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Self Defense Secret Weapon - The Headbutt

Author: Christopher Roberts
Date Posted: May 17, 2009

I have noticed that an ever-increasing number of self-proclaimed "self-defense experts" are talking negatively about a friend of mine that has saved my skin more than once.

That friend that I feel the need to defend today is my personal go-to technique, the headbutt.

Considering the simple fact that every streetfighter who I know holds my old friend in very high regards, I was totally shocked at first that anyone would even think of saying that the headbutt is not an essential technique until I realized something that easily explains everything:

THOSE INDIVIDUALS WHO SPEAK BADLY ABOUT THE HEADBUTT HAVE ZERO COMBAT EXPERIENCE!!

Period!

Listen, once and for all, if someone tries to tell you that the headbutt won't save your life when your back is to the wall and you wonder if you are going to survive long enough to be brought to the hospital, then you know 100 % that he is just a keyboard jockey who has never been in a fight in his life.

For example, I once was hired to train armed guards for a security company here in Germany. During a break after a session of training in unarmed close-combat, one of the trainees started telling me about how the headbutt is difficult to use, dangerous for the user and ineffective.

That person happened to think that he knew what he was talking about because he was a high-level Wing Chun instructor and taught womens' self-defense seminars in his school.

I tried and failed to change his mind, then was told a few days later, that he was recently beaten in a bar fight in the small town where he lived.

Apparently, he asked someone to walk outside with him, someone who was standing and, while he started to get up, was blindsided with a sucker punch. I guess he was waiting for the trainer to tell him that the sparring match had started . . .

So, like I said, don't expect your Sensei or Sifu to teach you how to butt with you head, or even approve of you learning it from me, but don't expect me to teach you kata or forms or give you a new belt every month, either.

So, now for the reasons why the headbutt is such a misunderstood, though essential technique for you self-defense arsenal:

1. It is easy -- You don't need to stretch or strengthen any part of your body to use a headbutt. You don't need to "train" it, either. Just learn the proper body mechanics and striking surface and you have a "friend for life" who will always be there when you need him.

2. It is destructive -- The optimal striking surface of the head is very stable and very hard and the head is very heavy. When you lie down in bed tonight, have someone drop your grandpa's bowling ball on your face. The weight and hardness of the head are VERY similar to those of a bowling ball.

3. You DO need to learn how to butt -- Some people who talk badly about the headbutt have seen INEXPERIENCED and / or UNTRAINED individuals try it, which usually results in both people being injured. That means that you do need to learn proper technique, but also makes it easier to block a headbutt from an amateur and damage him in the process. If you know how . . .

4. It is fast -- You don't need to wind up (one of the first things you need to learn about butting) or make any large movements with your arms or legs, which would telegraph another strike.

5. You can use it from almost any distance, in almost any situation -- Standing or on the ground, moving or in a clinch, from long distances all the way until you are almost touching your opponent.

So, that was my defense for the headbutt and those were the reasons why I have made headbutt offense and defense an integral part of my online apprenticeship program.

About The Author

Christopher "Bob" Roberts is an ex-soldier who relocated to Europe and now earns his living as a tactics and close-combat instructor for military, police and private security companies.

For more information about armed and unarmed self-protection, subscribe to his free newsletters at http://www.extreme-measures-institute.com and receive access to an exclusive video interview series, where he explains the fundamentals of truly effective self defense.

Article Source: JKD Street Combat - online collection of articles on self-defense.

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