[Deaf Smith]

At close range you do not have to be good.... just fast.

Inside a few feet, as long as you do not telegraph your moves, you can get inside another persons OODA loop. Just takes practice.

I highly recommend the martial arts. The ones like TKD, or Shotokan, or Shorin-Ryu, are more formal and have kata, lanuage studies, and are very styalistic. Some of these are 'hard styles', while others, like many of the Kung Fu, are soft styles. Some belive in attack, others counter-attack.

Others, like Krav Maga, are pure self defense and do not have anywere near the regimentation as the others. No language, no kata, not much bowing, etc.... But they do have alot of PT, good SD methods, and contact, all to the good.

I say this being a 5th dan TKD and a Krav Maga practitioner.

So get off your duff and go work out. It will do wonders for you and give you a backup skill just in case you don't have a convenient weapon. In fact, as has been said by many, the real weapon is your mind.