JohnASE

It depends on the belt. Our standard rank belts are about 40mm (a little over 1.5"), but we sell deluxe black belts that are 45mm and 50mm (about 1.75" and 2"). Our 40mm and 45mm belts are thicker and denser than our 40mm belts, so they are harder to tie and keep tied. Some other companies have 45mm standard rank belts that are thinner than our standard 40mm belt. They're not harder to keep tied.

Great info in these posts! I have a few thoughts. Are you 2nd degree? I don't know what the deal is in your organization, but I think that's high enough to open your own school. I've had many successful customers open at that level, and I don't think you need to hire anyone. If you don't have real knowledge, talk to someone about LLC vs S-corp or whatever. I recently went over this with our accountant, and there were some pretty strong reasons to choose one over the other. I don't remember what they are, but my wife and I have two businesses and we went with LLC for one and S-corp for the other. If you're going to rent or buy a space, I strongly recommend building a student base before you open. If you have time, start a park and rec program or teach out of a church or a school or even someone's garage. It'd be nice to have a little head start before the big expenses roll in. More mouths to spread the word when it's time. Maybe you can do this while you look for a space and get all the business stuff squared away. Regarding the number of students you need to keep your doors open, you say 20, but this depends a lot on your specifics. I know one place that needed 50 to break even. I know another who has a dozen and are late on their rent but managing to keep creditors at bay. Take care when you work the numbers. Finally, if you open and get a bunch of new students right off the bat, don't get cocky. Listen to what tailgeese said about attrition. I know many people who got off to a great start, but after the first big surge, they weren't able to draw in enough new people to keep up with attrition. Good luck and have fun!

Ties are easy to repair or upgrade, but like Wastelander says, judogi don't have them for a reason. How about just untying them whenever you do something that might result in some grappling? Alternatively, maybe do something with velcro that will allow the straps to pull apart, rather than tear, when they're greatly stressed. It might take some careful design to make it work and be comfortable while both connected and separated. Just a thought.

I live in Northrdige, California, which is part of the San Fernando Valley, which is part of Los Angeles. The Valley is where The Karate Kid took place. The All Valley Karate Championship was shot at Cal State Northridge. Daniel-san lived in Reseda, which is just south of there. Here's link to a bunch of photos from the movie and what the locations look like now. http://www.laweekly.com/slideshow/the-valley-as-seen-in-the-karate-kid-then-and-now-4790827 We are THE Valley, as in the movie Valley Girl and the song of the same name. Ever hear of Valleyspeak? Think Bill and Ted's Excellent adventure (although they were from San Dimas, not the Valley). I used to have friends who talked like that, but we're all grownups now. If The Valley broke away from L.A., it would still be one of the biggest cities in the U.S. We have a lot of land, a lot of people, and a big economy. I don't know if this is still true, but the Valley used to be the porn capital of the world. I'm at work in Chatsworth, and a block or so from here was one of the big companies, Anabolic. I used to see a bunch of their videos in the UPS truck that picks up from us. Last I heard, another big one, Vivid, was headquartered in Universal City. OH, and Universal Studios is in the Valley! They call themselves Universal Studios Hollywood, but they're really just over the hill from Hollywood. Speaking of which, I grew up in Hollywood, but that's a whole other story.

I didn't know Paul was doing that! I'll have to check it out. Many of our customers do videos, mostly for their own dojos, but some market to others. I'm glad to hear Century took up the Panther stuff. I remember when all the masters were locked up. I think Panther was in bankruptcy then. I forget who, but one of our customers who had done instruction for them was not happy, because he couldn't get copies for his students. We sell a lot of Champ videos. Champ is in Japan, so they pretty much only do Japanese style content, but it's extraordinary quality. The one weakness they have is their English translations. Sometimes, they take a little effort to understand. They do instructional stuff and tournaments. Our most popular titles are anything featuring George Kotaka (Shito Ryu out of Hawaii), and whatever the most recent WKF World Championships is, and the most recent JKF All Japan Championships. People really get into watching some of the best competitors in the world at kata and kumite. Being from Japan, the DVDs are pretty pricey though, even with the US dollar being as strong as it is today. Most of Champ's stuff is on DVD, but they're starting to do Blu-ray. They sent me one to test in our US players. It works on a PS-4, but I haven't had a chance to try it in a standard player yet. I really should take care of that. Warrener Entertainment has a LOT of titles on a wide variety of topics. Their media quality isn't as good, but the content is great, and the prices are much lower. Tsunami Productions has good quality, but as previously mentioned, they're not producing new stuff.

