Touch

Ask any Martial Artist about how they would defend against any said attack and they will give you a brief scenario of if this, then that.

They will break down the attack and the defense and point out what they believe is a simple solution.

One thing most people don't understand about an attack is that it comes suddenly without warning and it's extremely CLOSE.

The proximity of an attacker is misunderstood, due mostly to movies and to the MMA circuit, and is generally a surprise even for those who have trained for a while but never faced an attack. Today's society is filled with random violence and you can be attacked for no other reason than just because you were the one there. Most schools have failed to instruct pupils on CQB (close quaters battle) and how to use things such as your surroundings to engage an attacker.

In the old days, it was always the rule of thumb that if someone held you up for your wallet, etc. don't fight back, let them have it because it isn't worth dying for. But the rules have changed and your attacker will probably kill you anyway. So today's Martial Artists have to train to literally be warriors rather than "artists". All of the competitions and dance routines are making a mockery of warrior arts and producing impotent stylists with no chance at making it out of an attack alive.

Try to remember that an attack will begin where your body ends. Try to practice defenses that are closer than you are comfortable. Be prepared to be touched, groped, manhandled, and grappled with.