Empty hand defensive skills can go a long way to outsmart, outmaneuver, and outfight an attacker. You do as you train. If you don’t train, you’ll have very little to fall back on in the seconds it takes for an attack to occur. Like firearms training, martial skills are a perishable skill set. However, over time and with enough repetitions, some basic skills will be ingrained enough to be effective in a fight. But one of the most important takeaways from martial training is proper mindset and immediate action. There’s no time to consider what to do with these scenarios. When you are engaged, it is how well you affect violence of action on your opponent that often dictates the outcome.