Back in February, I got an email from the folks over at MMAOpinion.com asking if I would be interested in reviewing the KD Elite XL Curved Body Shield.  Despite the fact that I havent had a lot of time to get new posts/reviews up lately, I felt I would be remiss if I passed them up.  I’ve had the shield in my possession for about a month now, and I think I’m ready to share my findings with all of you.

First of all, the KD Elite XL Curved Body Shield is exactly what the name implies.  It is a body shield.  It is curved.  And it is fairly large.  This thing was meant to take your more powerful strikes  – primarily kicks and knees but punches are just fine as well.  Having a straightforward purpose, however, is not enough to make a good product.  We need to really get down to the nitty gritty.

This shield is made of impact-absorbing foam and covered in vinyl, with nylon and rubber used for the handles.  Right now, the folks at MMA Opinion are selling it for $69.99, which seems to be a fairly reasonable.  The shield appears to be be pretty solidly made:  my students and I wailed on it pretty thoroughly and it showed no signs of distress.  I continue to be impressed with the build quality that the KD Elite folks deliver with their products at such good price points.

The shield features three different handles on the back (one horizontal and two vertical).  The handles were my main concern with the last KD Elite product I reviewed, and honestly are my only issue with the shield.  The horizontal nylon strap you hold on to still has the same cheap-looking piece of rubber on it that looks like it came from a garden hose.  Also, there is only one of them.  On several occasions I found myself really looking for another horizontal strap to hold onto.  The vertical straps got rid of the rubber, which I like, and are adjustable via velcro.  I like this a lot, and think they should have gone the same way for the horizontal strap.  That said, the straps definitely work.  My complaints here are fairly minor, all in all.

The impact absorbing foam they use in the shield really shines through as the star here.   I’m a fairly small guy, and even when using it with my much larger students I found it did a very good job of softening the blows.  Striking it feels pretty good as well, which is also fairly important.  It provides enough resistance to let you know that you’re doing it right (or not), but not so much resistance that new folks are likely to hurt themselves.

So, is the KD Elite XL Curved Body Shield any good?  Is it worth the $70 pricetag?  Yes.  The shield is reasonably priced but also surprisingly high quality.  If you run a school, then you will need a shield at some point, and these are a great bargain.  I’d even be tempted to call them a no-brainer.  If you are just practicing/training yourself, then unless you wall mount it somehow, this is probably a pass.  It *does* require two people.  Having said that, if you have a regular training partner then it may be a good call.

Interested in buying one?  Head over to MMAOpinion.com.

Looking for more Martial Arts Equipment?

I’ve been a martial artist for as long as I can remember, and I hope that I always will be one.  I never really expected to see a the community get shaken up the way it has been by MMA.  One thing I’ve noticed a lot lately has been good, long-term, martial artists beginning to question whether or not Traditional Martial Arts have a use, or even a future, in a world where MMA is king.

I’ve seen teachers contemplate leaving the art, because the students only care about fighting in the ring.  I understand how they feel.  Many martial artists dont like seeing their art become a sport, others take issue with the lack of spirituality, and yet others feel that martial arts should be something else entirely.  I’ve been torn on the subject myself.  I dont know that there’s really anything wrong with MMA, other than the name.  If we could get the “Martial Arts” out of it, I think there would be a lot less contention in the community.  Unfortunately I really doubt the name is going to change at this point (and while it would help, I’m not sure that it SHOULD change – the name is technically accurate, even if it is being used for sport).

I’ve seen experienced martial artists question what the point is of studying a “Traditional Martial Art” anymore, because they are incomplete styles and you need to cross-train to pick up the gaps anyhow, so why not just do straight MMA?  Especially since it seems to be so effective in the ring.  I think this is mostly misconception.  Most martial art styles ARE complete styles.  The real problem is that (at least in the US) they’ve been watered down, and had a lot of components removed.  We need to bring them back.  I certainly wont argue that cross-training can be a great idea for a martial artist, but it isnt quite the same as MMA training.  MMA trains you for a specific thing – competing.  Martial Arts training does not (or should not – if you are then you’re doing a sport, and then you might as well do MMA).

