Can You Do Krav Maga with Glasses?

Written by Jeff Campbell in Injuries and Health Issues,Krav Maga Last Updated November 15, 2022

Can You Do Krav Maga with Glasses lg

I wear glasses as my ability to read is pretty poor without them. But I always take them off when I train in martial arts. But for some with vision worse than mine, it may not be that simple. So can you do Krav Maga with glasses?

Here’s what I found out:

One can train Krav Maga with glasses on. Wearing headgear can help to avoid direct punches or strikes to the face. Even better though is wearing specially-designed glasses made for sportsmen and women. They are made with impact-resistant material and are protective in addition to being corrective.

Wearing traditional glasses or contact lens comes with some risks.

In this article, we’ll check out whether glasses are cool when you train Krav Maga and how to protect your vision in the heat of action. But we’ll also cover whether anyone makes training glasses or goggles that can be made with your prescription!

Let’s dive right in…

Can I train Krav Maga with glasses if I use headgear?

Yes. You can train Krav Maga with glasses if you use headgear. But, you need to be very careful because if the training is intense, the glasses can be smashed to your face inside the headgear.

But even when you’re allowed to train with your glasses on, you will want to take them off as often as you can manage. Why?

Krav Maga training should be as close as possible to what you’re likely to face in a real fight.

In a real fight, you’ll most probably lose your glasses while struggling, or the assailant may be a mean type who deliberately strikes them off of your face or even into your face.

They can turn your glasses into a weapon they’ll use against you!

If you haven’t experienced a similar thing several times while you train, you’ll most likely be disoriented and disadvantaged, and they’ll probably capitalize on your moment of confusion and hesitation to beat you down.

That’s not a scenario you want to experience in real life without several simulations of it in the dojo.

So, by all means, train with your glasses on, but get used to also training without them. So, that in the comfort of the dojo, you’d already have devised some deadly moves and effective responses you’d use if you were suddenly robbed of your glasses.

If you’re sure of your ability to protect yourself from being struck in the face, you may want to get glasses with straps.

Are my glasses likely to break while training Krav Maga?

Glasses are unlikely to break when sparring with a training partner while doing Krav Maga. Most partners will be reluctant to execute direct hits to the face when someone is wearing glasses. But there is always a risk of injury to you and your glasses when training.

If they are strapped-on and no one struck them, they’ll most likely remain intact. But, if they aren’t the type you could strap on, they’ll likely fall off, even if no one struck them.

Even if they are the type with straps, some moves are hard to pull off with your glasses intact.

Unless your sparring partner is slow and considerate, in which case both parties get shortchanged because that’s not how it’d play out in real life.

You’ll probably be able to go through Level One without worrying too much, but as you go higher, things become more intense and challenging.

If your vision is not seriously impaired, it’s best to train without them and to quickly remove them if you ever got into a street fight.

Interested in getting the lowdown on what Krav Maga classes cost? You’re in luck because that’s what I shared in some depth in a recent article of mine.

Just click the link to read it on my site.

Can you do Krav Maga with contacts in?

You can do Krav Maga or other martial arts with contacts in. But it is not ideal because of the risk of them getting dislodged and falling out of the eyes while sparring.

The last thing you need in the heat of action is to lose your vision. It is impossible to pick them up. And even if you were able to, you cannot wear them again, seeing as they are no longer sterile.

The three main risks when you fight with contact lenses on are: You could lose them, they can be dislodged, and you can contract infections.

Let’s review the 3 biggest issues in greater details:

You could lose them

While sparring or in a real fight, you can be struck or punched hard on the face and lose them.

Let’s face it. There would be no chance to pick them up as that would further expose you to an attack. But, let’s say you were able to, they are now dirty and can’t be used again.

They can be dislodged

Even without a hit to the face, fighting is struggling. The movements are hardly predictable and controlled. In the chaos, the lenses can be dislodged, immediately affecting your ability to see and leaving you wide open for a lethal strike or sucker punch.

Remember that all is fair in Krav Maga!

Pressure applied to your face could dislodge the lenses making you extremely uncomfortable and distracted. It could even lead to corneal abrasion. If the pressure is intense, it might even be difficult to remove the lenses

You can contract infections

While sparring or fighting, you’re regularly touching your opponent’s body, and your hand is most likely smeared with their blood (at least their sweat).

It’s very easy for you to unwittingly touch your eye, perhaps unconsciously, to keep the lenses in place, and in the process, infect your eyes.

Are punches to the face common in Krav Maga?

Punches to the face are common in Krav Maga. A key part of its curriculum focuses on attacking the vulnerable parts of an opponent’s body, and the face is a highly vulnerable part of the body.

Swift punches aimed at the eyes, followed quickly by a lethal elbow-strike to the face, might just be all that is needed to “finish the problem.”

A simple key to “getting” Krav Maga is knowing that even though it has defining techniques borrowed from several martial arts, it really has no rules.

Krav Maga has no rules!

It’s a system that is defined by effectiveness rather than an adherence to a style or consideration for the opponent. It’s about incapacitating an assailant as quickly as possible “by any means necessary.”

When your life is at stake, you’re taught that you must become an attacker, not a victim. Saving your life is what is at stake, not being considerate toward a person that’s trying to blind, cripple or even kill you.

You’ll get punched in the face a lot.

Trust me, punches to the face are not only common. They fall into the category of “soft” moves. In a KM fight, expect anything.

Poking the eye, breaking the nose, hitting the temple, punches to the ears (to make the opponent temporarily deaf), punches to the jaw, knee strikes, groin-kicks…are all fair in KM.

You’re probably beginning to sense how lethal Krav Maga can be, but is it really worth it?

That’s the theme of a recent article of mine where I explained t+hat it equips you with skills that’d enable you to quickly subdue an attacker.

Just click the link to read it on my site.

Do they make training glasses for martial arts?

There are training glasses specifically designed for martial artists. The training glasses usually have a polycarbonate frame, are impact-resistant, and have an elastic band to hold them to your head, and will be made with your optometrist’s eye prescription.

My favorite place to get glasses of all kinds, including sports glasses, is at GlassesUSA!

They give first-time buyers a code for 65% off, have great reviews, and tons of frames and options to choose from.

In addition to correcting your vision, the glasses are protective because they are made of unbreakable glass. You’ll have the peace of mind to focus entirely on the fight instead of worrying that your glasses could fall off at any moment.

They are more expensive than the regular glasses, and they’ll probably feel a bit strange at first, but not to worry, they’ll grow on you.

You may have wondered if it’s possible to teach yourself KM at home. A recent article of mine shows you how to and offers cost-effective, actionable strategies that’d help you.

Just click the link to read it on my site.

If I Wear Glasses, Can I Fight in Boxing or MMA?

Conclusion

Some of us wear glasses. That’s just a fact of life. In the article, we looked at whether we can train with our glasses on, the risks involved, and if one can train with contact lenses on.

We considered the elephant in the room: are our glasses likely to break while we train?

We also looked at whether punches to the face are common in KM, and we wrapped things up by looking at a great option that’s better than traditional glasses we could use while we train KM.

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