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Senshido: Reality-Based Self Defense for Everyone

July 24, 2008

One thing that has concerned me for many years about self defense and martial arts is that most tend to focus solely on the physical aspects. While it is important to understand and appreciate how to fight, it is equally important to understand that the physical is only a small aspect of fighting. Senshido features self defense and self development from a holistic aspect incorporating all the aspects of fighting: the emotional, environmental, behavioral and the physical.

A Little Background on Senshido

Senshido Combative Technology is the brainchild of Richard Dimitri of Montreal Canada . He is considered to be one of the top instructors of self defense in the world and has taught the system in law enforcement, military personnel as well as the average Joe.

Senshido is self defense for everyone because it doesn’t rely on strength, size or athletic ability. It is truly the great equalizer in self defense. Because it incorporates all aspects of close quarter combat, it is considered to be a holistic form of self defense and self development.

What You Learn In Senshido

We teach how to be aware of your surroundings; how to listen to your intuition; and the proper way to defuse and deescalate a situation. If a situation can’t be defused or deescalated, students learn how to behaviorally and psychologically set the predator up so that if it goes physical, they increase their odds of getting home safely. We stress doing what needs to be done when it needs to be done, understanding that the force you use must parallel the danger you are experiencing . . . and no more.

A Typical Class…

A typical Senshido class for newcomers revolves around getting properly warmed up and then doing light stretching. Next is the completion of several rounds of Thai kicking and focus mitt drills.

After participants are nice and warm, we get into the lecture portion of the class. This could be going through scenarios, coming to grips with understanding behavior of a predator, pre-contact queues, pattern interrupts, understanding fear, how environment affects your outcome or how to control and channel your emotions to remain calm in the face of adversity.

After students gain knowledge of the fundamentals, common attacks are simulated, using restrained force and realistic dialogue. Full attacks are safely drilled so that students have an opportunity to experience an adrenaline dump. These are usually done in scenario format which replicates a potentially dangerous situation safely.

Students are debriefed afterward to see what they did that helped them ‘get home’ and what they need to pay more attention to in the future. Class ends with stretching and comments of what students learned in the session.

Students eventually learn the physical hallmark of Senshido - “The Shredder”™. This close quarter aspect of Senshido utilizes the five (5) principles of physical retaliation to ensure your safe finish to a fight.

It is gross motor based which is what is optimally available to the human body under stressful situations such as an attack would produce. After students have a firm understanding of the fundamentals, we teach them how to handle situations with weapons and multiple attackers.

Required Equipment and Costs

Students are required to have MMA style gloves that allow them to punch but also deliver open hand strikes. Rates vary among Senshido Affiliate Instructors and HQ in Montréal, but they are very affordable. All Affiliate Instructors are handpicked and screened by Richard Dimitri in Montreal as a form of quality control and also to ensure each individual affiliate is of high character.

Other Benefits

And the great thing about all of this is it can be added to your arsenal of tools if you’re a martial artist. If you have no martial arts experience, that is OK too. This is easy for you to pick up with no prior training.

So, if you are looking for a means to develop yourself as a human being and to learn from the undisputed leader in self defense, incorporating Senshido may be exactly what you’re looking for.

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About the Author: Glenn Wilson is the founder and Chief instructor of GoldenEye Martial Arts and Self Defense in Silver Spring, MD. He has over 20 years of experience in personal protection, holds a 2nd degree Black Belt in Kuk Sool and is a Certified Affiliate Instructor in Senshido Combative Technologies under Richard Dimitri. He can be reached at (301) 318-7959 or at http://www.goldeneyemartialarts.com

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Comments

One Response to “Senshido: Reality-Based Self Defense for Everyone”

  1. Michelle on July 28th, 2008 10:29 am

    Thanks for the information. In the past, the idea of martial arts training has been somewhat intimidating but this sounds like something I could do.

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