A Clash Of Heads

So it’s happened, you’ve gone and done it now, you’ve managed to injure someone that you are training with. It can be serious, it can be demoralising on both sides, so let’s discuss what happens shall we.

To begin with, these things happen, they do. Martial arts are a contact sport and when two bodies clash, injuries can occur, whether this be accidental or misadventure.

These injuries can be anything from some light bruising, a black eye, a cracked bone or a slight concussion¹ (At the very worst)

I will, be clear at this point, it is generally when things get to a sparring stage, it is not often that people can injure each other in bag work or stretching, but it is a good reason to know your partners limits. You should listen to them not only verbally, but how their face is looking but how they feel when you are stretching together.

But this is where I should also add some clarity around sparring, we do not spar to injure each other, we do not spar to cause blood to spurt or bones to crack. We spar to learn and to grow as martial artists. But things can get intense, this is understood, and it is why you should set the tone with your partner.

In these agreements, there can slide as either party can get amped up and there can be miscues, slips in interpreting how your partner is moving and it is in this injuries can occur. But what should you do, how should you behave, what is the etiquette around such instances. In this there are of course two perspectives the injured and the one who caused the injury. So, I’ve tried to play out a set of behaviours below

Injury Causer

You should immediately stop any sparring and indicate to an instructor an injury has occurred. You should recount what was happening and how the person came to be injured.

You should apologise to the person and make sure they harbour no ill will, accidents happen.

Even if your partner wants to continue with an injury, you should make sure they are not going to injure themselves further.

Of course, if the injury is serious enough the instructor will get the accident book² to cover any insurance³ issues.

Further to this, you should think about what you need to do to mitigate this risk next time, you should understand where and what went wrong so you can make sparring safer.

Injured Party

Possibly the most important

You must explain how you are feeling and what hurts

If your partner has not called over the instructor, you should do so.

You should record the details of the injury

You should keep a check on the injury, if it spans over more days.

You need to make sure that you are ok

You should agree with your partner and forgive them for any misadventure and work through what will happen next time to avoid further instances.

So, there is a simplified version of what and when should happen. It does not always happen like this, and some accidents do not result in injury, moreover they result in a sore head or a few moments of discomfort. But neither party should ‘Tough it out’, always best to take a few minutes.

As I detailed at, the beginning, these things are rare but they will happen form time to time. You should not let put you off training or sparring, injuries can happen every day. Even training itself is kind of a self-imposed injury, when we damage and re-build the muscles and ligaments over and over again to the desired potential.

All members should always have proper club insurance also, and you should know where the First Aid box is, just in case...

And of course one tip, make sure you always have full kit appropriate ot the sparring you are doing.

Follow these steps and enjoy your sparring.

References

1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concussion

2 https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/accident-book.htm

3 https://www.insure4sport.co.uk/sport/martial-arts

Resources

https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/39/1/29

https://orthoinfo.aaos.org/en/staying-healthy/martial-arts-injury-prevention/

https://www.insure4sport.co.uk/blog/martial-arts-injuries/

https://www.theglowingedge.com/sustaining-damage-during-sparring/