I am not going to cover techniques using the “tools” mentioned in my previous SD post (Self-Defence 21), but I will look at some alternatives.

Biting

Biting can be a very effective technique, but I am not referring to a little pinch with the teeth; rather, I mean taking a mouthful of a fleshy part (such as the bicep, chest, or neck) and tearing and ripping it, much like a dog ragging. This type of attack causes a huge psychological impact compared to the actual physical damage. The disadvantage with this technique is the possibility of picking up blood-borne diseases (AIDS and Hepatitis).

Balance Displacement

When most people are off balance, they are more worried about falling than about attacking you. If they are close to you, they will grab onto you to prevent themselves from falling. Attempting a throw nearly always ends up with the person holding onto you if you manage to throw them. This is why you should ‘disable’ first before attempting throws so there is no fight left in them.

Go through the opponent

To escape a situation, you may want to run at the opponent and push them over. Very few people can remain standing up after being run into, especially if you have impacted high on the chest with a forearm. Once they are over, then keep running to a place of safety.

Universal Techniques

It would be nice to have one response that would be effective against all attacks. Unfortunately, one does not exist, and this is more to do with variations between how people apply it rather than the technique itself. However, some techniques can put you in an advantageous position once you have used them.

BAR

This is a technique promoted by Russell Stutely, and BAR stands for Body Alarm Reaction. It delivers shock into an attacker, and it is relatively easy for people to do. It consists of a single or double palm heel strike to the forehead above the eyes. It’s really a ‘big push’ to the forehead and gets over a lot of mental problems that some people have with not being able ‘to punch a stranger in the face’. It also looks like a push to witnesses. It’s basically a universal solution to being grabbed, though it can be used against punches swung at you in anti-social violence. Doing this technique can buy you a few seconds, whilst it ‘stuns’ the attacker (where the ‘body alarm reaction’ name derives), and you can then run away or follow it up with something more aggressive if necessary. If it’s done correctly, it usually knocks the attacker out.

Spear

The ‘Spear’ technique relies on a flinch response to an attack and involves turning that flinch into an arm strike that impacts the front side of the neck. The arm is thrust forward, acting like a spear, and ‘brushes’ against the side of the neck as it passes by and goes over the attacker’s shoulder. Like the BAR technique, it is meant to ‘shock’ or knock out, but it does so by attacking the nerves/blood vessels in the side of the neck. For more information, research Tony Blauer.

‘Draculas Cape’

This is an elbow technique placed horizontally across your face just below the eye line. You are now peering over your bent elbow. You move forward by stepping, and it’s an effective battering ram. I came across this technique by studying the works of Rory Miller. He does emphasise that these ‘universal’ techniques should ideally be found by you whilst performing interactive drills, but this ‘Dracula’s Cape’ was a specific one that worked for him and many others.

Extreme measures

Most people accept that killing is wrong but understand that some other things are worse. When presented with something worse, like dying, killing seems less wrong.

Tim Larkin’s Target Focus Training, which I have previously mentioned, is a proponent of this type of extreme self-defence. They are not worried about pre-attack scenarios or avoidance; they just focus on doing violence to survive. As they say, “Do not focus on the story – only the ending.”

[Research legal levels-of-force issues arising from this sort of training.]

However, just because you are trained in this type of material does not mean that you will actually do it. There is a great deal of difference between knowing how to stamp on a person to break their neck and actually being able to do it.
If you do not know where your line is, not just for killing but also for all the levels of force, you will freeze.

When someone is trying to kill you, you won’t have time to work out your issues. Some polite, trained people who could normally perform damaging techniques in the dojo couldn’t do so when needed because they didn’t think it was allowed and hadn’t given themselves permission.