The world is becoming a very unsafe place to live in. Especially, women have to be on their toes at all times. When faced with a situation to defend yourself, do not expect a super hero to come to your rescue. Instead, learn to protect yourself. Self defense is the best form of defense and it is very essential for women. It does not mean that you must have a formal training in martial arts, like judo, karate, or taekwondo, although it is always good to learn any one of them. But, you should have an idea about defending yourself when being attacked.
Till the time you get trained in one of the martial art forms, there are self-defense products that will come to your rescue when you have to fend for your safety. The category includes stun guns, pepper sprays, personal alarms, and much more and is a non-violent method of defending yourself. Use them judiciously to ward off an attack, mugging, rape, or any other form of assault. To make the correct choice of self-defense products to suit your requirements, read on to know more about them.
Self-defense pepper spray is one of the most effective tools available in the market. It is an inflammatory agent made from very hot peppers and is available in the form of liquid stream, mist, foam, gel, or powdered grains. A shot from the personal defense spray immediately causes a sharp shooting pain. The veins in the eyes and the mucous membranes swell. The person can’t open his eyes and will find it extremely difficult to breathe. The effects are only temporary and last for about 45 minutes, a valuable time for you to escape. The self-defense pepper spray is available as key chains, holsters, pens, and cans that can be easily carried in a purse or pocket.
Self-defense stun gun is another easy-to-use and valuable product, which is more useful in close encounters. It is an electrical self-defense weapon that emits a high voltage and whichever muscle group it is applied to, is depleted of energy due to rapid expanding and contracting. This tool is completely safe for you to hold. While your attacker is left dealing with the shocking repercussions you can easily run for help.
Avis MBS
Self Defense Is the Best Defense
Taekwondo to get rankings at last
After years of wrangling the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) has decided to implement a ranking system early next year. The intention is to make competitions and events more exciting to the public and the media, and will hopefully open up a range of marketing opportunities for athletes and the sport as a whole.
Along with the introduction of the ranking system, the WTF intends to launch a brand new annual competition to be held at the end of each year for the top 8 ranked athletes in each category, which will serve as a ‘champions championship’. The first of these competitions, provisionally called the Annual President Cup Invitational Tournament, will be held in December 2009.
At first glance the proposed ranking system seems cumbersome and complicated, but so far, a first glance is all we’ve got. According to the WTF, points will be awarded according to a formula: A (Points received according to the rank at the WTF-promoted or sanctioned championships) X B (Grade of pertinent tournaments) = final points.
The system will be applied to WTF promoted and sanctioned tournaments as follows: first placed athletes will receive 10 points, second place will receive 60% of 10 points i.e. 6 points and third place will receive 60% of 6 points i.e. 3.6 points. And then the fun starts. Points are valid for a two-year period and will be subject to a review every three months in a continuous process. During this two-year period, 25% of a particular set of awarded points will be deducted every three months, which means that when the two-year period is over no points from that set will exist.
Tournaments will be assigned an AAA, AA or A class ranking by a specially appointed Event Evaluation Committee according to the number of participants, technical level displayed and adherence to WTF rules and as such will only occur after the event.
It is hoped that the system will form the basis for a professional Taekwondo league, which will be of benefit to all Taekwondo participants; athletes as well as organisers.
Sandy Cosser
http://wtf.org/site/news/wtf.htm?realnum=237
Taekwondo Supplies
The Ancient art of Taekwondo and the supplies you will need to perfect it.
Taekwondo is a Korean form of martial arts, it is the national sport of South Korea. Taekwondo has earned the title of “most popular form of martial arts". The term Taekwondo, when translated from Korean means: tae – “to strike or break with foot”, kwon - “to strike or break with fist”, and do - “way” or “method” thus when the term Taekwondo is loosely translated to english it means, “the way of the foot and fist”. Taekwondo has developed into a combination of the following: self defense, exercise, combat techniques, sport, meditation, and philosophy.
When looking to buy Taekwondo supplies, you will first need to know exactly what you are looking for. There are different categories of Taekwondo supplies, these include equipment, clothes, accessories, footwear, sparring and weapons.
• Taekwondo equipment include: exercising shields, strike bags & gloves and targets.
