Not anymore.
As reported by USA Today, a group of seniors living at an independent living community in Maryland have learned how to protect themselves physically against attackers using ‘Cane Fu.’
Cane Fu, a play-on-words of Kung Fu, is an exercise in self-defense where seniors use their canes to protect themselves.
“When you get to be my age, you start to worry about someone's punk kid harassing you,” 62 year-old Mark Shuey, a Cane Fu instructor, told the newspaper. “The more they use (the cane), the better they get with it.”
Shuey is an expert in Tae Kwon Do, and he created Cane Fu to help empower seniors to become more confident and able to fend off thugs and robbers.
Some ways seniors can use a cane for self-defense include striking an attacker in the knee, in the elbow, or in the shin.
Cane Fu is growing in popularity across North America; according to USA Today, there are nearly four thousand people learning cane martial arts with the Cane Masters International Association.
So next time you see a senior with a cane walking down the street, remember that they just might be a master in Cane Fu. And who would want to mess with them?