Well, first they were only blue belts, and second, it doesn't matter how well trained a kid is -- she is NEVER going to be able to overpower a healthy male adult. The size difference is just too much, and going to class once or twice a week for a few years doesn't exactly make a kid Steven Segal. There's a whole lot of difference between karate class and a real life or death self defense situation.
My 7-year old takes martial arts. They learn the forms and do all the basic martial arts stuff, but the instructors always stress that their most important weapon is their mouth -- as in screaming at the top of your lungs: "Please let me go I don't like that." The idea is that the best defense for a kid is to make a scene, make a lot of noise to attract the attention of other adults, and to try to run away as soon as possible.
There are some high level belts in my daughter's class, and I seriously doubt that any one of them could overpower the instructor.
No, you need the poneytail for that.
"second, it doesn't matter how well trained a kid is -- she is NEVER going to be able to overpower a healthy male adult."
That's true, but she can cause him some discouragement while daddy comes in from next door.
I wouldn't like to get kicked in the nose by even a 10-year-old girl, if I had my druthers.
They teach them to be polite? I'd teach the kids to yell "Get the F*** away from me!!"
Nothing brings adults running faster than kids yelling obscenities!
The girls actually beat the snot out of them, I was very proud of our daughter, and it was great to watch. Now they harbor no illusions that they would ever be able to completely overpower an attacker, but they learned enough to at least slow someone down, or disable him so that they could get away and attract some attention.
The most important thing they learned, though, was to always be aware of where you are so that you don't put yourself in a dangerous situation. Granted, that's not always possible, but it gives them better odds.
Maybe, maybe not. I speak from experience because my 16 year old daughter has a third degree black belt in Tang Soo Do and my 13 year old son has a second degree black belt in the same dicipline. At age 10, they could not overpower a healthy male. The goal, however, is not to "overpower," but to defend, evade, and escape. The element of surprise, the sudden burst of energy, the speed, and the piercing yells, may very well prove sufficient to accomplish those goals against a helathy male, depending upon their level of martial arts training.
You don't have to be able to win a prolonged bout with an attacker to save your life. Being able to fight long enough to make a lot of noise and attract help can save your life. Being able to stun an opponent long enough to run to safety can save your life. Dealing damage to a soft spot like the eye can save your life. etc etc.
In my own experience, a crippling leg blow can give you all the distance you need from a 6'6" 300 pound monster. No way I could go toe to toe with the guy, but no way was he following me across the parking lot with his knee blown out.
Amen. 90% of men will overpower 90% of women physically, in addition to pwning them in just about every intellectual feat. It's a harsh reality.