• The clothing worn by Taekwondo practitioners are called a Dobok. The dobok comes in different colours but the most common is black and white. A TTI (belt) is worn around the dobok, the colour of the belt indicates the grade of the student.
• Taekwondo accessories include: Jigsaw mats, flags, badges (Instructors Dobok rank badge, Cloth badge, jacket badge, lapel badge), bags, key-rings and posters.
• Footwear include: martial art slippers, Ninja Tabi Boots, Tabi socks and training shoes.
• Sparring supplies include: reversible body armour, ladies sports vests, ladies chest protectors, elbow protectors, ankle protectors, forearm protectors, knee protectors, gum shields, groin guards, boxing gloves, hand & foot pads, head guards and shin pads.
• Taekwondo weapon supplies include: weapon cases, and weapons that can come in different materials including rubber, foam, metal and wood. Some weapon names are: nunchaka, training knives, swords, Bo, Jo, Escrima and Bokken. When looking to buy Taekwondo supplies, make sure to search the internet for suppliers. You will be amazed at the wide variety of suppliers to choose from, decide if you want to buy the supplies new or if you are willing to buy clean second hand Taekwondo supplies from reputable re-sellers.
Jaxster Chan
A Guide to Tae Kwon Do Belt Colors
The belts and their colors that are used with Taekwondo aren't just a random assortment of colors that are used to separate the ranks in the martial art. In Taekwondo, each belt color has a meaning that lets fighters known about their advancement and increasing knowledge. Belts are also great for the stylist, as they let the stylist know just how far they have progressed.
The colors of the belts found in Taekwondo vary, as they represent the advancement of rank, as well as the growth of the student. It can take a long time for students to move up the ranks, all depending on their knowledge and how quite they adapt to the techniques and forms of the art.
Below, are the colors and belts of Taekwondo, along with their meaning.
White belt A white belt is the symbol of birth, or the beginning for the stylist. Students that wear white belts are just starting out, searching for the knowledge to continue Taekwondo.
Yellow belt A yellow belt is the first ray of light that shines on the student, giving them new strength to the Taekwondo martial art. Students that have yellow belts have taken a great step in learning, and have opened their mind to new techniques.
Green belt A green belt is the symbol of growth, or a seed as it sprouts from the ground and begins to grow into a plant. Students with green belts are continuing along the path of Taekwondo, learning to develop further and redefine every technique they have been taught.
Blue belt A blue belt represents a blue sky, with the plant continuing to grow upwards, heading for the sky. Students with blue belts continue to move higher in ranks, as the plant continues to grow taller. Students at this stage will also be given additional knowledge of Taekwondo so that their mind and body can continue to grow and develop.
Red belt The red belt is the heat of the sun, with the plant continuing the path upwards toward the sun. Students that possess red belts are higher in rank, as they have acquired a lot of the knowledge in the art of Taekwondo. Red belts also tell the students to be cautious, as they gain more knowledge and their physical techniques increase.
Black belt A black belt is the best of the best. It symbolizes the darkness that is out there beyond the light of the sun. Once the student is given a black belt and begins to train other students, he will teach all that has been taught to him. Black belts recognize the best students, as they continue to teach others the art of Taekwondo, and continue the never ending cycle of training.
Elvin Rowe
Taekwondo is Not Taekwondo Without Its Kicks
This article explains a few things about tae kwon do, and if you're interested, then this is worth reading, because you can never tell what you don't know.
The kicks used in Taekwondo sparring are more striking than in any other martial art. Even though the kicks in poomse are simpler than the ones used in sparring, they can be equally as impressive if executed properly.
Also, a good, solid front kick is more impressive than an impromptu tornado or double roundhouse kick. What is it that makes a great taekwondo kick?
1. Balance.
Balance may not be seem as obvious as you think. And balance is more than just not ending up on the floor. It is a matter of fluidity, of gracefulness, of naturalness.
With a properly balanced kick, the supporting foot does not wobble, the hands do not flail about, and the athlete does not rush to complete the kick.
Also, the athlete begins and ends the technique in the proper stances without having to correct the stances to accommodate the kick.
