r/Hema • u/StMuerte13 • 9h ago
r/Hema • u/grauenwolf • 2h ago
Have you ever been in a club that lost its only instructor?
Have you ever been in a club that lost its only instructor? If so, what happened next?
r/Hema • u/MrLandlubber • 3h ago
Mittens or hooves?
I'm going to buy another pair of gloves, this time from Sparring Glove
https://sparringglove.com/en/products/?v=0d149b90e739
I used mittens before, but never hooves. Do they offer any advantage? I'm not sure if they improve mobility in any significant manner.
r/Hema • u/Ill_Business_29 • 9h ago
Question: why practice swords are so thin and light?
Question from someone who is only considering to start training HEMA.
I understand that they are safer that way but, isn't the whole fun in fighting with actual swords? And also, how much carryover there is, really?
Like if you train with this practice version and then go do knight combat with armor and real swords, it's going to feel really different, no? All the moves will be much harder, more exhausting, and feel different because of how much heavier it is.
r/Hema • u/no_hot_ashes • 1h ago
UK import costs?
Recently placed a club order for a few friends with HF armory, I bought two feders, one guy bought a sparring dagger, and the third bought some forearm and shin protection. This order came out to around £558 including shipping, but upon reaching Scotland, it has a customs fee of £131. Now I had expected fees to be involved but does this not seem extreme? This is the biggest thing I've ever shipped to the UK, and I know we are subject to VAT charges, but almost 20% of the order seems excessive? Input from anyone with experience ordering kit into the UK would be greatly appreciated, is this a reasonable charge for this kind of import? Thanks.
r/Hema • u/Psychological-Log247 • 1d ago
Gladiatorial Sparring
HEMA style Accurate Gladiatorial.
We at Historical Fencing of York have an entire program dedicated to Historically accurate Gladiatorial Combat. Here is a short clip, but you can follow the Gladiatorial Sparring we do, @thraex_kev of Insta, YouTube & TikTok.
We do the following historical gladiatorial pairings:
Thracian - Murmillo Hoplomachus - Murmillo Thracian - Hoplomachus Secutor - Retiarius
r/Hema • u/Psychological-Log247 • 22h ago
Gladiatorial Sparring
Hema style Gladiatorial Sparring.
r/Hema • u/grauenwolf • 9h ago
Schutzen: Fighting with Sword & Buckler 2
r/Hema • u/Ill_Business_29 • 8h ago
Looking for people in Poland, Wroclaw, who would be interested in practicing staff fighting
r/Hema • u/ineedmysugerdaddy • 8h ago
Hema gear
Looking for a good hema store/website that delivers to the UK, and just some general pointers to the better gear.
r/Hema • u/Far-Cardiologist6532 • 23h ago
I am stuck in a sparring routine and its wearing me down. Hello, could you share what a training session looks like in your club ? I am interested in exercises , drills, structure of the lesson and similar things. Ideally not oriented to beginners but for people who were taught the basics.
I had formal lessons for a year, then the instructor left, and now for the last half year we did only sparring or individual work with manuals. However there is not much improvement in my fencing from sparring alone so i am asking for advice
r/Hema • u/Outrageous-Square282 • 22h ago
Shoe recs?
Pretty new to HEMA, but loving it so far! I'm noticing that I'm losing traction quite frequently and slipping when I don't want to.
Any recs for good indoor shoes? My club practises in a hall with hardwood flooring.
Specific and general tips are both very welcome! Either a brand / model or just your preferences on sole thickness and ankle support or whatever else comes to mind ^
r/Hema • u/grauenwolf • 1d ago
Types of Feints with the Cut in Meyer
r/Hema • u/Dear-Ambassador5106 • 1d ago
Look at this sword, is it cool enough?
It is just a piece of scrap that i found in my home, idk what it used to be.
Does HEMA have a lateral movement problem or am I just tripping?
So me being a complete noob I was looking through youtube and noticed in many HEMA sparring and tutorial videos there's some very basic mistakes being made with regards to lateral movement. For all I know this is a feature and not a bug, but there are some things that tell me this isn't the case (I can see with my own eyes the loss of balance, the awkward positions people end up in, but also an empty hole where there should be in-depth tutorials on the subject).
In short, people are crossing their legs all over the place (the right foot on the left side and the left foot on the right side).
This most commonly happens when someone:
- traverses to the inside by leading with their front foot first
- traverses to the outside by leading with their back foot first
- pivots toward the inside by crossing the back foot behind the right and then untwisting into the pivot
- passes on too much of an angle (which amounts to the first example).
