Unfortunately, it happens all too often: you’re out with some friends, minding your own business, when someone sets out to cause trouble with you. And despite your best efforts of de-escalation, you may not be able to get out of the situation easily. Or maybe you stumble around a corner and interrupt an assault already taking place, and the assailant – or assailants – focus on you instead. Or in an extreme case, you could be in a worst-case scenario: you’ve come home unexpectedly, or woken up in the middle of the night, and someone you don’t know is inside your home, and you’re in their way.

In situations like these, preparation is the key. You have to be able to act decisively and effectively, while ensuring the safety of you and your loved ones. You may be willing to do what it takes to protect them – but just how many options do you have? Do you really know when you can legally defend yourself? 

(Before going any further, we do have to point out – we are not lawyers, and as with any laws, this information is subject to change! These are guidelines only, and we make no guarantees that what is true today will hold up in the future. If you are in need of detailed help, consult someone who is trained to interpret the most up-to-date laws properly).
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Self-defense is a very grey legal area for many reasons, but one of the biggest ones is this – at some point when you are fighting back (if you are successful), you will no longer be defending, but attacking. Finding that point is very difficult to do after the fact, and it is up to the people involved to judge when they can safely stop fighting back and exit the situation. The crux of many cases is whether a person acted reasonably, and did no more harm than absolutely necessary; many factors are taken into account for this, like relative size, weight, gender, weapons, prior behaviour, martial arts training, and so on. But in general, if you are attacked, you are legally permitted to reasonably defend yourself until you are no longer in danger. 

When it comes to weapons, you also must be careful of what you use. It is actually illegal to buy or possess pepper spray in Canada, even for self-defense – and the same goes for a bat you pull from your truck, the switchblade in your pocket, or the brass knuckles you carry around. If you have anything on your person that you intend to use as a weapon, and then use it as such, it becomes harder to believe that your actions were entirely innocent, even if they were. The lines get blurry very quickly.

In Canada, you are innocent until the Crown proves you are guilty – which means that in a trial, the prosecution would have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you were not acting in self-defense. While it’s good that the default position is in your favour, these cases are often decided on sparse testimony, personal interpretations of behaviour, and second-hand evidence, so it is rarely as black and white as that. 

In general, when it comes to self-defense, less is more. As a trained martial artist, you most likely have an advantage in a physical fight, and that will be accounted for after the fact. Never cause more harm than you must, and always look for a safer option to defuse the situation before choosing to defend yourself physically. The goal of martial arts like kung fu is not to fight like in the movies – it’s to gain a valuable skill and improve the balance and harmony of your body. Use your brain as much as your brawn, and you’ll always have the upper hand.

(And remember: if in doubt, talk to the real experts. We’re not afraid to admit we might be wrong, so don’t take any of this as complete legal advice!)

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Fighting in some form or another – and with the elements of rules and sportsmanship – has been around for millennia, as shown by the huge number of ancient arenas and fighting pits that have been discovered dating back to some of the oldest human cultures. But these days, it’s much more than just tossing a couple of gladiators in a circle and placing bets. From those old traditions come some of the most common and recognizable disciplines we see today, including kickboxing.

Last month we talked about the origins and forms of karate, and that ties into kickboxing because that’s where the sport began! Though it may seem like a natural offshoot of a fighting style – after all, kicks are more powerful than punches – it actually was not until the 1950s that the sport we now know as kickboxing began to take shape in Japan.

Drawing not only from traditional karate, but also from muay thai, a man named Tatsuo Yamada began outlining the forms of the new sport and throughout the early 1960s, it took hold in students of both disciplines. As more people learned the rules of the sport, and the first competitions and events were taking place, soon kickboxing was expanding around the world and by the 1980s, it had grown into North America and Europe. Moving back and forth in popularity since then, and with very broad scope of rules and styles, it is one of the most enduring schools of modern martial arts for people of all skill levels.

Though each country seems to have its own rules, the bouts that most people are familiar with in kickboxing are generally based on full-contact karate, where the opponents fight through rounds until one of the fighters is knocked out or submits. There is no specialized equipment or weapons; generally only a mouth-guard, hand wrappings, and other protective gear is needed. Rules vary on low and high kicks, hits to knees or with elbows, use of spins, and other details. That means that each fighter has to be pinpoint accurate, quick to strike and to retreat, and ready to react to their foe in an instant. As opposed to the more meditative nature of karate and kung fu, kickboxing is much more fast-paced and focused on the immediate impact of kicks and punches.

There are dozens of sub-styles of kickboxing, including shoot boxing (where fighters can use standing chokeholds and armlocks),  sanshou (which incorporates elements of wrestling and takedowns), and Japanese K-1 (which allows lower-body strikes and grappling).

