Don't be a victim.
That was one of the main messages participants heard at a self-defense workshop Saturday at The Training Zone, 110 S. Kolb Road.
Mary Ellen Coffey and her husband, Michael, led the group of 10 students through a series of techniques that would help them break out of simple holds such as wrist holds, a clothes grab and a neck hold.
The couple both have fourth-degree black belts in tae kwon do.
"This is just really basic information," Mary Ellen Coffey said. "You really don't know what you're going to do in a situation, but if you remember one little thing from what we show you, you could get away."
This was the first workshop on self-defense at The Training Zone, and the Coffeys plan to have a class on it the third Saturday of each month.
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Workshop participant Kayla Minor, 12, said she enjoyed striking the punching bag with her elbow.
She also said it's a good idea for kids to know what self-defense is and how to protect themselves.
Kayla is an only child but she said, "If I had an older brother I'd do this to him." Instead, she'll practice the moves on her father.
If you go
Self Defense Workshop
• Where: The Training Zone, 110 S. Kolb Road
• When: 1 p.m. Sept. 17
• Cost: $7
• For more information: Go to www.fitnessforyoutucson.com
Contact photographer Mamta Popat at mpopat@azstarnet.com or 349-5359.