The question isn't whether or not teaching Japanese terms is necessary, because it's not, but whether it's worth the trouble. To answer that, you have to decide how beneficial it is and how hard it is. What do you gain? In my opinion, it's one of the things that separates most martial arts training from things like boxing and wrestling. You're teaching more than a collection of techniques and strategy. You're introducing students to a new philosophy and culture. Learning Japanese terms helps them connect to the material and to feel more a part of the dojo. It enriches the experience. How hard is it to learn? It's harder for some than others, but that's true about anything, from a reverse punch to a complex kata to whatever. If a student has trouble with something, you work them through it. If that doesn't work, maybe you make allowances, but you don't drop it from the curriculum. And if you do decide not to teach Japanese terms, how far do you take it? Do you not make them learn the name of the style? Do you not teach the names of the kata? Do you not teach your students what a dojo is or a gi or a sensei? I'm fine with a kid in a martial arts studio, wearing a uniform, learning Orange Belt Form #1 of the American Family Self Defense System from Mister Kevin, but I doubt what's being taught would be a very traditional, Japanese style.

Just an observation, not a judgment, but I believe most of the people I know in Demura's organization call him "Sensei", and most of the people in Kubota's organization call him "Soke". As far as "Master" goes, yes, it does sound odd to me, but I figure it's just an English translation of whatever they use in Korean. No one asks me to call them that, but they do refer to each other that way. It doesn't bother me. Some of our customers use their title to identify themselves, but not many. Only one person I can think of identifies himself by his title alone, but he has a distinctive voice and is the only one who calls himself "Kyoshi", so we know who he is. My ex-girlfriend is a college professor, and in her circle, she said no one calls themselves Doctor, because it's kinda meaningless when they all have PhDs. I've met a few brand new PhDs who like to use it for fun at first, but I'd bet the novelty wears off pretty quickly. I feel like I've said this here before. This reminds me of "The Big Bang Theory". "Doctor, doctor, doctor, mister." For those who don't know the TV show, of the four lead guys, three have PhDs and one has a masters degree, and he occasionally gets ribbed about it. I wonder whether hanshis and kyoshis in the shihan kai treat the new shihans like scrubs.

That's great! Good thing I didn't see this earlier. I would've thought a 180, and probably even a 185, would be too small for you. Of course, fit will vary from brand to brand, and even model to model. For those on the USA side of the pond, 180 is usually about a size 5.

Not all Tokaido gi are the same. Are you talking about the original, Japan-made Tokaido heavy weight gi that runs about US$250-$280? Those run small. I'm pretty sure a size 3.5 wouldn't work for you, but the size 4 might be okay. If you're talking about a China-made Tokaido gi that sells for around US$120-$150, they tend to be cut larger, so the 3.5 might be good. Of course, any advice we give is general. Everyone's body is different, and everyone has a different idea of how they want a gi to fit.

John, first off let me apologize for not recommending your store, I completely forgot about it I'm sorry for that. Secondly you are right, I wasn't even thinking about the Chinese Tokaido line. I have heard that their quality is not very good and lifespan can be under 6 months on one of those, have you had any experience with them? Thank you, but we don't ship to the UK, so we wouldn't have been any help to MiddleEarthNet. Actually, we have A LOT of experience with the China made Tokaido gi, as we were probably the first company in the USA, and maybe the world, to carry them. That was close to 20 years ago. The factory that makes the China Tokaido is very good, but as with any product, no matter how well made, some people have had bad experiences. 6 months is pretty short for a high quality gi though. I'm glad to hear about Wastelander's better experience! We sell both China and Japan made Tokaido gi, and complaints about quality are unusual for both. MiddleEarthNet, I'm glad you found something from a local company. It's always best when you can try a gi on and have someone nearby to contact if you have any problems.

Tokaido gi made in Japan are close in price to Shureido gi made in Okinawa, but there are also Tokaido made in China that are lower priced but still good quality. I know for sure that discountmas.com does ship internationally. I'm not sure whether KI does, but I agree that their Mugen line is nice. Both companies have been around for longer than the 22 years we've been in business, so they're reputable.

