Pre- and Post-Fight

cross · Black Belt

This post was originally published as an article in a dedicated KarateForums.com Articles section, which is no longer online. After the section was closed, this article was most to the most appropriate forum in our community.

This article aims to discuss the pre- and post-fight stages of a self defense situation. The majority of martial arts schools focus purely on the physical aspects of self defense situations and neglect to train adequately in the areas I will highlight below.

Types of Attacks

For this article, we will assume that you will face two kinds of attacks in a self defense situation.

Surprise
This kind of attack is where you are hit, grabbed, stabbed, without previous warning or without even seeing the attacker before it happens. In this case there is no pre-fight to deal with.

Non Surprise
This kind of attack is where you clearly can see the attacker, and have the chance to talk to him or her before the attack takes place. However, the attacker may seem completely harmless, which is why the pre-fight information I discuss below is an important part of making sure this doesn't turn into a surprise attack.

Pre-Fight

De-escalation
This should be happening from the time you start talking to the person and realize that he or she is becoming aggressive towards you.

Saying "I don't want to fight" 2 or 3 times while in a fighting stance is not what de-escalation is all about. You need to ask a question that will make the attacker stop and think, even for a slight moment. Not a question that asks what they would do, but rather how they feel. Some examples are:

"Are you feeling OK, mate?"
"What do you need?"
"Did you hurt yourself?"
"What can I do to help you?"

I’m sure you can think of a lot more, but the point is, ask a question, don't make statements. A question will make them think and that gives you time and the element of surprise.

Posture
While you’re trying to calm them down with words, how you stand is equally important. Body language communicates a lot of information. The posture I speak of goes by a few names, including "The Fence" "The De-escalation Stance", etc. However, the one I advocate is Richard Dimitri's "Passive Stance".

The feet are basically square and shoulder width apart, not one behind the other like a conventional boxing stance. Although I would have one leg slightly back, this is not blatantly obvious. It looks a lot like someone is pointing a gun at you and you’re saying "I surrender".

The passive stance displays more defensive intent than a stance with one hand forward and one back, with your feet in a boxing position. If you get into a stance like that, you are really showing offensive intent and, in that case, you’re saying one thing but your body language is showing the opposite.

The passive stance also adds functionality to your natural flinch reflex and is a great position to launch pre-emptive palm strikes.

The Trigger
From there, you have to decide what personal trigger you’re going to use that will decide whether you’re going to attack, run or continue trying to calm the attacker down with words.

It could be them getting close enough to touch your hand, them backing you into a corner, them pushing you repeatedly, them cocking their hand back, etc. The trigger is basically knowing when to act and do more than just talk. That leads us to the fight stage.

Fight

The majority of martial arts techniques and the static self defense moves shown against a compliant opponent are lacking when it comes to real situations. If you can’t do it against a fully resisting opponent in training, what chance do you have against someone intent on ripping your head off?

Pre-emptive Strikes
This is what you do if the trigger goes off and you decide it’s time for action. This is your greatest chance of surviving the attack. Especially if there is more than one person involved. "Hit hard, hit first, hit often."

From the posture we talked about above, palm heal strikes are fairly easy to do. Open hand techniques would be my preference over punching in a self defense situation. From a legal perspective, palm heals look more like slapping, which is considered much less violent than punching.

What's Next?
From the first strike, if you can’t turn and run, then you have to continue until you have the chance to escape.

Counter Attacking
If you have made the decision that you won’t do anything until you are attacked first, then you’re already putting yourself in a world of pain. The only time you want to be defending against a physical attack is while you’re doing your own attacks (via the use of a good guard, head movement, etc.) or if you are surprised. At that point, you need to make the most of your natural flinch reflex so that it turns the tables in your favor. This is why I don't like the majority of blocks as they are taught in martial arts. If we are talking purely self defense, then covering, moving and learning how to make the most of your natural reaction to flinch is the best way to deal with strikes.

The Goal
Your goal in any self defense situation is obviously survival, not winning or losing. If you keep that in your mind from the beginning, ego won’t come into it. You are giving yourself the right to run away without regret. Running is not a cowardly thing, it’s survival.

Post-Fight

Legal
This is where you need to do your own research and know the laws regarding self defense, pre-emptive strikes, what you can and can’t do, etc. for your local area. Assuming that if you’re attacked, you are allowed to do whatever you want to the person is a good way to put yourself in jail. It’s also important to cooperate fully with police. If you are taken in, it’s always wise to consider (and take advantage of) your right to an attorney, before getting into the situation.

Mental
It’s important to realize that things rarely go back to normal straight after you experience a situation where your life is put at risk. It’s important to talk the situation through with your loved ones and, in some cases, seek professional help. Whatever you do, in the fight phase, make sure you can justify it, not only to police, but more importantly, in your own mind. Guilt and regret does terrible things to people.

Revenge Attacks
If you defend yourself against someone with friends, there is always the possibility that they will come after you to even the score. What can you do about that? Personally, I would not speak about the situation to anyone outside of family members; warn your close friends, however, that something may happen. Don't gloat about the situation and stay clear of the people, if possible. If that fails, scroll back to the top of the page and start the cycle again.

Conclusion

The before and after parts of any self defense situations are equally, if not more important than the physical altercation. If your martial arts training doesn't cover and train this regularly, then you are really only dealing with a small part of the self defense puzzle.

Patrick · KF Administrator

Thank you for the submission.

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bushido_man96 · KF Sensei

Good article, Cross. Thanks a bunch for sharing.

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USCMAAI · Orange Belt

Excellent article! The only thing I would disagree with is the passive stance. I would assume what the police call the interview stance. Strong side back, feet apart and hands up in a passive manner.
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cross · Black Belt

baronbvp · Black Belt

Great article, cross. Two things I like to do also:

1. While in non-surprise pre-fight while asking questions/talking (a great idea on your part), I keep part of my attention on others and the scene as a whole. Many sucker scenarios develop by an attacker engaging/distracting someone while a buddy circles around or comes from another place to be the real threat - a non-surprise surprise, if you will. I like a stance from which I can defend/flinch from the front, back and the side. Balance is key here. Also, keeping an eye on the entire situation allows you to look for assistance or likely allies should it get worse.

2. I find palm heel strikes effective at close range but have not mastered them at longer ranges, because my reach becomes shorter when I bend my wrist to strike with the heel of my palm. If I am maintaining a distance, that might not be my first strike. Great thought about it looking like a slap, though. I'll have to consider your idea.
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Martial arts are like kinetic chess. Your move.

cross · Black Belt

Hey Baron, Thanks for the reply.

shogeri · Brown Belt

Cross ~ Great article! Very informative.

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baronbvp · Black Belt

Cross, nice answer! I like your thinking. I will adapt immediately.

Well, maybe not immediately. I'm on vacation. But soon.

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Only as good as I make myself be, only as bad as I let myself be.

Martial arts are like kinetic chess. Your move.

cross · Black Belt

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