Basically what it comes down to is this: “Traditional Martial Arts” are going to become a niche activity.  All the people who were just in it for fitness, or were just in it to compete, will probably migrate over to MMA.  If you run a school, this could be a big problem.  Either start offering MMA, or accept that you’re probably going to have to slim down quite a bit.  For teachers and students, I see this as a time of opportunity.  Rededicate yourselves to fully exploring your style.  Find the stuff that got left behind years ago and bring it back.  Become a better Martial Artist, and stop worrying about what the MMA guys are doing.

I will be honest here.  I am a guy.  As such, when I started up the FIYF store and started getting shirts made, I was thinking about shirts for me.  Quickly, however, it became apparent that I needed to get some shirts just for the girls (mostly when I was asked, repeatedly, to carry a shirt for girls).  So I have been working hard to rectify the situation.  With that in mind, I am pleased to announce that the FIYF store is now carrying a new shirt: The Lotus Warrior Babydoll T-shirt.  Keep in mind that this is a very small run, so only a limited number are available.  If the demand is high, I will get more made in the future.

I promised that there would be more posts this month and I meant it.  To follow up my review of the mouthguard last week, I was sent a pair of Combat Sports Gel Handwraps from the folks at Boxing Depot.com.  Now, I am a striker by nature and by training, so this was right up my alley.  Also, I’m not generally a fan of gloves or handwraps – I tend to train bare-handed (yeah yeah, I know).  So it takes a lot for a product like this to impress me.  That said, I was definitely impressed.

Let me start out by telling you a little bit about these.  Most gel handwraps are simply like a glove, but filled with gel.  These are a little bit different – these have both that gel glove component as well as a traditional wrap.  This means you get that ultra-important wrist support as well as the hand/knuckle protection.  The gel padding, which is roughly 1/4″ thick, covers your knuckes and your fingers – not just your knuckles as is common.  Again, this means improved protection.

Ok, enough about the technical stuff.  Let’s get down to the experience.  These are really nice handwraps.  I put them through some pretty extensive use on my heavybag, and my hands were none the worse for wear afterwords.  Now, I did experience some rub burns on my fingers from the wraps when I used them alone (that is, without wearing regular gloves over them), however I have found this with every other wrap I’ve used as well.  I did not have the same issue when I used gloves over them.  Aside from that little detail, my hands were extremely well protected throughout.  The added wrist support also paid off.  It helped me keep my wrists straight, preventing injury.

These wraps seem to run for anywhere from $19.95-24.95.  In my experience, that is pretty reasonable, especially when you consider that it is really two products in one.  I do wish that these were a little more practical to use by themselves (without gloves over top), but I understand that this is a weakness of all the products in this segment and not just these, so I cant really hold it as a negative.  All in all, I would highly recommend them to anyone who does any sort of bag work.

Interested in buying a set?  Head over to Boxing Depot.com.

Looking for more Martial Arts Equipment?

A few weeks ago the folks over at Elite MMA.com sent me another goodie to review, the Power Gel-Nano Mouthguard.  Reviewing something like a mouthguard is pretty tricky, so I called in some assistance.  To test this bad boy out, I had the help of Joe Cunningham of Yamasaki Woodbridge.  Read on to see the verdict.

One of the biggest issues is getting a mouthguard that forms properly.  An improperly formed mouthguard is uncomfortable, and can cut your mouth.  The way this is usually handled is either by having a very soft mouthguard that is ultra-flexible (which obviously trades off some of the effectiveness), or by having a more rigid piece that does not mold as well.  The Power Gel-Nano Mouthguard tackles this issue by having a fairly flexible front end, but a harder back end to provide good concussion protection.  It is not unique in this feature, but what is fairly unique is the fact that the harder back end still molds well and does not cut up your mouth.  This is a huge selling point.

