If you see a resident senior citizen walking a little more confidently in town this week, you may be encountering one of the students of a recently completed class offered by Friends of Newtown Seniors and Newtown Commission on Aging.

Nearly two dozen people participated in "Krav Maga For Seniors: so that one may walk in peace," a course presented at NYA Sports & Fitness Center twice weekly between March 8 and March 24.

Britt Soden, who has two decades of experience in tae kwon do, karate, Muay Thai, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu, was the instructor. For each 60-minute session, Mr Soden raised the heart rates of his students through a series of exercises. By the end of the course he had also given each one a new sense of confidence.

"You have to be willing to fight for everything," he told the class on March 22, the penultimate session of Krav Maga For Seniors. Joined by his wife for that day's session, Mr Soden spent time explaining each exercise he expected students to undertake, breaking down motions for each partner before having pairs of students go through rotations.

He and his wife demonstrated each move, and then offered critiques during each rotation.

The students then followed their cues, taking turns kicking, punching, and doing their best to make contact with defensive cushions being held by their partners. Laughter and grunts mingled within the room where the class was being offered, and low comments from Mr Soden helped students better understand and apply each exercise.

While one intent of the class was to make students feel more secure in their day-to-day living, it was not meant to create an aging group of vigilantes.

"Britt emphasizes through the whole class how to avoid problems, which is really an important thing for everyone," said John Boccuzzi, Sr, the chairman of Friends of Newtown Seniors, and one of Mr Soden's students. "You don't go looking for trouble, and you do everything you can to avoid a situation that is going to escalate into violence, but he trains you to know that if there is no other way out, or there is no way to immediately get help, he teaches you how to respond to an attack."

And respond they will.

Mr Boccuzzi, his wife Vicki, and others listened on March 22 as Mr Soden shared the story of a former client who found herself with a disabled vehicle on the side of the Merritt Parkway one night. The woman was approached by a man appearing to be a good Samaritan, but who had ulterior motives.

When the man began attacking Mr Soden's student, she responded with a few very well placed kicks.

"The man tried to walk away," Mr Soden said. "He took one step and then he collapsed. She had fractured his pelvis."

The men and women in the coed class at NYA that afternoon were roundly impressed.

"It may take a few strikes," Mr Soden told his students, "because the pain doesn't always transmit immediately to the brain. It isn't like the movies where people go down after one strike."

A short time later, students were paired off again, this time practicing kicks that would in an emergency would be hitting an attacker's groin area.

"Don't try to kick the cushion," Mr Soden said. "You're not going for a specific body part. You're trying to go through an area.

"When it comes to the groin area," he continued, "it doesn't matter if an attacker is male or female. Your objective is the pelvic area. You hit that, you're going to stop an attack."

Saying he "absolutely" gained some confidence from the class, Mr Boccuzzi said this week he also felt the goal of Krav Maga for Seniors was met.

"One of the things that happens when people age is they feel somewhat vulnerable," he said March 29. "You begin to lose you confidence when your strength and agility aren't what they used to be.

"This program reinforces the idea," he added, "that if there is no way out, there is a way to handle yourself should a situation arise."

A smiling and exuberant Sue Hoffert summed it up succinctly on March 22, saying, "This class is excellent!"

Next Course: Self Defense

Friends of Newtown Seniors have announced the next course the group would be sponsoring alongside the town's Commission on Aging. A grant is making it possible for the course to be offered free of charge, according to Vicki Boccuzzi.

"Self-Defense for Seniors (Easy, Progressive, Practical)" is a six-week course that will offer students "self-defense-based exercise methods designed specifically for senior citizens interested in preserving the safety and wellness of themselves and those they love," according to information from Friends of Newtown Seniors.

John Boccuzzi said this class has a different emphasis than the Krav Maga class did.

"We're hoping to attract people who are maybe less physically able to defend themselves, a little more frail, and teach them how they can best send off a problem should it arise," said Mr Boccuzzi. "Again, you want to avoid trouble, and avoid situations where you need to do anything physical, but should a need arise, here's how to defend yourself, how to use what's at your disposal, like a cane, to defend yourself."

Mr Boccuzzi said the self-defense class will also build on the same theme of increased confidence for those who participate.

Certified personal trainer Ari Friedman will be leading this course. Mr Friedman has 20-plus years of martial arts and self-defense experience as well as more than a decade in the heath and wellness field.

He specializes in senior health, functional movement, and medically monitored fitness.

"Self Defense for Seniors" will meet Tuesday and Thursdays at 1 pm.

The first two sessions, April 11 and 13, will be at Sunshine Health & Fitness, where Mr Friedman is on staff. The health and fitness center is within the SBC Building at 153 South Main Street.

The remaining four sessions, April 18-27, will then be conducted at 123 South Main Street, in the new location for Sunshine Health & Fitness.

"It just so happens that they will be moving during the same time we will be offering this class," Mr Boccuzzi said. "We'll start in one location, and just move with him."

For additional information or to register, contact Friends of Newtown Seniors at info@friendsofnewtownseniors.org.