Sparring Gear and Rules

In Seido Karate, free sparring (jiyu kumite) is reserved for students green belt (4th kyu) and above. Students build fundamental skills and work on pre-arranged partner drills first, and are eased into the challenge of free sparring. This improves safety and lets novice students establish themselves without being overwhelmed.

Safety Gear

Only students who have been told to purchase gear need to do so. New students do not need to make any purchases.

Students must wear the following safety equipment for kumite:

• headgear
• hand protectors
• foot protectors
• mouthpiece
• men: groin cup; women: chest protector
• junior/youth only: chest protector

Other than the mouthpiece and groin cup, this basic gear is vinyl-dipped foam, as shown in the photo above. Example brands:

• Century: "Punch" handgear, "Hi Kicks" boots, and headgear
• Macho: Dyna and Warrior product lines.

These are just examples of two popular brands, not a limitation. You may purchase any brand of similar equipment.

Please note that boxing, MMA, or WKF-style karate mitts are not permitted for regular dojo kumite. (Boxing gloves may be used for padwork and other sorts of drills.)

Sparring gear is available online from kungfu4less.com or warrioremporium.com among other suppliers.

Locally, sparring gear can be purchased at the Kiyota Company, 2326 N. Charles Street in Charles Village (tell Mr. Kiyota that you're a Seido karate student and he'll help you get the right type), or Warrior Emporium, 66 Alco Place in Lansdowne.

For tournaments, only black or white gear, not other colors, may be used. So I suggest purchasing those colors, but it's okay if a student new to sparring and not intending competition yet picks up a different color secondhand.

Mouthpiece: The mouthpiece protects not only the mouth and teeth, but the central nervous system in case of accidental impact to the chin or jaw. They have come a long way since the simple ones I knew in the 1980s. I recommend the "Shock Doctor" brand. Mouthpieces are fitted by softening in boiling water, see the included instructions. You want one without a helmet strap. Fighters generally use the style that covers the upper teeth, not the upper and lower; however, the choice is yours. Students with braces or other dental issues should consult their dentist or orthodontist.

Gender specific gear: In addition, male students must wear a groin cup, and female students must wear a chest protector. Youth and junior students, both male and female, will also wear a chest protector.

Groin cup: The groin cup can be used with either an athletic supporter or with underwear designed to keep the cup in place. The style of cup should be one that provides protection from upward impacts, i.e., the sort that is longer and has a sort of half-moon profile, rather than the flatter style closer to an equilateral triangle, which only provides good protection from the front. I suggest the McDavid FlexCup, though there are many options. Women may optionally choose to wear groin protection, but I don't have the knowledge to give recommendations.

Chest protector: The basic chest protector is also dipped foam, such as the ProForce Lightning Sports Body Guard or TigerClaw Sparmaster chest guard. Youth and junior students should get this sort of chest protector. It is also an option for women.

We do not recommend Tae Kwon Do style protectors, or hard-shell "bogu" protectors.

Several more advanced varieties of chest protection for women -- some more like sports bras with protective inserts, others more like form-fitting hard shells -- are available from sources such as Sakura Martial Arts or kungfu4less.com. Because bodies vary, women (including teens) may want to ask a few other women students or instructors about their recommendations.

Optional gear: Students in need of additional protection may wear sleeve-type cloth and foam shinguards and/or forearm protectors. Additional safety gear may be used by those with a medical need; talk to your instructor.

Safety Rules

This is only a summary of basic safety rules. Students must comply with instructors' safety instructions at all times. See also our general safety rules.

• YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN SAFETY AND THE SAFETY OF YOUR SPARRING PARTNERS.
• PROTECT YOURSELF AT ALL TIMES. DO NOT ACT RECKLESSLY. Students who show disregard for their own safety or the safety of others will not be permitted to spar.
• IF YOU DO NOT HAVE ALL OF YOUR GEAR, YOU DO NOT SPAR.
• The objective of dojo sparring is the exchange of techniques under more challenging and improvisational conditions than solo practice or fixed drills. It is a learning experience and good exercise, not a competition. If your partner is injured, you lose, because they can't help you train anymore. Leave your ego on the sidelines.
• Free sparring is permitted for green belt students and above only, and only with proper supervision during designated times.
• Permitted contact includes controlled contact to the front and sides of the body. No strikes below the belt, to the face, to the back, or to the neck or throat are permitted.
• Light contact to the headgear (not to the face) may be permitted on an individual basis once a student has advanced to a suitable level of experience. "Light" means contact that does not cause the head to move.
• Only controlled hand techniques and kicks are permitted. Knee, elbow, and knifehand strikes, and spinning backfists, are specifically prohibited.
• The rule for the contact level in usual dojo sparring is the "consenting adult" rule. Students have the right to say "this is a little too much for me today, let's go lighter." Adult students may also mutally choose a more vigorous but controlled level of contact to the body, within the safety rules, for the challenge of more intense training. Contact to the head, if any is permitted, shall always be light (see above) and limited to the sides or top of the headgear, never to the face or the back of the head.
• The "consenting adult" rule described above does not apply to students who are not adults. The contact level for youth and teen student sparring will be strictly controlled by instuctors.