I’ve developed the 30-hours women’s self-defence course to provide a solid basis of both practical and theoretical knowledge needed to exercise effective self-defence. The goal is not only to have a toolkit for situations of acute danger, but also to aid participants in avoiding these by gaining tools for early risk-recognition; and to develop self-defence skills in a broader sense, including its non-physical means and aspects, as well as to reinforce group members’ self-confidence and self-esteem through experiencing and (re)discovering their own strength and capacities.

The course is structured gradually, progressing from basic moves towards more complex combinations to defend against prevalent types of attacks, supported by conditioning exercises to gain bodily self-confidence and experience in executing bold and determined movement.

Next to the physical elements, each session involves a discussion addressing crucial topics related to situational awareness and personal safety awareness; risk-recognition and early prevention; assertiveness, boundary-setting and -enforcing skills; and self-knowledge and -development.

The women-only group environment provides a safe space and an inspiring context to witness each other’s strength and growth, and to experience support and solidarity with fellow group-members.

The 30 hours are grouped into 10x3-hours or 12x2.5 hours sessions, spanning 2.5-3 months. Offering 2 additional practice sessions during the course ensures that those who had to miss an occasion can catch up, and those who would like to practise more have the opportunity to do so. Techniques taught during the sessions are recorded and made available to members to enable independent practice during or after the course. Similarly, I provide documentation, notes and further resources related to each theoretical subject covered, so that those interested in a particular area can explore the topics further or revisit them.

The course requires no prior knowledge, so it’s most suited to beginners or those with some prior experience wishing to re-acquaint themselves with self-defence/martial arts.

If you feel that you would benefit from building self-confidence, or improving the ability to stand up for yourself – not only in acutely threatening situations, but also in everyday life –, this course was designed for you.

If you have any questions about the course, or if you are interested in realising the course in your own community, please don’t hesitate to contact me via the form below, on onvedelem.noknek.bp@gmail.com, or on Instagram (@onvedelem.noknek.bp)!

You can also follow my Instagram page to learn about upcoming courses, workshops and taster-sessions. You can find the description of a previous course here, and testimonies by participants on this page below.

I started practising the krav maga self-defence system in 2016.

In the following years, observing and experiencing a variety of instruction practices and training contexts, it became clear to me that effective and accessible self-defence training for women and girls requires an integrated, holistic approach that takes into account women’s social position and the special characteristics of violence against women and girls, and is thus also trauma-informed.

This means developing teaching methods and content, and conducting practise that is consciously aware of and addresses:

• The characteristics and effects of violence against women and girls – especially (c)PTSD and trauma backgrounds affecting many women and girls; and

• Gendered physical socialisation, as a result of which the type of movement in krav maga and other combat sports and martial arts - which involve the execution of decisive and confrontational moves – feels especially foreign for many women.

In the following years, in addition to pursuing training, I started researching the available scientific literature on the risk-reducing effects of practising self-defence; about the necessary modules and duration of self-defence training required for achieving successful risk-reduction and prevention; on related international good practices and methods developed specifically for women and girls; about physical techniques considered most promising and efficient in the case of highly disproportionate attacker strength and size; and about the additional benefits of practising self-defence sports, in terms of awakening and improving self-esteem, self-confidence and exercising assertiveness, which also apply in everyday life and in recognising and preventing more insidious forms of interpersonal transgressions prior to their escalation.

I obtained my self-defence instructor certificate at the BAKM Academy (UK) in 2022.

In light of the above, in 2023 I have developed an integrated self-defence course for women, whose content and methodology combines the most crucial and relevant physical techniques with the most useful and practically applicable areas of the knowledge acquired in the previous 14 years in the scientific field and in working with victim support CSOs.

While the course is centred on physical techniques and the development of bodily confidence, it also provides theoretical knowledge and practical considerations on violence and harassment against women and the characteristics and methods of perpetrators, which are indispensable for early risk-recognition and conscious prevention; and also incorporates reflexive activities and self-knowledge exercises related to boundary-setting, boundary-enforcement, increasing awareness and improving one’s relationship to her body – which are essential for practising effective self-defence.

The goal of Women's Self-Defence Workshops is for participants to try out this form of movement, to…

…experience their own strength,

…discover through a few basic techniques that even if someone is stronger or bigger than us, we still have tools;

…awaken and nurture the ‘fighting spirit’ and improve self-confidence;

…de-mystify self-defence and help cultivate motivation for engaging in self-defence, martial arts and combat sports.

Workshops open to the public are announced on my Instagram page, so if you’re interested in trying a few moves, don’t hesitate to follow!

Sessions are typically 90-minutes long, but I also offer 2- and 2.5-hour sessions according to the group’s needs and goals.

I also offer workshops for camps, events, sport clubs, communities, organisations and companies - if you are interested in inviting a session, you can contact me using the form below or by emailing onvedelem.noknek.bp@gmail.com.

More than 350 women and girls have participated in my workshops, including at the Colorado Festival, in the ‘Rebel Girls’ camps and in the framework of NaTE's youth ambassador program; at the invitation of various community spaces and initiatives (e.g. Közkincs Könyvtár, Szeszgyár); and during free outdoor training sessions.

✨ Taster session [Introduction to self-defence, boundary-setting exercises, verbal self-defence tools, basic moves]

🛡️ Theory & practice [Combining awareness-raising on risk-recognition & prevention with physical techniques]

🥊 Strikes & blocks [Focusing on strikes and blocking hits and slaps]

🦵 Hits & kicks [Focusing on basic hits and kicks]

🤝 Arm/wrist-grabs, defending against basic everyday attacks [Focusing on getting out of arm/wrist grabs, unwanted physical proximity, and blocking slap-attempts]

👭 Bystander intervention: how can I provide support to others? [What are one’s options when witnessing harassment, or when learning that someone we know has become a victim of harassment/ violence/ abuse?]

These can be combined or expanded according to the inviting group’s interests.

The next course will take place in 2024, February 17 to April 10 (in Hungarian). You can learn more about the course here and apply here.

If you’re interested in future courses in English, follow my Instagram page to learn about upcoming courses, or feel free contact me directly (via the form below, on onvedelem.noknek.bp@gmail.com, or on Instagram).