Sparring: The Basics

DWx · Black Belt

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Sparring forms are an integral part of many martial arts. Whether they be continuous, point-stop, full contact, no contact, competitive or pure self defense, virtually all students will experience it regularly within their practice. When two students face off they are testing their proficiency and their physical abilities. In a way, it is the ultimate test of martial skill in the dojo as it is as close to a “real" situation a student can come.

So, where do you start? The following method for teaching beginners to spar is what I believe to be effective and is a result of how I myself have been taught by various instructors and the methods I have used. Although the sport sparring rules I am writing for are those lain down by the ITF, this method could be applied to many other styles and other forms of sparring.

1. Acquiring the Techniques

Before placing a beginner student in a free sparring environment, you have to first spend time equipping them with their techniques. In my own experience, I have found it best to take these techniques out of the sparring scenario completely and have the student practice them in lines and against a stationary target such as a pad. Facing off against an opponent initially can be a little bit overwhelming for some and the techniques themselves tend to suffer because the student has to think about other factors such as distancing and finding appropriate targets.

Start with a few basic techniques, in general I would say no more than two or three so as not to cause confusion. My personal choice would be a straight jab (with either arm), front leg roundhouse and back leg roundhouse. In my opinion, these are the simplest and most common techniques used in sparring and with just these three, there are many different combinations which can be worked on later. (Front and side kicks are also an option. However, I've found that front kicks tend to promote a more forward facing stance which at this stage I personally want to discourage and side kicks can be a little difficult to get used to).

At first, you want to just get the students familiar with these techniques and able to perform them with a reasonable proficiency. Don't worry about combinations or chaining the techniques together yet; just get them to a position where they can do singular techniques ready to practice against one another. Things that need to be stressed are a good guard and remaining in control after the attack. What I mean by this is not falling forward after a kick or punch and to work on retrieving the arm or leg ready to throw another attack if needed.

2. One-for-One

Once your students have the techniques, it's time to put them into practice against a moving target. One-for-one sparring is invaluable in getting students used to facing off against a real moving opponent so this is the next step that I would introduce. For those of you that don't practice it, one-for-one is basically sparring but the fighters take it in turns to do one technique. Essentially in one-for-one at this level I don't care how slow they want to go. The idea is that they just learn to translate what they've been doing in line work and on the pads onto a human body.

Your students should have been made aware of appropriate targets for each of their techniques, such as to the torso for roundhouses, and they should be aware of where they should not strike, i.e. the back of the head. Distancing is something the students should begin to pick up, as well as hopefully more control over their techniques. There shouldn't be a great deal of moving around in this setting but the students shouldn't be static either. One-for-one is great preparation for free sparring and is something I think even higher grades should return to frequently.

At this point, it may be useful to introduce some higher grades into the class (if you haven't done so already) to pair up with the beginners. Their role is not only to show the beginners how it's done but to also offer feedback on the techniques and to suggest areas for improvement when necessary. The earlier points I stressed such as a good guard and retrieving the technique should be reiterated and the students should be encouraged to block or parry incoming techniques.

A good intermediate exercise is to get the pairs to play a modified version of tag. They face off and the goal is to touch the opponent on the head or body. They are allowed to dodge, block and parry. This may be an opportunity to take some time out to introduce ways of dodging, blocking and parrying that leave you in a position to counter attack.

3. Development

Once you are comfortable with the way your students are using their techniques in one-for-one, you have several options. You could introduce further techniques and repeat the process again. If you do choose this option the techniques you introduce should still be fairly simple. Maybe kicks such as the side kick, front kick, hook kicks, etc. and a greater range of hand techniques. However, do not introduce too many too soon. In general, I've found that it's best to introduce only a few and then stress the importance of building up combinations with a handful of techniques rather than having an arsenal of many more techniques but lacking in effective combinations and transitions between them.

Instead of introducing more techniques, another option is to begin to work on footwork and positioning, incorporating the techniques you have already taught.

One good drill that I like to use begins with students standing in a pair, just within range of each other so that they can just about touch if one of them reaches out. One person plays the role of the “attacker," who has to move forwards, backwards, left and right by shifting and stepping and can switch their stance so their opposite leg is forward. The “defender" has to mirror their movements to stay within range (or just out of it) depending on what the attacker does.

Although it may not seem like much, this drill is an effective way of making sure that the students are consciously aware of their distance and it also gets them thinking of how they can cover ground and maneuver themselves into a more advantageous position. When combined with the tag drill from above, this effectively simulates sparring but without the techniques and is a great tool when you want your students to concentrate on the other aspects of the fight besides kicking and punching.

4. Semi-Free Sparring

Next, my preferred option is to begin semi-free sparring. What I am referring to as semi-free sparring is a situation where each person takes turns performing combos while the other person defends and counters. At first, I think it's better to work a format where for each attack, a kick or punch, the attacker takes a step forward. This just gets the students used to moving forwards and backwards during a spar. It's also a good idea with beginners to agree on a set number of attacking techniques coming forward before a counter technique. This just makes sure the sparring flows a bit more as most beginners won't have an intuitive feel for when a combination has ended or when an opportunity for a counter has opened.

Once they have a good feel for it, you can gradually relax the sparring until it resembles a free sparring situation. Begin by relaxing the number of techniques on both attack and counter attack. Then start to relax the rules on stepping so, for example, the student can choose to double step before a technique, shift, or even not step at all. At this point you are basically free sparring apart from that you are only moving forwards and backwards and not as circular as free sparring should be. At this point you can relax the rules completely and your beginner student should be ready to begin free sparring.
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Patrick · KF Administrator

Thank you for the submission.

Patrick
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bushido_man96 · KF Sensei

Thanks for this layout, DWx. Very nice.
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ninjanurse · KF VIP

Thanks for the article. Good read!

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joesteph · Black Belt

A really good, well thought out article, DWx. I especially liked the first paragraph of 4. Semi-Free Sparring.
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MasterPain · Black Belt

sensei8 · KF Sensei

DWx,

Let me just say this one thing to you...SOLID!! An absolute solid article, great read. Your students are lucky to have you as their instructor!!

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DWx · Black Belt

Thanks for the feedback guys

Jeffrey · Purple Belt

A really great read and some great ideas to put into practice.

thanks,

sensei8 · KF Sensei

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