Female Students Learn Self-Defense and Empowerment

As a young woman, Gloria Marcott was a high-achieving athlete who was invited to try out for the U.S. Olympic softball team. She ultimately chose a different path, opting for a career in the pharmaceutical sales industry before being drawn to a new profession focused on self-defense.

“As an athlete, I had the mindset that my physicality and steadfast attitude would save me from all the problems in the world,” Gloria says. “But I soon learned that I needed more than that.”

While attending a work conference, Gloria was put in an uncomfortable situation to say the least. She was a bright-eyed go-getter with the world in front of her when it happened.

“I went to look out of the window and when I turned around he bear hugged me,” she says. “It was unsolicited by me and immediately put me into shutdown mode because I wasn’t thinking about anything from a self-defense point of view.”

As a successful young woman with beaming confidence, Gloria never thought she’d become passive in an unwanted touching situation. But, in this case, she immediately recoiled. She felt powerless and vulnerable.

“The hug was as far as anything went, thank goodness, because I was able to verbally get myself out of the situation,” she says. “But when I came home, I swore that I would never feel that way again. No one I knew, loved, care about or even talked to would feel that level of defeat that I felt.”

That’s when Gloria took action and started training in self-defense. She eventually joined local law enforcement and has been training people in combat and self-defense for decades.

Gloria is currently a part-time faculty member in the CNM Law Enforcement Academy and is a nationally recognized power coach. 

“In law enforcement, I am a master trainer in firearms, defensive tactics, officer survival, vehicle close-quarter battle, ground control and I’ve completed SWAT school,” she says.

Gloria says that it’s important for people to understand the difference between thinking you will be ok, and knowing you will be ok, in a potentially violent situation. That’s why she teaches Soul Punch Women’s Self Defense and Empowerment classes.

“It’s important, especially for young women in a college environment, to have some fundamental education in self-defense and situational awareness,” Gloria says. “What we think is supposed to be a friendly environment, isn’t always the case. We can confuse friendly acquaintances with people who we absolutely trust.”

In the case of a male attacker and female victim, Gloria says that relying on strength is not the way to go. She teaches her students how to use leverage and specific striking techniques to subdue and escape attackers.

“If an attacker sees that you are able to protect yourself and that you will hurt them, they’ll think twice about messing with you,” she says. “I want my students to have an unshakable soul when it comes to these situations. I want them to have the confidence and abilities to navigate simply going from point A to point B.”

Gloria will teach the next Soul Punch Women’s Self-Defense and Empowerment course on June 29 at the Albuquerque Police Department Training Academy from 10 a.m. to noon. The class costs $20 and the proceeds will help fund the CNM Nursing Program’s 2019 Pinning Ceremony.

Learn more about CNM’s Law Enforcement Academy and CNM’s Nursing program.