After reading the Student Life Weekly News update, I was interested in attending one of the health and wellness events Baruch had to offer, particularly the self-defense class.  I thought it would be helpful to learn some self-defense techniques considering I’m a petite female; therefore, I’m a target for most catcallers.  Also, after having the discussion about sexual harassment in class, I felt that I had to do something in order to ensure my safety or someone else’s safety anywhere I go.  I didn’t want to wait for a situation to occur and then realize that I should’ve learn how to protect myself.

I met up with my friend for 12 at Racquetball Court B and Sensei Peter Flores Jr. was very welcoming. There were only a few students who came in at the time, but he didn’t want to waste time and decided to start teaching us.  He showed us each step very slowly and demonstrated with his two assistants to make sure that we understood.  From what I remember, if someone grabs your arm, the technique is to pull and lock your elbow in, making sure your underarm isn’t exposed.  Then bring your hand up to your face as if you’re looking at your phone.  After that, you turn your hand over and grab the other person’s arm that’s holding you and you pull that person towards you so that you can give a side kick or punch.  Once we went over that and a few more people came in, we learned different leg kicks and punches.  We did them over and over, while he counted in Japanese.  One piece of information that I clearly remember is that you want to avoid disconnect with your body, because if you move a wrong muscle, you can get seriously hurt. The class was very informative and an intense workout, which is great because I haven’t exercised since the school year started. I definitely need more training in order to master the art of self-defense, but now I can say that I’m more aware of what I need to do in case I need to defend myself.