The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

In a city where,
according to statistics, 80% of women have been subjected to harassment, it isn’t the worst idea to take up self-defence classes. After all, it never hurts to
be able to defend yourself from a possible attacker. Nūn Center in Zamalek understands the need for self-defence techniques and has started to offer these classes twice a week.

Each class is two
hours long and is taught by Ahmed Kadry, who is trained in a variety of martial
arts including traditional Japanese Jiu Jitsu and mixed martial arts. These sessions teach self-defence techniques
that have been adapted to use in real life situations. Classes are open to
everyone no matter what your fitness level or martial arts experience is. As
well as picking up self-defence tactics, the class also makes for good excercise.

The two hours begin with a warm up of your all muscles to get prepared; special
focus is placed on the wrists since they are used more excessively than usual.
Apart from that you will also work on your balance. The next stage after the
warm up consists of learning defence moves that apply to different situations. The
first one shows you how to block attacks and escape efficiently and you are also shown techniques
on how to free yourself should someone actually succeed in grabbing you. It was
surprising to find out that with some techniques you can bring your opponent to
the floor using just one finger!

The next segment of the class consists of practicing these newly learnt
techniques with your fellow classmates and Ahmed himself. During practice, Ahmed
continuously walks around to correct your moves and help you improve.

The best thing about this self-defence class is that you immediately
learn helpful techniques which, if necessary, you could use immediately. During
the class there are no breaks, it is a two-hour full-on workout. There are classes
on Monday starting at 8PM to 10PM and on Saturday from 4PM to 6PM. You should
wear a loose t-shirt as sometimes it’s necessary to grab each other in order to
practice the moves. The classes are 100LE and you’ll need to register
beforehand by calling Nūn Center.

Ahmed is a very good instructor and is patient with teaching all the moves. All
in all, kudos to the Nūn Center
and Ahmed for offering these practical and genuinely useful classes.