There are many types of martial arts and many self-defense techniques.

Used alone, the right martial arts techniques can be effective against many attacks. But learning the guiding principles of self-defense will take you much farther.

In this article, I cover 16 principles of martial arts used in SFP self-defense. They stem from a wide variety of traditional and modern martial arts.

All these principles of self-defense are as important as each other. I present them in alphabetical order.

Use these principles of personal defense to help you understand how techniques work. You can then make your own moves no matter what the situation.

There is a constant barrage of slapping, twisting, pulling, and pushing of your opponent.

This serves at least one (and usually several if not all) of the following purposes:

In martial arts a counter is an attack made in response to your opponent’s attack. It is about being proactive.

There is always a counter to your opponent’s move, and there is a counter to your counter, and a counter to that counter. It can go on forever. The victor will be whoever has the most foresight and/or intuition to out-counter the other.

Close combat is a game of chess. Fast chess. Instinctive chess.

Note: The closer you get to your opponent the less opportunities there are for counters. You can use this to your advantage. First closing distance while gaining an advantageous position. Then you can finish the fight before the opponent recovers.

Grounding yourself means to be solid with the ground.

When you are grounded you have more stability. This allows you to generate more power into your attacks. Power in strikes comes up from the ground. This is a well-known concept in the world of martial arts.

Here is a simple exercise you can do to get the feeling of grounding. Pretend that you are drilling your body into the ground.

You can also use the act of grounding to increase damage, i.e., letting gravity do its work. This is well-demonstrated in angulated stepping and the bomb-kick.

To get the feeling of using grounding in this manner lift both your legs off the ground without jumping. Let gravity do its thing.

Body mechanics and physics play a big part in the efficiency of SFP Self-Defense.

By using parts of the body as fulcrums you can gain more leverage, apply locks, break limbs, etc.

The demonstrations on this website use both arms. But you can do most of the unarmed techniques one-handed. This is useful in real-life scenarios. Such as if you are holding something you cannot drop or if your arm gets injured.

Once you have a good grasp of the techniques you should train to do this. You only need to omit using your rear hand.

This is another principle based on physics and body mechanics.

There are certain angles that create the strongest frames. Your limbs should never be below 120° or above 160°.

120° is best for defense. Any smaller and your arm will collapse when pushed towards you.

160° is best for an attack. Any larger and your opponent can push your arm to the side. Being larger than 160° will also make it more susceptible to capture, e.g., placed in a lock.

As a general rule, keep your limb at 120°. When you strike, extend it to 160° and then let your body push through. This combines power angles with grounding. Add in spring-loading and aim for the spine. Now you have the ideal strike.

The Spine Center principle is almost the same as centerline theory. Centerline theory is common in many martial arts, including Wing Chun.

The following is an excerpt from the book Basic Wing Chun Training by Sam Fury.

Understanding the center-line will allow you to instinctively know where your opponent is. Control the position of your center-line in relation to your opponent’s with footwork.

Your centerline is an imaginary line drawn down the center of your body. All the vital organs are near the center of the body. Keep it away from your opponent by angling it away from him.

Another principle based on the combination of body mechanics and physics is spring-loading.

The basic premise is that you compress your muscles like a spring. These springs are then released in strikes which increases speed and power.

The speed of strikes is not only how fast you reach the target. You must also be fast to recover. Recovery is to reload the spring which you can then send out again. In your arm, your triceps are the spring forward and your biceps are the spring back. Do this in alternation with your two arms. This allows you to make many strikes in very quick succession.

Spring-loading is also used in your legs. The groin kick is a clear demonstration of this, but it is present in all movements.

It is important to remain relaxed. Load the spring and then release it, but never tense so much that it slows you down.

Always crowd your opponent. Get in his space and claim it. Keep pushing your opponent back and do not let up.

This will unbalance your opponent both mentally and physically.

Take whatever your opponent gives you and use it to your advantage. Whichever way he applies pressure, flow with it. Redirect it if needed, but there is no need to oppose it head-on.

For those that want to become very good at this, practice Chi Sao.

Another use of the thankyou principle is to always take something back. For example, when retracting your limb from a strike grab your opponent’s arm or nose-ring.

The principle of vibrating enhances the effectiveness of a movement. You can apply it in many situations. Use it to increase the force in locks, as repetitive strikes, escaping holds, and more.

Demonstrating the effectiveness of vibrating is best done by the following examples.

An attacker grabs you by the shirt front.

With your right hand reach over your opponent’s arms and grab his right wrist. At the same time, use your left hand to grab the same arm.

An attacker puts you in a rear bear hug with your arms pinned.

A common way to get out of this is with rear elbows but if your opponent’s grip is too tight you will not have the room to do this. Vibrate your body to create space.

By using the motion of a vortex (like water going down a sinkhole) you can break through your opponent’s defense. For example, if your opponent is pushing your hand in a certain direction you can use a vortex to move around it.

Another way to use the vortex is if your opponent grabs your arm. A fast vortex motion will most likely free you from his grip while you counter-strike in the same motion.

In most cases, you will want to vortex towards your opponent’s spine.

The strategy for attack in Vortex Control Self-Defense mimics that of warfare.

First you must gather intelligence so you can make the right decision about your enemy.

In warfare, this is through methods such as espionage. In self-defense, it is better understood as “sizing-up” your opponent.

Within a few seconds of studying your enemy, you can know any weaknesses, such as obvious injuries. Also, sense fear (or lack there-of), assess his ability (speed, strength, skill), etc.

You can also assess your surroundings. Look for possible escape routes, available weapons, etc.

After your initial assessment, assuming you feel that fighting necessary, attack with bombs.

The military uses planes and mortars. In Vortex Control Self-Defense we use bomb-kicks.

Finally, once the bombs have done their job, the infantry goes in. This translates to the use of entry techniques and the fighting formula.

The analogy of a waterfall explains how to perform certain movements. It refers to the water going up and over the edge.

The freefall of water is also akin to grounding.

Combing the three actions of waterfall, grounding, and the vortex is very powerful.

The principle of weaponizing means to make as many of your movements attacks as possible. This is the case even if they are defensive or neutral in nature. Here are some examples:

Yin is “soft” and Yang is “hard”. Soft does not equal weak.

The combination of soft and hard, fast and slow, etc. will make your techniques work together.

Here are some examples to show the use of Yin and Yang. These are only a few examples of a concept that applies to everything in the universe.

The above 16 principles of self-defense come from a variety of martial arts. Understanding them will improve your skills no matter what discipline you study.

Techniques are useful for embedding instinctive reactions against common attacks. But there are so many variables that you will never be able to have a "default" move for every attack. Knowing the above principles means you don't need to. You will be able to adapt to any situation.

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