Full-Contact and Injuries?

I would like opinions from those who spar full-contact about how you deal with injuries. The majority of my experience is with light to semi contact sparring, but I have still amassed a collection of injuries that I just can’t afford to add to any longer after my many years in the art. How can one spar full-contact on a regular basis and not eventually receive injuries that greatly affect your work, other sports, and your family life? Even the best fighters are going to receive blows if you fight often enough and the more padding you wear, the more unreal the movements. How can one simulate "real" fighting situations, but avoid the injuries?
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How often do you spar full contact? You may want to limit it to once a week or so, unless you are training for a fight. Even then, you may want to go semi full contact most of the time, and only full contact once a week. By continually doing full contact, you are opening yourself up for more injuries than you need. I know exactly what you are going through. I've had busted blood vessels in my eye - the blood backed up a formed a huge pocket just above my eye. If you touched it, you could feel the blood swishing around. I've had other injuries too. I have toned down a tad, but I still spar hard - and I haven't been injured since, other that bruises and the occasional jammed digit.

-SevenStar©
"I see!" said the blind man.

There are only two things I can think of for dealing with injuries from full contact sparring.

First, you need to get good equipment. Spend a lot of money. Get head gear from a boxing supplier, a double sided mouthpiece with a breathing slit, 14 oz gloves with the thumb attached to the main hand guard, leather shin pads (like the kind Fairtex makes) that are thick enough to round house kick a brick wall, and a sturdy chest protector.

Warm up and stretch our REALLY well before you get into it.

Rest until ALL the pain is gone, then rest another day or two (meaning you can train, but not go all out in the ring). Remember resting = healing. You may feel like you aren't doing much, but you are hard at work on a cellular level.

Sleep a lot and eat well, drink as much water as you can stand.


Beyond that....hot baths and slow stretching.

if you practice kung fu and are not prepared to get hurt you shouldn't be doing kung fu.

My master says, " if you worry about getting hurt, you will get hurt."

max power

Sometimes, it's better to throw in the towel. READ How Not to Win by Saunders Elmore

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by shaolinboxer

There are only two things I can think of for dealing with injuries from full contact sparring.

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Yep. Limit full-contact sparring to two times per week. So even one does receive injury, it is not serious enough to affect your daily life much. But first of all, the student must be ready for it in terms of MA ethics and fight skill.



Regards,

KC
Hong Kong

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SteveLau

Yep. Limit full-contact sparring to two times per week. So even one does receive injury, it is not serious enough to affect your daily life much. But first of all, the student must be ready for it in terms of MA ethics and fight skill.



Regards,

KC
Hong Kong

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Twice a week, I think you have a different understanding of what full contact is than most,