International Personal Self-Defense Blog by Robb Hamic

Get The Newest Street Fighting DVD on the Market!

December 11, 2010- Albuquerque, NM-  Robb Hamic and Shane Knaub have released their first street fighting DVD of the year.  FIGHTING- Fast, Scary and Frustrating ™ 2010.  This DVD is packed with 2 hours of 38 fighting fundamentals and fast devastating techniques that work in real fights.  We are excited that two Professional MMA World Title Belt Champions have endorsed our DVD, at its release.  We have a website and it is available for immediate purchase on Pay Pal.  It ships out right away.  Check it out!

CLICK HERE for our website and be one of the first to get this material.  Shane has won the Grapplers Quest Advanced Division and NAGA Advanced and overall divisions multiple times.  He trains with with pro MMA fighters and he grew up fighting.  All of these techniques have held up in real street fights.  Shane trains in Albuquerque at FIT NHB with Tom Vaughn.  If you know me, you know that Shane is a good friend and we put together great material for you.  I train with Shane to update my skills in the United States.  This is a culmination of a lot of hard work.  In HDTV.  Excellent quality.  Ships internationally too.

Are You Being Stalked? A Women’s Survival Guide- Part 1

I first noticed the use of the term stalking when I was a police officer in the 1990’s.  Stalking is an anomaly that seems to be derived from a person’s will to control another.  It has become a serious safety concern for people, especially women and seems to becoming a more serious threat that people recognize.  I have been approached by many stalking victims for help, both in the way of self-defense skill development, recognition/ awareness, vulnerability assessments, investigative services, counter/ anti- stalking activities or plain old protection from the people who would stalk my clients.

Stalking is a term commonly used to refer to unwanted, obsessive attention by individuals (and sometimes groups of people) to others. Stalking behaviors are related to harassment and intimidation. The word "stalking" is used, with some differing meanings, in psychology and psychiatry and also in some legal jurisdictions as a term for a criminal offense. It may also be used to refer to criminal offences or civil wrongs that include conduct which some people consider to be stalking, such as those described in law as "harassment" or similar terms.

In the United States last year, approximately 3.4 million victims reported being stalked.  These are some quick statistics on stalking:

• 3.4 million people over the age of 18 are stalked each year in the United States.
• 3 in 4 stalking victims are stalked by someone they know.
• 30% of stalking victims are stalked by a current or former intimate partner.
• 10% of stalking victims are stalked by a stranger.
• Persons aged 18-24 years experience the highest rate of stalking.
• 11% of stalking victims have been stalked for 5 years or more.
• 46% of stalking victims experience at least one unwanted contact per week.
• 1 in 4 victims report being stalked through the use of some form of technology (such as e-mail or instant messaging).
• 10% of victims report being monitored with global positioning systems (GPS), and 8% report being monitored through video or digital cameras, or listening devices.

Many victims of stalking have many negative ramifications of being stalked including loss of their employment.  Last year, 130,000 victims of stalking reported that they lost their jobs or were asked to leave their employment because of being stalked.  Of course, there are many other negative impacts of stalking for victims. 

I have noticed a rise in women who file for divorce being stalked.  This can present many problems for the victims on an ongoing basis.  Children are involved in many of the circumstances and women often resist their reactions to protect themselves in hopes of keeping a “normal” existence for their children.  The man often perpetrates certain actions and the woman acts like nothing is happening around her kids and when the man is present for custody exchange.  These situations present unique problems and require different solutions.

Generally, I recommend certain tactics to deal with stalking and turning the tables on the stalker to stop the criminal’s actions.  Safety of the victim is the first order of business.  The victim might know of actions that are being taken against her while in many cases she won’t know what is being done, based on the man’s attempts to hide the behavior and or using devices to track a victim’s patterns, actions or even recording them in their own home.

Recognition is the first step.   Man women write off their natural survival instincts as “being over cautious or being crazy.”  I like to say that a women’s intuition is perfect and they should always react when they feel something physically as opposed to think it.  If they have a physical reaction to a situation this is not normally a cognitive function that can be explained.  In the end, survival is a primal function and a women’s body is always sensing its environment to survive.  Certain situations or vulnerabilities will cause different responses or thoughts that I recommend that women turn into actual responses.

This is the first of a series of writings on stalking, recognition, prevention, countermeasures, safety, self-defense, survival and re-building of one’s life after the crime of stalking.

