"You're a STRANGER! I'm in DANGER!" Song-and-dance by Woodlands International College!
Self-Defence Training by Warren Ho and Defence Unlimited - 18 Aug 2015
Get EDUCATED. Fell EMPOWER. Live a FULLY-ENGAGED life!
Tuesday, 18 August 2015
Monday, 17 August 2015
Self-Defence Workshop At Gulfstream Energy by Defence Unlimited - 4 Aug ...
4 AUG 2015 - GULFSTREAM ENERGY has an AWESOME self-defence workshop from Warren Ho of Defence Unlimited!
Get EDUCATED. Fell EMPOWER. Live a FULLY-ENGAGED life!
Get EDUCATED. Fell EMPOWER. Live a FULLY-ENGAGED life!
Self-Defence Presentation At Omnia Group by Defence Unlimited - 7 Aug 2015
7 AUG 2015 - OMNIA GROUP has an AWESOME self-defence presentation from Warren Ho of Defence Unlimited and learn to use the power of their voice!
Get EDUCATED. Fell EMPOWER. Live a FULLY-ENGAGED life!
Get EDUCATED. Fell EMPOWER. Live a FULLY-ENGAGED life!
Self-Defence 1-Day Workshop At Action Aid South Africa - 16 Aug 2015
A short message from #ActionAidSA after their awesome #selfdefencesession last week! #SafeCitiesForWomen #DefenceUnlimited
Thursday, 16 July 2015
#MANDELADAY’s 67mins Self-Defence Workshop
“Nelson
Rolihlahla Mandela ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African
anti-apartheid revolutionary, politician and philanthropist who served as
President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was South Africa's first black
chief executive, and the first elected in a fully representative democratic
election.
…
Mandela was
a controversial figure for much of his life. Denounced as a communist terrorist
by critics, he nevertheless gained international acclaim for his activism,
having received more than 250 honours, including the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize,
the US Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Soviet Order of Lenin. He is held
in deep respect within South Africa, where he is often referred to by his Xhosa
clan name, Madiba, or as Tata ("Father"); he is often described as
the "Father of the Nation"”
On the 18
July, 2015, on what has now been known worldwide as “MandelaDay”, I will be
doing a 67 mins Self-Defence Workshop for the local Chinese community, in spirit
of what Mandela Day represents. The message behind Mandela Day is simple – each
individual has the ability and the responsibility to change the world for the
better. If each one of us heeded the call to simply do good every day, we would
be living Nelson Mandela’s legacy and helping to build a country of our dreams.
To me, this is a very heart-felt message as I deeply love my country of birth,
South Africa. I had decided many years ago to not immigrate to the likes of
Australia, Canada or the UK; as so many other South Africans have. Furthermore, it encouraged me to take action against
some of the problems we face in our society. Defence Unlimited was the embodiment
of that love and desire to make a difference.
After coming
across my advert on Facebook to promote the 67 mins Self-Defence Workshop, I was
asked by a journalist from an international new agency the following questions:
1. Why did you decide to celebrate Mandela
Day that way?
WH: Nelson
Mandela is one of my personal heroes whom I look up to for guidance and
inspiration. For me, he was a man of
integrity, peace and understanding and is the embodiment of a true leader. I
believe his ideals for humanity was truly inspirational, especially in his
words, “umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu”, or “you must serve your fellow man”. It is
only through this caring and serving each other will we be able to overcome all
the adversity that we, as South Africans, currently face. Furthermore, his
words of “It is in your hands to create a better world for all who live in it” really
inspired me to step forward and take action to address some of the issues our
country and my Chinese community faces, one of which is crime and the fear of
crime. Being in the business that I am, I felt that my company, Defence
Unlimited and I, could do this free workshop to the Chinese community, as well
as make a small contribution to the Hong Ning Chinese Old Age Home.
2. How have you celebrated the day in the
previous years?
WH: Last year
was the first initiative that Defence Unlimited offered free 67mins public
self-defence presentation to the public.
It was held at the Rivonia Sports Club on a cold winter’s evening.
Attendance was small, but respectable!