Practice moving within your stances. When you feel comfortable doing simple things within your stances, you should try to kick from one stance into another.
2. Proper form.
Having proper form is a requirement to having a beautiful kick. Proper form may be defined as the correct positions to which the entire body enters as it performs a kick from start to finish.
It is wise to talk with your instructor or other certified professional martial artist to learn the more articulate details of proper form. They will have the answers to any questions that you may have.
Those of you not familiar with the latest on tae kwon do now have at least a basic understanding. But there's more to come.
3. Control.
The kick in Taekwondo is not supposed to be like that of a whip. It does not have to be so fast that it cannot be seen.
Instead, the kick is to be relished and beheld as the single most attractive feature of Taekwondo. It is therefore necessary to control the kick. Controlling the kick involves the ability to freeze the kick for a split second at full extension.
This ė°¼reeze?is the life of the kick. It is the most memorable and beautiful part of the kick. Controlling the kick is not that easy though. Usually it involves much concentration and many years of practice.
Form is a must to both control and power. If you are not sure that you are doing the kick with proper form yet, keep working on the form part before you begin working on the control part.
Control takes some muscle development and patience, but it is well worth all the effort in the end.
4. Power.
Nothing is worse than seeing someone perform a kick with great form, balance, and control, but with no power.
If this is the case, that person is better off as ballet dancer than a taekwondo practitioner. There is no such thing as an excellent kick that has no power.
Take note that proper form is needed to achieve control. And control is the factor that leads to power.
Bear in mind also that if you try to develop power without mastering the proper control first, it may result to permanent damage to your joints. So be very careful.
The process for developing power in a taekwondo kick is very similar to developing control in that same kick.
Hopefully the sections above have contributed to your understanding of tae kwon do. Share your new understanding about tae kwon do with others. They'll thank you for it.
William Doyle
Against an Armed Attack
by Sang H. Kim
The following article is based on the principles and techniques taught in the Armed and Dangerous Knife Defense video series. It is intended to give a brief overview of the central tenet of knife combat for the experienced martial artist.
Much has been written aout the effectiveness of one system or another in a realistic or "street" situation. Many styles claim to be scientifically designed or to have secret techniques to defeat even the toughest of opponents, including armed assailants. Yet when it comes to an assailant armed with a knife, you don't need to learn a lot of fancy, secret techniques, you only need to remember four simple options. In an armed confrontation, basic is best and the most direct techniques are the ones that will give you the opportunity to walk away when it's over.
Four Choices, One Result
When faced with a weapon, you have four choices: retreat, lateral inside close, lateral outside close or pass by. Each of these initial movements allows you to shorten the distance between you and your opponent. Once you get close, you can apply the defense of your choice. If you prefer kicking, you can use a kick. If you prefer locking, you can apply a lock. If you prefer grappling, you can take your opponent to the ground. But to use any of these skills, you first have to get close to your attacker.
Retreat: Cowardice or Foresight
To retreat is generally seen by the opponent as a sign of cowardice. You are too afraid to fight or you are unable to match your opponent's strength, so you step back to avoid being drawn into a confrontation. However, the retreat can be a smart intial move since it gives you a chance to meaure your attacker's seriousness and prepare a strategy. And there is always the chance that when you signal a retreat, your attacker will back off enough to let you escape. This is, of course, the safest and most intelligent way to defeat an armed attacker. It is also the least likely outcome.
The other option is to retreat a step or two to give yourself time to collect your thoughts and ensure you are in the safest possible position to defend yourself. You can use a retreat to gain better footing, adjust your stance or height to your opponent or manuever for the best position in a confined space. You also can use a retreat to take control of the timing and distance of the confrontation. When you begin to retreat, your attacker is forced to react to you. Now you are in control, at least for the moment, of how fast the situation is moving. You can find the distance most comfortable for you and prepare to retaliate when you are ready.While retreating, you should be observing your opponent's position. Is he holding the weapon in his right or left hand? Is he bigger or smaller than you? Does he appear to have any obvious weaknesses? Is he quick or slow? Is there anything behind him or out of his line of view that you can use to your advantage? Does he see your retreat as a sign of weakness or does it make him nervous? There are many signals, both overt and subconscious, that your attacker will give off. By being observant, you can prepare your next move.
