|
|
|
A Review of Popular Baseball Gloves
When shopping for a new baseball glove, one has many brands, styles and fits to choose from. Companies make many gloves from various materials that can cost as little as $10 or as much as $250 for a custom made glove. The following is a brief review...
An Introduction to Baseball Bats
Whether you enjoy the crack of wood or the ping of aluminum, baseball bats are designed for players ranging from Little Leaguers to professionals. Baseball bats are crafted out of specialized woods, composites or alloys, and aluminum, depending on...
Great Quotes
Great Quotes I love what prominent baseball people have to say about the great ballplayers. They seem to eloquently capture what we are thinking. "It was his solemn duty to catch a ball that wasn't in the stands." - Monte Irvin (Newark Eagles...
Ice Hockey Fights Will Always Bring Fans to the NHL Games
However, if you look at it from a hockey fan’s point of view it is ice hockey fights that make hockey and the NHL what it is. Our sport is different than any other sport and that is also the reason why we are such huge hockey fans. Fights bring...
Pitching Machine Safety
While pitching machines are a proven safe and effective tool for hitting and fundamentals development, there are a few safety precautions to keep in mind. What follows is a summary of simple and safe pitching machine practices we have used in our...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Martial Arts and Self-Defense - Emotional Response and Reaction
The media has fuelled the perception that ordinary people on the
street are in constant danger from violent attack, and
self-defense classes promise to counter this fear.
To attract students, most martial arts schools in the U.S. teach
self-defense methods. They make many claims about the usefulness
of martial arts techniques in defending oneself against attack.
Such situations of attack are rare, however, and can be avoided
by not putting oneself in danger (for example, not walking
around bad neighborhoods after dark, not buying or selling
illegal drugs, not hanging around bars, not getting involved
with gangs, and so on). Being alert and aware of one's
surroundings and recognizing the types of events that are likely
to occur in certain locations are the individual's first line of
self-defense.
The media has fuelled the perception that ordinary people on the
street are in constant danger from violent attack, and
self-defense classes promise to counter this fear. In truth,
this perception is largely false, as more people are injured in
incidents of domestic violence than on the street by strangers.
To be effective, self-defense classes only need to reduce the
feeling of fear.
When a person is actually attacked on the street by a stranger,
the main problem in self-defense is generally not a lack of
physical ability to counter the attack, but an emotional
reaction, such as panic or anger, that can turn a bad situation
worse. Panic can
be paralyzing and invite attack, while anger
can provoke harm as well by frightening or angering an attacker
to further violence.
Serious training in the martial arts takes the emotional
reaction out of violent confrontations. After many hours of
practice, a punch or a kick becomes merely a physical force, a
fist or a foot is easily handled, and an encounter is not even
experienced as a personal attack. Students learn good
coordination and self-confidence, characteristics which can
discourage potential aggressors from becoming aggressive in the
first place. In the martial arts, the simple act itself of
practicing over a long period of time may be the most important
element in effective self-defense than any specific technique
learned.
Focusing on self-defense in today's world has changed the
techniques being taught in the martial arts. In the modern
world, no one is likely to be attacked by a sword-wielding
samurai. Instead, an attacker may be unarmed or have a baseball
bat, knife, or gun. Battlefield combat techniques would not be
very useful in these situations. The emphasis on such techniques
has declined in most martial arts styles and has been replaced
with techniques that are relevant to our times.
About the author:
Steven Gregoire has been training in the martial arts since
1986. Currently he operates Tigerstrike.com A martial art equipment and
supply store.
|
|
|
|
|
|