About the Author:

Robb Hamic is the managing principal of Summit Security & Investigation® and  Summit Self Defense™.  These companies provide services for anti-stalking, prevention, awareness, self-defense, survival and education.   In fact, Robb Hamic is one of the only people who combine his skill sets to provide women with holistic solutions to their safety in stalking situations.  Mr. Hamic is written a book about this topic and it is available for sale on Amazon.com: “Karma’s Helpers.  Hamic’s guide for getting even.” 

 

Armed robberies on the rise.

Albuquerque, New Mexico October 4, 2010. 

Albuquerque Police Department is reporting three armed robberies this past weekend. The first was a purse snatching at gun-point in the northeast area of the city. The second incident was reported to be a armed robbery at a popular fast food establishment in the central part of the city. The third incident, and most bizarre, was reported as an armed robbery of a armed security guard at an apartment complex on the west side of the city. Citizens need to be aware of the wide-spread, apparently random escalation of crime in the area. There have been no arrests in these reported crimes and police warn of more to come. The state fair recently ended, the Balloon Fiesta is in town and many visitors remain in the Albuquerque area. Unfortunately, this makes for easy pickings for the would-be criminals. 

Learn how to protect yourself and be aware of your surroundings. Don't be an easy target. Criminals are opportunists, they want the easy way out otherwise they would have a real job. Don't give them the chance. Pay attention to others around you. Make eye contact, stay alert, and be a good witness if you in contact or see a crime. We must all be proactive in our own self-defense.

Summit Self Defense specializes in training people to defend themselves in a violent lethal confrontation, We train men, women, military and law enforcement in the areas of hand-to-hand tactics, firearms, CHL/CCW, OC spray, and Tasers. Contacts us for details.

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http://www.summitselfdefense.com

Self Defense...... Get Real!

Read the headlines, watch the news, the escalation of violence and theft is apparent. It seem as the economy struggles, people get to be more and more desperate. Some of the most unlikely people are turning to crime as a way to make ends meet. Recently there were several bank robberies and convenience store hold-ups in Albuquerque, NM being perpetrated by elderly criminals. What are the odds of that? As a result of this escalation, the self-defense industry has seen growth.

More and more ordinary citizens are seeking training in different areas of self-defense and martial arts. The firearms industry has also seen a rise in the purchases of new guns and likewise the concealed carry and other training opportunities are growing. Consumers need to be aware of some of the options and avoid some of the pitfalls out there. The most important factor should be the realistic nature of the training. Is the instructor going to teach you anything or simply show you what they know.

There are significant differences in the choices that are available and the investment required in most modern self-defense programs. If the consumer is interested in self-defense (home defense, personal defense) and does not intend to commit to months and possibly years to the art, then most martial arts should not be considered. Typically, martial arts classes are taught an hour or two once or twice a week on an on going basis.

They are great as a part of a fitness regiment and for flexibility and if practiced consistently, can be useful in a self-defense situation. In most cases however, many years are required to advance in skill and level. There are programs available to the public that are based on a military model with the emphasis on teaching to the unskilled person in an accelerated format. These programs are most often considered Close Quarters Combatives. An example of one of these types of programs is SPEAR or Personal Defense Readinessfrom Tony Blauer at Blauer Tactical Systems.

The situation with firearm training is similar in that there are many schools and training opportunities to choose from. If the consumer does a simple search on the internet, there are classes to take offering everything from basic NRA introductory courses to post apocalyptic survival and sniper training out to one mile or more. I think that those classes would be interesting, don't get me wrong. Most of us find it necessary to be choosy about where we spend our training dollars. If you want to carry a small handgun concealed for defense of yourself and your family and have no intention of taking it any further, there are classes for that. Choose the courses that relate to your specific situation, practice diligently and master those skills, then move on if you so choose.

If you are seeking self-defense instruction, you need to do some homework and decide what you are really looking for. Do you want hand to hand fighting, a shotgun behind the door, a small pistol and a concealed carry license, or maybe a combination of all of the above. Once you make that decision, do some more research and find the appropriate instructor/facility. It is very likely that as you continue the process of educating yourself that you will want to attend other seminars and programs. This is a good thing. Self-defense is a very personal thing. lets face it, we are learning how to defend our own life. What could possibly be more personal than that?

