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"Ideally, your self-defense will never get physical. Avoiding the situation and running or talking you way out - either of these is a higher order of strategy than winning a physical battle." - Wise Words of Rory Miller, Facing Violence: Chapter 7: after, subparagraph 7.1:medical

"Read not to contradict and confute; nor to believe and take for granted; nor to find talk and discourse; but to weigh and consider..." - Francis Bacon

Warning, Caveat and Note: The postings on this blog are my interpretation of readings, studies and experiences therefore errors and omissions are mine and mine alone. The content surrounding the extracts of books, see bibliography on this blog site, are also mine and mine alone therefore errors and omissions are also mine and mine alone and therefore why I highly recommended one read, study, research and fact find the material for clarity. My effort here is self-clarity toward a fuller understanding of the subject matter. See the bibliography for information on the books.


Note: I will endevor to provide a bibliography and italicize any direct quotes from the materials I use for this blog. If there are mistakes, errors, and/or omissions, I take full responsibility for them as they are mine and mine alone. If you find any mistakes, errors, and/or omissions please comment and let me know along with the correct information and/or sources.

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A Perspective Study - What is Bunkai [分解]?

Caveat: This post is mine and mine alone. I the author of this blog assure you, the reader, that any of the opinions expressed here are my own and are a result of the way in which my meandering mind interprets a particular situation and or concept. The views expressed here are solely those of the author in his private capacity and do not in any way represent the views of other martial arts and/or conflict/violence professionals or authors of source materials. It should be quite obvious that the sources I used herein have not approved, endorsed, embraced, friended, liked, tweeted or authorized this post. (Everything I think and write is true, within the limits of my knowledge and understanding.)

Bet you the first thought that comes to mind it an explanation of a technique in regard to its possible applications in a fight or for self-defense, right? I am going to go a bit further in today’s post to answer the question, “What is bunkai?”

First, you have to have the characters/ideograms to adequately define this martial term. This is the one I use:

Bunkai [分解]: The characters/ideograms mean, “disassembly; dismantling; disaggregating; analysis; disintegrating; decomposing; degrading." The first character means, "part; minute of time; segment; share; degree; one's lot; duty; understand; know; rate; chances," the second character means, "unravel; notes; key; explanation; understanding; untie; undo; solve; answer; cancel; absolve; explain; minute." Bunkai means to analyze or disassemble, a term used to describe a process of breaking apart a form to explain the application toward fighting or in more modern times self-defense. It describes the meaning of a movement within the kata and basic techniques.

Second, this is the bare bones translation from one of many kanji translations found through Internet sources. Martial artists often assume, rightly so, that bunkai is pretty much about analyzing and dissembling kata, etc., to explain or demonstrate what one can do in relation to what one does to combatants. 

When I think of bunkai, I tend to think about a bit more than analysis of technique. Granted, this is a cornerstone of bunkai and martial arts but it is not the whole of bunkai. When I study things like concepts in martial arts for self-defense, when I study things like fundamental principles in martial arts for self-defense, and when I study the theories and philosophies then use that knowledge to disaggregate my study of martial arts especially toward self-defense I think, bunkai. 

When I study the history of the systems and then use those to analyze and segment and understand my martial arts practice and training I am using the bunkai of the system. Look at bunkai as another way to categorize concepts, principles and philosophies and so on under the heading of Martial Bunkai. It is NOT just explaining the techniques applications, it is explaining the applications that span the entire system of study, the discipline.

I have spent the last decade and more to discover the underlying meaning of my study of martial arts, specifically self-defense martial arts/karate. In order to find that underlying meaning, the systems bunkai, I have to research, disassemble, analyze, recompile, understand, solve, explain and teach and practice and train myself and others the system that is my martial arts (for self-defense).

Bunkai is not just an explanation of the techniques applications in the fight, it is about obtaining the martial bunkai that is the meaning of the system itself. It is the research, disassemble, analyze, recompile, understand, solve, explain and teach and practice and training of the theory, physiokinetics, techniques, and philosophy of the entire wholehearted system and it includes all the aspects of self-defense if that is included in your martial arts. 

