Karate Chest Protector

search

by Tracey_E - 2009-06-23 05:06:17

If you do a search of past messages, this has come up several times lately. There is a company that makes a guard just for pm's.

Wish I could help!

by drpod89 - 2009-06-23 05:06:44

sewatkins-
Wow, I could not believe your posting. I am 38 yrs old and have just been informed that I need a bi-ventricular pacemaker. I have no idea what to expect, and have been reading all the online literature I could get my hands on. I was testing for my 3rd degree blackbelt when I got the news I had a left bundle branch block and cardiomopothy. I was told that my martial arts career was over. Now, you are saying that you are throwing on a chest protector and getting back in the sparring ring?
That is incredible news, I am happy for you. I hope to see someone else post on any results or testimonials about how they are doing in a similar situation. I am brand new to this website, but plan on posting in the future regarding my progress.
Best of luck to you sir, and thanks for giving me hope.

~drpod89~

Did he..

by turboz24 - 2009-06-23 09:06:27

Did your doctor consider a sub-pectoral implant or couldn't because of the development issues on your pec muscle?

I know that sub-pec is way more protected than a standard implant.

placement

by Tracey_E - 2009-06-23 09:06:57

Most doctors say not to do impact sports such as football and martial arts, but some are ok with it. I think the risk is more you getting hurt from an impact to the pm rather than fear of damaging the pm. They can place it to make it work better for sports if you tell them before your surgery that it's important to you. Mine is behind the breast (obviously not gonna work for a guy!) so I don't have any restrictions. As Turbo said, they can do it more under the muscle for guys as an alternative.

Tae Kwondoo

by Lotti - 2009-06-24 04:06:27

Hi.
Lotti here from England
I have had my PM for 3 years now and 12 months ago started Tae Kwondo. I am now a green belt and usually have to start free sparring at gradings. My instructor has got permission from the TAGB Association for me to grade without sparring. I still learn all the self defence in class but do not do contact sparring. I don't know if this is something that you can do in Karate. I know that you can get "breast plates" etc for ladies but they do not go high up onto the shoulder. I have only been hit there once and had no ill effect.. Hope you find something that works.

Lotti

As TraceyE says..

by turboz24 - 2009-06-24 12:06:10

I'd worry more about injuring my skin over the implant if I got struck there than actually damaging the implant. I'm not sure how much force 1/8" of just skin can take before it tears. If getting popped by a seatbelt clasp makes me feel queezy for 30 minutes, I couldn't imagine what a hard hit would feel like.

Searching for the Way

by northis - 2009-06-28 11:06:49

I am a 47 year old male, and My style is traditional Okinawa Kenpo and i wear the Martial Armour by century. I've worn it for two ye)ars to protect my liver from injury (bruising internal bleeding). I have a fib and i'm taking blood thinners. I also had a pm implanted on may 28th, unexpectantly as i began to experience 4 to 5 second pauses. I will return to the dojo in august and test for my brown belt. I will not longer spar but focus on my weapons, kata and self defense. Althought i was told that a direct strike to my pm would not be fatal, why risk it. I am no less of a martial artist with my pm. As a matter of fact, i welcome not having to spar as too much emphasis on tournament sparring negates 4 of your most important weapons (knees and elbows) as well as your most effective street defenses: traps, sweeps and strikes to critical areas ( i know u know where they are) Good luck on your for your Way

Please consider what Martial Arts means to you and what you would like to get out of the Arts.

RyuKyu Hon Kenpo Kobudo Jujitsu
Sam

PaceGuard

by zoie - 2009-06-30 06:06:15

Hi, my name is SHaron and my daughter Zoie has a pacemaker. Long story short, I created a specific "guard" for pacemakers due to the need of my daughter. I have custom shirts that will allow you to place the paceguard where YOU need it. Our website is www.paceguard.com If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly at spinnler@paceguard.com. I hope this will fit your needs! Play for Life!
Sharon

Suggestions from an old fart :D

by Quietman - 2021-06-13 12:12:56

I was just implanted with a PM in May. I'm 61 and have been doing / teaching Goju for a total of 40 years.

Here are my thoughts.
Get a paceguard and wear it in class when doing any partner drills. That's what I will be doing.

Get a good quality chest protector. Too bad F.I.S.T dropped their consumer chest protector. It was a hard plastic shell with 2 different densities of foam underneath. You need something like this because it will spread the force over a larger area. It will NOT be cheap.

Stay away from simple foam protectors. I had a student that brought in a protector used in TKD. I told him, "No, I can break your ribs through that flimsy piece of junk." Bragging? No. I cracked a rib and left a 4 inch bruise on a person I know through 3 inches of foam (punching) when sparring and have left a mass of bruises on forearms and shins working out with friends who were wearing the type of foam guards most comonly used in tournaments. And when I say mass, one friend limped for 3 days because of the bruising. Avoid simple foam products.

I'd recommend NOT doing any tournament sparring. Stick with only sparring in your school so people know rib, stomach, and chest shots outside of the pectoral are ok, but not where the PM is. Also, see the caveat below.

Individuals on blood thinners need to be carefull and that's another reason for wearing good upper body protection. A hard penetrating hit can cause other damage. Good quality torso protection is recommended.

If you've ever been exposed to arm and leg conditioning, do it gradually. NO bruising. How this helps is it increases the density of the capillarry walls to reduce the chance of a rupture.

That being said. Continue with your training. Karate is equivalent to HIIT cardio training if you are worked hard. Ease back into it however. Between that and years of correct Sanchin, my blood ox levels after the heart attack and heart block that followed 4 days later left the nurses and doctors scratching their heads as it varied between 98 and 100% at 5500 ft. I know a few other older karateka that have shocked the doctors with their rebound.

Heck, I was practicing kata at 9000 feet for 10 minutes, 2 weeks before the heart attack. The ICU doctor was stupefied at how I did that with no issues. Short of breath? Yes, but it was 9000 ft (I live at 6300), and I was breathing normally in less than a minute after stopping.

The health benefits with correct training are numerous, so even if you didn't free spar again, but only did kihon kata, and ippon kumite, the training is well worth it.