 

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Ryan Fellows resides in Albuquerque and Taos Ski Valley, NM with his wife and their three daughters. Ryan is the co-president of Summit Self Defense and is a nationally accredited Certified Law Enforcement Trainer. Ryan holds many instructor certifications from the NRA and NRA LE, he is an Israeli Combat Shooting Instructor and is certified as a Close Quarters Combatives Instructor. Ryan is a FFL and is certified by Glock as an armorer. He regularly provides firearms training and hand to hand tactics to civilians, military and law enforcement. He has also been a professional action sports photographer for over 24 years. Please visit is website for more information.http://www.summitselfdefense.com.

 

I made a woman cry yesterday in a self-defense seminar yesterday..

I made a woman cry during self-defense work yesterday.  As a man who cares for women,   my initial reaction was to make it better and give her a hug but I know better.  I am a professional teacher and I work with at least a thousand women per year.  I give women opportunities to learn how to protect themselves, their kids and families.  More than anything, I think that I teach women that it is OK to have peace of mind.  After all, heart disease and stress kill people more than bad guys.

I admire women and I understand them.  I choose to spend my time developing skills that allow them to fight better with their hands, guns and in realistic scenarios.  My teaching mentor, Rob Pincus, stresses that all people learn better when they are comfortable.  We all need to be physically comfortable with the movements and intellectually comfortable with the concepts behind the material that is taught.  I think that women need to be comfortable with their teacher.

I like to say that women have perfect intuition.  It is suppressed by thoughts of “craziness” or written off as just “being paranoid” but you are usually right and you know it.  This is your primal survival response making you feel before you think.  Cognitive functions are much slower than intuition, if cognition is even possible.  The ability to recognize a threat early is a much better skill than knowing how to fight or shoot a gun.  Awareness helps but for women intuition is key.  Listen to yourself and give your ancestors credit.  If they didn’t take natural survival actions you wouldn’t be here to read this article. 

Most men instructors don’t talk about emotion when it comes to defending yourself but it is important.  All of your self-defense strategies must fit into your own set of morals, values and ethics.  You have to give yourself pre-permission to use self defense and this can be activated with a personal mission statement.  Here is mine:

“I walk around with a smile and I try to be happy but if someone crosses my path that wants to do me, my family or a person that I choose to protect harm; I will do whatever is necessary to keep us safe, based on my perception of danger.  Up to and including taking another person(s) life.  If it is the only option, I will exchange my life for my wife or children’s life.  If I have to fight, I will use every once of aggression, decisiveness and intelligence in my body to overwhelm my attacker(s). ” – Robb Hamic

This statement makes things simple for me.  It can make using self defense strategies easier for you too. Most women will gladly agree that they would sacrifice themselves for their kids but what would happen if you were killed?  Who would take care of your little ones?  Don’t forget that bad guys have a job just like you do and we cross paths with them daily.  Three percent of our society are sociopaths who have no empathy for other living things.   Six people out of one thousand are victims of a violent assault in the United States per year.  An alarming amount of women will be the victim of some sort of violence and many are raped. 

 What if I could show you some simple things to address your fears and protect yourself?  That is the very question that I asked my client yesterday.  Her fear was being pushed down.  I showed her a very efficient and fast tactic to deal with being physically pushed.  This was not an offensive move.  We tried it a few times and in a minute I was giving her a 100% guy push with total bad guy energy.  She stepped back, having braced herself, and wept.  It was a release.  She had obviously had some injury around this type of aggression.  She continued to look to me as if she was ready for more but her eyes were soft.  I asked her if anyone would ever push her down again and she said “no!”   I am confident in this fact.  Next she was blocking full contact haymaker punches from me with little effort.  Success.

We shared in the success and I can’t claim credit for giving her some secret ninja move that gave her a super power.  She had it in her all of the time and just needed a little refinement to her instinct.  I gave her an opportunity to learn.  I am profoundly grateful for the experience and her work.  Women have the potential to tap into their fears because they are more readily honest with themselves about their abilities.  My clients learn how to tap into their aggression to fight back.  I give tools to them that allow them to reach their goals with less time energy and effort.  It sounds simple because it is.  I travel around the world to learn and bring it to my students like a delivery person.  I am addicted to learning and teaching.

I made three women cry last week but now you can understand how I see this as success.

