Sparring is Required!
I advocate sparring with substantial contact in every class. There's no question about it, if someone wants to learn to defend themselves, they need to be able to spar. In fact, sparring is one of the most important activities any martial artist can do.
You can practice forms all day but it won't teach you how to defend yourself. You can also do a million pattern drills, but it won't translate unless you can integrate it into real time.
You must learn to hit and be hit - - BOTH with substantial contact! Bruises and cut lips will happen because of good hard training. But these aren't really injuries. Of course safety is important. But make no mistake, YOU CAN NOT LEARN TO DEFEND YOURSELF WITHOUT SPARRING WITH SUBSTANTIAL CONTACT!
Know it upfront. In my Wing Chun classes, sparring is required!
