Freesparring

[Drag'n]

I ran a search on freesparring and was shocked by the lack of entries. Different arts have different ideas on what sparring is, with various amounts of emphasis on its importance.
What I want to know is: HOW DO YOU SPAR?
Light contact? Full contact? No contact?
Protective gear? What type?
Strikes to face/ head OK? Low kicks? Throws? Joint locks? Submission?
How long? How often?
How important do you think it is?

 

[Flatlander]

Here are a few other threads for reference:

Spar as it relates to self defence

general spar thread

Head gear and sparring

sparring question, another one here

sparring contact levels

continuous spar

sparring and hapkido

difference between fight and spar

 

[Aaron Little]

HOW DO YOU SPAR?

Light to Full depending on the partner and what we are working on.

Protective gear? What type?

16 0z Boxing GLoves or MMA gloves (depends on what we are working on), Mouth Piece and a Cup.

Strikes to face/ head OK?

Of Course

Low kicks? Throws? Joint locks? Submission?

Yes to all of the above.

How long?

Typically 3 to 5 min Rounds.

How often?

Several rounds every class.

How important do you think it is?

For my goals it is extremely important.

 

[markulous]

HOW DO YOU SPAR?
Like we were training for the UFC.

Light contact? Full contact? No contact?
Full contact.

Protective gear? What type?
We wear mouth pieces and cups and some gloves.

Strikes to face/ head OK? Low kicks? Throws? Joint locks? Submission?
Yep. Pretty much anything goes aside from eye gouges and whatnot.

How long?
Usually atleast 3, 3-minute rounds.

How often?
Every Friday

How important do you think it is?
Very important. It shows if I remember what I learned that week and if I can come back from my mistakes from last week.

 

[Han-Mi]

medium contact, no need to hurt each other
basic MA pads, no chest protector
1-5 minute rounds, depending on how long our breaks are and what we are training for
Head is a target, we try not to hit the face.
2-3 times a week
20 minutes at least,
It is important to use your techniques while under the effects of adrenaline

 

[gyaku-zuki queen]

HOW DO YOU SPAR?

it probly depends on what MA your doing.. but for karate its alot of bouncing around.. and then go when you see the opening.

Light contact? Full contact? No contact?

light contact to the face.. contact to the body.. just enough.. you not really trying to hurt them.. but you can hit a decent amount.

Protective gear? What type?

in freesparring.. usually just gloves.. in actuall.. its gloves mouthgaurd, cup 4 the guys.. shinpads if u want.

Strikes to face/ head OK? Low kicks? Throws? Joint locks? Submission?

head body back shots all are allowed. same with sweeps and throws. no joint locks in karate though.. the thows you get them down and punch or kick them to get the point

How long? How often?

2-3 mins for a match stop-time. free sparring can go up to 15 mins though.. if you feel like it.

How important do you think it is?

its good practice.. get your timing and everything right.. can try out new combinations etc.

 

[8253]

We spar pretty much full contact. With the exception of actual disableing strikes or joint breaks it looks more like an actual fight as opposed to sparing. We use mouthpieces, cups, and padded bag gloves. Sparring rounds usually last 3 to 5 minutes. Usually as many rounds as we can go in one night and two nights a week. I think sparing is a very important part of it. Sparing gets you more used to taking punches and then returning them.

 

[Drag'n]

Thanks for those links. I got alot out of some of the ideas expressed in the SD thread. Here in Japan alot of schools are focused only on sparring for competition.Its so safe here that theres not so much of a demand for street defence like there is in other countries.So its very interesting for me to hear of developments in SD from western cultures.
I notice a couple of replies stating you train mid to full contact, including low kicks, but dont mention using shin pads. Must have shins of steel!

I suppose I should also include my own methods.
In Daidojuku we spar Mid to full contact, depending on the level of your opponent.
We use shin/instep pads,head gear,mouth peice,groin cup,fist supporters.Sometimes bag gloves instead.
The head gear is a safety mask.Like a boxers head gear but with a plastic bubble covering the face. This means we can punch/elbow/knee/headbut/kick the face pretty much full force without injury.I think this is really important, as the use of 14/16 ounce gloves, like we use in MuayThai,allows
the use of covering up type defences which dont work when you take the gloves off.This can make a big diference to the way you fight.This is one of the reasons that I was attracted to my style.
The down side of the mask is that it adds a few centimeters to the front of your face putting you in range for strikes that might actually have missed. But then big gloves add to your reach too.
We use head strikes /low kicks/knees/elbows/throws.Pretty much like Muay Thai
No joint locks from a standing position.Submission sparring is usually done separately.But this may vary according to the instructor.
Usually 5or6 rounds @3 mins, sometimes 4 mins. with 1 min intervals.
I enjoy the realistic contact,and rules used in my style.And the use of techniques in all ranges.I think the skills gained from this kind of sparring are essential to any one looking to understand combat.Though I must admit there is a lack of street SD type training.
The reason I started this thread is to find out both how and why people spar. And to learn of what you think the benifits and downfalls of your styles methods are.
I appreciate your feedback.

