Football has the third-highest incidence of player injury in the United States, bested only by basketball and bicycling. According to the U.S. National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, people incur an estimated 460,210 injuries each year from playing football. Many injuries are inevitable, due to the physical nature of the game, but properly wearing the right equipment and padding can greatly reduce your risk of injury.
Step 1
Put on a jockstrap over your underwear, positioning the jockstrap's cup so that it rests in front of your crotch comfortably and securely.
Step 2
Put on your girdle over the jockstrap and cup, with the pad pockets facing in. Place the tailbone pad in the back pocket by your buttocks and the two hip pads in the other two pockets; place the elongated round tab first.
Step 3
Turn the football pants inside-out to insert the thigh and knee pads into the respective pockets inside the pants. Turn the pants right- side-out and put them on. The hip pads should protrude slightly from your girdle.
Step 4
Put on a regular T-shirt before putting on the rib and chest pads. Put on the rib pad vest first and adjust the straps to ensure that the pads cover your ribs completely.
Step 5
Put the shoulder pads on after the rib pad vest by pulling the pads down over your head, with the laces on the chest plate facing forward. Pull the laces tight and secure them with the sliding tightening device. Connect the straps on the back and under the arms to the slots on the front of the chest protector.
Step 6
Put on the uniform jersey or practice jersey over your shoulder pads before putting on your helmet. Place the helmet on your head and secure the chinstrap by clicking it into the slot opposite of the side where it is hanging. Put the mouth guard in your mouth and lace up your cleats.
Things You'll Need
- Jockstrap
- Cup
- Football girdle
- Tailbone pad
- Hip pads
- Football pants
- Knee and thigh pads
- T-shirt
- Rib pads
- Rib pad vest
- Chest pads
- Shoulder pads
- Jersey
- Football helmet
- Mouth guard
- Cleats
