To Gi or not to Gi, that is the question.

I know training in the Gi is great, but training without the Gi is sometimes a bit more realistic in my area. I live in a hot desert climate where most people wear T-shirts. So I feel that training without the Gi is more important. Of course we train both methods here. I hope other people out there are training this way so that they will learn not to rely on the Gi.

I like the Gi for two reasons. A)Tradition B) It is a quite durable thing ideal for lessons I do.

i enjoy wearing the dobok (gi) for comfort and tradition, but i also train in street clothes for realistic purposes..... kicking in jeans is different than in bajai (dobok pants).....

i see where you are coming from ken but it is kinda hard to do some jiu jitsu and judo techniques without a gi

and i live in canada so it gets pretty cold here so you can use a winter coat for soemthing to grab and throw a person

It's hard to do some judo and jujitsu techniques without a gi.. Well.. that's the point of trianing without a gi. So you don't rely upon it when the time comes to defend yourself and a person isn't wearing a gi or heavy jacket.

We train at our school in the traditional doboks (gi)...In summer we can wear the school tshirt but then we are required to wear the traditional dobok top when it gets cooler out. Actually I do like to wear the heavy grade dobok top and bottoms...its a nice sound when you hear the snap of your kicks and punches 'specially when doing forms.

We used to (back in the day) wear our street clothes and take the class outdoors classes are just too large and diverse in order to do that now.

Deby

they also look really cool when hanging around the house..........(lol)

however; i never wear my dobok on the street, out of respect and the attention it receives..............

There is some fighter that was asked a question similar to the tread topic. I wish I could remeber who it was. My friend Rob may know so I'll have to ask him. This fighter remarked that when in competition he prefered wearing a gi because it seemed that when he wore a gi more people attempted to grab him while when he didn't wear a gi more people threw punches and kicks at him. Not wearing a gi gave the opponent less options. He said that's why he wears one, because he would rather be grabbed than punched or kicked.

For street purposes I agree with Ken. Training both, in and out of gi/dobok, would be the best way to go.

Take care

That fighter was non other than, Royce Gracie. The man that brought grappling to the highlight of the martial arts world.