Disadvantages of the Retreat
While a retreat is the most sensible option available, it has disadvantages that make it a poor choice in some situations. Obviously, it is not an option in a confined space. And while you gain a physical advantage by retreating, you lose a major psychological advantage. The minute you step back, the psychological upper hand goes to your opponent. He will see you as weak, uncertain, inexperienced and perhaps unskilled. Although you may have a plan of attack all thought out, he sees only your retreat and gains courage from it. If you do have a plan, you can regain the advantage by using it when he thinks you are about to give in. If you do not have a plan, your fear will only be magnified by retreating.
Lateral Closes
The lateral close is the most commonly taught method of defending against a thrusting, lunging or cutting attack. There are two methods of using the lateral close. The first is to side step your opponent's forward movement. When the opponent attacks, you step either to the right or left of the attack while maintaining your ground. The result is that you end up very close to your opponent on the right or left side of his body.
The second method for lateral closing is to move diagonally toward your opponent. Before your opponent moves forward to attack you, you make a preemptory strike by stepping out to the side and toward him. The result is that you move into your attacker's space and end up very close to the left or right side of his body. Both methods allow you to effectively close the distance while avoiding the attacker's weapon.
And the key to defending against any weapon is to effectively and quickly get close to the assailant. The weapon weilding attacker's biggest asset is space. By holding a weapon, he extends his range of attack by several feet and thereby shortens your range. Once you pass by the outer reaches of his range, the place where he is holding the weapon, you blunt his options for attack and take away his advantage. When you get very close, you force him to resort to grabbing you or blocking your attack, distracting his attention from his weapon and lessening his advantage still further.
The Deadly Pass
The final technqiue for closing the distance against a weapon is one that you won't see taught often. It is the most dangerous, both to the attacker and the defender, and it is recommended only for experienced practitioners. The pass is dangerous even in practice and should only be practiced by martial artists who are skilled in falling and do not have any preexisting back or neck injuires. Always practice on a soft surface and never at full speed.
With these cautions in mind, have your partner face you as before and move forward with a right handed attack. Step out to the left, as if performing an outside close, but take two steps by your partner so that you are behind him. You have now "passed" your partner and have several options. You may grab his hair, head or shoulders and pull him backwards. You may apply a choke or lock from behind. You may kick his spine, tailbone, or knee to knock him forward. Or you may strike the back of his head. To be effective, the pass and follow-up technique should be performed as a single move. In an instant, you have to move by your attacker and apply a single deadly attack before he realizes where you are.
The result of a correctly performed pass is that your attacker never sees it coming and is literally blindsided by your attack. If you choose to pull the attacker backward, he will certainly hit his head to the ground, knocking him unconcsious if the ground is hard. If you push him forward, he will likely hit his face on the ground, causing the same result. If you choose to strike him from behind, he will suffer a full force blow with no warning or defense, a potentially lethal strike for even the biggest opponent.
The pass is not recommended for beginners. You run the risk of becoming disoriented or losing your footing when you move so quickly and with such force. You also risk being tripped by yourself or your assailant as you pass by. And finally, you run the risk of not being fast enough to complete the pass and not getting a grip on your opponent to control his weapon either. For these reasons, the pass is taught only at the highest levels of weapons defense and should be applied with great care.
Choosing your Method
Which method you choose to close the distance depends on your skill level and experience. For beginners, practicing the outside close is safest. When you are comfortable with your speed and timing and can finish your partner easily from the outside close, practice the inside close. If you are very experienced and have an experienced partner, you can also experiment with the pass.
Whichever method you choose, there are a few common principles:
1. Stay as close to your opponent as possible after you close.
2. Focus on taking control of the knife first.
3. Grabbing the knife wielding hand is always preferable to parrying/blocking.
4. Cut off your attacker's view of the knife.
5. Close the distance quickly and smoothly.
6. Never take unnecessary chances or use complicated techniques.
7. Detach yourself from the fear you feel when faced with a weapon.
8. Stay alert but unemotional.
9. Keep a natural demeanor and deceive your opponent.
10. Move suddenly and without warning.
Finishing Techniques
In the above examples, we briefly touched on technqiues used for finshing after you close the distance. Although the methods for closing the distance are only three, the potential number of finishing technqiues are as vast as the arts we practice. Once you get close to your opponent, you can use your strongest skills, whether they are striking, kicking, throwing, locking or grappling. There are no secret weapons or scientific pricniples. There is only the simple truth that once you take away your opponent's advantage, you are free to use whatever you are best at.
