WOMEN, GIRLS, MEN AND BOYS: UNLEASH THE ANIMAL WITHIN!
YES, INDEEDY. I have been preaching this in self defense classes for decades, and, trust me, it is as true and ageless as time itself. Deep inside you there is a phenomenon that some wizards of The Fighting Arts call the ki or chi. Your chi (Chinese),or, ki (Japanese), according to these wizards, these great masters of The Fighting/Martial Arts, are a source of great power and energy. Imagine this chi, or ki, “right in the center of your body, deep within your midsection. Think two inches below your belly button, but straight back into the middle of your torso,” according to Lori Hartman Gervasi, in her great book: Fight Like a Girl—and Win.
But, here’s the dealio. If ever you face an attacker, before the debilitating element of fear sets in and paralyzes you, first you must get your ass in gear! You see, this chi or ki is there, but it cannot be released like some ancient genie by simply rubbing in some arcane manner on your center. It is up to you to have the courage, fortitude and willingness to get yourself in action ASAP!
Your ki/chi works like the ignition of a car – from nothing to full throttle, according to Gervasi. Instant power and energy! Explosion from the inside-out! But, like the key in the ignition of a powerful automobile, you must first turn it on!
TURNING THAT KEY
So, how do we explode from the inside out? How do we pull our energy and power source to the surface? Actually it is dog crap simple. Release your power and energy right from the get-go. Get moving and use the sheer power of “fierce and immediate movement from the core of your fighting spirit (which is within every one of us).” Get moving and turn that ignition key. In other words, instead of standing there frozen, trying to analyze what the attacker is saying and/or about to do, you need to Do Something Now! When you act definitively and immediately, you do several things that will help you pevail:
- You invoke the Element of Surprise.
- You get the attacker back on his/her feet & weaken his potential attack.
- You transcend the debilitating element of “Fear.”
- You flood your body with Stress Hormones and take advantage of an Adrenale Dump, which empowers you to fight harder and better, to run faster, to endure injuries and pain.
- And, finally, it empowers you to Unleash That Animal – that Beast – Inside!
Deep inside you, in a place where you must go mentally, is a beast. It has been there for 250,000,000 years. Give yourself the permission to grab onto it and become it. Yes, BECOME THE BEAST! Turn that fear into sheer energy and power.
- When your gut instincts tell you something is wrong, believe it always!
- Breathe. Get oxygenated blood flowing to your brain.
- Move now. Do something:
- Put some distance between you and him.
- Put a barrier or barricade between you and him.
- Say something. “Stay back!” “Nine-one-one!” “What do you want?” “I don’t have time for this!erbal SelfDefense (more on that in a later post).”
- Verbalizing also serves the purpose of unlocking that hold fear might have on you, plus, it let’s the goofball who is threatening you know that you are not going to allow him to intimidate or bully you. Use Verbal Self Defense (more on VSD in a later post).
- Have an idea ahead-of-time, what you will do, if he gets aggressive, and, then, do it!
- By all means, keep moving. Don’t allow yourself to be cemented to the floor when he attacks!
- If possible, strike first and use the element of suprise!
In the next post: Using the element of surprise with your first strike!
Until then, stay safe.
Hammer