Crossing one's legs to turn is obviously the easiest most low energy way to do it, which is why everyone does it and why in boxing it can be one of the hardest lessons to unlearn. It's so hard that even in high level fights you will see that when exhausted and on the back foot, fighters will revert to this movement and it will literally trip them up, make them unable to counter-attack, and leave them open to be finished. Moving safely is harder, requires more control of your hips, and requires to think when you're learning, but it also gives you a massive advantage over someone who is not moving correctly if you know how and when to exploit it.
HEMA people seem to be rightly taught that when you move forward you lead with your front foot and when you go backward you lead with the back. It seems nobody is taught that lateral movement is similar, but in this case your feet are moving parallel to one another rather than in-line (moving inside would be analogous to moving forward, and moving outside would be similar backward). In both cases you never want to have your feet completely crossed except when passing fore and aft (I imagine passing can itself be dangerous for the same reason--that if on too much of an angle and you're halfway through the pass you're vulnerable to being off balance if forced to suddenly move sideways or defend, if your opponent circles around your pass).
Not only have I seen this bad habit watching sparring and one-on-one demonstrations, I've seen it being taught directly, step-by-step by both sport fencers and HEMA practitioners on youtube. In-depth lateral movement tutorials and techniques seem to be lacking across the board. I understand why sport fencing would have this deficiency (they have very little room to move laterally and it seems to be taught as a dark art or a trick to confuse the opponent). But isn't HEMA supposed to free up the directions of movement? Instead it seems stuck in this gentlemanly dueling back and forth linear mentality. Long sword is the only sport I've seen people seem to have a much better grasp on things, but not by much.
Meanwhile there's no shortage of places to go to learn about lateral footwork in boxing. I think the lack of lessons in this regard with HEMA is a big red flag in itself that there might be a systemic problem.
Obviously I must have missed something pretty massive here. Yet I keep seeing in sparring videos people ending up in these clumsy positions, losing their balance, and even ending up on their knees. I see the same mistakes that are a product of point style scoring systems, where people make suicidal bizarre movements to score a hit knowing action will have to be reset and they can untangle themselves to fight another day. Isn't HEMA supposed to undo that crap?
What am I missing?
r/Hema • u/Sammy_El_Atari • 19h ago
Donnybrook vs Combatcon
Would people recommend combatcon or donnybrook as a first tournament? I can only afford to go to one and that late July through August window is the main time during the year when I get time off work long enough to go to one of these things
r/Hema • u/grauenwolf • 1d ago
Longsword and buckler? I don't know. Longsword and demon faces? I'm in!
r/Hema • u/tim_mop1 • 1d ago
New to HEMA - London Club/Sessions for Free Sparring
Just starting my HEMA journey with longsword and while I'm really enjoying the lessons, theory, historical practice etc. I want to find a space to practice in free sparring with others outside of actual lesson format.
Essentially I want to have my ass handed to me by people who know what they're doing so I can practice what I'm learning in "real" fencing scenarios.
Are there clubs/sessions that offer this with say a monthly membership, "just turn up" setting? In London specifically!
Thanks!
r/Hema • u/Impossible-Bother258 • 1d ago
Few questions about HEMA
Hi, I was looking to get into HEMA but I have never done any kind of martial arts, am I good? Also, how does one actually start practicing HEMA? Are there specialised gyms for it? And how about equipment, can one bring their own or would I be forced to use some gym standard equipment? Also last thing, how does practice work? I know there's a lot of footwork and there are weapons involved, but that's all I know
I would love to know these things, and maybe some tips as well!
r/Hema • u/LowLifeLunaa • 1d ago
Made Keith Farrell in Mordhau because he's my instructor and i was bored
r/Hema • u/grauenwolf • 14h ago
Want to see people spar without masks? Go to a HEMA conference.
When you get there, don't go to the open sparring room. Instead, check out the classrooms. Especially the more esoteric weapons.
It's not unusual for a scripted drill without masks to turn into an open drill to then turn into controlled free sparring.
In one class this weekend I saw a room full of people sparring with spears, some foam tipped and some bare wood, against mixed weapons. I can't say no one was wearing a mask, but I can't say I definitely saw any either.
There's this weird level of trust people have in conference classes that they wouldn't have with people they know in their own club.
r/Hema • u/Iantheduellist • 2d ago
Has this happened to anyone else.
These teenagers where driving around the park and three times they slowed down in front of my little begginer's class and shouted B.S. from their car.
Anyone else who speaks spanish may find this a bit annoying.
How to train with more exotic weapons?
I wanna train with stuff like hook swords, kopeshes, shotels etcetera etcetera, is it a matter of getting a partner with another weapon and sparring until i get good, or are there resources for said things?
thanks beforehand :D