 

[Shurikan]

Sparring vs Fighting

Sparring to me is working on technique and learning mostly done with light contact or 2" rule of no contact depending on rank of opponent. Objective is to learn how to read opponents and make techniques work. Like tournaments

Fighting is more mid to full contact to see how well your techniques work and more for endurance and workout training. like full contact events.

 

[DeLamar.J]

I ran a search on freesparring and was shocked by the lack of entries. Different arts have different ideas on what sparring is, with various amounts of emphasis on its importance.
What I want to know is: HOW DO YOU SPAR?
Light contact? Full contact? No contact?
Protective gear? What type?
Strikes to face/ head OK? Low kicks? Throws? Joint locks? Submission?
How long? How often?
How important do you think it is?

Normally we spar with light contact unless its two hig ranking people who have a mutual agrement to go hard, in that case we will fully suit up because we all have to go to work the next day. I train in karate, so we dont do submissions most of the time because thats not what my instructor teaches, but that type of fighting(grappling)is a must if you want to really be ready for a fight on the street. I like low kicks but my instructor gets nervous when we use them, low kicks are also a very important part of sparring. Normally we spar for 20 minn, once a week. I like to spar all the time but you have to obey the teacher.

 

[Raewyn]

I ran a search on freesparring and was shocked by the lack of entries. Different arts have different ideas on what sparring is, with various amounts of emphasis on its importance.
What I want to know is: HOW DO YOU SPAR?
Light contact? Full contact? No contact?
Protective gear? What type?
Strikes to face/ head OK? Low kicks? Throws? Joint locks? Submission?
How long? How often?
How important do you think it is?

When we sparr it is full contact, though we need to show a bit of control. As proctective gear we have a mouth guard, boxing gloves and shin pads. We allow all sorts of kicks and strikes to all parts of the body. we normally sparr in 3 min rounds. Its good practise especially sparring against different people with different styles and combos.

 

[AnimEdge]

In mine(Ninjutsu) we general Spar to go for a lock or a take down, we dont wear any gear for most sparring becouse it is viewed as a way to try out techs in a controled fight we punch kick do whatever but is a general very light contact enough to know you been hit but not enough for damage, we know that a good punch in a face can take one down so actual punching and kicking contact are not usally done ya know? we generaly do it to work on take downs locks and ground fighting

 

[Dr. Kenpo]

I ran a search on freesparring and was shocked by the lack of entries. Different arts have different ideas on what sparring is, with various amounts of emphasis on its importance.
What I want to know is: HOW DO YOU SPAR?
Light contact? Full contact? No contact?
Protective gear? What type?
Strikes to face/ head OK? Low kicks? Throws? Joint locks? Submission?
How long? How often?
How important do you think it is?

We go light, to medium. The type of gear is up to the students, as long as it is safe for both combatants. We go to the head, no leg kicks yet, until I feel they're a bit more seasoned. Joint locks, and throws we may put in later. As a tool, I think it's important, but we only go 2-3 times a month, since the techs, kata, basics, and drills take priority.

I am surprised that some go full contact, as stated in other postings here, but since I have to have ins where I rent at a gym, I have to be careful. Injured students won't stay, and won't pay, as the result.:asian:

 

[Goldendragon7]

I am surprised that some go full contact, as stated in other postings here, but since I have to have ins where I rent at a gym, I have to be careful. Injured students won't stay, and won't pay, as the result.

Well let's don't be so naive Dr......... remember what some call "full contact" in reality is only what we call moderate contact. I always ask if "full contact" means Knock out or just heavy contact.

:asian:

 

[Dr. Kenpo]

Well let's don't be so naive Dr......... remember what some call "full contact" in reality is only what we call moderate contact. I always ask if "full contact" means Knock out or just heavy contact.

