Training Gear & Supplies

The Disgrace of Community Gloves

Allow me to lay out this scenario for you:

“You’ve just signed up at a new MMA gym, martial arts club, cross-fit studio, or what-have-you. You pull an old shirt and a pair of shorts out of the closet, throw them on, and head down to start your first session. Arriving a bit early, you begin stretching to limber up, and watch as the class in session finishes up.

Finally, the previous class ends, yours is called onto the mats, and you begin a basic warm-up. Maybe its skip rope work, interspersed with push-ups, sit-ups, and other fun body-weight exercises. And then the real work begins: combinations on focus mitts. The rest of the class grabs their hand wraps, their gloves and a pair of focus mitts. You’re left standing there until someone pairs up with you and the instructor tosses you a pair of gloves he pulled from somewhere.

You slide them on, fasten the Velcro, raise your hands, and prepare to punch. All the while you’re ignoring the slight odour emanating from the gloves, and the slight sticky feeling on your hands. You perform your combos, break for water, and then you’re back at it again.

The class ends, and you marvel at the workout you’ve done. You enjoy how dead your arms feel from multiple punches thrown correctly. You like how your entire body is sweating – a clean sweat from exertion. You return your gloves to your instructor and enjoy the feeling of fresh air on your hands. The other students are taking off their wraps, wiping their gloves down and putting their gear away.

Your training partner is talking to you, making small talk as everyone prepares to leave. As this is happening, you notice that faint odour again. You head to the washroom and scrub your hands, trying to get them clean, trying to get the smell off of them. Not even Purell helps. That stink, it seems, is now a part of you.”

Welcome to Community Gloves. These are gloves that have been left behind by former students, or old gloves “donated” when someone changed their gloves, or just gloves bought for the sole purpose of sitting at the gym until someone needs them for a class.

These gloves have been used by many other people and then left for the next person to use. The sweat of many people has soaked into the lining of these gloves, because they haven’t been cared for as well as someone’s personal gloves. They’ve also been used without wraps, which means that glove and just the glove absorbs everything.

Community gloves are disgusting. They’re nasty and must be avoided like the plague. Gloves aren’t all expensive. You can find gloves starting at $40 for your basic vinyl, or $80 and up for a good quality breathable leather glove. If you believe that you’re going to stick with your gym or club for longer than a couple of weeks, go for the leather.

Of course, all of this is simply my own personal opinion. You are free to do what you want. However, I still HIGHLY recommend investing in your own gear. Might as well use a community mouth guard … just saying …

–The Prototype’s Alter Ego.

To purchase your own top quality gloves that you do not have to share visit our website.