It doesn’t matter how many times you hit your attacker in the shoulder. It probably won’t do you any good. There are certain areas of the body that are weak and easier to injure. These are your targets.
Groin – As a girl growing up, I was told over and over again to hit a male attacker in the groin. It is true that this is a weak area of the male body that can be very painful when hit. My advice, however, is never to choose this as your first target unless nothing else is available. Why? It might be painful, but a strike to the groin simply makes some men angry. It isn’t enough to distract or disable them. Others even enjoy the benefits of a delayed pain reaction, which won’t help you in the slightest. Feel free to target the groin, but please don’t go there first unless it is the only target within your reach.
Nose – What is a better target? The nose. It is made up of tiny bones that are highly breakable. The nose, when broken will bleed profusely. Your attacker’s eyes will also tear up, making it difficult for him to see.
Eyes – I hate to overuse Karate Kid quotes (okay I really don’t), but the evil sensei in Karate Kid Part III was correct when he said “a man can’t see he can’t fight.” The eyes are a target that you can reach even if your back is to your opponent. Rake your fingernails across them or dig your thumbs into them. It will hurt your attacker (a lot) and make it difficult for him to continue.
Knees – My favorite. Is that mean? Maybe, but as a woman I know that my legs are stronger than my arms, and my side kick can do a ton of damage to a fragile knee joint. This is also a target that is easy reached from almost any position. Remember that knees bend only one way. Use your heel to kick the knee in any other direction and it will crumble. The joint may break, or it may not, but chances are your attacker will go to the ground, giving you a chance to finish the fight or escape.
Throat – Be careful with this. It is a great target, but an incredibly dangerous one to go after. You can damage your attacker’s airway or even rupture an artery. Both of these can kill your attacker, which is why I personally recommend reserving this target for times when all else seems to fail. You can reduce the damage you do by striking at the jaw line, just behind the ear. This can be disabling to your attacker without completely killing him.
Solar Plexus – Have you ever had the wind knocked out of you? Chances are you have. Remember how badly it hurt? Striking your attacker’s solar plexus (that soft spot where the ribs meet at the bottom of the rib cage) can make it difficult for him to breath and give you a chance to disable him further or attempt an escape.
Those are a few of the most obvious and easy-to-reach targets available to you in a self-defense situation. There are certainly others. Fingers are small and easily breakable (a useful target if an attacker has a grip on you from behind, a situation which will certainly be covered in a future post). Elbows, like knees, only bend in a single direction. Strikes to the temples or jaw bones can be painful or disabling, and can even knock an attacker unconscious. The back of the neck at the base of the skull is also an option.
The Bottom Line: Don’t waste time on useless targets. You might leave a few bruises here and there, but you probably won’t disrupt your attacker enough to escape. Target sensitive parts of the body that will help you get out of the situation. You may not have all of the above targets available to you at once, and it will be up to you to see what options you do have. A good rule of thumb is this: go for whatever you can reach.
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