  ~Robb Hamic provides training locally in Austin, Albuququerque and surrounding areas.  He travels throughout the US monthly, delivering training to women individually and in seminars.  He trains internationally.  Law Enforcement, Military, Executive Protection and individuals are his specialties.  He trains people how to use their hands, guns and almost any weapon imaginable for defense.  Call for schedule and reach Robb personally- 512-284-0087 or robbhamic.com.

Women's Self Defense Seminars Nationwide. Easy to learn.

October, 22, 2009- Austin, TX-  Summit Self Defense specializes in providing women's self defense seminars and classes Nationwide in the United States.  We have several instructors who operate in several states, delivering much needed training to women who need options in an increasingly violent society.

Violence, predatory criminals, mean people and sociopaths make it hard for any of us to feel at ease and we all have vulnerabilities.  We all need options for the challenges that we encounter.  Unfortunately women are twice as likely to be attacked than men and they know their attacker much of the time.  They are attacked by tier intimate partners over 20% of the time.  Sad statistics.  The fact that almost one half of crimes aren't reported to police makes us feel even more uneasy.

Bad guys want three things: Property, body or the life of their victim.

Bad Guy's don't want to get caught, hurt or the crime to take too long.

Let's make it harder for them and if you are a women seek out realistic self defense training that fits into your schedule.  Don't confuse self defense with martial arts.  It is not quite the same.  Self defense is what I teach you so that you can survive an attack so that you can make it to your next martial arts class. No disrespect intended but any training has to be rooted in real life incidents and teach the student how to detect the problem before it occurs, if possible.  The difference is "street vs. sport" models that incorporate easily accessible, useable tactically sound tactics to STOP THE ATTACK so you can go on with your life.  

Confrontation management skills, choice speech and escape techniques need to be stressed for women and men equally when they are faced with a fight.  The best fight is the one you don't engage.  If you must defend yourself then you have to fight smart.  This is the art in the self defense that we teach.

Summit Self Defense instructors are available locally in the following cities/ metro areas:  Austin, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Albuquerque, Santa Fe and San Francisco.  Our team travels to locations nationwide to deliver seminars, talks and training to corporations, groups, organizations or individually for clients in special need.  

Direct inquiries to Robb Hamic, Founder and Chief Instructor for Summit Self Defense: robb@summitselfdefense.com.  You may call him for response: 512-284-0087. 

Women's self defense in Texas

October 12, 2009- Austin, TX-  Are you looking for a women's self defense seminar, class or lesson in Texas? If so, please consider scrutinize you self defense instructor carefully.  Robb Hamic is a self defense instructor who delivers women's self defense training in Texas.  I Believe that women need self defense but it has to fit into their schedule and lifestyle.  It MUST be easy to learn and use under stress.  Don't let this happen to you.. 

Women's self defense facts:

- 1 in 3 women will be battered or sexually assaulted in their lifetimes.

- In crimes involving women, they know their attacker 57% of the time

- For the last 10 years the US Surgeon General lists battery as the single most common injury to women

- In an attack, a bad guy wants one (or more) of three things: Body, Money, Life

The Jim Carey video illustrates the the feel of some self defense classes.  Self defense is a skill that people need to be able to use under stress.  Good self defense is rooted in gross motor skill and instinct that comes naturally under stress.  Do you want to learn something that looks good in the dojo or something that works in the streets?  The best self defense tactics are not pretty but they work.

A good course covers critical thinking about self-defense strategies, assertiveness, powerful communication skills, and easy-to-remember physical techniques. The instructor respects and responds to your fears and concerns. Instruction is based on a belief that women can act competently, decisively, and take action for their own protection. Essentially, a good course is based on intelligence and not muscle. It offers tools for enabling a woman to connect with her own strength and power. These courses are out there. Good luck in your research. Taking a self-defense class is one of the most positive acts a woman can do for herself!

Contact Robb Hamic for more information or to schedule a seminar or class in Texas: robb@summitselfdefense.com

Austin School
2900 N. Quinlan Park Rd
Suite 131- B-240
Austin, TX 78732
512-284-0087 (mobile)
Toll Free: 877-260-3773

http://www.femaleselfdefense.com

Femaleselfdefense.com gives women self defense options

October 9, 2009- Austin, TX-  The new website femaleselfdefense.com got a great new press-release.  I am honored to be traveling across the county to provide women's self defense seminars, classes and training.  

