How often do you spar? And what intensity levels?

[TheWarriorHeart]

Just wanted to get a concensus on how often people spar who post on here. Also please list if you are a competitive fighter and what sort of competitions you compete in.

Personally, I try to spar as much as humanly possible. I dont compete in any competitions yet, but I would like to eventually get into some sort of NHB fights. I train at a Shaolin 5 animals school and to be honest most of the students there don't give me a challenge....except my instructor, but he hasn't been sparring much lately. Since I dont compete and sparring is such a rush for me...I get pretty intense....and there are a few people I spar with that actually like getting that way too. If I had to say the intensity level as a percentage of total power and energy expended, I would say anywhere from 50-70%. Also, I always spar full contact with groundfighting....sometimes I will use a face mask and light gloves, other times just light gloves. I was getting to spar at least 3-4 times a week about 6 mos ago. But lately because of lack of training partners it has been about once a week. I am thinking about going around to some fighting gyms and seeing if I can find sparring partners there though.

Anyway, lets hear your experiences

[Water Dragon]

I don't spar because my technique is too deadly.

[Shaolin-Do]

Shut up lest I blast you with my chi from where I sit.




























:rolleyes:

[Fred Sanford]

I don't spar, I just do katas.

[SevenStar]

chi blasts are superior.

[SevenStar]

I guess someone has to give a serious answer though...

I "spar" every day, for the most part. I train bjj and judo currently, and we roll in every class. in my longfist days, we sparred 1 - 2 days per week. In muay thai, we sparred once a week (classes were twice a week)

I may be going to another MT school once a week shortly - I'll be going on wednesdays, which is the night they spar.

[No_Know]

With an actual other person...January 2003 one night and July 25, 2003. And recently once before that all but not sure the date.

Intensity. Very relaxed even when maiming serious. If I feel the urgency of the danger. I slow my responces and responding with my tensing (choking) muscles. It's always intense. Severly, yet I have seemingly acquired a sense of don't get caught-up/lost in the urgency feeling (adrenaline) or some-such perhaps.

Sparring nearly none. Intensity, way high.-ish

I presume Think opponents don't count for this post. Iff, Think opponents count~ Then I spar very frequently if not constantly. Intensity, still very high.

[rogue]

Right now I'm trying to mix it up more, 2 nights of relaxed light moderate contact emphasis on footwork and evasions for 30 minutes a session; one night of self defense training; one day of working in-side; going to start doing some full contact with gear and I'll cycle that about every 3 to 4 weeks. I'm hoping this will help build skills while cutting down on injuries.

[neit]

i have not done any real sparring in two years shame on me. i will be taking kendo and muay thai soon which will give me tons opf sparring.

[chen zhen]

In the 2 classes I've been attending in JKD, we have sparred at a high intensity-level. I think they do it every lesson in some form. Currently we're going through a Kali curriculum, where we spar full-contact only wearing shinpads & boxing gloves. (but it is only Lago Mano I have trained so far, so it is only the hand/arm + shins that have been the main targets.)

[yenhoi]

Spar at the end of every "class."

Hours of "rolling."

Much "play."

:eek:

[Shaolin-Do]

In class 1 or 2 times a week, friday is always 2 hours of nothing but sprarring... havent caught that class lately tho. :(

Outside, was doing occasional sparring with... 1 4th dan kempo karate dude, 1 2nd judo bb, 1 1st judo bb, 1 former wing chun/tsun and praying mantis bb, and 1 dude w/brown in bjj. Told me he had a black tho, lying f*Cker.

But alas, now Im at my moms house for another month, and she doesnt like it that I have strange people come over to fight.
:(
Oh well... soon... very soon... Ive just been doing speed, power, cardio work extensively lately.

[Ravenshaw]

I try to spar at least twice every week. Our school went through a period where not many of the students really cared to spar... well, that's still the case, but enough are interested that we can have some good training. We use boxing gloves, boxing headguards, muay thai-style shin guards and the obligatory cup and heavy-duty mouthpiece.

Most often, we do drills with the gear (i.e. just punches, just kicks, just throws, just groundfighting) and every once in awhile spar outright. We allow any techniques that are reasonably safe to spar with. Our school most often does unpadded drills, which are geared toward developing speed, reflexes, and conditioning (these we do every night, which is twice a week for either BSL or Hung Gar, four times a week if you work out with both). The problem with these is that the student is required to pull his punches.

Intensity starts out low when people are learning maneuvers and builds as the session progresses, perhaps up to 70% intensity (high speed, medium power). Some of us advocate competition (san shou) for those who are serious.

[wiz cool c]

Judo once a week stand up throws and ground, moving push hands with sweeps twice aweek. Stand up once in awhile these days.

[Surferdude]

Not too much...
But when we do its full contact

[chen zhen]

Have u incorporated push hands into your Judo school, or is it a Judo drill that is also called that?
:)

[wiz cool c]

Chen style moving push hands with sweeps twice a week. Then judo once a week. They are separate.

