My boyfriend does it and him and his classmates go through cans and cans of ice spray. Every time they clash, every time the take a hit, they'll spray it, or ice it or go to a physio - my guy will go to the physio for ridiculous things like tight hamstrings (see my other question!). Surely this is bad coaching? I have my reservations about the coach anyway, I think he is good in some areas, not so good in others. Shouldn't someone doing a martial art work on resistance and accepting the pain that comes with mistakes, instead of constantly using external aids? I know they have conditioning sessions in karate classes. Is there such thing in Taekwondo or am I just being an unsympathetic old shrew?
Owch, I wouldn't say he was a sissy, it's just the way he's been taught to deal with it. I did kickboxing for a number of years, and the bruises I got were just an indication as to how much I needed to learn! The poor lad broke his leg in November, just a clean tibial break, no displacement, but the ice spray started long before that. His coach didn't even know his leg was broken - he told him it wasn't! Who is he to be making judgements like that?!

Hello Tilly...Unfortunately for you, your boyfriend, and for other unsuspecting students out there, teaching is an art in itself and if the instructor does not have the the skill nor the knowledge, then students will always get injured. Spraying is not the solution, explanation and good practise is what you need.

The idea of no "pain no gain" is such a load of cow-pat. Our survival instinct automatically veer us towards protecting an injured part of the body, no amount of training will stop your leg or arm being broken. You are not training to get hurt, but training to prevent yourself from getting hurt. If your instructor does not know that....look somewhere else. I have trained for years and never had an injury.