5 Things to Know About Sparring | ART OF ONE DOJO

Sparring is one of the most hands on training you're going to get, literally. Sparring is where you get to put everything you've learned to the test against a live and resisting opponent.
While it can be fun and exciting, there are several things you should keep in mind so that your sparring experience is as beneficial as it can be. These are the top 5 things to learn about sparring.

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[djmolnar]

I was 46 when I started in martial arts, and building endurance and flexibility was something I have really worked hard at. My biggest accomplishment so far was simply when I was able to pull off my first successful head kick while sparring. That and dropping over 40 pounds in the process.

[michaeldasalyaget]

To combine two points you have made, when you are sparring it does prepare you to get hit, this can be helpful in street fighting, because the more you learn to take a hit, the less the shock of that hit in a street fight will be. It doesn't necessarily mean that you get tougher and can take a hit better, but what it does do is condition your mind and fight against the flight reflex in the middle of a fight. One expression that was thrown around a lot when I was sparring is the first hit is what makes it real.

[califguy]

I would like to make several points. Early in my training, I became quite good and could defeat any of the other students quite easily in light contact sparring. However after a few months, my instructor made us put on the gloves and go full contact. It was eye opening, I didn't feel as loose or free flowing, turned away a lot and generally felt like I had gotten my ass kicked.
Instead of getting depressed, I decided to go back to basics, throwing one strike at a time and focusing full power on each strike. After a few sparring sessions, I could go on and felt just as comfortable full contact sparring as I had been light contact so I would definitely recommend full contact sparring to be among one of the training methods one uses.

You mentioned something that I made mandatory when I was teaching. Learning from getting hit. As an instructor, I would spar with all of my students and would watch for their weaknesses and then attack those weaknesses. I would, however leave the same openings that they were leaving to see if they could pick up on it.
If not, I would then explain that I was say attacking the ribs on the right side because they were open there, learn to protect that region, but also wherever I was attacking they should look at me for the same openings. I think it helped a lot of my students. As they would pick up on my attacks and counter by attacking the same areas on me, I would change to another opening they were leaving. I believe all sparring matches should be learning experiences, otherwise they serve very little to help you achieve what you seek in your martial art.

[hamzadesidragonsarwar]

I used to spar with a guy much taller and more experienced then me he loved to jab a lot due to his reach one day I threw my own jab he slipped I caught him with a knee to the face ever since that day he never tried to slip my punches again

[subzero]

From my experience in the martial arts, I cannot over exaggerate the importance of sparring. I first started in ninjitsu. The school I went to was great. My only complaint about it was that there wasn't enough sparring. I've dappled in many styles and from what I have experienced, my opinion is that the more effective styles for self-defense and street fighting are the ones where sparring takes up a big portion of the curriculum and is full contact. In my opinion, full contact sparring does teach to take a hit, but I also believe that taking a hit is often more mental then physical. Any pro fighter will tell you that the the punch that knocks you out is the one you don't see coming. When I sparred with my friends, I use a combination of Kyokushin Karate, Muay Thai, and Krav Maga when standing. I also use Judo and Brazilian Juijitsu for throws and grappling. If you train just for fitness, then feel free to train any way you want. If you wish to fight professionally or believe that you will one day have to fight for your life, if you don't include full contact sparring in your training, you ultimately doing yourself a disservice. That's just my opinion anyways.

[lycan-zpxf]

Point 2, I would say sparr people who make you uncomfortable when fighting them. This is especially more useful in martial arts more oriented towards fighting on multiple fronts. If you are battling a pressure fighter and you feel comfortable, look for people who manage range and counter more, or clinchers/grapplers. People fight differently, especially in more combative arts like Muay Thai, Boxing, MMA, BJJ, Wrestling, etc.

[goktimusprime]

Other things to bear in mind about street fights is that they often:

* Start as surprise attacks. Unlike sparring where you bow at each other and you know full well that you're about to be attacked, this is not the case in most street fights where the opening move is likely to be something like a sucker punch or some other kind of surprise attack.

* Your attacker is probably going to be superior to you in every way. Bullies are cowards and don't want a fair fight. They will target someone that is smaller, weaker and/or less skilled than themselves. Consequently when training/sparring in your martial art ALWAYS train with the assumption that your opponent is your superior. Even if they're not, just assume it. Because in real life if you are attacked by an inferior opponent but you defend yourself as if they're superior, you'll still be okay. But not vice versa. It's similar to defensive driving -- assume the worst.

