The VITAL Tour -- Full Force Adrenal
Programs
Ok, so now we are getting somewhere here. We are going to
talk about self-defense programs such as Model Mugging,
IMPACT, and FAST Defense. These programs are generally
short-term “seminar-like” programs that employ fully padded
assailants in violent encounter scenarios. There are
obviously differences between these and other similar
programs. However, the main crux of each is to train the
average person how to NOT freeze up and to fight with
fierce ambition while experiencing an adrenaline dump.
These programs, while limited by their focused scope and
limited timeframes, are excellent overall. Obviously you
can only learn so much in an evening class, weekend
seminar, or a 30-hour several sessions program. However,
they are very effective for what they are intended to do.
Prepare you for the violence and give you the industrial
strength tools you need to escape and survive.
Overly harsh critics of these programs say that the padded
assailants never really attack with conviction. They also
say that the effects of the fear-induced stress arousal
(adrenaline dump) aren’t all that pronounced / potent. “You
won’t just turn into a quivering pile of jelly and poop
your pants” one experienced military combatives instructor
told VITAL Self-Defense. Finally, there are those who say
this type of training is strictly for women. (In which
these people may have a point being Model Mugging and
IMPACT are solely or women… FAST is men, women, and
children however.)
As far as the padded assailants (called Bulletmen due to
their silver duct tape helmets) not really fighting the
students… That’s not the goal at all. The goal of the
full-force scenario simulation is to trigger an emotionally
based adrenal condition in the student, and have them fight
out of that condition productively with full force against
a mock assailant.
You are engraining several things into the student’s
emotional memory center when you do this kind of training.
First you are getting them to fight instead of freeze up.
Second, you are imprinting a real sense of prevailing over
violence, the experience of fighting for their lives and
succeeding. That’s very power psychological conditioning
that will fuel their efforts if they ever need to do it for
real. Finally, you are teaching them in a primal and
hands-on way that is similar to an actual physical fight.
You can talk concepts and practice techniques all you want
but there is just nothing like getting it on for real (or,
for safety purposes, for “almost real”).
To address the criticism that the physiological effects of
the fear-induced stress arousal not being all that bad and
therefore being overly emphasized in these programs… Well,
it is totally true that different people will have varying
responses to a threat stimulus.
You innocent old Aunt Martha who has lived a shelter life
and wears a flower dress to church events will react a
particular way when some charges at her with the biggest,
scariest knife she’s ever seen; all the while yelling the
most vulgar and terrorizing speech she’s ever heard. She is
likely to scream bloody murder and either faint, freeze up,
or try running away. She will probably experience many of
the physiological effects associated with the adrenaline
dump.
Then there is the hardened Ex-Army Delta squad leader who
has since retired from the Detroit inner city Police. That
same guy with that same knife, using the same vocals comes
rushing up to him and his reaction will be drastically
different. This guy has seen and done it all, so this is
old hat to him. Because he has been stress inoculated over
years of intensive training and dozens of gritty missions,
the effects of the adrenaline dump will likely be minimal
with this guy.
So maybe that ex-Army Delta dude never took a dedicated
full-force adrenal program. And if was to take one now he
would probably think it was worthless to him, which he may
have a point in that. However, he did indeed get training
through the school of hard knocks. Whether he realizes it
or not, he studied the same subjects that full-force
adrenal programs teach. He learns the hard way all the
educational goal that adrenal programs try to instill into
their students.
With all that praise being said, there are still some areas
and topics that these programs don’t cover for whatever
reason. Most of them are upfront about this, and make sure
you walk away with a real sense of security instead of a
false one. Because they are responsibly delivered and
effective in their training methodologies, VITAL
Self-Defense employs FAST Defense technology into part of
its training curriculum (primarily in our verbal violence
and scenario simulations). We find it is an excellent way
to condition students for the psychological and
physiological elements of a violent engagement.
Here’s a couple areas not covered by these kinds of
programs:
#5. Exclusion of medical, legal, and emotional aftermath
issues (although the emotional aspects are cover briefly)
#10. Absence of criminological and violence mindset
information (although the mindset aspect is covered
indirectly)