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Martial arts, Preppers and the rest...

We all play defense. We should all do it.  More and more so each day.
When it comes to citizen's self defense and the growing threat of violence in its various forms to which we are increasingly subject in our daily lives, there is much to discuss.
While each of us is more or less alert to this reality, not everyone sees it as the threat it is, in my opinion.
The feeling that "it only happens to others" or "this isn't Brazil or America" is often compounded by the terrible idea of understanding and fitting others into the framework of our own values, needs and beliefs.
It's usually when this exercise collides with reality that our greatest problems begin. To make matters worse, these problems often arise without much, if any, warning.
For those who see a situation of physical confrontation as an eminently real possibility and undertake efforts to be better prepared to deal with that threat and ultimately be able to defend themselves and their loved ones, martial arts and combat sports almost inevitably cross their paths.
Anyone who has had the chance to experience a situation of physical violence has inevitably gone through a mix of sensations and faced, whether they admit it or not, a myriad of possibilities unknown until the last nanosecond that precedes each action and/or reaction of each of the parties involved, including themselves.
Martial arts and combat sports are, I think we can agree, useful tools for training and personal preparation on both a physical and psycho-emotional level.
But not all these tools are created equal and have the same value for the purpose in question. Let's say that there are higher and lower quality tools, tools that are suitable and those that are unsuitable for the job in hand. Let's say there are good and bad teachers and good and bad students.
My Ju-jitsu teacher once told me, in words that I will try to reproduce as faithfully as possible, that : "- We shouldn't confuse what we can do on the tatami with what happens on the street. A street fight is usually ugly, dirty, brutal and very fast! And it will often end up on the ground. Preferably, try not to be there when it happens". I confess that as well as the techniques I never learned, there were those I forgot. But I've never forgotten these words. Others, in the position of teacher, don't hesitate to create in their students a false and highly damaging idea of the effectiveness of what they teach and the unquestionable ability with which each and every student will leave that mat. This can cost lives, and unfortunately, it could be those of these students.
And this leads me to tell you that you should be as careful when choosing the martial art or combat sport you choose to improve your self-defense skills as you should be with who teaches you.
Often, certain disciplines that are notoriously valid for these purposes become a death trap for their practitioners because they are misrepresented by an incompetent trainer.
On the other hand, and unfortunately, the most skilled and capable teacher doesn't necessarily turn a martial art or combat sport into an effective tool when it simply doesn't have what it takes to be effective "on the street". At best, we can get good advice and a "humility bath" in terms of the capabilities of the discipline itself and our real capabilities as a result, if the teacher is also humble enough to admit it.

Those who have developed observation skills in one way or another and who have some "field" experience in the gym and in real, concrete situations of violence know that there is an almost insurmountable limit to what can be learned in a training context on a mat or in a ring.

It's easy to understand that you can't replicate in a training context a critical part of what violent confrontations are like in reality.

Thus, a martial art or combat sport that doesn't expose us (within what is possible and permitted) to full contact and violence that is as close as possible to what happens in reality, is in itself incapable of preparing us effectively to protect ourselves.
But then, if a martial art or combat sport doesn't take violence in training to the limit, are they useless for self-defense purposes?
Clearly, NO! They are not useless. But they need to be complemented by other discipline(s) that offer us greater contact with the reality of violence, that confront us with the possibility of being manacled, of our physical capacities being reduced, of being knocked unconscious in the first second of the confrontation. Yes, in the first second.
I believe that, when it comes to self-defense, there are no perfect disciplines, and even less so in a training context. And this is contrary to what they will often try to sell you.
There is an undeniable enrichment in mixing disciplines and arts for this purpose and if there is one thing that sport can prove in this area, especially with mixed martial arts, it is precisely that.
Although the world of martial arts and combat sports also operates very much by fashions and trends, the dizzying rise of mixed martial arts to the stages and even podiums of the world of sport is very much due to the lessons learned from the creation, evolution and results of this, to all intents and purposes, recent sporting form.
It is important to remember, however, that we are still talking about a sporting formula and that it is not immune to the hardships of the street.
Always remember that if it has rules and a referee, it's not the street. If you stop when you're told to and not when the threat fades or is eliminated, it's not the street. On the street, it's not for a degree, a belt or a cup. It's for your integrity and the lives of you and your loved ones.
This is what you have to think about when you choose what you're going to learn and who's going to teach you. Because then and there, you still have a choice.

Mr. Hot Shots

We don't know what tomorrow will be like, but we have an idea... Be Prepared ! ©