‘Self-Defense Technique’ ever, is to NOT be there in the first place!

Sure, sometimes, violence is unavoidable. But, mostly it is avoidable.

And, given the very real danger of serious INJURY  – and even DEATH – I have to rate ‘not being there in the first place’ as the Number 1 ‘Self Defense Technique’ of all time.

Yet, the crazy thing is…

Most so-called ‘Self-Defense Teachers’ don’t teach this simple technique!

They just teach you how to strike, grapple, choke and so on.

Duh!

You don’t need to do any of that if you avoid violent confrontations in the first place.

Question:

“How exactly do you avoid violent confrontations, and Street Fights?”

AWARENESS.

These days, most people walk round with their ‘Eyes Wide Shut.’ They simply aren’t aware of their surroundings.

I’ll give you an example…

When I used to compete in Powerlifting, I trained at a real Hard-core gym, in a particularly ROUGH area of town.

It was one of those places where every person you walked past looked like ‘they were up to no good.’

Anyhow, one day I’m walking to the gym…

And, up the road, about 200 yards ahead of me, I see my training partner. Also, walking to the gym.

I noticed he had his headphones on.

So, as a little experiment, I ran towards him, as FAST as I could (so not quietly), and when I got to him, I gave him a little clip round the ear with my right hand.

As you might expect – he was pretty SURPRISED. And, momentarily SHOCKED (until he realized it was me).

I politely pointed out that his Headphones made him completely unaware of his surroundings, and that if I’d have wanted to mug him (or worse), it’d have been very EASY to do so.

He took the point.

And, from that day onward – he vowed to never wear his headphones when walking through town. Especially a rough part of town like that!

That’s one example of how to be AWARE of your surroundings.

A little AWARENESS – not paranoia, just awareness – goes a long way. And, can help you to avoid most Street Fights.

If you really want to fight – do it in the Boxing Ring, or some other Fighting Sport like Mixed Martial Arts. It’s much safer that way.

The Street is DANGEROUS. So, if you can – avoid it in the first place!

2. Talk Your Way Out of It

If you do end up in a situation where somebody is threatening you, or being aggressive towards you – and ‘not being there in the first place’ is no longer an option…

You must deal with the threat.

Sadly, most people are hopelessly ill-prepared to deal with ‘Street Situations,’ and, as a result – the attacker usually ends up WINNING. Meaning, the attacker gets what he wants, causes injury, and leaves a negative emotional mark on ‘the victim’ that’ll likely stay with them for the rest of their lives.

The more ‘Street Situations’ you encounter, the more  you realize things like this:

• Most of the time, the person being aggressive and threatening does not really want a fight!
• Oftentimes, you can ‘talk your way out of it’

You see it all the time in bars and clubs, once people are ‘tanked up’ on Alcohol (and drugs)…

2 guys (and occasionally women) squaring up to each other, face to face. Often times, it doesn’t actually go beyond that – because, as I said, very few people REALLY want to fight.

But, the question is:

“What should you do in that situation?”

Well, I can tell you this…

When I was in my early 20’s – I used to go out with my buddies to Bars and Clubs A LOT. My main reason for spending my Saturday Nights in these environments was to meet women.

My friends liked meeting women, too.

However, a few of them also thought they could take on the world, once they’d had a few drinks!

One guy, Peter, was an absolute liability.

I remember a phase where every single time we went out, he’d get into some kind of confrontation. I’d see him, and some other drunk, ‘Squaring Up’ to each other, mouthing off, making threats.

However, here’s what’s interesting…

Not once did it ever kick off and actually get really physical. Sure, there was the odd push and shove. But, that’s it.

Wanna know who stopped it really kicking off?

ME.

See, out of all my friends – I was the only one who’d done any real Self-Defense Training. And, a ton of boxing. So, I knew what it’s like to get hit – and I knew it best to avoid these situations.

So, what could have been DOZENS of Street Fights, never amounted to even a single punch.

I just talked my way out of it.

Sometimes, I’d just get in-between the 2 guys and say:

“Look, we’re all here for a good time – let’s just chill out”

2 minutes later – these two strangers, who previously wanted to SMASH each other up, would be hugging and drinking beer together!

