FAST Defense * www.fastdefense.com
Founded by Bill Kipp, FAST Defense was named Best Women's Self Defense by Black Belt Magazine in 2006. It's a great place to start for beginners and a great program to grow into with the multiple class options. The basics class is 2.5 hours long, and costs under $100. It covers basic awareness skills, avoidance, assertiveness and finding the power of your voice. Half the class is practice and understanding the ideas, and the other half uses a Bullet Man. (Bullet Man has a big bubble-looking head so you can hit full force. He is so heavily padded that students don’t need to wear any gear and can move freely.) There are several continuing education options for ground fighting, weapons and multiple assailants. FAST Defense is available around the world, mostly taught by martial arts school owners. Bill Kipp is Erin Weed's personal mentor in self-defense, so we have a very strong belief in this system.
National Women's Martial Arts Federation * www.nwmaf.org
This organization is not just martial arts, and have offerings for women that are not martial artists. They have excellent resources, instructors and hold a great annual conference every July. Instructors certified by the National Women’s Martial Arts Federation are skilled in both physical and verbal self-defense skills, knowledgeable about violence against women, have strong backgrounds in the martial arts, and support empowerment as a goal of women’s self-defense. While they don't certify under one umbrella program, it is quite a challenge to get NWMAF certified...so the odds are good you will find a great instructor.
IMPACT & Model Mugging * www.ImpactPersonalSafety.com * www.modelmugging.org
We are grouping IMPACT and Model Mugging together, because the course content is very similar. Both courses are usually 20 - 24 hours long, and usually take place over 5 sessions. From day one, you will be striking a padded attacker. The final class is called “graduation” where you fight off the Bullet Man in an unscripted situation while your friends and family cheer in the crowd. (It’s totally optional - you don’t have to invite anyone.) IMPACT schools are more organized and unified as a national chain. We have taken classes at both, and don’t see many differences in the actual material that is taught. They are both excellent, so whatever is the most local is probably your best choice. Both IMPACT and Model Mugging are the most intense of all the options mentioned here, but also the most realistic. Some women with prior histories of violence may be prone to flashbacks, so you should check with your therapist to make sure you are emotionally ready for the experience.
RAD Systems * www.rad-systems.com
R.A.D. courses are normally 9-12 hours long, usually taking place over 4-6 sessions. They are usually taught by law enforcement or campus security teams, with a very strong presence on college campuses. The classes start out gradual, watching demonstrations and practicing the techniques against pads. The final class is what’s called “simulations.” Students wear protective gear during this final class, and are put into simulated attack scenarios. The male instructor(s) carries out the mock attack and wears a Red Man suit. We've had some issues in the past in getting a timely response from both RAD headquarters and specific instructors, so be prepared to find another class option if someone doesn't get back to you. Persistence pays off!