Bunkai, not JUST about techniques anymore!

Primary Bibliography of Self-Defense:
MacYoung, Marc. "In the Name of Self-Defense: What It Costs. When It’s Worth It." Marc MacYoung. 2014.
Miller, Rory Sgt. "Meditations of Violence: A Comparison of Martial Arts Training & Real World Violence" YMAA Publishing. 2008.

Secondary Bibliography of Self-Defense:
Ayoob, Massad. “Deadly Force: Understanding Your Right to Self-Defense”Gun Digest Books. Krouse Publications. Wisconsin. 2014.
Goleman, Daniel. "Emotional Intelligence: 10th Anniversary Edition [Kindle Edition]." Bantam. January 11, 2012.
Miller, Rory. "ConCom: Conflict Communications A New Paradigm in Conscious Communication." Amazon Digital Services, Inc. 2014. 
Miller, Rory and Kane, Lawrence A. "Scaling Force: Dynamic Decision-making under Threat of Violence." YMAA Publisher. New Hampshire. 2012
Miller, Rory. "Force Decisions: A Citizen's Guide." YMAA Publications. NH. 2012.
Miller, Rory Sgt. "Facing Violence: Preparing for the Unexpected." YMAA Publishing. 2011.
Elgin, Suzette Haden, Ph.D. "More on the Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense." Prentice Hall. New Jersey. 1983.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Last Word on the Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense" Barnes & Noble. 1995
Morris, Desmond. “Manwatching: A Field Guide to Human Behavior.” Harry N. Abrams. April 1979.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense" Barnes & Noble. 1993.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Gentle Art of Written Self-Defense" MJF Books. 1997.
Maffetone, Philip Dr. “The Maffetone Method: The Holistic, Low-stress, No-Pain Way to Exceptional Fitness.” McGraw Hill, New York. 2000
Strong, Sanford. “Strong on Defense_ Survival Rules to Protect you and your Family from Crime.” Pocket Books. New York. 1996.
and more … see blog bibliography.

My Blog Bibliography

Cornered Cat (Scratching Post): http://www.corneredcat.com/scratching-post/
Kodokan Boston: http://kodokanboston.org
Mario McKenna (Kowakan): http://www.kowakan.com
Wim Demeere’s Blog: http://www.wimsblog.com

Is it mandatory one keep true to the original kata taught?

Caveat: This post is mine and mine alone. I the author of this blog assure you, the reader, that any of the opinions expressed here are my own and are a result of the way in which my meandering mind interprets a particular situation and or concept. The views expressed here are solely those of the author in his private capacity and do not in any way represent the views of other martial arts and/or conflict/violence professionals or authors of source materials. It should be quite obvious that the sources I used herein have not approved, endorsed, embraced, friended, liked, tweeted or authorized this post. (Everything I think and write is true, within the limits of my knowledge and understanding.)

A recent posting brought this question up with the following quote that, for me, stood out prominently. It speaks to one of modern karate’s issues that I personally feel leaves most karate-ka in the past rather then in the now especially regarding self-defense martial arts or self-defense karate. The concern was thinking that if one changed the kata or lost a technique of the kata that the resulting bunkai or technique would also be lost or changed. The quote:

“Kata was wrong therefore the bunkai will be wrong” 

Here is how I would respond to the question:

First, kata cannot be wrong. It may be done differently than you but that does not make it wrong. Second, bunkai also cannot be wrong. It may not work in a particular situation or circumstance but it might work the next time around. It all comes down to what works in a real fight for self-defense, not sport or competitions but in self-defense. That is a whole nother ballgame there and most bunkai today is simply a creation of folks who have not had to find out if it works or not and it is a creation of folks who have not had to apply their self-defense except maybe is some socially driven monkey dance and that was probably not martial arts based. 

