When it comes to self defense for women, there are plenty of experts who offer advice, but not all of it is good. Here are some things that you need to know in order to stay safe.

* Aim to injure, not just cause pain: There’s a big difference between pain and injury; the former will distract for a second, while the latter will give you more time to get away. Aim to injure your attacker, not just cause a second or two of pain.

* You don’t have time for Prince Charming to come and save you: When someone pulls a knife out demanding your purse, you have precious little time to protect yourself; while screaming and yelling may help you eventually, you can’t rely on Prince Charming to come to your rescue. It may be too late.

* You can’t reason with your attacker: It’s a fair statement that someone who has a weapon aimed at you probably doesn’t like you very much. So trying to reason with them is an ineffective tactic.

* You don’t need to be fit to protect yourself: While being fit is certainly a worthwhile goal for anyone, you don’t have to have a model’s body in order to protect yourself. Your aim is to strike quickly and injure your attacker; you don’t have to be a certain weight or look a certain way in order to achieve that.

* Be on the offense, not defense: You should know how to react to your attacker’s moves with some of your own, but don’t forget to be on the offensive and keep your attacker worried about you’re going to do next, not the other way around.

Participaing in self defense for women classes should be on every woman’s bucket list. It will provide many benefits, not the least of which is learning how to protect yourself in a dangerous situation.