Is wearing glasses a problem during training?

[kehcorpz]

I was just wondering do people with glasses have to take them off or use special resistant glasses which
cannot break?

But even if somebody punches you in the face then I don't know how likely it is that one of the glasses shatters and
you get bits of it into the eye.

 

[Dirty Dog]

Glasses (at least in the US) are pretty much always shatter resistant. You're more at risk from the frame cutting your brow. Personally, I take mine off for sparring.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

I wear prescription racquetball eyeglasses in the dojo. Saved my eye when I took a bo through one lens. Very inexpensive, purchased mail order.

 

[Tony Dismukes]

With the kind of training I do, I can't imagine wearing my glasses. They'd get broken in a heartbeat. I always take them off to train.

 

[JowGaWolf]

If you are doing sparring to the face or sparring with someone who has no control then you'll want to take them off. I'm not sure how they would work with caged head gear but I can't imagine it being comfortable.

 

[kuniggety]

Like Tony, I do BJJ which involves your face constantly getting smashed so the glasses come off. I'll watch the lecture with them on and then set them to the side when it's time to roll.

 

[Buka]

Kehcorpz, do you wear glasses?

 

[Bill Mattocks]

I truly don't have much choice about wearing or not wearing prescription glasses. Without them, I cannot see my instructor. Street glasses would (and have) been destroyed by dojo workouts, especially sparring. I can't spar without my glasses either. Sorry, just can't see well enough.

If I did grappling, I might be able to get by without them, and I'd probably have to.

This is what mine look like. You can get them online for cheap. This is my second set in 8 years, well worth the small investment.

No, they don't fog up or whatever. They just work. Worst thing that happens is the strap gets smelly from perspiration, so I wash it regularly.

 

[Ironbear24]

Take your glasses off for sparring.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

Take your glasses off for sparring.

Then I cannot see. That's kind of a problem.

 

[Ironbear24]

I was talking about the op, you found a good solution to the issue. They remind me of sports glasses.

 

[Dirty Dog]

Then I cannot see. That's kind of a problem.

How bad is your vision? Given that your glasses might be damaged or come off during a confrontation, do you think it would be a good idea to intentionally train semi-blind?
Personally, I've got one eye, and the vision in it is not great. A hand more than 6' from my face will be blurry.
But, I've found that this isn't entirely bad. I think it has something to do with my lack of response to most feints. I see the person, but since my eye cannot focus on them, I see their entire body, and never get locked in on any one part.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

How bad is your vision?

I dunno. Bad. They quit giving a name for it at 20/400, I passed that in like 4th grade of elementary school. I can read without my glasses, if I hold the book to my face. I have huge astigmatism in both eyes as well as near and far vision defects. And I'm color-blind. Basically blind as a bat without my goggles.

Given that your glasses might be damaged or come off during a confrontation, do you think it would be a good idea to intentionally train semi-blind?

I sometimes do. Enough to know that my hand-eye coordination is fine with or without my glasses. The issue I face in the dojo is that I cannot see the instructor, so when he says "do this," I have no idea what "this" is without my glasses.

Personally, I've got one eye, and the vision in it is not great. A hand more than 6' from my face will be blurry.

That's essentially mine as well, although I fortunately have both eyes still. My left eye is no longer correctable to 20/20, so when my right eye gets to that point, I'll be all done driving.

But, I've found that this isn't entirely bad. I think it has something to do with my lack of response to most feints. I see the person, but since my eye cannot focus on them, I see their entire body, and never get locked in on any one part.

There are usually advantages to any disability in some sense, (no pun intended) although it's not entirely on the level of comic book heroes, I've found. Being color-blind simply means I can't trust my eyes to identify colors, so I rely naturally more on movement, texture, and light and shadow. I used to think that military camouflage was an intentional joke since it didn't fool me, until I realized that it does fool people with normal color vision. I've never seen a rainbow - they look like two bands of color, blue and yellow, in the sky, and I often miss them unless someone points them out to me. But I have seen photographs of rainbows, proving that color printing is not exact, or it would fool my eyes as well.

In the military, my poor color vision gave me superior night vision, and the military has long been aware of that little advantage. I suppose it all informs my sparring as well; but none of that is really intentional; it's just part of what my mind uses to discern threats and tell my body to react.

 

[Tony Dismukes]

The issue I face in the dojo is that I cannot see the instructor, so when he says "do this," I have no idea what "this" is without my glasses.

