Goal-focused self defense training is the key to a successful self defense system. Knowing what goals to focus on and how to attack them is really the foundation of any successful fighting system. This is where many martial arts fall short when compared to self defense systems. Martial arts often focus heavily on fine motor techniques that are amazing to watch and extremely difficult to master, but sadly less effective than some simple self defense moves.

The real secret to self-defense is knowing which targets are the most vulnerable, annoying, and painful. Before listing the top 5, keep in mind that you should never develop goal setting (focusing on a single goal as your only hope of stopping an attacker). You have to be able to switch targets easily as the fight or altercation progresses. More on this later …

The 5 main objectives:

1. Groin: This is not a huge surprise, but it is often overlooked. Most fights will start with a proper tedder. A good fighter will go straight to a valuable target like the groin (if it is not protected). The groin is an effective target because of the extreme pain and involuntary reaction it causes in men. It is almost impossible not to bend after a good blow to the groin. This makes vulnerable, annoying and painful the perfect combination.
2. Eyes: Eyes are a great target because they are our primary sense used in fighting. Hitting the eyes also elicits an emotional response from attackers because it is a very valuable target. An ocular slit will cause eyes to instantly water, blurring vision for a second, allowing you to take the lead. Eye strikes should only be attempted if the eyes are unprotected. They are especially effective when an attacker has his hands busy gripping his shirt or shoulders, etc. Instead of fighting his grip, just hit the eyes.
3. Throat: The throat is a particularly sensitive and vulnerable part of the body. Often the natural instinct in a fight or self-defense situation is to hit the head. This is great if you land a knockout punch, but you likely won’t. Instead, aim for the throat. It’s soft (you won’t break your knuckles), damaging (you can cut off the air supply), and it can end a fight quickly (a blow to the neck can cause a knockout). Best of all, a throat hit, even if not perfectly executed, is very distracting (I can prove it … press your thumb to the place just below the Adam’s apple, yes, not very comfortable to say the least. less).
4. Ear: This may seem a bit dark, but the ear is a great self defense target (and I don’t mean a Tyson Ear Bite). A slap on the ear can be a very damaging and excruciatingly painful blow. A slap on the ear won’t hurt your hand (like a punch will), if done right it will burst the eardrum causing a lot of pain, temporary hearing loss and dizziness. This certainly meets the criteria for vulnerability (requires minimal force to cause a large amount of damage), distraction, and pain.
5. Knee: So far I have only mentioned targets that will distract and cause pain allowing you to escape an attacker by taking advantage of the distraction and running. The knee is a target that can easily prevent an attacker from following you or continuing any type of attack. The knee is not a very strong joint. Yes, they carry us all day so they are strong in a couple of directions, but they are very vulnerable when hit in the right place.

The good news is that people rarely protect their knees. Only an experienced martial artist (not the average street bully) will defend his vulnerable knees effectively. The trick is to hit the inside of the knee. This is the most vulnerable part of the joint. A well-delivered blow to the inside of the knee will tear some of the ligaments and tendons in your knee, taking away your ability to walk, run, or stand. This makes it a perfect self defense target.

This lens is especially good if you are being held from behind. You can hit the inside of the knee with your heel. The front of the knee is also effective, but requires more force.

Three principles for using lenses effectively:

1. Know how to hit all of these targets from various self defense scenarios (while holding you from behind, holding you face to face, from a range of strikes, etc.).
2. Learn to always scan attackers or training partners for open targets, these will constantly change during a self defense situation.
3. Always follow up on one high-value goal with another (it may be the same goal, but not always). For example, if a hit to the groin bends an attacker, use this moment to slap him on the ear or elbow on the back of his neck. The point is, you should never expect a punch to end a fight, no matter how brilliantly executed. Hit until incapacitated (on the ground or you have a real chance to escape).

These are universal principles. Goals should be the focus of any good self-defense or fighting system. As the leader of the self defense industry, I have my own system that I teach, but these principles should be the foundation of any system. How do I know this? Over the years, I have met and worked with dozens of black belt instructors of many martial arts, bar bouncers, military Special Forces personnel from various countries, defense contractors, police chiefs, and high-profile security guards. . Although each person had a different teaching style and set of strokes they taught, they were all very focused on goals (because goals are the real key). Just think about it, a graceful strike is just a graceful strike until it lands in the right place. Every self-defense tool known to man is useless unless it hits the right target.