Drill 1 – Proximity Warnings

Background

With the exception of projectile weapons, all violence happens up close and personal.? What we call ?bad breath range?.

Human beings instinctively understand the idea of distance but we are often very bad at training at that range because it makes us uncomfortable. This can translate to a lack of experience as to how we act/react when someone invades our? space.

In this exercise, you?ll take your students through a series of quick drills so that they can see what it feels like when someone invades their personal boundaries. They also get a better understanding of the need for good assertive body posture.

Armed with this information, your students will be able to better understand? how their? own reactions.? This internal awareness is invaluable to how you deal with real ?situations.

Class mix

This drill is applicable to all classes including children and adults, beginners? and? advanced students.

Set-up requirements?

No special equipment is required.

Have each person in the class face a partner. Make two straight lines with about 15 feet between the partners (or however your school training area best allows this).

Ideally the partners should be similar in size, and you should request that people work with someone they wouldn?t usually choose. This avoids people working with their favorite partners ? which would negate some of the value of the drill.

Explain to everyone that the objective of the lesson is to find out where in their body they feel the discomfort, and what ranges they are particularly triggered by. Explain that one partner is going to stand still whilst the other partner stalks them like a jungle predator.

Instruct the ?predators? to walk slowly, using eye contact, and slight side to side move