Changing or removing techniques has nothing to do with what works and what does not. It means that particular technique won’t be passed along to students in that kata. Remember, kata is not about fighting or self-defense or combatives or competitions but rather a blueprint of techniques strung together it a form that makes it easy to pass things down to students especially when those students have no fighting or combat experience to draw on.

Kata are the creation of those who came before, our ancestors in the martial arts communities who had to take their combat experiences and teach those with no experience so they may go to combat and at least survive to gain some semblance of experience to continue to survive. They created kata in a form that provided a symbolic representation of individual techniques then they put them together in a rhythmic and inter-connectiing form that made it easy to learn but most of all importantly, to remember.

Kata were not created to remain exactly as their creator created them. Since they pass down his experiences in combat you can expect that they will change, not just for changes sake but due to the students personal experiences, studies and accumulated knowledge toward making them relevant to the times of that person. That person living in more modern times where the old ways may or may not be relevant to the current situations and times. 

Kata are meant to be fluid according to the times, the cultures, the beliefs and the experiences of present day practitioners BUT DO NOT CHANGE KATA OR BUNKAI simply for changes sake. If you don’t experience actual social and asocial violence applying your ability and knowledge thereby learning what didn’t work just like you wanted and changing it so it will work at least mostly consistently over many events and situations then DON’T CHANGE THE KATA AND BUNKAI.

Too many of us make changes we “think” are going to work based on assumptions and knowledge learned second or third hand, this is dangerous. 

Bunkai are simply primers toward learning combatives, if you are military, or self-defense, if you are a self-defense martial artist, and are not set in stone. Think more in terms of concepts and principles. 

Concepts such as those taught by professionals who have accumulated many, many experiences with violence. Admit it, most of us have minimal experiences in violent encounters and many of us have almost no asocial violent experiences but that does not mean we should not study and learn self-defense martial arts because like the military, recruits have to begin somewhere so they may or might survive their first combat encounter thereby allowing them to learn from their personal experience and the guidance of senior military with experience.

Concepts are not about specific techniques but rather conveyed experiences that promote better ability to apply any relevant action that will get you through violent conflicts. It has and always will be about learning second hand those concepts, principles, strategies and tactics that will get you through all three phases of self-defense, i.e., the before, the during and the after. Look at specifics found in kata and bunkai as forms that actually refer us physically and mentally to underlying principles of martial systems, i.e., structure, centeredness, sequential locking and unlocking, etc. then let those basics and fundamentals apply toward the concepts of self-defense, i.e., like the before, during and after and so on. 

Look at bunkai as a novice level doorway to create a more holistic concept to what you need to survive conflict and violence. It is similar to the upper and lower basics, they are a good start point but not the end of the road. Think concept, i.e., like understanding the concept of adrenal flooding and then learning how to make that work in your favor instead of against you. Think concept, i.e., like the “freeze” and how that can be overcome cause you are going to encounter it even if you gain experience, it is a fact of life. Think concept, i.e., like “mind-set/mind-state” where giving yourself permission to ignore every day societal well mannered courtesies that are often used against you to allow predators to attack, i.e., to collect some resource they need or to apply some process like they want to see you get hurt type thing.

Addendum: The reason why kata are beneficial to passing marital arts down through the ages. First, it is a form that is suited toward encoding into memory. It is organized in an order similar to some types of memory encoding, i.e., kata as a type of physical and mental mnemonic; where one has a physical, visual, and spatial oriented order with rhythm and associations such as two person kata that show how one movement when association to another different movement work in a specified way; certain positioning in space that leads to a natural order or flow, i.e., why techniques are strung together in kara forms; in an associative way that associations in memory that are associated with images or visualization intended as “examples” tend to cause such associations to encode into deep memory the kata and bunkai; the association of emotion with an image, i.e., performing kata while applying bunkai either by visualization or by two person drills that will result in said emotion and image to be readily recollected and connected in the need to apply it outside of training;  then there is repetition as a common process along with image visualizations and physical repetitive drill practices that play a role in the more complex toward encoding into memory; finally when the adrenal flood is used to train the holistic application of kata bunkai then it can be further emotionally and chemically encoded into the deepest of memory for retrieval later in a violent conflict that is the purpose of our studies in self-defense martial arts.