Read about the experience here: http://defence-unlimited.blogspot.com/2014/07/mandela-day-2014-67mins-of-self-defence.html
In previous
years, I had been with a few corporate initiatives, including food packing and
distribution for various communities.
3. Do you think is still relevant and will
continue to be relevant to the world?
WH: If you
referring to Mandela Day, yes, absolutely! If anything, I think the spirit of
Mandela Day is more relevant now than ever! In light of all the global
turbulence and chaos, we need more positive ideals and action such as the ones
that Mandela day encourages. There is a
saying from the Bible that says, “If good men do not act, evil will
prevail”. Therefore, it is the interest
for everyone to do their bit, no matter how small it may be, in combating this
evil around the world.
4. What does Mandela mean to you?
WH: Well, as
mentioned, he is a personal hero of mine. I’ve read a few books about his life
and his leadership styles, as well as researched some of his public appearances
and speeches. By doing so, I got to know what his ideals and aspirations were
for ALL South Africans, and actually for humanity as a whole. It is these
aspirations that really touched me and made me want to be a better person both
for myself, my family and for society. I
should mention that I also got to meet him briefly right after his release from
prison in 1990. It was at the Park Lane hospital and he was going for a
check-up. I was quite young at the time, and didn’t know who this tall, African
man was who was flanked by even two bigger African men (his body guards). There
was a moment that he stopped, waved and smiled at my sister and I. All I can
remember was how genuine and sincere his smile was, as how happy that made me
feel - I could not help but smile back!
5. What lessons can be learnt from
Mandela's life?
WH: Just too
many to mention! Just off the top of my head: Have integrity at all times; Be
courageous; Be compassionate; Be a good leader; Have core principles that you
abide to; listen intensely before making a response; don’t hurry – think,
analyse then act; and my personal
favourite, “never let fear defeat you”.
I hope that
Mandela Day inspires you to go out and make a difference in this world.
Till next
time.
Get EDUCATED. Feel EMPOWERED. Live a FULLY-ENGAGED
life.
For more information on the workshop, please go to:
For more infomation on Mandela Day, please go to:
Thursday, 9 July 2015
Looking For Kinks In My Self-Defence Armour
In the past few months, I had a number of occasions to
discover some of the kinks in my self-defence armour that made me question just
how vulnerable I am to an attack.
My most recent revelation was at the Intensive Krav Maga Instructor’s
course that I attended with KMSA for 10 solid days (refer to http://defence-unlimited.blogspot.com/2015/07/krav-maga-explosive-aggressive.html
). During the 10 days, I was physically, mentally and emotionally challenged in
a variety of ways! There was kicking,
punching, falling, grappling and intensive exercising for 8 hrs solid EVERY
day. My body was tired, sore, and stiff in places I couldn’t even imagine. For
instance, I had to take a risk the one day and not wear my groin protector as
the skin on my inner thighs got so
chaffed from the cumulative days of training, that it resembled a gravel
road in the hot, Kalahari desert. Murphy ’s Law dictates that it would be on
those days I would be stuck multiple times in the groin by my training
partners! On another occasion, one of my contact lenses got damaged and was irritating
me so much that I had to remove it midway through training. Considering the
contact lens was to compensate for my -8.0 vision in that one eye, I was pretty
much blind. For those who do not wear contacts, having vision in one and non in
the other can be very disorientating and nauseating. Worst still, I had to
brave a 45 min drive back home, along which I would have to travel on one strip
of road was notorious for being a hi-jacking hot spot. Keeping in mind that I do
also live in one of the most crime-ridden countries in the world (as per the
global stats), I knew I had to be extra vigilant and be ready for whatever
action was necessary to preserve my life. I therefore took the decision to put
the damaged contact lens back into my eye. As painful as it was to have it in, it
was the only choice in my eyes (pun intended), considering the alternative -
die in an accident trying to get home or die in a possible hi-jacking attempt
because I was unable to see the danger around me. The best way to describe the
pain was as if someone was poking my eye every 10 seconds with a fountain pen!
