Why Fitness Is Non-Negotiable in Martial Arts and Self Defence - By Sensei Liam Musiak

One of the most common things I hear when I stress the importance of fitness in self-defence is this:

“I’d just run.”

Good.

Running is often the smartest option.

But here’s the part people conveniently ignore.

You don’t magically become fast, explosive, coordinated, and stress-resistant just because you decide to run.

And real life doesn’t pause to let you warm up.

Running Only Works If You’re Fit Enough

Yes — running away is a perfectly valid self-defence strategy if it works.

But what happens when:

• You’re not fast enough

• You’re not conditioned enough

• You gas out after 50 metres

• The attacker is fitter than you

• You trip, stumble, or hesitate

Now the story changes.

You didn’t “escape”.

You woke up in hospital.

Or worse — you didn’t wake up at all.

Or you ran… and got punched in the back of the head because you weren’t fast, explosive, or aware enough.

Fitness isn’t about looking good.

It’s about not being caught when escape matters.

Violence Is Physical — Whether You Like It or Not

People love to intellectualise self-defence.

They talk about awareness, de-escalation, mindset, legal context — all important, all things I teach.

But at the moment violence becomes physical, your body is now the deciding factor.

Your heart rate spikes.

Your breathing shortens.

Your coordination drops.

Your legs burn.

Your brain fogs.

If your body isn’t conditioned for stress, movement, impact, and fatigue, your techniques don’t matter.

You don’t rise to your intentions.

You fall to your physical capacity.

Fitness Buys You Time — And Time Saves Lives

Being fit doesn’t mean you want to fight.

It means:

• You can sprint longer

• You can change direction without collapsing

• You can recover faster after adrenaline spikes

• You can think while moving

• You can absorb shock and stay conscious

Fitness buys you seconds.

Seconds to escape.

Seconds to react.

Seconds to survive.

Unfit people don’t get seconds — they get overwhelmed.

“I’ll Just Run” Is a Fantasy Without Conditioning

Saying “I’d just run” without training for it is like saying:

“I’d just swim” — when you can’t swim.

Escape is a skill.

Speed is a skill.

Endurance is a skill.

And like all skills, they require deliberate training.

Running away while panicking, breathless, and uncoordinated is not a plan — it’s hope.

Hope is not a self-defence strategy.

Fitness Is Also Injury Prevention

Another reality people avoid:

Most people don’t get seriously hurt because they were attacked —

they get hurt because they fell badly, twisted awkwardly, or couldn’t stabilise their own body.

Strength, balance, and conditioning:

• Reduce falls

• Reduce joint collapse

• Reduce knockouts

• Reduce catastrophic injuries

Fitness doesn’t just help you win.

It helps you not break.

Why I Build Fitness Into Martial Arts Training

This is why fitness is not optional in my approach.

Not because everyone needs to be a fighter.

Not because violence is inevitable.

But because if something goes wrong, I want my students to have:

• A body that responds under stress

• Legs that still work when fear hits

• Lungs that don’t shut down

• A nervous system that has been there before

Fitness is insurance.

You hope you never need it — but when you do, nothing else replaces it.

Final Truth

Running is good.

Avoidance is smart.

De-escalation is ideal.

But only fit people can reliably escape chaos.

If your self-defence plan relies on running, you’d better be training like someone who actually can.

Because the alternative isn’t “losing a fight”.

It’s waking up in hospital…

or not waking up at all.

— Sensei Liam Musiak