Hair and clothing for martial artists

[bowser666]

Clothing and what to wear is a interesting subject. I mean you can't change your life and what you because there coudl eb a attack around every corner , LOL. That is living in fear and that shoudl not be allowed to continue. Meaning you can change that. IE live in a bad area, simple fix.. move, etc.....

When it comes to clothing that might be too tight for high kicking or above the waist kicking, i wouldn't even worry about that. In a reallife street situation you should not be using higher risk maneuvers liek high kicks etc. Stick to the basics and what works effectively everytime. GO check out stuff from Demi Barbito and you will see what I mean. I do liek what was posted on a earlier post about practicing in different types of clothes that you wear. TO understand the limitations of certain clothing. Not all of us can afford to walk around all day, in BDU's , sweat pants, baggy clothes etc.... You to adapt and make due with what you wear on a regular everyday basis. Key point is avoidance. Avoids areas where encounters are likely to occur. Watch your corners, don't let stranger within 5-6 feet of you etc....... I am not saying be paranoid about everyone and everything, just go with your gut Sorry of I went off on a tangent. It's just my point is that it is not healthy to be walking around with the mentality of WOW i coudl be attacked at anytime. That is very negative. Just train hard and be confident in your training. What you are wearing and how long your hair is, is not gonig to make that much of a difference. Yes there are a billion WHAT IF's but I pity the person who sits around everyday worrying about all of them.

 

[DeltaDawn]

This is a really interesting thread!

I don't think being a martial artist has changed my fashion sense. I wear my hair long and loose most of the time, and I wear typical stuff: jeans, tees/sweaters/button down shirts, the occasional skirt. I don't think anything in my wardrobe would be restrictive to the point that I couldn't defend myself. Though it would be fun to run through katas and self defense in my street clothes every so often; I should give it a shot!

 

[Cyriacus]

This is a really interesting thread!

I don't think being a martial artist has changed my fashion sense. I wear my hair long and loose most of the time, and I wear typical stuff: jeans, tees/sweaters/button down shirts, the occasional skirt. I don't think anything in my wardrobe would be restrictive to the point that I couldn't defend myself. Though it would be fun to run through katas and self defense in my street clothes every so often; I should give it a shot!

Do it. Its fun. Or, I think so.
Shadow Spar as well

 

[Flea]

For a long time I resisted the ubiquitous "mandatory scarf" fashion statement for reasons that would be obvious to everyone here. I'm starting to wear them this fall, since I realized that I've been wearing one every day anyway, considering it part of my winter garb. What's the difference?

More to the point, for a long time I lived in a setting where I had to think tactically about my clothes all the time. I'm in a much better setting now and I'm making a conscious effort to let go a bit.

 

[DarkShadowfax]

Didn't really change anything. I do keep my nails shorter than I used to, but thats only to prevent me from scratching my partners' eyes out. I cut a few cm off my hair too, because it'd get in the way during the green belt test, but thats about it. I'm not really a high heels person, but when I'm wearing them, I always make sure I have someone with me who can keep me safe for a few seconds until I'm done kicking them off.

 

[Dirty Dog]

My head is shaved, but not for safety. There was just no point in fighting nature. As recently as 3 years ago, it was halfway down my back.

I do tend to wear clothing that I can fight in, but it's mostly because it's comfortable. At work... well, scrubs and flight suits are both pretty easy to move in, but there are also plenty of things that could be used against me, like the trauma shears, or the knife, or the stethoscope hanging around my neck.

All that being true, I have to say that in dozens of work-related confrontations over the last 30 years, nobody has ever grabbed my hair or any of the items I carry.

 

[oftheherd1]

Intrigueing thread that I hadn't seen before. In Hapkido, we learn defenses against all kinds of punches, kicks, and grabs. We also tend to work in close. I wouldn't think of telling anyone to leave their favorite MA and flee to Hapkito. But you might want to ask your teachers if they know specific defenses for hair grabs, or front of the shirt grabs that can be used if ties are grabbed, or if an opponent tries to grab a woman's shirt. Rear grab defenses can be used for a variety of attacks to men or women. That whether they are learned from Hapkido or another art. Those defenses do exist. Some are quite devastiating to an opponent. Failing your teacher knowing and being willing to teach them, then you might want to consider a short stint in Hapkido, Aikido, or another art where those defenses are taught. The problem becomes at what level they are taught and do you want to spend that much time. Perhaps googling hair grabs and some of those MA will get you to some youtube demos. Well, I just did that and found this along with others:

and both work will. As you can see, #1 will break or badly sprain an opponent's wrist, while #2 might appeal more to someone from a punching/kicking art.

EDIT: I didn't have the sound on, but I was taught to pin the hand to the head to make sure the opponent cannot simply release the hand to lessen the damage to the wrist.

 

[chinto]

I have always preferred short hair for myself. I was a kid in the 60's and it drove my mother nuts that I would sneak off to the barber and have a short haircut. ( i got a spanking for it a few times lol ) so hair not an issue. as to clothing, well I never did wear things that were a real problem if i had to run or fight. even long before I did much MA training. but I am male.

I have seen women with nice long hair in tight buns and things who were wearing loose skirts and or pants that still could move and fight well. ( they were students in the dojo where i was training. ) so it can be done. and well as I pointed out once, a stiletto heel is a nasty weapon in close!! saw a picture once long ago of a foot with one through it!! ( X EMT) so ladies some things are great unnoticed weapons!!

 

[Josh Oakley]

I wear my hair in a high and tight, partly because it is regulation, and partly because I am somewhat lazy and it's EASY to manage. Also I wear shape-ups to ease strain on my knee, rather than any martial benefit, bit naturally the first thing I did when I was trying them on was test to see if I could kick with them. Also, I do the kick test any time I buy a new pair of jeans. But let's be real: we pretty much all do that.

 

[Josh Oakley]

Tie defense made easy, at my job: we all wear clip-ons.

 

[Monroe]

I've been practicing MA less than 2 months. It hasn't impacted how I dress or wear my hair. I don't dress up in heels and skirts as often as I did when I worked in an office. I dressed prepared to meet with clients every day. I still like to dress nicely some days. I don't find trousers as comfortable as skirts. I haven't worn miniskirts since college and I can't think of any skirts or dresses that I wouldn't be able to kick in. I might flash a few people but I doubt that would be a main concern at that point. The odds are low enough that I wouldn't give too much consideration to how I dress.

I'm not changing my hair. It's past my shoulders and I usually blow dry it out. I'm not going to live in fear. I'll prepare myself for bad scenario's, but that's about as far as it goes.