How Effective Is Bodybuilding For Self Defence?

[KangTsai]

How much do you think the intimidation factor of massive, aesthetic muscles play into keeping yourself safe? I think you'll be pretty good, as long as you aren't the one starting that potential knife fight in the first place.
The intimidation levels hold exception for other branching physiques I think-

-Nordic strongman: intimidation factor +120%
-Tennis (only your dominant forearm is big and nothing else): intimidation factor -50℅
-Gains Goblin (short, dumb, ugly, but jacked): intimidation factor -12℅

 

[Paul_D]

How much do you think the intimidation factor of massive, aesthetic muscles play into keeping yourself safe? I think you'll be pretty good, as long as you aren't the one starting that potential knife fight in the first place.
The intimidation levels hold exception for other branching physiques I think-

-Nordic strongman: intimidation factor +120%
-Tennis (only your dominant forearm is big and nothing else): intimidation factor -50℅
-Gains Goblin (short, dumb, ugly, but jacked): intimidation factor -12℅

Interviews with muggers, on how they select their victims, shows that size has nothing to do with it. If you carry yourself confidently career criminals will wait for someone less confident to select as a victim, so whilst the actual muscles will have little bearing, the confidence that comes from having them would mean you would be less likely to be selected as a victim.

 

[marques]

Once a big guy said his size avoid him some troubles. BUT if he has one, probably it will be also a big one (weapons, outnumbered...). I believe he is right.

PS: In other words, big size may prevent troubles, but may also motivate the bad guys for a better planning.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

Interviews with muggers, on how they select their victims, shows that size has nothing to do with it. If you carry yourself confidently career criminals will wait for someone less confident to select as a victim, so whilst the actual muscles will have little bearing, the confidence that comes from having them would mean you would be less likely to be selected as a victim.

I was nearly mugged a decade ago in Milwaukee. My friend and I were walking downtown and I got across a street before he did. This sketchy guy comes up and ask's me for a light, which is a well-known ploy. I see his greasy buddy in a doorway nearby.

I'm getting ready to take a defensive posture and my friend catches up to me. He's 6 feet 8 inches tall, and solid.

The prospective mugger never even waited to see if I had a light, he just walked quickly away.

 

[Tez3]

-Gains Goblin (short, dumb, ugly, but jacked

What on earth is that?

 

[JP3]

What on earth is that?

I was wondering the same thing.

I've reviewed the same data about alert, confident small people being less attractive to a bad guy, such as a mugger, as set out above. I do have this feeling, after all the years of working the bars, that if a mugger/bad guy/bully-boy is wanting to start something to steal/rob, have fun, get whatever rush it is from hurting someone else, they are way more likely to choose the smaller person than the larger.

Being 6'8" and solid is a really good basis to start from for self-defense. Problem is, that's probably the upper 1 percentile for size, eh?

And Bill, you said you were about to adopt a defensive posture. I had this mental image of you always being in a defensive posture. C'mon man, letting us down, letting people get inside your space before you're ready.

Kidding.

But, on the issue of bodybuilding as part of a martial arts/SD strategy? I'm not talking about conditioning, or strength training, Those are very useful. But, bodybuilding would take a lot of time awy from actual training, which is way more effective a tool, imo.

 

[drop bear]

What on earth is that?

Where you have a face like a smashed fish but a good body.

 

[Flatfish]

like that?

 

[KangTsai]

like that?

No, more like all these but mostly the last one.
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/...SvkCQmHg2Q6jnOIonQjgusZfS7Kht6fC4C7TM_XzqUUOg
/fit/izen takes autism to a new level
/fit/izen belongs on /sp/

 

[Headhunter]

Not really it can also make you more of a target because drunks in a bar may want to have a go against the toughest looking guy there to prove his manhood

 

[Tez3]

No, more like all these but mostly the last one.
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/...SvkCQmHg2Q6jnOIonQjgusZfS7Kht6fC4C7TM_XzqUUOg
/fit/izen takes autism to a new level
/fit/izen belongs on /sp/

I am reluctant to report this post but the third one down is unacceptable, we don't make fun or use autism for jokes or so called 'funny' stories.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

And Bill, you said you were about to adopt a defensive posture. I had this mental image of you always being in a defensive posture. C'mon man, letting us down, letting people get inside your space before you're ready.

Kidding.

Lol. I can't be in a defensive posture at all times. I'd stick to the ground and break doors off at the hinges when I tried to open them. Super saiyan is work, brother.

 

[JP3]

Lol. I can't be in a defensive posture at all times. I'd stick to the ground and break doors off at the hinges when I tried to open them. Super saiyan is work, brother.

*snort*
"stick to the ground" had me nearly spew my bad-for-me cola on my keyboard. You may need to explain that joke to the youth.

Reminds me of a funny thing which happened to me about... shoot, 18 years ago now.

