In a real-life self-defense situation, using whatever is at your disposal at the time can help keep you safe and give you an opportunity to get away and escaped unharmed which is always the number one priority when somebody has a weapon and you don’t.

In this video from self-defense expert Nick Drossos, he reiterates that point and demonstrates how to use an umbrella of all things against a knife attack.

The great thing about an umbrella is it’s a pretty common item that has some range too. Against someone with a knife who wishes to do you harm, range is the key, as you want to stay as far away from them as you can.

Ideally you obviously never want to engage with a knife wielding opponent when all you have is an umbrella as one is a deadly weapon and the other is, well, an umbrella. Nevertheless, according to Nick, if cornered an umbrella may help to distract your attacker and a good whack could provide an opportunity to escape to safety.

Interestingly enough, there are also several varieties of ‘tactical’ umbrellas out there on the market that are pretty much just sturdier versions which would be much better suited for self-defense applications like the scenario presented in this video.

Toward the end of the video, Nick makes an important point, though, that all you’re doing with the umbrella is buying time to create noise and distance and eventually get away.

He also says there is no foolproof system against a knife and using whatever is at your disposal at the time can make all the difference. It doesn’t have to be just an umbrella either but a hot coffee to the face can be a great distraction tool against a knife. Likewise, a bag, purse or backpack, etc. can be used as a makeshift shield too.

“>

In conclusion, the purpose of this kind of exercise is to get in the mindset of using whatever is at your disposal at the time in order to provide the opportunity to escape unharmed.