Kata and bunkai are used as a mnemonic teaching technique or device that aids in retaining the information passed down through the kata. Kata, being a physical manifestation of the discipline combines several senses to enforce retention, i.e., sight, smell and touch. These mnemonics in this form translate the necessary information of kata and bunkai in a way that aids in the transfer of that information, both mental and physical, into long-term memory. Look at the connectivity of kata, i.e., as each section of a kata is done in threes, that promotes memory encoding because of its use of spatial, personal, physical, emotional, etc. solidifying the lessons so they become instinctual.

Because of the kata form and function, kata itself creates its own system of spatial techniques or strategies that themselves consciously improve memory. The only piece often missed in this equation is the effects of the chemical releases due to fear and/or anger produced when confronted by violent conflicts. 

Primary Bibliography of Self-Defense:
MacYoung, Marc. "In the Name of Self-Defense: What It Costs. When It’s Worth It." Marc MacYoung. 2014.
Miller, Rory Sgt. "Meditations of Violence: A Comparison of Martial Arts Training & Real World Violence" YMAA Publishing. 2008.

Secondary Bibliography of Self-Defense:
Ayoob, Massad. “Deadly Force: Understanding Your Right to Self-Defense”Gun Digest Books. Krouse Publications. Wisconsin. 2014.
Goleman, Daniel. "Emotional Intelligence: 10th Anniversary Edition [Kindle Edition]." Bantam. January 11, 2012.
Miller, Rory. "ConCom: Conflict Communications A New Paradigm in Conscious Communication." Amazon Digital Services, Inc. 2014. 
Miller, Rory and Kane, Lawrence A. "Scaling Force: Dynamic Decision-making under Threat of Violence." YMAA Publisher. New Hampshire. 2012
Miller, Rory. "Force Decisions: A Citizen's Guide." YMAA Publications. NH. 2012.
Miller, Rory Sgt. "Facing Violence: Preparing for the Unexpected." YMAA Publishing. 2011.
Elgin, Suzette Haden, Ph.D. "More on the Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense." Prentice Hall. New Jersey. 1983.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Last Word on the Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense" Barnes & Noble. 1995
Morris, Desmond. “Manwatching: A Field Guide to Human Behavior.” Harry N. Abrams. April 1979.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense" Barnes & Noble. 1993.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Gentle Art of Written Self-Defense" MJF Books. 1997.
Maffetone, Philip Dr. “The Maffetone Method: The Holistic, Low-stress, No-Pain Way to Exceptional Fitness.” McGraw Hill, New York. 2000
Strong, Sanford. “Strong on Defense_ Survival Rules to Protect you and your Family from Crime.” Pocket Books. New York. 1996.
and more … see blog bibliography.

My Blog Bibliography

Cornered Cat (Scratching Post): http://www.corneredcat.com/scratching-post/
Kodokan Boston: http://kodokanboston.org
Mario McKenna (Kowakan): http://www.kowakan.com
Wim Demeere’s Blog: http://www.wimsblog.com

What came first: bunkai or two person kata or kata; kobudo or empty hand; chicken or the egg?

An excellent questions from Matt Jones at the Ryukyu Martial Arts (Research and General Discussion) Facebook group. The question goes like this:

"What came first, bunkai or two person kata drills or kata? Then he asks, what came first, kobudo or empty hand? Then, as a jest he asks what came first, the chicken or egg?" So, I answered with the following:

Last question first, actually a one cell type split, then along with evolution, created the creature that one day would soon be the chicken who then laid eggs.

Second question next, empty hand is first simply because humans didn’t survive using weapons until a time came to discover ways to be superior to other tribes for survival. Weapons came second and it is believed that empty hand training was the prerequisite to kobudo training in those early years.

First question next, bunkai because kata were created to pass along those combatives that Okinawans found to be useful, they worked. They took those techniques, tactics and strategies and created kata to teach those who were like recruits of today, no combat or experience so they developed kata from the bunkai to teach and pass on leaving the recruit to test and validate when they entered into combat.