We have some students who wear their glasses while techniques are being demonstrated but take them off before they start working the techniques themselves. Is that an option for you or are you unable to see your training partner well enough to be safe when you spar and do partner drills?

If I did grappling, I might be able to get by without them, and I'd probably have to.

Fortunately, you don't need your eyes to grapple. I often close my eyes while grappling and do just as well as I do with eyes open. The main reason for not rolling blindfolded all the time is to maintain environmental awareness and not avoid colliding with other groups on the mat.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

We have some students who wear their glasses while techniques are being demonstrated but take them off before they start working the techniques themselves. Is that an option for you or are you unable to see your training partner well enough to be safe when you spar and do partner drills?

The latter. Also, since I'm usually sweating, my street glasses fall down my face and I'm constantly trying to push them up to keep them from falling off entirely. This is why my prescription racquetball glasses work very well for me. They're also heavily padded, so if I get smacked in the face, no issues.

Fortunately, you don't need your eyes to grapple. I often close my eyes while grappling and do just as well as I do with eyes open. The main reason for not rolling blindfolded all the time is to maintain environmental awareness and not avoid colliding with other groups on the mat.

I agree. If I trained in a grappling art, I'd skip the glasses whilst rolling. They'd be a hindrance in that case.

 

[mograph]

This is what mine look like. You can get them online for cheap. This is my second set in 8 years, well worth the small investment.

Bill, do you have a URL for them? I play squash, and tight non-scrip goggles with contacts tend to fog up ... so I now wear glasses with a big geeky plastic visor. I'd like to try your option ... thanks.

 

[WaterGal]

I was just wondering do people with glasses have to take them off or use special resistant glasses which
cannot break?

But even if somebody punches you in the face then I don't know how likely it is that one of the glasses shatters and
you get bits of it into the eye.

In my personal experience, the frame will break before the lens does. So I wouldn't worry about the glass shattering - but there is a risk of damaging your glasses. (Also FYI, in my personal experience, superglue does a decent job of fixing plastic frames. )

I'd recommend either taking them off during sparring, or wearing sports glasses like Bill has in his photo. I think which one is a better choice will depend on your vision level and on what distance you do your sparring at. Judo, for example, is a sport that even blind people compete in, because the range is so close.

 

[Tony Dismukes]

The latter. Also, since I'm usually sweating, my street glasses fall down my face and I'm constantly trying to push them up to keep them from falling off entirely. This is why my prescription racquetball glasses work very well for me. They're also heavily padded, so if I get smacked in the face, no issues.

I've got another training suggestion for you ...

 

[Bill Mattocks]

Bill, do you have a URL for them? I play squash, and tight non-scrip goggles with contacts tend to fog up ... so I now wear glasses with a big geeky plastic visor. I'd like to try your option ... thanks.

I have had good luck with Zenni Optical, but there are plenty of other online dealers as well. I'm not endorsing them in particular, just reporting my experience.

Eyeglasses Online - Buy Prescription Glasses & Eyeglass Frames | Zenni Optical

You can go a couple ways with these. You can order online and have them make up the prescription lenses. You need your own prescription, which you can type in, as well as your "PD," which is the pupillary distance between the centers of your eyes. This information can be obtained by visiting any eyeglass place and asking them to measure your PD. In most states - I believe - they have to tell you by law. However, I've found that some places don't care to perform this public service if you're not buying from them. Adult PD doesn't change, so once you know what it is, you can always use it again. There are also a variety of ways to measure your own PD at home, although I would tend not to trust them.

You can also buy the frames online without lenses and simply have a local eyeglass shop put the lenses in for you. It's more expensive that way, of course, but you don't have to worry about the PD thing. Most places, I've found, will do it for you, but they will make you sign a waiver that if they bust the frames trying to put the lenses in, they're not at fault.

You can also buy the whole thing from your local eyeglass shop. Some have 'sport' glasses of various kinds, although I have never found any that have the kind of goggles I use as seen in my photo above.

Personally, I have had good luck with Zenni. I'm on my second set - the first was broken when my partner in the dojo threw a thrust with the bo and I failed to parry; he rammed the end of the bo right through the right lens. It shattered, and my eyebrow was cut, but very minor. Compared to what it could have been, I felt very fortunate.

 

[mograph]

I have had good luck with Zenni Optical, but there are plenty of other online dealers as well.

Thanks -- I'll probably do it through the optometrist on the next checkup.