* As the video said, anything goes in a street fight. Never assume that your attacker will fight using the same style as you do. That's HIGHLY unlikely. This is where the benefit of cross training in other martial arts come in, or even just watching other martial arts (as training in every other style can get expensive :p). When you look at or cross train with other martial arts styles, always think, "Now how would I fight against that?" For example a lot of people criticise Jujutsu for going to the ground saying that standing is always best, even when grappling. And I agree with this *but* what if I were attacked by say a Brazilian Jujutsu fighter? Or a good amateur wrestler? Even if I don't particularly want to practise ground fighting, I need to be able to defend myself from those who would want to take me to the ground. And what if they're successful? There's no point preaching the merits of stand-up fighting when my opponent has me on my arse and is on top of me. I've met people who refuse to use groin attacks. That's fine, but other people are more than happy to attack the groin in oh-so-many wonderful ways. Defend yourself from these attacks, even if you never want to use them yourself. In a real fight your attacker will not give a flying hoot what your personal standards in martial arts are - they will do whatever it takes to beat you, and you must do what's necessary to protect yourself. Rules and restrictions in sparring should exist for safety reasons. If your school has rules/restrictions beyond this then your sparring sessions will be less effective as a means of training for self defence. e.g. groin strikes should be allowed and all biologically male participants should wear appropriate protective gear etc. And yeah, even though I personally don't practise ground fighting, if I'm cross training with someone who does then by all means let's hit the mats.

[gwheeler]

Nice video. You got in the two points I always point out, and touch on a third. Sparring is not fighting, and the Dojo is a laboratory, which means, like in science, failure is a natural process. I have to handicap my students, else they end up with the same jab, cross, back-fist, sidekick, round-kick combos everyone else uses, because they are safe. So I will put my more experienced guys up against the newbies, but they are only allowed to defend with movement. Goal setting is really important in my personal sparring. I had a boxer come to class, a real solid, stand-up nice guy, who could also take your head clean off if you blinked wrong. It took me a month, but I ended up being able to catch him in a wrist-lock. My next goal is to catch him every time. I always share with my students that I am a student first and foremost, and I am still learning and failing, though my failures are rarer and not always something they would observe. But if they are learning for life, it is an important lesson.

[johnsantiago]

Hi, I've ran across your channel today and I have binge watching your videos. I am a martial artist, I love martial arts and I find your videos very informative and educational. Your videos are very well made, edited etc. I think it's one of the best martial arts channels here in YouTube. It's very great for novices and people who are experienced in martial arts. I subscribed to your channel! Keep up the great work!

[paulschewene]

All good points, sir!

I have a top five, that deals in "Sparring Safety"...

5.) Never spar unsupervised.
Having your instructor, or one of your instructor's assistants, on hand, to monitor the sparring session, and halt it if it starts to go sideways, is ALWAYS a good idea. Sometimes people get hit... sometimes, people get hurt... and sometimes, even the best people, lose their cool or get 'overzealous' in the 'heat of battle' so to speak. That instructor on hand, can call a halt to the sparring and deal with 'glitches' such as the ones I have described, and they can also see things you may NOT be seeing, and advise you on how to improve yourself.

4.) WEAR YOUR MOUTHGUARD!!!
Don't even THINK of donning any other safety equipment, until and unless you have your mouthguard ready to go into your pie hole before sparring begins. Your mouthguard is THE only safety equipment, that reduces your chances of sustaining a concussion (aka TBI aka Traumatic Brain Injury). Padded helmets don't protect against concussions. They only protect against knots on your head. And please, get your mouthguard fitted to you by your dentist... and when you get one mouthguard fitted properly... GET ONE EXACTLY LIKE IT, FIT EXACTLY RIGHT... and take care of them, and NEVER SPAR WITHOUT ONE. (That's why you get a spare... just in case you lose one!)

3.) Gentlemen, WEAR YOUR CUP... (Ladies, OBTAIN groin protection for women and WEAR IT!!)
Plumbing is plumbing, whether you're male or female... and sometimes, techniques hit where NONE OF US want to be hit. Normally these are accidental in nature... but accidental or not... THEY HURT... and how much injury you sustain to go with that pain, depends on whether or not you're wearing protection "down there".
And ladies... yes... protectors are made for your boobs... and I highly recommend wearing THAT protection, also.