Other times, I’d pull my friend away, and say something sterner to the other guy…

It’s amazing how most people just wanna RUN if you look them in the eye and say:

“I’m gonna give you 3 seconds to fuck off, or I’m gonna really fuck you up”

If talking doesn’t work, things don’t have to get really violent just yet. You can also sometimes just PUSH the guy really HARD, in the chest – to show him you mean business.

Usually, he’ll back down at that point.

However, what happens if you feel the person is gonna really ATTACK you? Well, then you have to…

3. Hit ‘Em Hard, and Hit ‘Em First

I can’t take credit for the line:

“Hit ‘em hard, and hit ‘em first”

It comes from Geoff Thompson, and I’ve had many conversations about it, during hard training sessions, with Matty Evans.

The truth is this…

If you try to BLOCK your attackers strike, and then COUNTER it with your own strike – like most ‘Self Defense Instructors’ teach – it will almost certainly not end well!

Think about this…

In Boxing matches – pro boxers cannot always block their opponents punches. And, they know what’s coming! It can only be a limited number of strikes – jab, cross, hook, uppercut, body shot.

That’s it!

Now, if pro boxers can’t block a handful of strikes they know are coming – what chance do you have in a Street Fight, where there are HUNDREDS of variables?

‘Very little’ is the correct, and only honest answer.

Is the guy gonna punch you, kick you, knee you… or, pull out a knife, wrestle you, or hit you with a bar stool?

You just don’t know.

Therefore, the only thing that really works reliably in a Street Situation is to ‘hit ‘em hard, and hit ‘em first.’

And, “YES” – this can stand up in the court of LAW.

If you feel someone is going to attack you, and you have reasonable proof, you absolutely can ATTACK them first to protect yourself (at least, that’s how it works here in England. And, rightly so).

We call this ‘Pre-Emptive Striking.’

Next Question:

“What’s the best Pre-Emptive Strike?”

Well, there are many STRIKES that you could use to end a Street Fight – but a VERY HARD punch to the JAW is the best.

Why?

Because, a HARD punch to your attackers jaw, causes his brain to rock – and that causes the Knockout. Or at least a loss of balance and equilibrium, giving you chance to escape.

When you keep in mind that most Street Fights start with 2 guys about 18 inches apart, you realize that:

• Kicking is pretty much useless from this range, because you’re too close
• You’re too far apart to land elbows and knees

How about taking them to the floor and doing some Juijitsu?

Not a good idea.

Because what happens when you’re beating the guy up – but his mates then attack you while you’re on the ground?! (I’ve seen that happen).

How about the good old kick in the balls?

It can work great. But, it’s harder to land than you might think. And, if someone is off their head on DRUGS and ALCOHOL, a kick to the balls might not stop them! Because they won’t register much pain.

However, a HARD punch on the jaw causes the BRAIN to shake and rock, and that WILL cause a loss of equilibrium, or knockout. Period.

All of this leads me into a great closing point…

Boxing is a fantastic form of self-defense – even though it’s a SPORT, not a pure Self-Defense System.

Reason why basic boxing is great for Self-Defense is because it teaches you solid foot-work, and how to throw a REALLY HARD punch.

So, if in doubt – and you wanna start learning some Self-Defense – you could do a lot worse than finding your local boxing gym, and pay one of the coaches to ‘show you the ropes.’

Boxing also let’s you ‘Pressure Test’ your skills (another term I learned from Matty Evans).

Many ‘Black Belts’ have a black belt despite never fighting another Human Being! Explaining why they sometimes fall to pieces in a street fight.

With boxing, you can spar, in a controlled environment, meaning:

• You shouldn’t get hurt
• You can test actually landing your punches on another human
• You can test landing your punches UNDER PRESSURE

Remember:

Best way to exit a Street Fight Alive is to NOT be there in the first place. To do this, you must be AWARE of your surroundings at all times.

If you must TAKE ACTION, talk your way out of it if possible. Or, use moderate force – like a hard push/shove to the chest to dissuade your wannabe attacker.

If you none of that works, ‘Hit ‘em hard, and hit ‘em first.’

Hope this all makes sense.

Talk soon,

Elliot Newman

P.S. Leave your comments/questions below…