constructive sparring?

[Karateka63]

ok besides picking a fight and sending each other to the hospital,

how can one get someone to spar effectively without making them feel so threatened that they feel like they have to break your nose just so they never have to spar with you again lol ???

I hate dramatical situations and when you challenge someone the entire situation sounds like conflict when you just walk up on someone and say want to spar, and some people just take it as, "oh he wants me to break his nose.......ok BAM!" lol not that that has ever happened to me lol just I have friends that do this and I mean I thought the entire point in sparring was to improve both people as fighters, not crippling each other till one can't stand?

I mean thats a great way to improve your reflexes lmao when someone is attempting to break your spinal cord lol but I somehow get the feeling this is not how 2 people spar effectively?

[ShoriKid]

The keys I've found have been three things. Lay out objectives of the sparring, set good ground rules and know that it's give and take.

Lay out you objectives: What are you sparring to accomplish? Working on combinations? Defensive movement (head movement, footwork, body shifting etc) or offensive movements? General improvement of skills or integration? Know what both of you are setting out to do. That will change the type of sparring and the feel of things greatly.

Set good ground rules: Set the techniques that are legal to use, what targets are open. A sweeps and throws part of what you're working? No surprises in what everyone is going to do cuts down on the chances for flash retaliation.

Know that it's give and take: Set an ideal contact level. Give it a percentage of power -20% or 50% or 80% or whatever. Everyone gets cranked up when they spar and has to take a breath and calm themselves down and drop back to the contact level sometimes. But, going in with that ideal power level, everybody knows you get what you give. If someone starts going from 20% up to 80%, they should know that it's what's going to come right back to them.

Something that helps too is having someone observing who can keep you on task. They need to know what your ground rules, objectives and power level the session is shooting for. They can remind you of missed openings, push you for that sweep you wanted to work on. Remind both parties to back down the contact level when it's called for.

When everyone is on the same page with things tend to go much smoother. Not saying things will always go right, but in my experience those three guidelines go a long what to keeping things friendly and making it a learning experience, not just banging around. Not that just banging around sometimes isn't fun and good for your training.

[MasterPain]

The keys I've found have been three things. Lay out objectives of the sparring, set good ground rules and know that it's give and take.

Lay out you objectives: What are you sparring to accomplish? Working on combinations? Defensive movement (head movement, footwork, body shifting etc) or offensive movements? General improvement of skills or integration? Know what both of you are setting out to do. That will change the type of sparring and the feel of things greatly.

Set good ground rules: Set the techniques that are legal to use, what targets are open. A sweeps and throws part of what you're working? No surprises in what everyone is going to do cuts down on the chances for flash retaliation.

Know that it's give and take: Set an ideal contact level. Give it a percentage of power -20% or 50% or 80% or whatever. Everyone gets cranked up when they spar and has to take a breath and calm themselves down and drop back to the contact level sometimes. But, going in with that ideal power level, everybody knows you get what you give. If someone starts going from 20% up to 80%, they should know that it's what's going to come right back to them.

Something that helps too is having someone observing who can keep you on task. They need to know what your ground rules, objectives and power level the session is shooting for. They can remind you of missed openings, push you for that sweep you wanted to work on. Remind both parties to back down the contact level when it's called for.

When everyone is on the same page with things tend to go much smoother. Not saying things will always go right, but in my experience those three guidelines go a long what to keeping things friendly and making it a learning experience, not just banging around. Not that just banging around sometimes isn't fun and good for your training.

Great reply. You covered most of what I would say.

However, the situation Karateka63 is describing doesn't sound like he is talking about sparring with people at the dojo, but rather challenging his friends from school or some such thing. If so, STOP THAT. Say the word "spar" to the average young man and what he hears is "chance to show off how hardcore I am. Come at me , bro!"

If sparring is like that in your dojo, dojang, club, or backyard and the teacher doesn't correct it, then you need to leave and find a real dojo.

[ShoriKid]

MP,

I hadn't considered that, and didn't see it in the question (I can be a bit myopic at times). If that's what you're getting at Karateka63, asking buddies without training to have a go at sparring, look at what MP wrote. It's a bad plan almost universally. What most guys are hearing is a manhood check, and they won't want to come up short. It will very, very quickly become a real brawl with all the pain and busted bits that entails. Ego won't allow it to be otherwise.

If the sparring at your dojo isn't doing what you think it should you have two paths to go down. Talk to your instructor about your goals and what you feel is missing in the sparring you're doing already. Be honest about it and be respectful.

Find some fellow martial artists, regardless of training background, and get together for some sparring. Follow the rules above and use good safety gear and it would be good for all of you.

[evergrey]

So the other day I was called upon to spar with the little kids, because the class had an odd number of students and I happened to get there early.

Yeah, I gently tossed them around a bit and gave them a lot to think about, while luckily not quite making any of them cry, but did I feel all big and bad and triumphant, or like I learned a lot about fighting?

Nope.

There's a point where something is so easy it's just tragic and even when you are trying to be nice, you end up feeling like a bit of a bully.

It's kind of the same thing when you ask some random civilian with no training to spar.

First of all, the most dangerous opponents are sometimes white belts. They don't know what to do. They have no control. No idea where their hands and feet are. No idea what is too hard. They are masters of spastic-flail-do. They will kick your ACL hard because they just don't know better. They're a risk!

Second of all, remember your first time sparring as a brand new white belt? You were terrible! We were all terrible! And now, if you are no longer a brand new white belt, and you go up against one, you'll remember how terrible you were. Why spar with that? That won't teach you anything or prove anything.

You want to learn and get more sparring experience in? Work out something with the senior students and the instructors in your dojo. You learn a lot more kissing the mat than you do giving somebody else flying lessons.

[sensei8]

Constructive sparring will not be the same in school A, as it is with school B, so on and so forth.

I tell my students..."In order for your Kumite to be constructive, you must first learn something from it."