Whatever your personal style may be, if you like to fight, chances are good that there’s a kickboxing genre for you. However, if you prefer something more holistic and meditative, you can’t go wrong with studying kung fu – and we just happen to know the perfect place to learn: right here at Kung Fu

A lot of people focus on how they look and what their bodies can do, but less actually consider how they think and how it affects everything else. The old saying “mind over matter” can come across as a tired platitude about the power of positive thinking, but it turns out that there’s actually a fair amount of truth to it.

The first thing that a truly successful person understands about the mind is the role that the ego plays in it. This is, essentially, your perception of yourself and how you use that perception to interact with the environment – including how you see your own skills and abilities. Obviously, this is rather important for training in martial arts classes! Your ego, for example, plays a huge part in how you defend yourself: if your hands are down because you’re overconfident that you can react in time, you could be a multi-degree black belt and still get hit in the face by someone new.

It’s unfortunate, but it’s true: the world isn’t always a friendly place. And even more unfortunately, it’s usually more unfriendly to certain groups in particular. Until everyone gets along well, learning a martial art as self-defense is a good idea for everyone, even though we hope you’ll never have to use it outside of our facilities. It’s an especially good idea for women, and we want every woman out there to know that this a safe place to learn and practice alongside other women on the same journey.

There might be a misconception that if a woman comes to a class here, they will be disrespected or overlooked. That’s just not true – we are all students, and we are all in this together. We’ve never had an issue with this, and we’ll make sure it stays that way, because we want every single person in our classes to feel empowered and capable of mastering the skills they are learning.

So why is it important for women to pick up these techniques? Especially if the chance of having to use them is small?

The main reason is because, in general, women are smaller and lighter than men. If you’re not physically imposing, it will likely be tough to overpower someone bigger than you – but one of the great things about kung fu is that it teaches you how to leverage your power and weight in order to compensate for that. It’s something that we stress a lot, because it’s one of the most important concepts you can use in order to get out of a bad situation.

However, one of the only things more important than that is the idea that such a confrontation should be avoided in the first place. They say that the best defense is a good offense, and being proactive and aware could be the key to staying safe. For example:

1. The first thing to do if you are attacked (or are about to be) is – yup! – just run away and get help. Put as much distance as you can between you and the attacker, and be alert while placing a 911 call or finding someone who can assist you. Don’t be afraid to yell, loudly!
   
   
2. If you cannot put distance between you, try to negotiate a peaceful solution. Money, belongings, even vehicles – they’re all replaceable, and it’s much better to be inconvenienced than injured. Keep your hands visible in a peaceful gesture, and even suggest that it’s a misunderstanding – anything to try and defuse the situation. Again, be aware of what’s around and behind you as you move away. If they still proceed, make your voice authoritative and firmly yell STOP – most people don’t know that martial arts can help you command attention and authority with your voice as well, but they do – and read the signals that they are giving off. Find out exactly what they want – money, phone, maybe even just respect or words – and take the best course of action. If necessary, remember to always throw a purse, wallet, keys or other items on the other side of them, away from you, and then run in the opposite direction while they are distracted.
   
   
3. If none of this works, and they are still after you, find something to use as a weapon and try to renegotiate, rather than escalating to violence immediately (that should always be a very last resort). You may not have an actual weapon – keep in mind that having a combat knife, baton, etc. in your vehicle or house can lead to legal trouble in these situations – so improvising is okay: rocks, tree branches, items on tables or on countertops. Keep a mental note of what’s in your house or car so you’re somewhat prepared. Hopefully, they realize you are serious and that they’re risking injury if they advance. It’s important to only hit someone if negotiations fail completely, and it’s in total self-defense – never hurt someone more than is necessary to get out of the situation, so that it’s apparent you were not trying to cause trouble. We sincerely hope it never goes this far, so trust your instincts – don’t be afraid to be impolite!
   
   

With all of this said, you may not have time to arm yourself, or to be aware of every single thing around you at all times. Martial arts like kung fu are useful for exactly this reason – you don’t need a weapon, and you know how to use your body parts effectively. You can block incoming hits, counter them, and disable or even incapacitate your attacker with just proper use of leverage and momentum. Of course, just like any other skill set, this takes time and training and practice, but it’s an excellent one to have.

Don’t look at kung fu as “manly” or “feminine” or any of those other – frankly poor – words. Think of it as an insurance policy for yourself, one that you can always keep up to date. It’s a great way to stay in shape, it helps you feel safe in certain situations, and it reduces overall anxiety, not only because of the mindset but because of the social aspect and the exercise.

If you want a respectful environment that treats you well and teaches you helpful skills, a course that shows you how to make up for a lack of weight or height, or even a place that just allows you to make new friends where you can show off what you learn together – Kung Fu For Life is for you. Increase flexibility, be more comfortable in your body, and build your well-being to new levels, all right here in our martial arts classes. 

