Chest protection for women

[cinnamongirl]

Hi all, I'm new to this forum, and new to Krav.

I'm wondering if any other gals out there use/wear any form of chest protection during class. I sweat a lot, and I don't really want to wear any more gear than I have to, but I found that after yesterday's class, my chest was pretty sore.

I'd love to hear how the ladies here deal with this issue.

Cheers!

[oglenewinkel]

Hello Cinnamon

I may not be the group you were trying to solicit information from but I know several females who use Turtle Shells, and they say they work very well. They offer good protection/comfort balance. http://www.turtle-shells.com/index.php

I always tell my students to use the most protection you can handle wearing. I also encourage my female students to consider groin protection.

Good luck, I hope this helps.

Train hard and be safe.

[cinnamongirl]

Thanks for the tip - I'm definitely going to check them out!

Cheers!

[Danielos]

We have a special item for the chest for women's, that offers great protection.
http://www.kravshop.nl/cups-supporters/

[dyslexiateechur]

I'm glad you posted this, I was wondering as well. Some of those guys hit pretty hard, and it hurts!

[SplatCat]

Uhhhh... Look, I really don't want to be improper here, & I sure HOPE to god that it doesn't come across that way, but WHAT THE HECK is going on in your classes that chest protection is an issue??

I realize that I've only trained in the Denver area (aside from one class in Toronto on a biz trip), & it's certainly possible that different schools do things a bit differently - but I don't recall ever getting slugged in the chest, & I don't think I've ever seen any of the gals getting hit there either... (Of course, I'm assuming that I'd hear them vocalize a bit - could be a faulty assumption...)

[mara_jade]

How about a defensive front kick? Stuff like that comes in handy believe me

[SplatCat]

Ah geez, that's only slightly obvious... I guess I've always thought in terms of defending a woman, NOT in terms of defending against a woman... (Which could be a hell of a blind spot, come to think of it...)

Thanks for opening my eyes a little bit mara_jade...

[cinnamongirl]

Hey SplatCat - sorry, I assumed it would be pretty obvious why a gal would need chest protection in class. What happens when you hold a tombstone pad or kick-shield for your parter? It hits your chest. What happens when your partner is bigger and stronger than you are? It hits your chest hard. No matter how I hold the pad, inevitably will hit my chest. After a while, it hurts. There is also a risk of long-term damage to tissue, possibly resulting in tumours later in life. I'd like to avoid this if possible. It's un-comforatble at the best of times, downright painful on occasion. Especially since I'm now in Level 2. I've ordered the CoolGuard Max that's available in KravShop - cannot wait to try it out. I will post an update as soon as I've had a chance to try it out! Also - SplatCat - I'm in Toronto - where did you take your class?

[cinnamongirl]

Well, I received my Super CoolGuard Chest protection bra and have worn it for two classes. So far I love it! Since the shoulder straps don't adjust, I had to make some simple modifications, but it was easy enough to do, and it fits really well.

My first class wearing it, we were doing a stress drill where we were holding our partners against the wall with kick-shields, and they had to fight their way out. Well, my partner gave me a front-kick that sent me flying backwards directly on my butt . As I was lying on the ground, assuring my partner and instructor that I was fine, all I was thinking was - hey my boobs don't hurt! Since then, during sparring, I took a couple of non-intentional grazes during some upper-cuts - and I didn't feel a thing.

I highly recommend this product to anyone who is having any issues or concerns with hits to the chest during class.