Another big issue with mouthguards tends to be breathing.  They do the most good when your mouth/teeth are closed, but this limits your ability to breathe out through your mouth.  This piece, thankfully, has a slot in the front which is intended to be used with the included tether (for those people in sports which require helmets) – but it serves double as a handy breathing vent.

In short, Joe reports that this is one of the best mouthguards he has ever used.  At $17, it isnt especially cheap – but this is not an area I would skimp.  A good mouthguard is the key to a fighter’s safety, and can mean the difference between taking a good hit and getting KO’d.  This is definitely a product we both highly recommend.

Interested in buying one?  Head over to Elite MMA.com.

Looking for more Martial Arts Equipment?

I know that December was a pretty slow month for the site.  I spent a lot of time trying to get new shirts made (and this has been a success!).  That said, I plan on making it up to you all this month – starting today.  Not only do I have the results from UFC 108 for you here now, but later on today I will also get the first product review of the new year online.  Enjoy!

Oliveira beats Gunderson with a unanimous decision

Ellenberger beats Pyle with a TKO in Round 2

Munoz beats Jensen with a TKO in Round 1

Miller (Cole) beats Lauzon (Dan) with a submission in Round 1

Kampmann beats Volkmann with a submission in Round 1

Dos Santos beats Yvel with a KO in Round 1

Miller (Jim) beats Ludwig with a submission in Round 1

Stout beats Lauzon (Joe) with a unanimous decision

Daley beats Hazelett with a TKO in Round 1

Evans beats Silva with a unanimous decision

I know I’ve been bad about getting these posted lately, so today I am making sure to be at least relatively on top of things.  Here are the results from last night’s UFC 107.

Belcher beats Gouveia with a TKO in Round 1

Wiman beats Nelson with a unanimous decision

Hendricks beats Funch with a unanimous decision

Palhares beats Linhares with a submission in Round 2

Johnson beats Garcia with a submission in Round 1

Grant beats Burns with a TKO in Round 1

Struve beats Buentello with a majority decision

Florian beats Guida with a submission in Round 2

Fitch beats Pierce with a unanimous decision

Mir beats Kongo with a submission in Round 1

Penn beats Sanchez with a TKO in Round 5

I know I’ve been promising a new shirt in the store for a while now, and I am a man of my word.  I am pleased to announce that the Alley Ninja Shirt is now available in the FIYF Store.  As always, the shirt is printed on high-quality American Apparel 2001 shirts.  I honestly think it might be the best-looking shirt we have.  Check it out, let me know what you think, and keep coming back for more t-shirt announcements!

Ok, I am trying to make up for missing the last UFC – so here are the results from yesterday’s match.

Hathaway beats Taylor with a unanimous decision

Etim beats Gugerty with a submission in Round 2

Osipczak beats Riddle with a TKO in Round 3

Siver beats Kelly with a TKO in Round 2

Gustafsson beats Hamman with a KO in Round 1

Winner beats Delgado with a KO in Round 1

Pearson beats Riley with a TKO in Round 2

Brown beats Wilks with a TKO in Round 3

Bisping beats Kang with a TKO in Round 2

Hardy beats Swick with a unanimous decision

Couture beats Vera with a unanimous decision

Hey guys, I know I’ve been pretty bad lately with posting stuff up.  I even missed the last UFC.  I got a new job, which has me on the opposite side of the country from home for a while… and while I’m here, my ability to get stuff done is limited.  That said, I still have some exciting news.

1. Advertising is going away.  You probably noticed that the big ad on the left of the main page is gone.  I know the site looks a little ugly right now with nothing really over there, but dont worry I’ll get it fixed.  There are still ads in the forums for now.  I will work to get rid of those soon.    The amazon affiliate ads/links might stay.  I havent decided yet.

2. There is a new t-shirt.  No, I havent updated the store yet to offer it, but the Alley Ninja Shirt is at my house.  It is no longer a black shirt – it is now grey.  I will get the store updated, and the shirt available for purchase when I get home in ~2 weeks.