Kung Fu. Jiu Jitsu. Tae kwon do, Krav Maga, Wing Chun, Muay Thai…the list of martial arts styles is nearly endless, each one focuses on different aspects of energy, motion, and force. So why do we think Kung Fu is the best?  Because were totally biased and we love Kung Fu!!!
 
Kung Fu is, at its core is one of the most complete martial arts you can study.  Encompassing a variety of forms and at least 1,500 years of history.  In this case Kung Fu could just mean Chinese Martial arts but I’m speaking more specifically about the Shaolin and the arts or practitioners that were heavily influenced by their teachings.
 
Kung Fu has created and absorbed many hundreds of techniques over the centuries that either influenced or came from many martial arts systems – including some techniques that originated in the Shaolin temples, were added to other systems, and came back to the temple with an entirely fresh and new perspective.  Martial arts is constantly refining and upgrading its theories and practices. In some Shaolin temples, fighters can train for 10 hours a day, mastering their mind and body, and still have much to learn.
 
The humongous amount of knowledge led to Masters specializing in particular sets of techniques or falling into a particular style.  This is where “styles” or “ways” of martial arts come from.  A particular practitioner gave preferential treatment and saw great benefit to the soft style, and hence Tia Chi comes along.  Another practitioner prefers to use knees, elbows, feet and fists hence Muay Thai and Karate.  When the the need arose to get around undetected, you can begin to imagine how Ninjutsu was developed.
 
Many of the Martial Arts that exist today arose out of a need, a desire or a philosophy of a just a single practitioner.  These individuals are commonly known as Grandmasters.  These people changed world and their names are honored throughout history.  As a Grandmaster aged he would often name his most dedicated and proven disciple to be the new Grandmaster in order to see over the students and carry on the ways and the style of the art form.
 
Getting to why we think Kung Fu is the best (and of course we are totally biased), this is Kung Fu for Life after all...  Let’s look at some of the Martial Arts you may be considering getting involved in.
 
Karate - is an excellent martial art, but it’s nearly all hardstyle and very energy-intensive – how long can you last in a real fight if you have the pedal to the floor the whole time?  Kung Fu for Life often receives some criticism for taking some influence from this wonderful art and is hence “not real Kung Fu” but if you talk to any Karate practitioner they will tell you that the two systems are not the same.  We teach to meet hardness with softness wherever possible, this saves on energy and perhaps could be used as a combative advantage.  Also using softer techniques reduces injuries like bruising and bone fractures.
 
Wing Chun - designed specifically for the defense of women.  Truly one of the noblest of goals and a credit to the practitioners and teachers who carry it forward.  This system is technically Kung Fu and is, at least of women in legend, derived from the Shaolin arts. There is no merit in criticizing this or any other martial arts system except to say that perhaps Shaolin Kung Fu incorporates a larger variety of techniques that may be of more benefit.
 
Boxing - (which may not be a “martial” art) teaches you to fight with your hands, block with your arms and bob and weave through punches. It’s not very useful if you are on the ground, or if your opponent knows how to kick.  It’s a blast for young men and other sport enthusiast but the love tends wear off (for most, at least) after a few hard punches to the face.
 
Muay Thai – The King of Martial Arts - at least that’s what it always says in the posters.  People love the fitness aspect of this art, they tell us that it’s fun and a great way to stay in shape.  The only complaints that here about this is that it’s not a super forgiving sport and can be potentially dangerous.  It may not the best sport if you have injuries or limitations.  We're not sure what the mental aspect of the training is but we've always been told never to underestimate a Thai Fighter.
 
The list and the discussion could potentially go on forever.  We don’t have that much time, but we can tell you that if you train with Kung Fu for Life we will do everything we can to make sure that you become the best possible version of yourself.
 
Kung Fu will help you embrace and incorporate the mind/body connection.  We will help you train your reflexes, accuracy, timing, control, reaction speed and more.  Mental discipline and focus will become your ally as you take regular fighting moves and combine them with chi and pure effort. In fact, there is potential in our school for some of the highest-level practitioners to train thousands techniques in the various forms and patterns taught in this system.  When you are ready we will give the tools you need to help pass down this great art on to the next generation and lay bricks in this continuously built art form.
 
Kung Fu is the birthplace of many other martial arts.  So many systems are derived directly from it – but they tend to focus and simplify complex sets of movements in order to make them easier to master. The wide variety of moves in our system tends to require more study and more skill but usually has an advantage over the simplified form, as it can accommodate for more situations. For example, some systems will only teach attack or defense from one angle or one distance, but our training gives you multiple ways to either attack or defend from a variety of distances and angles.  This allows you to appreciate how details like footing or hand placement can affect the outcome of a fight.
 
 Our system is designed to help you progress and move at your own pace – not requiring you, but giving you the opportunity to master each individual step fully before moving on to the next!
 