I'd been in Judo for about 5 years at that point, had my kiddo exposure to aikido, and in the intervening 20-odd years I'd been doing all kinds of strikey stuff to bags, boards, blocks... people. I had started aikido class and was really enjoying it, since the Tomiki style of aikido uses parallel terminology as judo (Kenji Tomiki was a 4th or 5th dan in judo when Sensei Kano sent him off to train with Ueshiba, so it makes sense). Anyway, the previous week I'd been in class and the instructors had been focusing on the concept of body-fusion, or body moves as a unit. Fundamental stuff, good stuff. One of them said that he uses it each time he has to go in/out one of the big outer doors of the building he works in, one of those doors that has the wall-plaque you can push and the door opens for you, or you "can" lean into it and shove it open. He said he gets his practice by walking up to the door and fixing his posture and position on the fly and blows throught he door with a center-drop taking place on his falling step as his unbendable arm is raised to make contact with the door... like I said, fundamental stuff.

Anyway, I'm at Court and I head off to the restroom. Approaching, I saw the door opens inwards, and it's a standard interior fire door, so it's heavy and without really thinking about it much ("Hey bubBubba, hold my beer and watch this!" comes to mind...) I shift my stride length to take the door. So, I'm walking full speed and blast into this door with right arm extended. It satisfactorialy jumps away from my powerful contact and I feel empowered. About 1 inch later it encounters resistance but I'm still a-blastin' so momentum does what momentum does and the door blows away from me.... right intot he face of som poor deputy who happened to be reaching for the door at the moment ... just ... after I was starting the drop. Oops. Knocked him back against the opposite wall. Uh, sorry man...

Idiot.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

A monk was told to go to his cell and meditate on nothingness. He told his master he was unable to think of nothing. So his master told him to meditate on being a bull.

A week later, the monk had not reappeared. The master went to his cell and demanded he emerge. He told his master "I cannot come out, my horns won't clear the door."

 

[oftheherd1]

Back to the original question. Imho as long as the big massive muscles don't interfere with speed or limberness, it may not be a bad way to avoid getting in a fight in the first place. But if you are thinking of being 'muscle bound' then I would say it is a bad idea.

Your speed and limberness will likely, no, will indeed be effected. Limberness and speed is in important in a grappling art for application of techniques, and also in defense. Striking arts - both in speed of striking and in surviving greater injuries against grappling.

 

[Paul_D]

Back to the original question. Imho as long as the big massive muscles don't interfere with speed or limberness, it may not be a bad way to avoid getting in a fight in the first place.

As people do not generally try to starts fights with people who are bigger and/or stronger, how would bodybuilding prevent larger people trying to start a fight with you?

 

[crazydiamond]

All things being equal a large powerful build matters. This is why there are weight classes in fighting.

I would say that I am more intimated by a strong man/power lifter like build - then the more about looks body builder. There are shades of this - but you can kind of tell "power build" vs "looks build" in a guy.

But - attitude matters as well.

 

[Transk53]

How much do you think the intimidation factor of massive, aesthetic muscles play into keeping yourself safe? I think you'll be pretty good, as long as you aren't the one starting that potential knife fight in the first place.
The intimidation levels hold exception for other branching physiques I think-

-Nordic strongman: intimidation factor +120%
-Tennis (only your dominant forearm is big and nothing else): intimidation factor -50℅
-Gains Goblin (short, dumb, ugly, but jacked): intimidation factor -12℅

None. For a start a big muscled guy isn't intimidating, nor is any build. It is all in the mind. With Tennis, I guess Andy Murray would send you to sleep with boredom, so I would say that is +100 percent. Gains Goblin. That pretty much covers all. Getting jacked isn't confined to the ugly etc, but would agree the brain cell count would be lacking.

The really imtimidating ones, they are those skirt the shadows in quiet reflection of the environment they are in. Don't use balshy tactics or in your face ballshit, they just coldly calculate when best to strike and stay quiet. And one question, where the hell did the assumption of a knife come from? You realise that being tooled up is obvious right.

 

[Transk53]

All things being equal a large powerful build matters. This is why there are weight classes in fighting.

I would say that I am more intimated by a strong man/power lifter like build - then the more about looks body builder. There are shades of this - but you can kind of tell "power build" vs "looks build" in a guy.

But - attitude matters as well.

Really. Huge muscles are not a obvious indicater of strength accross the board as it were. Raw grunt maybe, but raw grunt is easily countered with applied skill

 

[Transk53]

As people do not generally try to starts fights with people who are bigger and/or stronger, how would bodybuilding prevent larger people trying to start a fight with you?

It wouldn't, and the size issue is just plain silly. The bigger they are the harder they fall kind of rings true. But it is not the fall necessarily, just the bigger target zone. Yeah a body bulider that gets into range to hit would likely hurt, and probably knock you out. However, the logic of the situation can be reversed. That really peeves them off, especially when they realise that a mere weakling is ready to stand and fight