This practitioner essay will discuss the evidence base for an Australian trauma-informed kickboxing program, The Fight Back Project. We share key differences and adjustments while delivering this program in the Salvadoran context. We consider practitioner assumptions and limitations when transferring trauma-informed practice principles from the Global North to the Central American setting, and the criticality of gender-responsive adaptations. Drawing from existing research on the benefits of trauma-informed martial arts as a form of physical exercise, we describe the collaborative development and implementation of a trauma-informed kickboxing program alongside a local, community-led organization.
ArguetaE. A.BrigdenN. K. (2023). Transformative writing and naming: Gimnasio Elb y Celina. In BrigdenN. K.HejtmanekK. R.ForbisM. M. (Eds.), Gender and power in strength sports: Strong as feminist (pp. 151–153). Routledge Press.
2.
BehmD. G.KayA. D.TrajanoG. S.BlazevichA. J. (2021). Mechanisms underlying performance impairments following prolonged static stretching without a comprehensive warm-up. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 121(1), 67–94. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-020-04538-8
3.
BodinT.MartinsenE. W. (2004). Mood and self-efficacy during acute exercise in clinical depression: A randomized, controlled study. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 26(4), 623–633. https://doi.org/10.1123/jsep.26.4.623
4.
BrigdenN. (2023). Understanding body resistance in El Salvador: A qualitative discussion of a pilot program for embodied empowerment. Violence Against Women, 29(12–13), 2393–2417. https://doi.org/10.1177/10778012231186815
ChannonA. (2014). Towards the “undoing” of gender in mixed-sex martial arts and combat sports. Societies, 4(4), 587–605. http://doi.org/10.3390/soc4040587
7.
ChannonA.JenningsG. (2014). Exploring embodiment through martial arts and combat sports: a review of empirical research. Sport in Society, 17(6), 773–789. https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2014.882906
8.
CroomA. M. (2014). Embodying martial arts for mental health: Cultivating psychological well-being with martial arts practice. Archives of Budo Science of Martial Arts and Extreme Sports, 10(1), 59–70. Retrieved from https://smaes.archbudo.com/.
9.
CroomA. M. (2023). The impact of shadowboxing on the psychological well-being of professional martial artists. Discovery Psychology, 3(4), Article 64. 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44202-023-00064-8
GammageK. L.van IngenC.AngrishK. (2022). Measuring the effects of the shape your life project on the mental and physical health outcomes of survivors of gender-based violence. Violence Against Women, 28(11), 2722–2741. https://doi.org/10.1177/10778012211038966
12.
Hasson-OhayonI.KravetzS.RoeD.RozencwaigS.WeiserM. (2006). Qualitative assessment of verbal and non-verbal psychosocial interventions for people with severe mental illness. Journal of Mental Health, 15(3), 343–353. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638230600700847
13.
HollanderJ. (2004). ‘I can take care of myself’: The impact of self-defense training on women’s lives. Violence Against Women, 10(3), 205–235. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801203256202
14.
JonesG. W.MackayK. S.PetersD. M. (2006). Participation motivation in martial artists in the west midlands region of England. Journal of Sports Science & Medicine, 5(CSSI), 28–34. Retrieved from https://www.jssm.org/
15.
KoY. J.KimY. K. (2009). Martial arts participation: Consumer motivation perspective. Journal of Sport Management, 23(6), 699–722. https://doi.org/10.1123/jsm.23.6.699
16.
LevineP. A.BlakesleeA.SylvaeJ. (2018). Reintegrating fragmentation of the primitive self: Discussion of “somatic experiencing”. Psychoanalytic Dialogues, 28(5), 620–628. https://doi.org/10.1080/10481885.2018.1506216
17.
McCaugheyM. (1998). The fighting spirit: Women’s self-defense training and the discourse of sexed embodiment. Gender & Society, 12(3), 277–300. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243298012003003
18.
McGowanC. J.PyneD. B.ThompsonK. G.RattrayB. (2015). Warm-up strategies for sport and exercise: Mechanisms and applications. Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 45(11), 1523–1546. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-015-0376-x
PriceC. J.HoovenC. (2018). Interoceptive awareness skills for emotion regulation: Theory and approach of mindful awareness in body-oriented therapy (MABT). Frontiers in Psychology, 9(798). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00798
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). (2014). SAMHSA’s concept of trauma and guidance for a trauma-informed approach (HHS Publication No. SMA 14-4884). https://ncsacw.acf.hhs.gov/userfiles/files/SAMHSA_Trauma.pdf
24.
van der KolkB. A.StoneL.WestJ.RhodesA.EmersonD.SuvakM.SpinazzolaJ. (2014). Yoga as an adjunctive treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder: A randomized controlled trial. The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 75(6), e559–e565. https://doi.org/10.4088/JCP.13m08561
