Just got my Shureido Gi in the mail!!

[chiliphil1]

I know it's been a while but I finally am at a point in recovery from my injury where I was able to get back into a class! I have now worn this dogi twice and I am so very impressed with it.

I used to wear century which is a fine quality gi but the material is rough and rubs on you, it feels heavy and doesn't seem to want to breath to well. Not the case with this one at all! The material feels smooth, so it doesn't rub you, it breathes very well and wicks away the moisture almost as quickly as you can sweat it out! Yet it never feels heavy because of it. I also notice that the kimono part of the dogi tends to stay tucked in my obi better as well, not sure why but I didn't find myself having to pull it down all the time.

If I had one complaint it would be that the pants do not stay up! The drawstring waist seems to loosen with every movement and I pull my pants up quite often, I found myself trying to tuck it under the obi so that they wouldn't fall!

I think I may let some of the hem out so that i can wear them higher and keep the obi over the pants, other than that it's phenomenal, again worth the price without question.

[sensei8]

I know it's been a while but I finally am at a point in recovery from my injury where I was able to get back into a class! I have now worn this dogi twice and I am so very impressed with it.

I used to wear century which is a fine quality gi but the material is rough and rubs on you, it feels heavy and doesn't seem to want to breath to well. Not the case with this one at all! The material feels smooth, so it doesn't rub you, it breathes very well and wicks away the moisture almost as quickly as you can sweat it out! Yet it never feels heavy because of it. I also notice that the kimono part of the dogi tends to stay tucked in my obi better as well, not sure why but I didn't find myself having to pull it down all the time.

If I had one complaint it would be that the pants do not stay up! The drawstring waist seems to loosen with every movement and I pull my pants up quite often, I found myself trying to tuck it under the obi so that they wouldn't fall!

I think I may let some of the hem out so that i can wear them higher and keep the obi over the pants, other than that it's phenomenal, again worth the price without question.

Glad to hear that you're doing much better and that you're able to return to the floor!!

[chiliphil1]

I know it's been a while but I finally am at a point in recovery from my injury where I was able to get back into a class! I have now worn this dogi twice and I am so very impressed with it.

I used to wear century which is a fine quality gi but the material is rough and rubs on you, it feels heavy and doesn't seem to want to breath to well. Not the case with this one at all! The material feels smooth, so it doesn't rub you, it breathes very well and wicks away the moisture almost as quickly as you can sweat it out! Yet it never feels heavy because of it. I also notice that the kimono part of the dogi tends to stay tucked in my obi better as well, not sure why but I didn't find myself having to pull it down all the time.

If I had one complaint it would be that the pants do not stay up! The drawstring waist seems to loosen with every movement and I pull my pants up quite often, I found myself trying to tuck it under the obi so that they wouldn't fall!

I think I may let some of the hem out so that i can wear them higher and keep the obi over the pants, other than that it's phenomenal, again worth the price without question.

Glad to hear that you're doing much better and that you're able to return to the floor!!

Thank you sensei! I can honestly say that the floor has never felt more sacred to me than it does now. I have for years now dreamt of getting back into a dojo, especially with my kids but there was always something, work schedule, money, something that kept me from being able to do it but finally it has happened! I just hope that it all holds together when I have to go back to work after the injury is fully healed.

As far as my posting about the dogi, I don't mean to come across as materialistic or elitist, just wanting to offer some info for people who are wondering as I could not fund much when I was looking to purchase it.

[Patrick]

Congrats chiliphil1!

[JR 137]

Glad to hear you're back in the dojo. Taking time away against your own will really puts a different perspective on it. I'm far more appreciative of it, and I genuinely enjoy the process and progressing now more than ever. I chased rank my first time around.

As far as the gi, you're not some elitist because you think it's easily worth the money. A famous author once said "What is a cynic? A person who knows the cost of everything, yet the value of nothing." Very true. Shureido makes an excellent gi, and I haven't met anyone who thinks its not worth it after having worn one for some time. The ones who think it's a rip off are the ones who've either never worn one, or those who think it should last for decades while doing unrealistic stuff in it. Look at videos of Okinawan masters; they're all wearing Shureido! Those guys don't strike me as materialistic, elitist snobs, or anything like that. They've got a quality gi and see the value in it.

