MARTIAL artist Nathaniel Cooke knows a thing or two about self-defence but the subject of a new book he has written teaches readers how to avoid violence altogether.

How Not To Get Hit includes a series of chapters that teach how to recognise violent situations and manage aggression with the ultimate aim of avoiding any kind of conflict in future.

Nathaniel, 32, who has taught the ancient Japanese martial art form ninjutsu at Stratford Park Leisure Centre in Stroud for the past three years, hopes the book’s message will give young people added confidence and help keep them that little bit safer.

"It is the non-violent guide to violence, self defence and personal safety for people who do not want to learn to fight," he said.

"This is the point that most books on personal safety seem to forget – that self defence is not about being good at fighting, it is about being good at not fighting. "So I decided to write a book about how not to get into a fight, not one about how to win a fight, which is what many other books seem to mean when they say self defence."

The book’s first chapter – the psychology of an attack – deals with the tell-tale signs of a violent situation and also teaches readers how to react to an aggressive gang should they ever come face-to-face with one.

Elsewhere he gives statistics on victims and perpetrators of violence and discusses the often prevalent role alcohol plays in fights.

To end, he includes interviews with two individuals who experience violent situations almost everyday as part of their jobs – bodyguard and martial arts expert Marc Moor and Roland Dix, a senior psychiatric nurse and aggressive behaviour specialist.

"The most important weapon you have in any violent confrontation or stressful situation is your mind," added Nathaniel, who was taught ninjutsu several years ago in Japan by renowned ninja master Masaaki Hatsumi.

"You will not learn how to beat someone up in the book but you will learn some key principles that might just keep you alive should the worse happen."

How Not To Get Hit, ISBN 978-1-4466-8419-1, priced £11.95, is available to buy via the book’s website at www.hownottogethit.com