Improvised Weapons

[DWx]

A walking cane comes to mind.

A wooden one with some weight to it could certainly cause some damage.

Likewise one of the full size umbrellas

[bushido_man96]

A walking cane comes to mind.

A wooden one with some weight to it could certainly cause some damage.

Likewise one of the full size umbrellas

Agreed. I think an umbrella might not be as sturdy as a cane, but the training could translate, especially if they have that hook for the grip.

[bushido_man96]

I've always wondered with the belt... How are you going to get it off fast enough? And I feel like then my trousers would fall down making it even harder to run away

Humor aside, this is a pretty good point to consider. When the adrenaline dumps, fine motor skills go out the window, which could leave one fumbling with their belt buckle for too long, instead of actively trying to defend with both hands.

I would say that if someone is even considering using their belt as an improvised weapon, then much like with carrying a handgun concealed, one needs to practice actually deploying the weapon in order to become efficient at it. Just having it isn't actually enough.

[Montana]

Basically, and literally, just about ANYTHING can be used as a self-defense weapon.

When I was teaching, a couple of times a year we'd do a street clothes class walking out about town. We walk the main street, alleys, parks and empty lots.

I'd talk as we walked about "what ifs this or that", stop and ask my students what they see that they might be able to use if they were in a fight.

The obvious would be sticks and stones, but I wanted them to expand their thoughts.

For example, a telephone/light pole.

WHAT???

You can put that between you and your opponent and make them come around it to get to you, thus giving you an advantage as you're waiting and ready for it.

Sitting at a table and the person across from you gets aggressive and reaches out. You have salt/pepper shakers that make good weapons, toss napkins in their face, squirt mustard/ketchup/TABASCO in their eyes, etc.

The possibilities are really endless if you just open your eyes and teach your mind to think differently.

[sensei8]

How about anything I can find in my cars trunk?? Oh wait, how about anything found in my trucks bed; always goodies there abound. Sure, the cars trunk has to be close and already opened, whereas the truck just needs to be close.

I do really like Montana's post about the telephone/light pole suggestion because it has a lot of effectiveness about it.

[Montana]

Suggestion: The next time you're sitting at your computer, look around you. What could you use to defend yourself?

At a restaurant?

Gym?

Bar/pub?

Walking down the street or in a store?

Literally anywhere, take a moment and get your mindset into defending yourself if you had to. What could you use?

As I sit at my computer typing this there is a lamp over the desk, ceramic cup, couple of AA batteries, printer, pens/pencils, books, backpack, reams of paper, framed pictures on the wall, VHS/CD on the shelf, chairs, etc. It's all about mindset and adapting your way of thinking and looking at things.

[Montana]

I feel it is necessary for me to jump in, here, and say that putting keys between your fingers as a self-defense weapon is a terrible idea, and should NOT be recommended to anyone. You will cut up your fingers quite badly if you try to hit something that way. You can pinch-grip a single large key, preferably with a bulky plastic section, and use that to dig into sensitive targets, but keys are generally just very bad for hitting.

Belts are decent for people trained with flexible weapons, but not great, overall, and definitely not something your average person should try to use--they'll hit themselves.

Fist loads aren't really all that beneficial--you're better off holding something that extends out of your hand, like the flashlight/torch you mentioned, or a metal pen, and using that to stab/hammerfist or hook with. This can also work with things like lipstick, mascara bottles, or vape pens. I'm fond of wooden or metal hair sticks for people with long hair for this, as well.

You can use the edges of a smartphone to hit somebody in a similar fashion, and they'll hold up decently well, but you do run the risk of breaking the thing you need to call for help.

You can also often find items around you to improvise with, depending on where you are. Restaurants have silverware, parks can have sticks and rocks, parking lots can have bottles, bricks, and rocks, homes have all manner of potentially dangerous items in them.

100% agree. Almost anything can be used in self-defense if you get your mind to thinking about it.