I cannot for the life of me determine why those questions were important except maybe as a historical fact but it was asked and the reason I started this particular blog was to provide an answer to such questions with the caveat that the answers provided are mine from my perceptions, my perspectives and my experiences.

Karate, can it be used to prosecute in self-defense? In the dojo? In ???

Caveat: This post is mine and mine alone. I the author of this blog assure you, the reader, that any of the opinions expressed here are my own and are a result of the way in which my meandering mind interprets a particular situation and or concept. The views expressed here are solely those of the author in his private capacity and do not in any way represent the views of other martial arts and/or conflict/violence professionals or authors of source materials. It should be quite obvious that the sources I used herein have not approved, endorsed, embraced, friended, liked, tweeted or authorized this post.

Caveat II: This is not legal advice. I am not a legal professional at any level. I am merely a martial artist and this is just an attempt to discuss the possibility of prosecution where martial arts expertise may or may not be used against you in a prosecution for fighting, conflict and/or violence. It is advisable to seek out legal consulting of this subject from a legal professional. Read caveat one again, this is just a discussion with ideas, thoughts and considerations I, personally, believe all martial artist must know if they teach, train and practice with other human beings. 

First, if one uses self-defense within the legal scope of a defense of justification most likely will not be prosecuted. As some professionals have written, if you remain within the square of self-defense it is most likely to result in no prosecution. This does not mean the same in civil situations but that is a whole story you can read about in Marc MacYoung’s book, “In the Name of Self-Defense.”

Second, your expertise can become an issue if you slide outside the proverbial square of self-defense. This is also true in the dojo, during practices. At least the potential is there because of the view the legal system and society take toward fighting. It comes down to, it all depends. 

Third, even tho mutual agreement with risks and assumptions known to you, you can go beyond those in the dojo and come under fighting illegal. In my mind it is the difference between legal dojo fighting and illegal dojo fighting. 

In self-defense, it seems that the use of our hands and feet would not be considered deadly or lethal weapons. It boils down to force considerations in an attack and that subject is covered in other, more detailed, sources as can be seen by the bibliography below. It depends on the adversary/attack as to his level of force vs. the applied level of force a martial artist applies. It also may be compared to what force is used vs. what you use as a martial artists, i.e., both are empty handed vs. the adversary is armed and the martial artist is empty handed and so on. Again, it is a complex subject requiring a legal professionals assessment of the particulars and circumstances. There is one quote that may enlighten this subject as it regards martial arts application in self-defense, i.e., “A more practical level, the skilled martial artist confronted by an armed assailant should be able to calibrate his blow to meet the attack with a similar degree of force. Where there is not time to reflect or to accurately determine the intensity of the attack, then one’s trained tendency to protect oneself with a split-second and devastating technique coupled with one’s natural tendency to preserve oneself will not be ignored by the law and in all probability the force will not be deemed to be excessive - again, a question of reasonable and prudent under the circumstances applies.” This would apply toward the legal ramifications while a more civil one could be expressed in the following quote, when practicing in the dojo, etc.:

“In the Dojo, the vast majority of contact between practitioners, whether practicing self-defense techniques or sport applications or engaging in free style fighting/sparring, does not justify a lawsuit because consent is expressly, or, more often than not, impliedly given from the mere fact that the two practitioners agreed to practice together. The scope of the consent cannot be extended beyond that which is reasonable under the circumstances. This range of consent within the training hall is usually defined and controlled by the head instructor or sensei of a particular dojo. The Code of Conduct in the traditional dojo is quite formal and proper decorum while practicing must be strictly adhered to. Historically, this can be traced to the concept of bushido, the way of the warrior, of twelfth century feudal Japan. This oriental code of activity strictly defined proper conduct by which the bushi could apply his martial skills.” 

