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After a Gym Attack, Woman Teaches Self-defense

The Story

A woman was attacked in her apartment building gym. The gym is supposed to be a safe place to work out and focus on your physical health. What happens when someone tries to harm you? How do you fight back? This woman knew that she needed to defend herself and did not allow the attacker to get the upper hand.

Woman Attacked in Gym Teaches Self-defense Class

The brave young woman known across America as ‘wonder woman’ after fighting off an attacker inside a Florida gym is now helping other women learn self-defense.

Nashali Alma, 24, was working out at the gym in her apartment complex when an assailant tried to grab her. Alma was chased to the other side of the gym, where she hit the man with her phone.

“I wasn’t fearful. It was more like I won’t let this man touch me,” Alma tells Inside Edition. “It was just all instinct to react to it, fight back, be vocal.”

Alma says when she and her attacker were out of the security camera frame, the man tried to put her in a chokehold. She says she was able to wiggle out and elbow him in the face. 

Alma grabbed the man by his beard, got up, and ran out the door, she says.

Alma is now teaching other women self-defense.

She teamed up with Youfit Gyms and instructor Jason Bleistein, an expert in Krav Maga, an Israeli martial art.

“When you’re in these situations, you know, a lot of people freeze. But if you take these classes, you get to gain the confidence, to gain the empowerment to fight back,” Alma says.

“When she ran she put a bench between, you know, her and the attacker and used obstacles which we teach all the time,” Bleistein tells Inside Edition. “She was making it very clear ‘get off of me.’”

Read the full article and watch the harrowing video from Inside Edition

What Can We Learn?

There are some really great points in this article! First, this woman used whatever she could to defend herself against the man in the gym. She put space and obstacles between them. Though the man was likely stronger than her, she used what she had available as a tool. Her phone may not be the ideal self-defense tool but it helped her in this situation. The woman was aware of the threat and when the man threw himself at her she was vocal and responded physically. Attacks happen but attackers don’t always come out on top. She also mentions building confidence with classes and getting your body ready to fight back so you don’t freeze if you find yourself in this situation.

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