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Glossary
Combat Sports Gear terms, explained
Short, plain definitions of the words you'll see on product pages and spec sheets. Each one links to a guide when there's more to know.
B
- Bag gloves
- Gloves with denser padding built for heavy bag work. Read the guide →
- Boil-and-bite mouthguard
- A mouthguard softened and shaped by following its manufacturer's molding instructions. Read the guide →
G
- Gi
- The jacket, pants and belt worn in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and judo. Read the guide →
H
- Hand wraps
- Cloth wraps worn under gloves to support the wrist and knuckles. Read the guide →
- Heavy bag
- A large, heavy punching bag for power and conditioning work. Read the guide →
- Hybrid MMA gloves
- Padded open-finger gloves for MMA sparring. Read the guide →
I
- IBJJF
- International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation, which sets gi rules for its events. Read the guide →
M
- Mexican-style wraps
- Elastic hand wraps that conform to the hand. Read the guide →
N
- No-gi
- Grappling without a gi, usually in a rash guard and shorts or spats. Read the guide →
O
- Open-face headgear
- Boxing headgear with an open front and padding around the crown and sides. Read the guide →
- Ounce (oz) glove
- Boxing and MMA gloves are sold by weight in ounces; more ounces means more padding. Read the guide →
P
- Pearl weave
- A light, durable gi fabric weave. Read the guide →
R
- Rash guard
- An elastic top worn for no-gi grappling; competition rules may set fit, color and coverage requirements. Read the guide →
- Roll-out mat
- A grappling surface made of connected sections that unroll for training and roll up for storage. Read the guide →
S
- Shin guards
- Pads covering the shin and instep for kicking drills and sparring. Read the guide →
- Sparring gloves
- Softer, thicker gloves made for training with a partner. Read the guide →
T
- Thai pads
- Large forearm-mounted pads a partner holds for kicks, knees and punches. Read the guide →