Austin Texas based, Summit Self Defense has launched a large program to provide women's self defense training in all forms.  "I understand that we all have vulnerabilities and we all have fears.  Some women are in bad situations and need immediate help while others want to ensure their safety for those they love.  I address all women's concerns for self defense options and offer many different types of training in positive learning environment," says Summit's Founder, Robb Hamic.

I always begin my ladies self defense class with the question "how many of us can successfully defend ourselves from a violent attack- right now."  I realize that this is a bad 'ice breaker.' Most people bow their heads or avoid my eye contact.  That's OK because we all have to start somewhere.

Next, I talk about the 'Boston Strangler,' Albert DeSalvo.  Between June 14, 1962 and January 4, 1964, 13 single women (between the ages of 19 and 85) were murdered in the Boston area. Most had been sexually assaulted in their apartments and were murdered in the manner indicated above. Without any sign of forced entry into their dwellings, the women were assumed to have either known their assailant or have voluntarily allowed him into their homes, believing him to be an apartment maintenance person or some other service person. While the police were not convinced that all of these murders were the work of a single individual, much of the public believed so. The media certainly fueled the idea of a single murderer referring to him with names such as 'The Phantom' and 'The Sunset Killer' before settling on 'The Boston Strangler. 

Now, I give the women another 'what if' where I remove them from the attack and tell them that The Boston Strangler is standing over their child when they enter their home.  I ask if they could defend their child?  I get a lot of different responses but there is an overwhelming yes (or I would die trying).

Women's self defense seminars

October 1, 2009- Austin, TX-  Summit Self Defense specializes in Women's self defense training, lessons, classes and seminars.  Robb Hamic provides training to women privately, in large or small groups across the United States.  "Corporate training and self-defense motivational speaking is becoming more popular with many of my clients," says Robb Hamic, Founder of Summit Self Defense. 

We understand that women's self defense training must fit into your busy schedule in order to be realistic. Women lead busy lives and if you are going to take time to learn self defense it must be simple, effective and realistic.  There are a lot of misconceptions about self defense for women.  Training should not hurt. The best self-defense techniques are simple and easily accessible for your use if you need them to defend yourself or your family in an attack.  You don't have to be in 'good shape' to learn self defense. 

Robb Hamic commonly provides women's self defense seminars across the United States and speaks to large groups of women regarding safety, risk mitigation and use of force issues.  He has success as a motivational speaker at corporate events and has provided a new alternative for speaking engagements for employers who want their employees to take away something valuable.  Mr. Hamic is a professional instructor, author and he has many life experiences that relate surviving violent, scary attacks. 

Summit Self Defense specializes teaching women self defense.  We teach all available courses and subject matter to our women students and we also realize that all women have different risks, objectives, fears and motivations for training. We listed some of our training opportunities below: 

- Private women's self defense lessons

- Women's self defense classes

- Women's self defense seminar

- Women's corporate self defense training in large or small groups.

- Women's event seminars such as organizations, groups or community outreach

- Women's Taser training, sales and deployment

- Women's OC Spray training, sales and deployment

- Women's handgun training, sales and deployment

- Women's concealed handgun licensing (CHL, CCW)

- Women's personal Defense Readiness (PDR)

- Local, statewide, national or international women's self defense seminars with reservation

- Verbal deescalation techniques  

- Self defense awareness and conflict avoidance

- Explanation of use of force, immanent jeopardy and legal ramifications for using self defense

- Fear management

- Options

The US Department of Justice has released its 2008 statistical data on crime in the United States.  The study revealed that only forty seven (47%) percent of crime was reported.  This figure is much higher for rapes and other sexual assaults upon women.   

In 2008, an estimated 4.9 million violent crimes (rapes or sexual assaults, robberies, aggravated assaults and simple assaults) occurred, as well as an estimated 16.3 million property crimes (burglaries, motor vehicle thefts and household thefts) and 137,000 personal thefts (picked pockets and snatched purses).

Women were more likely than men to be victimized by someone they knew. Seventy percent of all violent crimes against women were committed by a known offender (an intimate, family member or friend/acquaintance), compared to 49 percent of violence against men. Twenty-three percent of the non-fatal violence against women was committed by an intimate (current or former spouse, boyfriend or girlfriend), compared to three percent of the violence against men.

"Women can contact me personally for a risk assessment or self defense consultation on my cellular phone- 512-284-0087," says Robb Hamic.

E-mail Robb Hamic: robb@summitselfdefense.com