Protective Gear

Protective gear for grappling and striking that you will actually wear to class. If you buy one thing before your first open mat or sparring round, make it the mouthguard; the rest depends on what your knees and shins are telling you.

Mouthguard. The adult boil-and-bite BJJ mouthguard molds to your teeth in a few minutes: heat it in water, bite down, cool it, done. It ships with a vented case so it dries between sessions instead of growing something at the bottom of your gym bag. Most gyms require one for sparring and many open mats for rolling.

Knee sleeves or knee pads. Compression knee sleeves give light support and warmth, with no padding: pick them for sore joints, wrestling shots and long days on the mat. The padded knee pads use a thick sponge insert and are the pick for knee-on-belly, hard mats and wrestlers who hit their knees on every shot. Both are sized by thigh circumference, not by shirt size.

Shin guards. The Muay Thai shin guards cover shin and instep for pad work and sparring and are sized by height and calf circumference. Check the size section on each product before ordering. Free US shipping on every order, delivery in 7 to 12 business days, 15-day returns on unused items.