For a 45 min journey, that was a lot of pokes! It was during these painful
moments of my body and my weakened mental and emotional fortitude, that I
realised that these were kinks in my self-defence armour - my moments of vulnerability
and opportunities that the common criminal will look out for so as to take
advantage of my pitiful state.
This brings me to self-defence 101, being self-aware. By understanding
what I was or was not capably of in that state of body and mind, I could put a plan
together to make myself a "hard target", or making it APPEAR that I
am a hard target. The theory of being a "hard target" is to make it
appear as if I am a person who is capable of handling myself in a situation, or
to create sufficient barriers around me that will discourage a potential
attacker from harming me. This may be as simple as the way I walk, or the way I
observe (or not observe) the environment around me; to having an injury,
illness or disability that may weaken my perceived defensive fortress, and
having the ability to mask or subdue it. Then, there is also an understanding
what "social-conditioning" has hampered my ability to defend myself,
should I need to (more on social conditioning in a later blog).This is what I
teach when referring to SELF-AWARENESS.
Secondly, being a hard target is also being aware of my immediate
environment or the activities I undertake within this environment that may make
me appear to have a "disadvantages" of any kind. For example, do I
have a child with me, in which case I will be distracted or more concerned of
their safety should something happen; am I being distracted by my phone and if
so, I am leaving myself open to a possible surprise attacks); am I carrying too
many groceries or paraphernalia that could hamper my getaway; am I showing a
bit too much skin or bling in a not too savvy neighbourhood? This is what I
refer to MICRO-AWARENESS and is the EASIEST of all three awareness to control
and exact immediate changes to reduce these vulnerabilities in my micro-environment.
Lastly, which is the hardest to control, is the
macro-environment, which is the environment or situation that falls outside my
sphere of control or influence, or require a great effort to influence some
kind of change. This could be your neighbourhood, city or country that I live
in; the treacherous strip of road that is notorious for hijackings that I need
to travel on as it is the ONLY road to get to and from work and home; specific
rules or laws that prohibit me from carrying a weapon (and is strictly
enforced). As mentioned, this is very difficult to control, however, just by being
aware of what elements are in these environment that will get me to look at
some creative ways to reduce some of these risks. (MACRO-AWARENESS)
To conclude, here are “10 Vulnerability Factors” to consider
when evaluating what your chances of becoming a victim of crime is:
1. Injuries / Illnesses / Handicap
2. Gender
3. Age
4. General Health (Cardio, Strength, Stamina, Flexibility)
5. Specific self-defence and safety mind-set
6. Social conditioning
7. Martial arts or combative training experience
8. Are the current activities I am undertaking making me vulnerable?
(Micro-environment)
9. Overall macro-environmental risks (job, home, laws &
rules, city, country)
10. My self-defence attitude!
Hopefully with this knowledge, you will take a closer look
at where your kinks in your self-defence armour are and take the necessary actions
to fill the gaps. Whether it's educating yourself with more knowledge of the
topic of personal safety, or empowering yourself by taking up a self-defence or
martial arts class or getting fitter by
going to the gym or taking up some other fitness activity, the ultimate
objective is to live a good life of your choice, a FULLY-ENGAGED life.
Till next time.
Get EDUCATED. Feel EMPOWERED. Live a FULLY-ENGAGED life.
Thursday, 2 July 2015
Krav Maga… Explosive, Aggressive, Effective… My Thoughts & Views
Before I begin, I must state that I am by no means pro- or
anti- Israel and am merely reporting on my experience of this combative system.
I am looking at the product rather than the history and process by which this system
came to be.
Well, what can I say other that I was thoroughly impressed
with this course! Not only was it professionally conducted by Sensei Brett
Clarke (Director of Krav Maga South Africa (KMSA), the only institution affiliated
to the Wingate Institute in Israel), but the material was actually very good too!
What impressed me most was its structured approach that covered a wide array of
armed and unarmed threat neutralization.