We should all honor our ancestors and their achievements, but in order to survive as a species, we need to be willing to change and adapt as the world around us changes. Species that can't adapt become extinct. It is harder to teach an old dog new tricks than it is to teach a young dog. The turning of generations can be a good thing. It facilitates our evolution. My generation had a whole new world open up to us through computers. My parents' generation had whole a new world open up to them through television. My grandparents' generation had a whole new world open up to them through moving pictures. My parents might have a shot at getting some use out of an iPad, but I'd be surprised if my 100 year old grandmother could even learn the basics (she's still pretty competent). My grandmother knows how to do plenty of things better than I, but what I know is more useful in the modern world. Diversity is also important for our survival as a species. If we were all the same biologically, a disease that could kill one of us might become an epidemic that could kill us all. Diversity increases the chance that some of us will be able to fight off the illness. Having diverse skill sets also makes us stronger. I'm a planner. I want to get it right the first time. My wife is more impulsive and would rather try something, and if it doesn't work, try something else. Some situations call for one method, while some call for the other. Together, we're a great team! It's normal for people to find comfort and security from having everything stay the same and from being around people who are just like us, but there are definite advantages to change and diversity. It's better that we survive in an altered state than for us to be wiped out and replaced by something completely different. That wasn't too obscure, was it? Martial arts need to change in order to survive. Old senseis need to pass the torch to the new. Old organizations need to split up and try new things to see what works and what doesn't. To stay the same would eventually result in irrelevance and extinction.

Hi MiddleEarthNet! Since your current gi is a Blitzsport, I'm going to assume you're in the UK. Most of my knowledge about specific brands is for the USA, but I have some general answers. If you're here in the USA, let me know, and I'll try to give you more specifics. SHRINKAGE: Almost every 100% cotton gi will shrink at least a little. Using material that is more pre-shrunk typically costs more than using material that is less pre-shrunk. Heavier gi tend to cost more than lighter gi, so it's been my experience that heavier gi tend to shrink less than lighter gi. Of course, there are plenty of heavy gi that use coarse, looser weave material that can shrink quite a bit, too, so I'm talking in very general terms here. Also, there tend to be more synthetic blends in lighter weights which won't shrink very much, so that confuses the issue. HEAVYWEIGHT POLY/COTTON: I'm not familiar with any P/C heavy weight gi. Shureido's New Wave line has heavy P/C, but I've never actually seen one in person. The Shureido KC-10 is rayon/polyester, and I've heard good things about it. I've seen this gi, and it was very nice, but that was 15 or 20 years ago, so my info might be even less reliable than my memory. Again, not sure about UK availability. Of course, you mentioned not wanting something especially expensive, so Shureido is probably out. ELASTIC WAIST: You mentioned wanting an elastic waist. Almost all our gi have elastic waist in children's sizes, because many kids have trouble with drawstring waists, but heavy weight gi tend to bunch up with elastic, so we don't use them for adult sizes. For us, that means elastic only for size 2 (size 150) and smaller. You mention being short, so if you're set on heavy weight elastic, you might fine a decent selection in your part of the world. KUMITE GI: We sell the Tokaido Kumite Master Gi and Tokaido Kumite Master Gi Pro, and we used to sell the Adidas Mastergi and Adidas Grand Mastergi. Most of our customers for these are WKF competitors. The US distributor for Adidas stopped carrying that brand, so we stopped. I hear someone else is distributing now, but it's a different product, and I'm not familiar with it. The Tokaido Kumite Master Gi is poly/cotton and the Tokaido Kumite Master Gi Pro is 100% polyester. The Pro is lighter and thinner and has vents (the non-Pro is unvented), but the Pro costs more. The Pro is very popular anyway, but not everyone likes their gi THAT thin. They're both kinda pricey, but not made-in-Japan pricey. Hope this helps!

What SWAT does is going to be different from studio to studio. If you're not comfortable asking one of your sifu, maybe ask one of the other SWAT members.

I pretty much agree with what Wastelander says, including it sounding like your sensei is burnt out. Maybe he's just not into it anymore. Going to another town to train when you're teaching your own classes and have another job is tough. I'm not surprised your sensei doesn't want to do it. Time shortages aren't just for senseis. I've heard of some shodan who spend much of their time teaching junior students and having little class time devoted to their learning. Is that happening in your case, too? If I were you, I'd talk to your sensei about your training. Be straight with him, but you don't have to tell him everything. Tell him you're planning on going away to school, and you want to learn as much from him as you can before leaving. That might be a nice way to let him know that you don't feel like you're advancing quickly enough. If you're uncomfortable asking about the exam, maybe you shouldn't. Good luck!