We view Kung Fu as an art form, which means you can combine the moves in your own unique way, like creating a painting out of the component colours. In a combination of both hard and soft style, you will learn which is most useful to you in a combat situation.  You will be allowed to make extensive use of your body to gain leverage and give you the most efficient way to deal with an adversary.
 
The admitted drawback to this kind of extensive training, is that it takes longer than most people are willing to commit – as is true with most of high quality and form.  In our school it is much more about focus, and form, and full understanding of each technique, than it is about being fast and forceful. It is about the details, the fine-tuning, the exact knowledge of what you are capable of, and how to go a little bit further every time you practice. It’s about the little things, like controlling your breathe so you can conserve energy and react effectively. It’s about training your mind through meditation and mindfulness to be as sharp as your physical skills.

 
Keep in mind, though, that if we have criticized another martial art, it is only about the worst example of them.  Each discipline will have fantastic students and teachers, as well as terrible ones.  To be very clear the definition of a terrible student or teacher is firstly determined by attitude and respect, everything else is secondary.
 
Speaking specifically of Kung Fu, we know for sure how well-rounded and useful it is – not just physically, but mentally as well.
 
Kung Fu for Life is open 6 days a week, and we make custom made programs for each student at a reasonable cost. Our school is designed to allow you to work around injuries, and busy schedules.  So don’t be afraid to drop by today or you can call us at (403) 243-5433
 
We've heard people say that the “style” is not as important as the as the student who studies it.  It follows that saying is also true for teachers and we hope it is. As our students and professional teachers are some the best people that we have ever found.
 
Our system is tough when it needs to be, but is carried forward by some of the most kind-hearted and caring individuals you will ever meet.  We're very proud family that we’ve built here.
 

 It’s a question we hear often: why do you have student teachers?
 
The answer is actually quite simple: teaching martial arts techniques is part of becoming a black belt, because you can’t be an expert at anything if you haven’t taught it. It forces you to draw on all your knowledge, and when you are asked questions you’ve never thought of before, it makes you branch out and apply what you know in new ways.
 
Student teaching is an important part of your training journey, and an important step in making you a stronger, faster, and more adept martial artist when it comes to efficiency of motion and technique. Masters say that teaching is better for learning than when you are actually trying to learn as a student.
 
In teaching, you usually put 100% effort into showing it, and doing it yourself, and thinking about the finer points slowly, always critiquing your own technique – and even after all of that, you are often put on the spot to answer questions. Even if your performance is flawless, you have to know the answer when you are asked, “Why do you do it this way?” and be able to express it in words. As soon as you can explain the answer, it makes much more sense to you as well, and you have improved not only someone else’s knowledge, but your own. These are important steps toward becoming the best you can be!
 
After you teach something, it is nearly impossible for you yourself to forget. For example, when you give small feedback such us, “Move your knee this way to make the movement more fluid”, and your student can tell the difference, you’ll be more likely remember that moment and that advice for yourself down the road when you do the same movements. Thus student teaching can be very mutually beneficial.
 
In addition, having student teachers in our classes keeps costs down for the studio as a whole, and varying the instructors helps each student become well-rounded and responsive to different styles. Since different teachers emphasize different concepts, and have varying approaches to their lessons, there is more likely to be something useful that sticks with every student by doing it this way.
 
Overall, teaching and training others is the fastest way for students to progress along their final path to a black belt – you are usually only allowed to begin training others after you have achieved brown belt (which is 2-6 years depending on the person).  It is a tremendous emotional boost to know that you’re contributing to the studio and to others, and since the skills we teach aren’t meant to be used out in the field, it’s nice to feel you have a purpose when you are using it to train others in the studio. One of the people you teach may have to use the skills they’ve learned one day in order to save their life, even if you never have to!
 
A student teacher here once said that student teaching makes you immortal, because your personal spin on the subject you teach can end up being passed on for decades, or maybe even hundreds of years. Your personal fingerprint could be left on the art for a very long time, passed on to the next generation of learners; you can see this in students who learned from specific black belts and carry the knowledge with them like a torch. You can spot it in how someone holds their knee, or their stance, in the slight weight shifts from one teacher’s style to another.  It is a way of passing down your own self-expression.
 
Student teaching has another big effect: it increases your appreciation for teachers from then on.  You will know it isn’t easy, and will notice other teacher’s techniques and mannerisms. You’ll like how they physically show some things, and just speak about others, and you’ll question in your mind why they chose to do it that way – leading you to think more deeply about what you’re learning, and causing you to take something from that for your practice and for your own teachings in the future.  You will also appreciate being a student even more after you’ve taught, gaining a sense of satisfaction from the experience. You may even start to feel like you’ve “made it”…as long as you remember that there is always more to learn!
 
And lastly? You can also learn things from your students that you may have never thought of… while you’re teaching them. Since even our teachers are students, we encourage everyone to always keep learning and improving!