As for Krav Maga itself, it is ALMOST the
epitome of what my self-defence journey has been leading me to and the philosophy
that I had adapted a long time ago that started me on this path of self-defence
discovery, namely “to devise/develop/discover a self-defence system that will
be relevant and effective for anyone and everyone." Krav Maga meets 2 of the 3 criteria –
relevant and effective. I will discuss its “perceived shortcomings” in the 3rd
category a bit later. However, let me elaborate a bit more on the 1st
2 criteria – relevant and effective. Krav Maga is a self-defence system that
was developed by the Israeli Military in the 1900’s and has become a global
system that anyone can now use as an effective means of protecting themselves. Krav
Maga encourages students to avoid confrontation; however, if it is not possible
or unsafe to do so, it promotes finishing a fight as quickly as possible. Its
focus is on real-world situations and is extremely efficient due to its
aggressive and explosive techniques. With that said, the 3rd
criteria of it being able to be used by “anyone and everyone” may only be one of its few shortcomings.
The techniques require a certain amount of fitness, strength and speed to be
able to be performed effectively. Therefore, this might exclude those who are
physically weaker, sickly or disadvantaged in any other way. However, with that
said, Krav Maga might be the activity for those who wish to both increase their
fitness prowess as well as their self-defence skills – Something that I am a
strong supporter of!
To give a little more insight into the course, I was exposed
to 10 days of being punched, kicked, elbowed, kneed, thrown, grappled, stabbed,
slashed and threatened by gunpoint at! The system covers the full array of threats
that a normal civilian could be subjected to, and how to neutralise those
threats. Again, the emphasis was on an effective
and aggressive response to those threats. Although their techniques may seem haphazard
and messy to a bystander, there is a lot of logic that goes behind each move.
The key is being able to apply that logic to each move when under pressure and
with accuracy, speed and strength. By day 10, my group of fellow instructors
had to undergo such pressure-testing and all I can say was that it was
challenging! Although I have done a few short Krav Maga courses in the past,
never had I been subjected to 10 days of continually high-intensity training such as this course! It
was both exhausting and exhilarating!
Fortunately, my skills in Krav Maga were
relatively easy to acquire due to the many black belts that I had already accomplished
in the past. It was just a matter of tweaking a few skills and a change in mind-set.
However, a bigger revelation was that because I had not practised my arts every
day, those past skill and attributes that collectively make up that skill, had diminish
over time. My body felt the effects of
these diminished skills by day 4 with all the kicks and break-falls that we had
to do over and over again - so much for being a 4th dan In Taekwondo
and a 2nd dan in Hapkido. The way I was kicking, one could have mistaken
me for a pirate with wooden stumps for legs trying to play English premier league
football!
A passing comment made by a
long-time Krav Maga practitioner left me with quite a positive impression of this system. Basically he said was that some techniques had changed since
the time he first started doing Krav Maga. What this indicates to me is that
the system is willing to change and adapt its techniques to be more efficient
and relevant for modern society’s threats – something that some of the traditional
martial arts would frown upon.
On a more personal note - after 10 days of sharing blood, sweat
and injuries with a group of strangers, one cannot but form a bond that can
best be described as a brotherhood with them. There is a certain type of character
that gets attracted to such sadistic activities and it is through this shared
experience that I can honestly say, I know and trust these people more than I
would some blood relatives. A wise man once said, “Blood doesn’t make family –
loyalty does.” Thank you my fellow brothers and sister for sharing this journey
with me.
Krav Maga definitely ranks up there with my list of effective
self-defence systems. Improving on this system would be hard, but not
impossible, as I definitely think there are some areas that I would like to
elaborate on or explore further. My journey in Krav Maga may have just started,
but will by no means be solely defined by it. My self-defence journey continues.
To conclude, what did I learn? Besides the obvious
self-defence skills, I also learned how to be a better teacher. As a teacher, one is always striving to find better
ways in which to impart the skills and knowledge to a student. As a student,
it's all about personal development and being able to accept and apply the
instructions of his/her teacher. It's a constant cycle of duality and is one
that I hope to continue being on for a very long time.
Till next time.
Get EDUCATED. Feel EMPOWERED. Live a FULLY-ENGAGED life.
"Some action pics from one of the days!"
For more information on Defence Unlimited's Krav Maga Classes, please refer to the www.defence-unlimited.com website.
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