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Hello all.
As you may notice, I’m new to these threads and this is my first post. I’ve spent a few hours here this morning (hope the bosses don’t notice) reading up on some of the threads trying to take in as much as I can.
I just took my first Krav Maga class on Monday at a new school that just opened up here in Raleigh.
I have come from basically no martial arts background, although I did take Modern Arnis prior to KM. The Arnis class I was in was heavy with sticks and very little hand to hand.
After my first KM class, and realizing how out of shape I really am, we did punches and stuff. I didn’t know any better, so I tried to punch the pad my parter was holding as hard as I could (I’m just 5’9″ maybe 140 – so not much force behind it, haha). At any rate, my wrists are killing me this morning, and my knuckles are bloody. Looks great in a professional work place – like I beat my wife or something. :angry:
I’ve noticed a lot of guys on here say to use wraps, gloves and some say nothing to make your bones dense, etc.
I am learning this mostly because I want to be able to protect my family and don’t want to own a gun (small kids in home), but also because I am going to India on a missions trip and will be going back many times in the upcoming years and want to be able to protect myself should anything happen.
Anyhow (I digrese), I’m thinking I should get some gloves. I see the MMA 4/5oz gloves, but then I see people talk about wraps and wrapping with gloves.
If I could get some clear direction as to how I should proceed. I am attending the KM class twice a week, and I can get their early if you think wrapping is more important that gloves. I don’t mind working my tolerance up to the point where I don’t need the gloves/wraps, if that makes sense, but I don’t want to look like I’m in bar fights the night before work, lol.
Thanks for the info and I look forward to studying KM with all of you.Re: Hello from North Carolina
Hi, and welcome!
If you are breaking skin while punching and hurting your wrists then you may not be punching correctly. Punches should not be a dragging motion, they should be straight in and straight out.
If you go into the pushup position and push up with just the first two knuckles on each hand, that is the exact surface you should be striking with. This aligns the wrist to the forearm to prevent injury. Also you may be hitting the pad at an angle, which would cause abrasion– try hitting it straight on. If your knuckles are splitting inbetween, you are definitely hitting at the wrong angle.
Talk to your instructors about it, they will be able to correct the issues you are having and help you perfect your technique. Don’t go full force until you have your technique down. Like my old teacher used to tell me: “Practice doesn’t make perfect; Perfect practice makes perfect.”
Maybe one of the instructors in here wil be able to help!
Hope that helps. Have fun!
Re: Hello from North Carolina
Thanks for the great tip(s).
Between my second and third knuckles on both hands the skin is completely gone and is now an open sore. Not the tops of my knuckles however, just down in between. The hitting at an angle thing may be true for me. In Arnis we never used pads, we just did the motions, so hitting pads is new to me. And we always side stepped and attacked from the side, so this straight on attacking is new to me also.
I will ask our instructor though, but any other tips / info would be great.
Thanks again!Re: Hello from North Carolina
Of course there are many different kinds of punches, but you will notice when learning them that the basic wrist alignment is always the same and your striking surface is always the first two knuckles.
try the pushup thing, that’s how I learned – it turns out that the only way to support your weight on those two knuckles is if it is aligned correctly so its a good way to tell.
Re: Hello from North Carolina
Hi there, and welcome to the family!
To preface my comments: I am an EMT with 12 years in the field, an ICU nurse, and a recent graduate of Phase-A instructor training. Needless to say, safety is always at the front of my mind.
That said: I L-O-V-E hand wraps. They are lightweight, durable, flexible, inexpensive, and provide amazing protection when applied correctly. When I first started Krav, I printed out a how-to guide off the internet on hand-wrapping, and just wrapped and unwrapped until I got good at it. I can now wrap both hands while carrying on a conversation in less than 5 minutes. I tried the MMA gloves a few times, and found a couple of problems.
A: Very little wrist support. Especially if you have tiny chicken-wrists like me. When you move into hook-punches and upper-cuts, this is very important. Wraps provide excellent support.
B: Until they are well broken-in, gloves change your striking surface. Wraps allow you to make a natural fist, and practice proper mechanics.
C: I like to train as realistically as possible. I don’t wear MMA gloves for the same reason I don’t wear wrestling shoes. I don’t wear these things on the street, so why wear them in the gym? (I would train in my steel-toed boots and blue-jeans if I could get away with it)
The exception to all of this is wearing 16oz gloves when doing mitt-work or on the heavy-bag. This is to improve hand speed, and build strength.
In short, I recommend the wraps. Experiment for yourself, but aside from the convenience-factor, wraps are a better choice.Re: Hello from North Carolina
Sam does more of an MMA wrap. I do more of a kick-boxing wrap. I don’t pad the same way, but I still get 4 layers of wrap over the knuckles. I also wrap the thumb, where Sam leaves it out for better grappling.
Re: Hello from North Carolina
Hello Towani,
Hey..where are you training in Raleigh? Which school opened there?
Re: Hello from North Carolina
quote KMMachine:Hello Towani,Hey..where are you training in Raleigh? Which school opened there?
Its downtown off Hargett st http://kravmagaraleigh.com/
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