Protect and Defend
Carry your shield, or be carried on it
Protect or defend, same thing, right? Not quite.
To protect is to shield from an attack, while to defend is to resist an attack. While the two terms are similar, they mean two different things and should not be used interchangeably.
Protect
Protective actions are those strategic actions taken to help detect potential attacks and to shield oneself from attack while attacking. While protective actions may be in reaction to some action, they are more preemptive than reactionary. Protective actions may be preparatory, such as avoiding a suspicious group of people, or they may be actions that occur as part of your attack. For example, while armor may be used as a defensive measure, it was designed for protection while attacking.
On the battlefield, armor is not something to defensively hide behind, it is a protection used while attacking. Thus amour is designed for both protection and mobility. Sometimes the armor itself, such as a shield, may be used as a weapon in an attack. Armor, such as sparring safety equipment, is best used as a part of a active offense, not as a passive defense.
Although one punch may kill, it is usually a series of punches that kills. Thus, instead of defending against an attack, such as a punch, you should "attack the weapon" by attacking the punching arm in way that prevents it from being used again as a weapon. This is a protective action rather than an defensive action. Protective actions permit you to seize and keep the initiative in self-defense situation.
Defend
Defensive actions are those immediate tactical actions taken taken at the moment of an attack to resist the attack. Defensive actions are more reactive than preemptive. When you train for self-defense, you learn actions that may be used to avoid, deflect, or stop an attack. You also learn actions to use in response to an attack that may be used to convince the attacker to stop the attack. Defensive actions deal directly with an attack. To be successful, defensive actions must effectively resist the attacks, but they do nothing to prevent further attacks.
While defensive actions are useful, one should not maintain a defensive mindset. A defense mindset means you are prepared for what to do when an attack occurs, but you do nothing to prevent an attack from occurring. In a defensive mindset, you await an attack and then react to the attack. The attacker takes the initiative in the situation and you merely react to that initiative. At the onset of the attack, the attacker has control of the situation.
As an effective martial artist, you want to take the initiative in preventing an attack from even occurring, and, if when one is about to occur, you should be aware of it and take the imitative to prevent the attack or to counterattack before the attacker makes his or her initial move.
Conclusion
When it pertains to self-defense, it is better to have a protective mindset rather than a defensive mindset. When threatened, instead of thinking about defense, think about attacking the attacker, while maintaining a degree of self-protection.
When it pertains to self-defense, it is better to have a protective mindset rather than a defensive mindset. When threatened, instead of thinking about defense, think about attacking the attacker, while maintaining a degree of self-protection.