You have probably noticed you usually have two options if you've ever been interested in real self defense. You first need to locate a qualified personal defense instructor willing to work with you either one on one or in a group setting. Finding a good set of self defense videos is another option you have. But you might ask, do self defense videos even come close to being as good as in person self defense training? In this article, we'll take a look at this question and see if one has an overwhelming benefit over the other.
With in person self defense training, you have a live instructor that can help you along the way and answer any questions. If you have problems and need an answer right away this can be especially useful. If you were watching self defense videos, you would have to wait a few hours at the very least to get an answer. And that's only if you're able to find an instructor who answers questions. Because a lot of instructors who would simply ignore your question, you might have to search on forums for the answer. This also brings the risk of getting incorrect information from someone due to the anonymous nature of internet forums. If you can train with the instructor face to face this wouldn't be a problem.
Cost is another big factor to be aware of when choosing between self defense training and self defense videos. Self defense training can be very expensive if you want to learn from a good instructor. If an instructor is a top level instructor, there is a good chance you could pay up to $1000 per day. However, if you wanted that instructor to give you self defense videos you could get them for much less. You also need to keep in mind the benefits of the cost of self defense videos.
And of course there is the replay factor of self defense videos. You can replay moves in slow motion again and again with the videos. If you need to watch a move several times in order to master it this is very beneficial. This can be done in person as well, but since it could potentially slow down the class it might upset other students if they learn faster than you.
If they are done right, self defense videos can have the same benefit as a one on one self-defense training. You just have to make sure that you select a good instructor, and only pick out good videos that will teach you a system that works well for you.