The Need for Realism in Self-defense Practice

There are several categories of combat among humans. Combat can be arranged such as in boxing, wrestling, or martial arts practice. It can be spontaneous, as in fighting and self-protection. The difference lies in the imposition or lack of rules and the level of conflict between the contestants.

Arranged combat is a common way of testing combat skills. It can be among friends or rivals. It can be for fun or high-stakes. It can be with strict safety rules or anything-goes type matches. Most often, however, it is contested with the safety of the contestants in mind and the outcome is secondary.

Arranged combat is a good method of practicing skills within a framework of safety rules. For optimum results, it should allow the widest range of attacks and defenses possible. If you train for the possibility of a  life-endangering encounter, you should not be limited by unnecessary rules and gear that will not exist in the anticipated attack.

For example, a woman who trains for self-protection would not gain much by putting on boxing gloves and sparring according to boxing rules. She is unlikely to face an attacker who will give her the room to punch and she is at risk of seriously damaging her hands in a barehanded attack. A more realistic approach for her would be to engage in simulation training in which she is faced with an attempted assault and practices thwarting the attacker.

Arranged combat should closely model its goals. If its goal is sport, train for sport. If its goal is self-protection, train for realism with a minimum of rules and a heavy dose of reality.