Women Protecting Women: Foundation Chicago visits Studio Fit Chicago to Teach Self-Defense

Last Saturday Coaches Karina and Elias visited our friends at Studio Fit Chicago to teach a women’s self-defense seminar. The tax-deductible donations made by attendees for the seminar go to support our kids Jiu-Jitsu program here in beautiful Pilsen!

The Studio Fit Chicago community was enthusiastic about the learning, asked great questions, trained hard, and were generous with their donations! It isn’t too late to pitch in and donate yourself if you’re just reading this. If you’d like to learn more about the work we do with our kids program, and where funds are going to this year, as well as consider making a tax-deductible donation, Click Here!

During the seminar we covered together standing strong to defend ourselves against shoves and punches, how to safely fall and stand-up, breaking the arm of an attacker who has us pinned on our backs, and more! Attendees also had fun kneeing and kicking the stuffing out of us and our pads the technical and powerful way, and we look forward to the opportunity to return to Studio Fit Chicago in the future for more seminars.

Studio Fit Chicago has a special place in Foundation Chicago’s heart and story. In the year prior to us moving to Pilsen Studio Fit Chicago opened their doors to us to house our programs.

Our time at Studio Fit Chicago was a time of great growth and fun, and we were honored to be the first program with men in it to even be allowed inside their women’s only studio. Studio Fit Chicago’s thoughtful, wholistic, and caring approach was and is a great fit for what we try to do here at Foundation Chicago and it was so nice to be able to be back in their vibrant studio on Armitage last week.

What You'll Learn Saturday at our Women's Self-Defense Charity Seminar!

This Saturday Coaches Karina and Elias are excited to teach a two-hour seminar at our friends Studio Fit Chicago in Lincoln Park. You can register for the seminar HERE and we’ll take donations, digitally, at the seminar (though you can donate now as well and learn more about where the money is going and who it benefits!) but we wanted to let you know the type of things that will be covered at the seminar.

Check out the below to get a sense of the topics we’ll discuss and practice, together, Saturday!

• Situational Awareness: Understand how to stay alert and aware of your surroundings to identify potential threats and avoid dangerous situations before they escalate.

• Breathing Techniques: Learn how to control your breath to maintain calmness and focus under pressure, which is crucial in any self-defense scenario.

• Strong Base and Movement: Discover the importance of having a strong, stable stance and how to move efficiently to maintain balance and power.

• Defending Against Grabs: Master techniques to break free from various types of grabs, ensuring you can quickly regain control and protect yourself.

• Defending Against Strikes: Develop skills to effectively block and counter strikes, reducing the risk of injury while neutralizing the attacker.

• Safe Falling and Recovery: Practice safe falling techniques to minimize injury and learn how to get back on your feet swiftly and securely.

• Ground Fighting: Gain practical knowledge of fighting on the ground, including escapes, submissions, and defense strategies.

Yellow Chair Self-Defense Breakdown

It’s important to not chase after fights and instead walk away from them whenever possible. It’s also important for us to appreciate good, practical technique used in self-defense. To that end, we present the above video, with Prof. Elias explaining why you shouldn’t try to out-reach a chair, or chase a man holding a chair who is just trying to protect himself.

Women's Self-Defense Seminar, June 15!

On June 15th Coaches Elias and Karina will be conducting a women’s self-defense seminar with our friends in Lincoln Park at Studio Fit Chicago! We’re doing it for donations to support our non-profit organization, Pilsen Defense & Access, which supports our kids scholarship program. If you’re a woman and interested in taking part in the seminar, Register Here, and come join us June 15th at 11:30am at Studio Fit Chicago, located at 1011 W. Armitage.

We’ll post more details on what we’ll be covering, soon, so stay tuned and spread the word to help women empower themselves and support our kids program scholarship fund!

Sunday MMA Training Added!

Sunday 1:15pm no-gi class will focus on putting it all together (aka. Mixed Martial Arts) this summer! This class is open to all levels of experience and the training is tailored to wherever you’re at.

In the class you’ll learn how to connect your Muay Thai and grappling in a practical and useful manner to make you a better martial artist and more equipped to defend yourself whether it’s out in the world or as a competitor in the ring or cage. Sign up, get to classes, and get your drilling and sparring in!