[jun_erh]

rolling doesn't count. sparring = punching

[wiz cool c]

So wrestlers, judoka, shuai chiao, jujutsu people Dont spar?

[Starchaser107]

(grumble)
I don't spar as often as I'd like to
p*$$ies

[PHILBERT]

I don't get to do enough sparring, haven't done it in a while actually. I want to go to other schools and just politely ask the instructor, no ego, no machoism, if I can just spar with some students there one night, swap stuff, try out our stuff on one another for fun, etc. I also wanna meet some people from KFO who live in the area, kind of do a huge 1 day thing at a park, get like 10 of us together from KFO and beat each other up.

[yenhoi]

rolling IS sparring.

unless your randomass "sparring = punching" has absolutly no rules (which it does you puss.)

:rolleyes:

[FatherDog]

I roll twice a week. When rolling, I try 100% to put on submissions, but I apply them with a bit of graduality, rather than slapping them on and cranking as hard as I can instantly... so, say, 80%-90%. Meanwhile, I am trying 100% to stop any submission attempt on me, and my partner is trying the same. So, rolling varies between 80% and 100%.

[Judge Pen]

Recently, I have only been sparring once or twice a week in class. We don't use protective gear (other than groin cups) so the emphasis is on footwork, speed, technique, and control. Contact is about 50% to the body and we try to pull head contact. With an experienced partner, pulling the contact is fine because we can recognize when a technique would have landed with authority, but an inexperienced partner doesn't always respect a technique unless it really connects.

I'm trying to hook back up with an old sparring partner for work outside of class. We would wear light gloves and headgear and go about 90%. He has been out for a while and just concentrating on weight training and I'm still letting my knee heal up before I up the intensity level.

[Shaolin-Do]

My knee and shoulder are doing considerably better... Am looking for new training partner as well... No one really round here tho. Hoping someone from my kwoon will be down to fight...
:)
I need to find a weightbench to use too...

[red5angel]

I don't spar, sparring is for neanderthals and people who lack confidence in their ability.

[Shaolin-Do]

I practice non contact moderate force chi blasts.

[red5angel]

I just figure it is pretty much a waste of time unless I can go 100% all the time.

[Shaolin-Do]

100% hurts people :)

I do certian drills 100% but wouldnt say I spar 100%... Im not going for a KO when sparring with friends...

[Judge Pen]

I waste my time often. Remember, I practice SD! :D

[Shaolin-Do]

I prefer to waste the time of others to my own....
:D

[red5angel]

Why waste all that time using watered down techniques to pummel your opponent in to the ground. I train to finish my opponent off in one or two moves. I can't do that with pads or at half my ability.

[Shaolin-Do]

So what do you do to train? Only way to go full contact no gloves deadly techniques is to find bums or the like and beat the snot out of them....
:)

[red5angel]

SD- thats why I don't bother, if I can't use it why try faking it? I just do a lot of form work and shadow boxing.

[Shaolin-Do]

Sparring is a good way to get down throws and takendowns.

:D

[red5angel]

those are all built into my forms.

[Shaolin-Do]

Yes, but just doing the forms wont develop the proper muscles as well as actually throwing someone... Actually throwing people will get the dynamics of the thrown down more perfectly as well. WDs thought on the heavy bag thread would work well too...

[jun_erh]

the word sparring implies striking, not wrestling. Wrestling is a great sport/ art form but it's a matter of definition.

[red5angel]

no that is what the forms are for, to develope those muscles and those reflexes. If you just do the forms hundreds of times a day or thousands a week you won't have any problem throwing someone for real. You can't throw them like you would in combat anyway so why bother? I say just do your forms over and over again, thousands of times.

[jun_erh]

preposterous. You have have to practice throwing someone hundreds of times before you get it right. the form is only part of it. You have to deal with another human being who may not be in the perfect position for your throw. forms are a collection of techniques. and getting the right posture for a technique is about 1% of the way to using it for self defense.

[red5angel]

You have have to practice throwing someone hundreds of times before you get it right

right, you practice the form hundreds and hundreds of time, If you do that your muscles, your body, your very being is so focused on thet amove it won't matter how awkward your opponents body may be.

[Shaolin-Do]

Then why not just do full range fighting with some friends? Go from striking, to clinch, to rolling.
Get back up, do it all over again.

[Judge Pen]

I think that red5 is being a bit sarcastic (If I'm wrong then I apologize).

[red5angel]

because SD, I can't go full out so why bother. The chinese have been doing forms for thousands of years and they fight fine. You don't need sparring.

[Judge Pen]

Ok, I'll bite:

Do you think that the Chinese never sparred? How do we know they fought fine? How do we know that we have basic timing and footwork down without even light sparring? I agree forms can make you a better fighter, but I don't think you should just do forms and never spar.

I hope that you are trying to make a point about some assertions that have been made in other threads regarding competitive fighters and their arrogance in asserting that if you don't fight full out, then you are less of a martial artist.