If you're teaching traditional, Japanese karate, I think the Japanese terms should be taught. If you're teaching a Westernized version of Japanese karate, I don't think it matters. What stood out to me is that you require knowledge of the Japanese terms, but not in the beginning. Students learn it later. That seems more difficult to me. I would always use Japanese terms in class, and only use English translations to explain to those who don't understand. That way, everyone hears them all the time. Immersion. Beginners wouldn't be expected to know everything, but as each technique is taught, they should learn it. Obviously, not everyone will agree with that, and I'm not saying everyone should, but it's what I think. Maybe I've been around too many Japanese senseis.

Unless I misunderstood, the blended material Tokaido gi mentioned above is a kumite gi. Every kumite gi I can think of is a blend, often poly/cotton, or 100% polyester. The "Ultimate" gi are 100% cotton and about 12 oz. The name isn't being used so much anymore. We're old school, so we still use it. The TSA, or "Yakudo", is what they call the tournament cut version of the "Ultimate". I believe the code for the regular cut white gi is, or was, SAW. I don't know if there's a new name for it.

I agree that bringing it up in private is a good idea. It'll give you a better chance to explain your curiosity and give him a better chance to be open with you about why he's being "elusive". Then again, maybe you'd both be better off leaving it a mystery. Sometimes high ranks are clear and well defined. Other times they're not. Off the top of my head, here are a couple of reasons a sensei might be elusive about rank. I know a sensei who was spontaneously awarded godan by his sensei. If I remember correctly, the godan didn't really care about rank and was short on cash, so he opted not to pay whatever fees were required for promotion. I doubt the promotion was taken back, but he might be elusive about his rank. Some groups have automatic advancements at very high ranks. I don't remember the exact details, but lets say from 5th degree on, formal tests are no longer required, and after 5 years at a rank, you automatically advance, as long as you're still training and teaching. What happens if you break away from such a group? Do your automatic advancements stop? Someone like that might be elusive about rank. Some reasons make sense to others and some don't. If you get your answer, I hope it makes sense to you.

Nice. I knew a guy long ago, lets call him Dave, who wasn't so able to restrain himself. Dave was a dojo owner who had trained at a Karate Kid Cobra Kai type dojo, where it was all about neutralizing your opponent quickly and without mercy. One time, someone came at him with a tire iron or something like that, and Dave took him out. He hit him in the head three times, and the attacker fell. Dave told me he thought the guy was unconscious after the first or second hit, but he had to finish the combination. The side of the guys head swelled up with a knot the size of a softball. Witnesses told Dave it wasn't his fault, but he should take off anyway, just in case, so he did. Dave was really rattled. He hadn't been that afraid for his safety, but the lack of control really shook him. He didn't think. He just reacted. That's what he'd been trained to do. Options never entered his mind. It all happened too fast. Last I heard, Dave had taken up Aikido, hoping that it would give him the skills and the self-control he would need to be able to redirect an attacker should something like that ever happen again. Chrissy, I'm glad to hear that your training provided you with a better option.

As a kid, I took judo from Gene LeBell. The most important thing I learned from him was a skill he used as a stuntman almost every time I saw him on TV, how to fall correctly. I suppose I wasn't exactly inspired by seeing him beat up by Starsky and Hutch, but I was proud. I knew he could take 'em if he wanted to!

Best wishes for a speedy recovery, Bob. Karateka are no strangers to pain, so for you to step down, your symptoms must be extreme indeed. It's great hearing that you expect to return. Ganbatte!!

This guy does great work. http://www.purpledragon.biz/ We've sold a few of his racks, and everyone has been happy with them. He can customize to your needs. It's not cheap and takes awhile, but you get craftsmanship. Of course, if you're a woodworker yourself, you can use his designs for ideas.

This is interesting. I don't think it's like that here in the USA, but I don't really know much about weapons and the law.

A factory in China was making the Adidas Karate Champion gi for the USA market, but they're no longer doing it. I haven't heard whether another factory has taken over. I don't know what was going on in foreign markets. Even though the old Champions aren't being made anymore, I'm sure some of them are still available for purchase. They're a good quality gi, comparable to a China-made Tokaido gi. They're 14 oz vs the 12 oz of the Adidas Elite and have good stitching. You might find a great value if someone is closing them out.

Also, sometimes, the pricing structure is complicated. Some offer discounts if you pay for a year in advance or have multiple family members. Some have different prices for kids vs adults. Some have different prices for the number of classes you're allowed to attend per week. Listing options like this might not be the best use of ad space, although it should be pretty easy to do on a website.