:asian:

Me, naive? I just have to be careful so if I did something wrong in class, you won't be there to testify against me in court as as a 'hostile/expert witness!":xtrmshock

 

[Drag'n]

you're right, we do need to define what full contact is. My definition of full contact would be heavy contact.Perhaps 80% of full power. Enough to seriously hurt and possibly knock out your opponent if you weren't using protective gear. Even with the gear, it hurts. In tournaments its full power.
Japanese full contact karateka take their training and their sparring very seriously.Of course we do exercise some control.We all work too.So we are carefull of potential injury causing techniques such as strikes to joints, throat, back etc.
When a senior spars with a lower rank he generally uses lighter contact.As students progress the level of contact is increased.From green belt it gets pretty full on, but with a focus on using good technique.Showing any weakness in your defence or your spirit will hurt.So you learn your weaknesses and must push yourself to overcome them or get hurt again.I understand that this kind of training is not for everyone. It takes some getting used to.You either get tough or get out.It is a competitive environment, but those who stick it out earn the respect of their piers.
Plus we find out what really works and what doesnt.
.

 

[Kenpodoc]

you're right, we do need to define what full contact is. My definition of full contact would be heavy contact.Perhaps 80% of full power. Enough to seriously hurt and possibly knock out your opponent if you weren't using protective gear. Even with the gear, it hurts. In tournaments its full power.
Japanese full contact karateka take their training and their sparring very seriously.Of course we do exercise some control.We all work too.So we are carefull of potential injury causing techniques such as strikes to joints, throat, back etc.
When a senior spars with a lower rank he generally uses lighter contact.As students progress the level of contact is increased.From green belt it gets pretty full on, but with a focus on using good technique.Showing any weakness in your defence or your spirit will hurt.So you learn your weaknesses and must push yourself to overcome them or get hurt again.I understand that this kind of training is not for everyone. It takes some getting used to.You either get tough or get out.It is a competitive environment, but those who stick it out earn the respect of their piers.
Plus we find out what really works and what doesnt.
.

A little off topic but needs to be addressed. Unless you are wearing very heavy protective gear (ie a Red Man suit) Protective gear prevents cuts and decreases broken bones but does not prevent Knockouts.

Otherwise a good definition for your question. I would have defined our sparring as moderate contact prior to your definition but some days we spar what you would call heavy contact. We try to avoid knockouts however, and whenever someone gets their bell rung we stop play.

Jeff

 

[Goldendragon7]

Me, naive?

Do you want me to answer that?

I just have to be careful so if I did something wrong in class, you won't be there to testify against me in court as as a 'hostile/expert witness!":xtrmshock

WHAT ME "hostile" NO WAY (well, only when someone is bugging me the wrong way! lol)

:jedi1:

 

[karavak]

HOW DO YOU SPAR?
Light contact? Full contact? No contact?

At my school there are two groups of people. Those that are "Really into" sparring, ie it's what they started learning MA for. This group tends to go medium to near hard contact.
The "other" which include people that thought it would be cool or wanted something other then just sparring. I fall into this category. They tend to be light to medium.

Due to my belt (blue), I normally have to spare against the "really into" group which doesn't work to well for me since I'm trying to work on control, percision, etc etc. and they tend to focus on hitting power.

Protective gear? What type?

Required : Mouth piece, cup, gloves, foot pads
Optional : head gear, shin pands

Strikes to face/ head OK? Low kicks? Throws? Joint locks? Submission?

Strike to the side of the head is allowed but everything else is no, which is annoying to me since most people leave the legs wide open and block with their backs.

How long? How often?

20 to 30 minutes, 3 - 5 minute rounds, average of 3 or 4 rounds per session

How important do you think it is?

I think it's important to be use to sparring in MA's but I don't like how it is done at my school. Little to no actually sparring "practice" or training. We are just put in the ring and told to fight. Every once in a while we will get a note like move offline, and keep you hands up. It's the sort of sparring I was doing when I was a kid without an training in MA

 

[Goldendragon7]

We do need to define what full contact is. My definition of full contact would be heavy contact.Perhaps 80% of full power.

I have 4 modes of contact. I insist the lower ranks develop "control" and I DO mean CONTROL!!

First I teach NO contact to the head. Just as it says NO ~ absolutely NO contact to the head (light to the body). For Beginners - White's

Then there is "LIGHT" contact which means touch but no injury or redness..... For Intermediates or those with a few months of experience - White & beyond....

Next there is "MODERATE" contact which means touch but no injury however this type of contact may "sting" due to a greater amount of "controlled penetration" ..... For 'Advanced Intermediates" - Experienced Color belts, Brown & Black Belts

Finally there is "FULL" contact which means FULL contact like Boxing. For 'Specialty Students only" - this requires a completely different type of preparatory training (as boxing does) to allow for the very hard or FULL contact strikes to the head/body.

As you can see...... different people define contact in any form differently and you need to understand clearly just what the other is talking about in order to be fair or exercise fair-play to all individuals involved when engaging in this sparring activity.

Mr. Parker used to define Fair-play this way "Fair-play is when your opponents definition of Fair-play "MATCHES" your definition of Fair-play.

So be sure to clearly understand each others intentions.

:asian: