I competed in another fighting style without speaking to my Sensei first (serious)

[Notdirtydannnnn12 6]

This hits on the ultimate paradox of traditional martial arts. High-contact sparring gives you that necessary reality check and builds grit, but turning it into a competition where the goal is to land a concussion just for a shiny trophy completely shifts the incentives. Knowing how to hit hard is essential, but having the control and restraint not to break your training partners is where the actual skill lies. Excellent point on the psychological trap of full-contact tournaments.

Usually nobody gets hurt where I train, sometimes the younger teens get mad at each other and cry a little; but that's normal kid behavior.

Head/face kicks usually get pulled, sweeps are fair, hard shots to the body are fair, and hard thigh kicks are fair.