A martial artist regardless of how the practice and apply their skills shall, take the time to reflect upon the legal consequences that flow from using martial prowess in the dojo, out of the dojo and for sport, combatives and self-defense. The martial artists should also consider perceptions as they relate to martial arts when utilized for self-defense and/or sport because those perceptions can effect the legal matters, if they should arise when applied in the dojo and out on the street. 

When a martial artist considers such things it should be remembered that the law has implications within the confines of the training hall, the dojo and the study of those liabilities are important to the survival of the dojo as well as the martial artist. Just because you practice and train in martial disciplines in a dojo/training hall, you are not exempt from both moral and legal requirements that can, may and sometimes do result in criminal and civil ramifications. 

The end result of this post is this, “Every person who finds the need to apply physical skills in defense of themselves and others must first consider both the criminal and civil liabilities along with other factors such as economical, health and psychological ramifications - to name just a few. That means, the study of laws applicable to martial arts and self-defense and the expertise of legal professionals to translate that law into a form understandable and applicable to you. 

Primary Bibliography of Self-Defense:
MacYoung, Marc. "In the Name of Self-Defense: What It Costs. When It’s Worth It." Marc MacYoung. 2014.
Miller, Rory Sgt. "Meditations of Violence: A Comparison of Martial Arts Training & Real World Violence" YMAA Publishing. 2008.

Secondary Bibliography of Self-Defense:
Ayoob, Massad. “Deadly Force: Understanding Your Right to Self-Defense”Gun Digest Books. Krouse Publications. Wisconsin. 2014.
Goleman, Daniel. "Emotional Intelligence: 10th Anniversary Edition [Kindle Edition]." Bantam. January 11, 2012.
Miller, Rory. "ConCom: Conflict Communications A New Paradigm in Conscious Communication." Amazon Digital Services, Inc. 2014. 
Miller, Rory and Kane, Lawrence A. "Scaling Force: Dynamic Decision-making under Threat of Violence." YMAA Publisher. New Hampshire. 2012
Miller, Rory. "Force Decisions: A Citizen's Guide." YMAA Publications. NH. 2012.
Miller, Rory Sgt. "Facing Violence: Preparing for the Unexpected." YMAA Publishing. 2011.
Elgin, Suzette Haden, Ph.D. "More on the Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense." Prentice Hall. New Jersey. 1983.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Last Word on the Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense" Barnes & Noble. 1995
Morris, Desmond. “Manwatching: A Field Guide to Human Behavior.” Harry N. Abrams. April 1979.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense" Barnes & Noble. 1993.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Gentle Art of Written Self-Defense" MJF Books. 1997.
Maffetone, Philip Dr. “The Maffetone Method: The Holistic, Low-stress, No-Pain Way to Exceptional Fitness.” McGraw Hill, New York. 2000
Strong, Sanford. “Strong on Defense_ Survival Rules to Protect you and your Family from Crime.” Pocket Books. New York. 1996.
and more … see blog bibliography.

My Blog Bibliography

Cornered Cat (Scratching Post): http://www.corneredcat.com/scratching-post/
Kodokan Boston: http://kodokanboston.org
Mario McKenna (Kowakan): http://www.kowakan.com

Wim Demeere’s Blog: http://www.wimsblog.com

Is free style sparring of value in martial arts? In fight training? In Self-defense training?

Jiyu-kumite or free style sparring. The question has been asked, “Is it important to practice or is it not needed?” Sparring in all forms, i.e. one-step, three-step, partner drills, etc., have their function. The focus of that function is the true question here. 

First, martial arts are about the application of fundamental principles for sport, fighting, combat and most important of all, self-defense in modern society. We can go round and round about its historical significance along with its connection to either classical or traditional practices but truth be told there is not enough historical fact to support any of that. 

Second, the form of sparring we see today did not exist prior early 1900’s, i.e., at least as far as can be determined with the scarce data on that subject. 

Third, even as a more modern creation, if that is so, it still holds value especially with the principles as described above. It provides a slow, safe training model that can teach and encode the principles into the mind-state of a practitioner. In that, it is a lot like kata practice. Kata practice being one of those two person type training tools where its historical connections are also in doubt depending on who you talk to or what source you study.

If a practitioner, at the novice and student levels, i.e., the kyu grade levels and the sho-dan to san-dan levels, does sparring in all forms with the mind distinction to learn and apply principles, especially those physiokinetic sub-principles such as structure, spinal alignment, and the centerline, etc., then they will find them more accessible in a stress adrenal type circumstances provided other training of an appropriate nature has been completed.

It comes down to distinctions such as what is applicable to actual fighting in defense vs. sport competitions and so on. This usually falls down and then once a practitioner reaches their limits as a novice and student whereby they fail to graduate and seek the appropriate reality based training in that higher level of practice. Most of today’s martial arts are stuck at those novice and student levels. 

In reality the sparring sessions should incorporate several things to achieve a goal of self-defense. First, train with the adrenal flood. Not an easy thing to do with safety concerns, etc. Second, make all sparring sessions to meet the following criteria of an attack, i.e., it must be a surprise, it must deal with pain and fear and more often than not be fast, hard, very close and by surprise. Way to many SD courses rely heavily on the sport oriented competitive type contests where distance and other such sport concepts rule. 

Then there is the primo training requirement for reality based self-defense, i.e., the training of the mind-set/mind-state. You can train in several models but the mind-set must differentiate and the core training of the mind to deal with violent attacks must be paramount. The distinction is like writing in long hand block letters vs. switching to cursive writing forms. You know the difference and you can readily switch back and forth as circumstances dictate but with only one missing component, the adrenal flood effects. 


This is the same argument martial artists have been having since day one, i.e., are kata worth the effort, are they applicable to fighting, combat and/or defense? In the final answer they all are of value, they all serve a purpose - provided - you make the distinctions and train/practice accordingly. 

Primary Bibliography of Self-Defense:
MacYoung, Marc. "In the Name of Self-Defense: What It Costs. When It’s Worth It." Marc MacYoung. 2014.
Miller, Rory Sgt. "Meditations of Violence: A Comparison of Martial Arts Training & Real World Violence" YMAA Publishing. 2008.

Secondary Bibliography of Self-Defense:
Ayoob, Massad. “Deadly Force: Understanding Your Right to Self-Defense”Gun Digest Books. Krouse Publications. Wisconsin. 2014.
Goleman, Daniel. "Emotional Intelligence: 10th Anniversary Edition [Kindle Edition]." Bantam. January 11, 2012.
Miller, Rory. "ConCom: Conflict Communications A New Paradigm in Conscious Communication." Amazon Digital Services, Inc. 2014. 
Miller, Rory and Kane, Lawrence A. "Scaling Force: Dynamic Decision-making under Threat of Violence." YMAA Publisher. New Hampshire. 2012
Miller, Rory. "Force Decisions: A Citizen's Guide." YMAA Publications. NH. 2012.
Miller, Rory Sgt. "Facing Violence: Preparing for the Unexpected." YMAA Publishing. 2011.
Elgin, Suzette Haden, Ph.D. "More on the Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense." Prentice Hall. New Jersey. 1983.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Last Word on the Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense" Barnes & Noble. 1995
Morris, Desmond. “Manwatching: A Field Guide to Human Behavior.” Harry N. Abrams. April 1979.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense" Barnes & Noble. 1993.
Elgin, Suzette. "The Gentle Art of Written Self-Defense" MJF Books. 1997.
Maffetone, Philip Dr. “The Maffetone Method: The Holistic, Low-stress, No-Pain Way to Exceptional Fitness.” McGraw Hill, New York. 2000
Strong, Sanford. “Strong on Defense_ Survival Rules to Protect you and your Family from Crime.” Pocket Books. New York. 1996.
and more … see blog bibliography.

My Blog Bibliography

Cornered Cat (Scratching Post): http://www.corneredcat.com/scratching-post/
Kodokan Boston: http://kodokanboston.org
Mario McKenna (Kowakan): http://www.kowakan.com
Wim Demeere’s Blog: http://www.wimsblog.com