[shaolin kungfu]

LOL at everyone being trolled.:D

[red5angel]

judge pen - ;) CMA created forms because the techniques were too dangerous to train properly with live opponents. You fight how your train right? So you could create a dummy or an image in your mind and strike at it, or practice combos on it at full power and have no problems. If you worked against a living oponent you would have to pull your punches and angle them off target so as not to seriously injure them.
So, sparring = bad techniques, timing and all that
Forms and drills = good fighting skills.

[Judge Pen]

R5A,

You're half right except that my "dummy" in my head always loses the fight!

"Forms and drills = good fighting skills."

Sparring is a drill. Granted you must modify your power and technique, but your timing and footwork can still be applied just like your forms except that it is not set by routine and allows freedom of thought and movement. Your movements are still modified in a form as well. Certain empty hand techniques change when performed against resistance. Throw a crescent kick against a heavy bag and tell me it is the same as when you throw it in a form.

Like I said in other more hostile threads, it would be ideal to train 100% 100% of the time (or as close to it as you can get), but not many people have the time or dedication to do that. Kudos to those that do train that way.

I stand by my suspicion that you are making a point based on other threads. Training is beneficial in whatever form it takes. A well rounded martial artist sees the benefit in all different types of training.

[red5angel]

alright, judge penn has called me out. I was just playing, seems all the other sillyness going on the last few weeks on this board has gotten to me a little.... :):p

[Rockwood]

It's pretty clear that anyone who wants to get good at martial arts should:

do the exercises of the style.

do the techniques of the style.

use the techniques in a freestyle manner.

spar free style at every different level of intensity from light to hard.

spar free style and do techniques with friends from as many different schools and methods as you can so you can have fun and learn.

How freaking hard is that to figure out?

Ive never been to any traditional kungfu school that didn't emphasize these teachings. Sparring is usually done outside of classtime however. I'm paying to learn from the teacher not spar some chump. I'd like to fight after class though.

-Jess O

[SevenStar]

Originally posted by Rockwood

Ive never been to any traditional kungfu school that didn't emphasize these teachings. Sparring is usually done outside of classtime however. I'm paying to learn from the teacher not spar some chump. [/B]

And therein lies the problem. Some schools don't spar during classtime - they are too busy learning forms, weapons, doing drills, etc. and then don't take the time to spar outside of class. Also, sparring in class is necessary, as your teacher should be able to point out flaws in your fighting.

[SevenStar]

lol @ everyone who got trolled by R5A

[Shaolin-Do]

"because SD, I can't go full out so why bother. The chinese have been doing forms for thousands of years and they fight fine. You don't need sparring."

Figured it was a troll from here...
:D

[Rockwood]

Well it's ok to spar during class, advice from the teacher would be cool. But in Chinese styles it isn't usually done that way. The usual way is to come back with specific questions for the teacher to address the next day. If you can't get the motivation to do training outside of class with your peers you aren't going to get anywhere anyways.

When I did some karate they had point sparring every class. It became a sort of routine play time of tag. Everyone was just waiting to get some emotional rush out of "recess" at the end. Because it was so routine I felt that the value of it was somewhat lessened. Nothing specific was worked on it was just "oooohhh I got you!" bs.

-Jess O

[SevenStar]

Originally posted by Rockwood
Well it's ok to spar during class, advice from the teacher would be cool. But in Chinese styles it isn't usually done that way. The usual way is to come back with specific questions for the teacher to address the next day.

That's fine. But, as far as fighting goes, let's say you are sparring someone and you keep getting tagged in the rib cage when you throw a cross/reverse punch, etc. you tell your teacher the next day, but he's not sure what you're doing wrong because he's not watching you spar. When he watches, he notices that in a live situation, you flare your elbow, leaving yourself open. Had he not watched you, he could've never told you.


If you can't get the motivation to do training outside of class with your peers you aren't going to get anywhere anyways.

maybe... I grapple 4-5 days a week and get plenty of rolling time in class, as well as instruction. If I didn't do any work outside of class, I'd still progress pretty nicely. with other styles, it may be a tad different. When I was in longfist, it wasn't nearly as focused as grappling, as there was weapons training, forms, sparring, etc. you HAD to practice in order to be proficient because you didn't get to work everything you needed to in the alotted class time. that does apply to grappling, as there are hundreds of techniques to learn, but you are in an environment where you get plenty of time to work them live and also ask questions.

Nothing specific was worked on it was just "oooohhh I got you!" bs.


yeah, that's an immature attitude to have. in grappling, many neophytes begin with that attitude, but get quickly humbled by the guys that have been there longer. eventually, it's no big thing whether or not you tap someone, unless it's someone of a higher rank, and even then the novelty wears off after you do it a few times.

[red5angel]

And therein lies the problem. Some schools don't spar during classtime - they are too busy learning forms, weapons, doing drills, etc. and then don't take the time to spar outside of class. Also, sparring in class is necessary, as your teacher should be able to point out flaws in your fighting.



Sevenstar I think it's even an uglier issue, most instructors don't want to pay or can't pay the money for proper insurance and so don't allow sparring. I don't get it as far as I am concerned if you can't train properly why train at all.