For my first six or seven months of Jiu Jitsu I was convinced it was smart to wear a cup when training. This was confirmed when I racked my training partner with my knee – on accident, of course – and when my cup protected me from various impairments to my reproductive compacity when people passed my guard with various knee passes which would have otherwise may have been quite painful.
I was able to overcome the discomfort and considered myself wise for wearing one – and for better or worse – my Jiu Jitsu was probably a little more fearless because of it.
My thoughts on the issue remained consistent until I had a conversation with an instructor. He mentioned the following two points about wearing a cup when training:
- In a street fight you won’t have time to put on a cup – and if you find yourself somehow wearing a cup you should consider yourself lucky – lucky enough to go buy a lottery ticket. As much as possible, you should be able and used to defending yourself without having a dependence on a piece of a equipment. This is a common-sense reality of street fights.
- When you don’t train with a cup, you get accustomed to it. He said you “develop radar” and sensitivity – you begin to make adjustments that reduce likelihood of injuries to groin.
I pretty much immediately stopped wearing a cup after the conversation. I was a bit nervous at first, but he is right: you really do begin to account for your sensitivities when you don’t wear protection down there. And the more I think about the arguments for not wearing a cup when training, the more obvious and true they seem.
I have done a complete 180 on the issue and I think my Jiu Jitsu and self defense is better because of it.
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I'm a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) fanatic and blogger. Currently a blue belt under Relson Gracie, this is where I share insights, stories and reviews related to the sport and martial art of Jiu Jitsu. I train in Colorado at 
When I went to take a class in Rio, my friend told me that no one there wears a cup. I thought it was crazy, but apparently in some of the big brazilian tournaments cups are prohibitted because they give you an advantage when doing armbars (guy’s elbow is not directly on your junk) or defending knee cut passes. So you might as well get used to not using one…
I’ve been rolling without one for a couple of weeks now, but I still get nervous.
I got in a street fight after training at the mma gym and i was wearing my cup. i got him in an arm triangle and as he started to pass out he tried to grab my balls. i just started laughing and squeezing.
makes me want to always be wearing a cup honestly, especially when i go out and drink.
I haven’t worn a cup in years. Stopped just after learning that it’s against the IBJJF rules. I haven’t had any problems and have found that I’m much more likely to take an errant knee to the nose than a shot to the balls. It’sjust never been an issue.