Women's Self-Defence Workshop in Ballito: A Powerful Day of Skills, Connection and Confidence

What happens when you bring together women of different ages, backgrounds and walks of life for a day built around movement, learning, laughter and practical skills?

You get a room full of energy, plenty of laughs, new connections — and a reminder of just how powerful women can be when they learn together.

On Saturday, 22 August 2026, Maddog Performance Institute, together with Maddog Health & Wellness, hosted its Women's Month Safety Experience at the Maddog facility in Ballito, KwaZulu-Natal.

Following the lead-up to our Women's Self-Defence Workshop in Ballito, we had high hopes for the event. The reality exceeded them.

The day was a massive success, with women coming together to learn practical self-defence, situational awareness and basic medical first-aid skills in an environment that was supportive, interactive and, most importantly, fun.

A Women's Day Event That Was About More Than Training

From the beginning, we wanted this event to feel different.

Yes, there were important skills to learn. Yes, we wanted women to leave feeling more aware and better prepared. But we also wanted the experience to create something that can sometimes be missing from traditional workshops: connection.

And that is exactly what happened.

Women from different walks of life and across different age groups attended the day. Some had previous training experience. Others were trying self-defence for the first time. It didn't matter. Everyone got involved. Everyone participated. And there were a lot of laughs along the way.

There was something particularly special about watching women who may not have known each other at the start of the day working together, practising techniques, asking questions, supporting one another and becoming progressively more comfortable as the sessions continued.

It reminded us that learning practical safety skills does not have to be intimidating or fear-driven. It can be empowering, engaging and genuinely enjoyable.

Practical Self-Defence with Amanda "Maddog" Lino

The practical self-defence component of the event was led by Amanda "Maddog" Lino, founder and Head Coach of Maddog Performance Institute.

Amanda brings an exceptional level of real combat experience to this type of training. She is a 2× EFC World Champion, IMMAF Featherweight World Champion and Africa's first female double-division EFC champion, with more than 15 years of training and experience across MMA, striking and grappling.

But this workshop wasn't about teaching women how to become professional fighters. It was about making self-defence practical.

Participants were introduced to physical scenarios and concepts designed to help them better understand how to react when someone enters their space, how to respond to grabs or physical contact, how to create distance and why movement, awareness and decision-making matter.

One of the most valuable parts of any practical workshop is simply having the opportunity to physically practise. Watching a technique and actually trying it are two very different things.

The women threw themselves into the exercises, worked together and discovered that learning self-defence can involve just as much laughter as it does concentration.

Situational Awareness and First Aid with Amanda Wren Kobus

Physical self-defence is only one part of personal preparedness.

The second component of the day was presented by Amanda Wren Kobus, who took participants through situational awareness and practical medical first-aid concepts.

Amanda Wren is Maddog's in-house Registered Nurse and Strength & Conditioning Coach. She is also a Proteas-selected Master 1 powerlifting athlete, KZNPLF Master 1 record holder, Director of the KwaZulu-Natal Powerlifting Association and a certified coach and referee under the South African Powerlifting Federation.

Her combination of clinical, sporting and performance experience brought another dimension to the workshop.

Situational awareness is not about living in fear. It is about paying attention. Understanding your surroundings. Recognising when something feels different or out of place. Knowing where your exits are. Being aware of the people around you. And thinking about your options before you urgently need them.

The medical first-aid component then introduced participants to practical concepts that could help them respond more effectively in an emergency while professional assistance is being arranged.

Together, the sessions created a much broader conversation around personal safety: awareness, prevention, response and basic emergency knowledge. (For the full breakdown of the wellness side of the day — including the complimentary InBody scan and recovery session every woman received — see Maddog Health & Wellness's recap.)

Learning Without Losing the Fun

One of our favourite parts of the Women's Day event was the atmosphere. There were serious subjects being discussed, but the day itself never felt heavy.

There was movement. There was interaction. There was food and coffee. There were questions. There was plenty of laughter. And there was genuine connection between the women attending.

That balance mattered. At Maddog Performance Institute, we believe people learn more effectively when they feel comfortable enough to participate, ask questions and make mistakes.

This wasn't a room full of people sitting quietly and listening to someone speak for hours. It was practical. It was hands-on. It was social. And everybody was encouraged to get involved.

By the end of the experience, the energy in the room spoke for itself.

A Massive Thank You to Our Sponsors

Events like this are made even more special by businesses that are willing to get behind the community and contribute to the experience. We would therefore like to give a huge thank you to our event sponsors:

• Concha Bakery & Café
• Mozambik Restaurant
• Summa
• Dallmayr

Concha Bakery & Café and Mozambik were also part of the food experience planned for the day, helping us turn the workshop into something that extended beyond training and gave the women time to connect and enjoy the event together.

Thank you for supporting Maddog, supporting our women and helping us create a memorable Women's Month experience in Ballito.

What This Event Taught Us

The response to the event confirmed something we already strongly believed: there is real value in practical, professionally facilitated workshops that bring people together while teaching skills they can take back into everyday life.

Corporate team building doesn't always have to mean another dinner, conference room or generic activity. A team can learn together. Move together. Laugh together. Challenge themselves. And leave with practical knowledge at the same time.

Following the success of our Women's Month event, Maddog Performance Institute is open to working with companies, schools, organisations, community groups and private groups looking for a different type of workshop or team-building experience.

Corporate Self-Defence and Team-Building Workshops in Ballito

Maddog Performance Institute can work with businesses to develop customised corporate workshops, self-defence days, team-building experiences and practical training events. Depending on the needs of the organisation, a workshop could incorporate areas such as:

• Practical self-defence fundamentals
• Situational awareness
• Personal safety principles
• Basic first-aid education
• Fitness or bootcamp activities
• Team challenges and interactive exercises
• Women's safety workshops
• Workplace wellness initiatives
• Confidence-building activities
• Strength and performance sessions
• Recovery and wellness experiences through Maddog Health & Wellness

Workshops can be structured around the organisation, group size and objectives rather than forcing every company into the same programme. Whether the goal is team building, employee wellness, practical safety education or simply giving your team an experience that is different from the usual corporate event, we would be happy to discuss what can be created.

Bring Your Team to Maddog Performance Institute

The success of our Women's Month Safety Experience showed us what can happen when the right people, practical education and a welcoming environment come together.

Women arrived from different backgrounds and age groups. They trained together. They learned together. They laughed together. And they left having experienced something they may never have tried before.

For us, that is what a successful event should do. It should give people something to talk about. But more importantly, it should give them something they can take away with them.