Description:This book is designed for those who have no previous training in the martial arts; formal karate techniques are explained where necessary to clarify points of instruction. Physical fitness and mental discipline are emphasized, and the interested student can enjoy numerous physical conditioning exercises before he embarks upon the twelve step-by-step lessons of basic self-defense techniques.
Amazon Review:
This
large soft cover format 210 page book (The Essence of Self-Defense by
Hidy Ochiai) was published in 1979; however, the vast majority of
material is still educational and of value for anyone seeking a good
basic introduction to learning how to defend yourself. Even though the
main focus is on learning Karate Do techniques it does show some Judo,
Jujitsu, and Aikido techniques along with the striking counters.
This
book covers a wide range of topics in its four chapters. After the
introduction explaining what to expect of this book the first chapter
covers the importance of physical conditions. Running, walking, half
knee bends, light stretching, deep abdominal breathing, sit-ups, full
squat and front kick, and numerous other exercises are covered. This is
a twelve lesson format approach to learning self-defense. These include
stances, basic punches, strikes and kicks and how to use these
techniques in various self-defense situations such as grabs, chokes,
ground defense and many other situations. This book is filled with
numerous clear black and white photographs which makes this text easy to
understand and follow.
As I have emphasized in all my reviews of
martial art and self-defense books, the real value of these books and
manuals is when they are used in conjunction with actual hands-on
training with a competent instructor.
If you are seeking a good
basic manual on self-defense while also studying with an instructor
this is a book you should check out.