Importance of Martial Arts Gear Checks

Martial arts equipment is vital for the safety of your students, instructors, and school. With the new year here, you need to make sure everyone is well-equipped with the proper and most updated items to ensure everyone has the best and safest experience while training.

Here are some things to consider…

Update your equipment. Your school’s equipment takes a  pounding,  and  eventually  it  wears  out.  As equipment ages,  it  can  even  become  unsafe.  Inspect every  item  of equipment  you  use  in  your  school.  If  it's  just  old,  you  can  probably repurpose it elsewhere. But if it's at the end of its days, let it go and replace it with a new piece of equipment. The  overall  look  and  feel  of  your  school  may  even  be  judged  as old  or  outdated  simply  because  some  equipment  is  tattered  or torn. Over the next year, plan  to  budget  for  upgrades  and  repairs  to  aging  equipment. Yes, this comes at a cost, but it is an investment that will make your school look better and your students will take pride in belonging to a school that takes care of its things.

Update their equipment. It’s not just up to the students to have the best gear in their inventory. The gear they use in your school effects everyone. If a student has an old or ineffective item it could hinder good training or worse, compromise the safety of anyone who comes in contact with it. Who wants to get hit with worn out boxing gloves that no longer feel padded? Be sure to have consistent gear checks, and message to students why it’s a good idea to own certain gear to ensure their safety. If a student truly cannot afford gear, work with the student to help them budget out and afford their own gear in the near future, and perhaps adjust their class experience with different drills that don’t require gear. It’s hard to play football without your own pads and helmet. Training at your school should be no different, as long as the gear you’re asking them to purchase is a required and important part of their student experience with you.