The Art of Harmony Part 5
by Sang H. Kim
In perfect stillness is perfect action;
In absolute action is hidden stillness.
Action is a visible labor; stillness invisible.
Action is effect; stillness cause.
Action travels; stillness stays in time.
Action is a deed; stillness a reference point.
Action creates meaning; stillness reason.
Action discovers; stillness reveals.
Action justifies; stillness unravels.
Action uncovers weakness; stillness virtue.
Action is journey; stillness origin.
Stillness is the sand; action the footprints.
Stillness is eternal; action finite.
Stillness frees; action limits.
Stillness bears time; action devours.
Stillness keeps us wondering; action keeps us busy.
Action stirs; stillness does the work.
The Art of Harmony Part 4
by Sang H. Kim
An enemy is one who is committed to destroying you,
Who looks for any potential opening to get in,
Who hits you first from behind then from the front.
The best way to know the opponent:
Meet him head on,
Confirm his strength,
Exploit his weakness,
Topple him in surprise.
He is you.
The Art of Harmony Part 3
Time does not fly.
It drops into the abyss.
Time is timeless. There was not a time when there was not a time.
Time may belong to eternity, but it is a sub-concept to eternity. Eternity is the measurement of permanence whereas time is the measurement of movement. Thus we separate time into three tenses: past, present and future. It is not, however, totally logical to regard time as a thing that can be split into three segments because the division immediately destroys the understanding of time and can generate false images of time in us.
Time is like a circle that begins at one point and ends at the same point; the beginning is the end and the end is the beginning. It is constantly bearing forth a new beginning. When “now” ends here right now, a new “now” starts immediately. A beginning, in that sense, is an ending itself which is the beginning of a new beginning. If this is the case, time does not move. It is always right here.
The past and the future are only present at present. You are the maker of time and the slayer of time.The Art of Harmony Part 2
Who are you?
What are you here for?
Who is your teacher?
What do you want?
What makes you who you are?
How can you be sure who you are?
Are you really the way you are?
Are you real?
What are you?
What do you have to do to be yourself?
What do you believe?
What is your hope?
What do you fear?
Whom do you know?
Are they strangers?
If not, who are they?
Who are you when you are with them?
Who are you now?
Are you insider or outsider?
Where are you from?
Are you happy?
Who taught you that?
Who you are is how you are is what you are is where you are from.
The Art of Harmony Part 1
The Art of Harmony
The Brush
Birch and pine,
Birds and sky,
Short and long twigs,
Strong and soft winds,
Straight and twisted rivers,
Are perfect neighbors.
They are the strokes of life.
Without them, we are a stranger
On a lone desert
Painting an empty canvas.
No stroke, no sky.
When I was a teenager, my father used to pile up junk in the backyard. They were tons of copper wires, giant wooden wheels, a house- sized pile of electric poles, and strange looking giant plastic dishes. I asked him what they were for and he replied that they were left over from his work. I wanted a place to play, so I asked him to clean them up, but he told me to wait. So I waited more than ten years.
In the 1960s, there was serious economic and political turmoil in Korea. We didn’t have fuel in the winter to heat our house. When his five boys were sleepless in the cold, my father went out with an ax in the middle of the night and chopped the electric poles to make a fire.
Then, one day my father got in a serious motorcycle accident. My mother didn’t have money, so she sold some of the copper wire. There was a great boom in heavy industry in the country so we got more than enough money to pay my father’s hospital bills. Later on, the strange looking plastic dishes were exchanged for college tuition for my brothers and I. The five of us are pretty well educated thanks to the dishes.
Now, my father has passed away, leaving the junk in the deepest corner of my memories. I dearly cherish that junk along with memories of my disciplinarian father who created treasure out of junk for his sons. Until they were gone, I never realized their value.