2.) Protect your sparring gear.
Don't leave your sparring gear (bagged or otherwise) in your car, or in direct sunlight. Heat absolutely DESTROYS sparring gear's ability to protect you, and your sparring partners. Clean and dry out your sparring gear after each use when you get home, unless you like the idea of your sparring gear bag stinking so bad it can get up and come to you when you call it. The bacteria that would be growing uncleansed gear, would NOT be good for you if it got into a cut or a blister... so clean it and dry it carefully after each use.

1.) Protect yourself, your sparring partner, and fellow students and your instructor(s).
When sparring... remember... it's a learning exercise... or it's a competitive GAME... and it's not worth someone getting hurt over it all. If you break your sparring partner, your learning comes to an abrupt halt... so watch out for them. If they leave you a gaping opening, you don't have to blast them with full and unrestrained combat force, to let them know, "I got you!!". When your technique taps em in that big gaping hole in their defense... THEY'LL KNOW they screwed up and you made em pay for it.

If your opponent starts to back into the mirrors a lot of us have in our schools... CALL A BREAK... and RESET.

If your opponent loses balance and starts to fall... shuffle back and get your guard up. (in class, I mean)

If your opponent has an injury occur, CALL A BREAK and summon your instructor at once, and aid your partner to a safe spot to evaluate the injury.

Sparring is a LOT of fun, and very good for learning. It's even more useful for learning, when it remains CONTROLLED, and when the participants have well substantiated confidence, that the focus remains on 'learning' and 'not hurting each other in the process'. People will STILL get hit now and then, even if everyone's looking out for each other... accidents DO happen. (That's why we wear safety equipment!!) But never believe for a second, that 'the more padding you have on, the harder you can throw', because the padding doesn't offer NEARLY as much protection as many people think.

Look out for your partner... use care when there are other sparring engagements going around you and your partner, and you and your partner, will not only learn a lot from each other... you'll have a BLAST doing it!

[MesserTAMU]

Spar with people worse than you to practice offense and new ideas, spar people better than you to work on your defense and learn from their experience, spar with people at your level to put it together and have a good fight.

[casualtom]

In line with the discussion on "experiment, " I would add "mimic." Try and emulate the more skilled and experienced students/ teachers in your school. One of my favorite sparring stories is how I recall one day, I noticed my sensei dominating his sparring partners by advancing towards them with a series of quick jabs. Being a taller, lankier guy for a Japanese person, this was working well to his advantage. So I figured that, as a person of similar proportions, this would be worth a try. I tried it out against him and, not only was I pleased with the results, but I noticed that using his own style against him had the benefit of briefly messing with his mind and forced him to come up with a new plan. I'm pretty sure he got a good kick out of it.

Side note, just discovered your channel the other day and can't get enough of it. As a guy who's been doing martial arts half my life, I truly believe you have the right attitude. Thanks so much for making these.

[DoylesStickandcanes]

Dan great channel 👍. Being disabled now readapting to my training and teaching after loosing my right leg has been anything but easy I enjoy watching your videos while I'm resting and training keep the videos coming.

[EngineerMK]

I do Judo and Jujitsu. I spar most of my students every class. It's a good workout and learning experience for us all. It also keeps everyone's reality in check as even the instructors sometimes get thrown or tapped by students.

[jedijudoka]

After earning my black belt in 2006, I left kenpo because of the sparring every school does around here. My dojo only point sparred, and practice techniques in the ideal phase. I wanted to spar hard to simulate combat as closely as possible, but we weren’t allowed. I tried out a free class at a local mma gym and consequently lost faith in kenpo. Of course I now realize it was my instructors methods that failed me. I train now with a few black belt buddies in what I feel is what I needed. We drill our basics, work mitts and pads, spar light-medium intensity “mma style” (We’re also judoka), full contact occasionally, and only touch on techniques occasionally as points of reference, as Parker himself said they were to be used.

[masonmiller]

When I started as I white belt in my Do-Jahng (Korean training ground) I couldn't land a single hit, but as time went on, I was able to land a few hits, despite my disabilities.

[Herowebcomics]

These are great tips about sparring!
Looks like i need to work on that stuff more in my class!

[mungrus]

The hardest part of sparring is getting use to being hit in the face!

[PhantomSteel]

at my school every body sparred everybody white belt sparred black belts and so on. we all helped each other it was more like a family

[waliveroliver]

In a tag-team, team fight my team was 2 points down on the last fight. Fights are only 30 seconds, it's my flight. I manage to land 3 consecutive kicks leading to my team winning. That was the day I reached purple belt after having done my grading a week prior. Purple is two away from black where I go. It felt great!