About the kids...

I'd love to get my daughters into the dojo. I bring them in, and they're interested, but they're too young. My oldest will be 5 soon, and my other will be 3 in March. My dojo starts at 6 years old. I can take the kids' class with them, but I'd prefer the family style classes that I see other dojos doing - parents are lined up next to their kids, not everyone lined up by rank. I wouldn't do this every class, but 1 a week would be great.

I bought focus mitts for my daughters last Christmas. My oldest takes TKD in an after school program at her school. The instruction leaves a bit to be desired, but she enjoys it. The focus mitts helped her punch and kick the correct way pretty quickly. She's gotten very fast and strong with them, and is now throwing combinations and ducking. Without them, she'd probably still be punching off-center and with her palms instead of her knuckles. She still needs work with keeping her guard up, but don't we all? And she's not even 5 yet. My 2 year old is starting to get the hang of it too.

I found a blocking bat at a toy store for about $5. Haven't used it enough for my 5 year old to really understand the concept, but I will soon.

You can find this stuff pretty cheap online at places like Amazon. My kids love it, it's a great way to burn off some energy, and it's a way to bond. My wife who secretly doesn't care much for MA really likes watching them have fun and improve. To her it's gone from glorified babysitting to something she really wants them to do well in. Win-win all the way around.

Sorry for the sidetrack. Just sharing my experience with the little loves of my life. The $20 or so I spent on the focus mitts is some of the best money I've spent.

[chiliphil1]

Glad to hear you're back in the dojo. Taking time away against your own will really puts a different perspective on it. I'm far more appreciative of it, and I genuinely enjoy the process and progressing now more than ever. I chased rank my first time around.

As far as the gi, you're not some elitist because you think it's easily worth the money. A famous author once said "What is a cynic? A person who knows the cost of everything, yet the value of nothing." Very true. Shureido makes an excellent gi, and I haven't met anyone who thinks its not worth it after having worn one for some time. The ones who think it's a rip off are the ones who've either never worn one, or those who think it should last for decades while doing unrealistic stuff in it. Look at videos of Okinawan masters; they're all wearing Shureido! Those guys don't strike me as materialistic, elitist snobs, or anything like that. They've got a quality gi and see the value in it.

About the kids...

I'd love to get my daughters into the dojo. I bring them in, and they're interested, but they're too young. My oldest will be 5 soon, and my other will be 3 in March. My dojo starts at 6 years old. I can take the kids' class with them, but I'd prefer the family style classes that I see other dojos doing - parents are lined up next to their kids, not everyone lined up by rank. I wouldn't do this every class, but 1 a week would be great.

I bought focus mitts for my daughters last Christmas. My oldest takes TKD in an after school program at her school. The instruction leaves a bit to be desired, but she enjoys it. The focus mitts helped her punch and kick the correct way pretty quickly. She's gotten very fast and strong with them, and is now throwing combinations and ducking. Without them, she'd probably still be punching off-center and with her palms instead of her knuckles. She still needs work with keeping her guard up, but don't we all? And she's not even 5 yet. My 2 year old is starting to get the hang of it too.

I found a blocking bat at a toy store for about $5. Haven't used it enough for my 5 year old to really understand the concept, but I will soon.

You can find this stuff pretty cheap online at places like Amazon. My kids love it, it's a great way to burn off some energy, and it's a way to bond. My wife who secretly doesn't care much for MA really likes watching them have fun and improve. To her it's gone from glorified babysitting to something she really wants them to do well in. Win-win all the way around.

Sorry for the sidetrack. Just sharing my experience with the little loves of my life. The $20 or so I spent on the focus mitts is some of the best money I've spent.

Absolutely my friend, my kids have looked from afar for a long time now, they have wanted to participate as much if not more than I have! This dojo doesn't start until 5 but luckily since I brought so many people he is allowing my 4 year old to train. She's doing good, very receptive to learning but bored easily. I work with them at home as well, this weekend we drilled kata and basic technique and they did well. I also just purchased some supplies for the house I went on amazon as you did and bought 2 hand targets and 1 kicking target as well as a wave master bag and a makiwara for myself. I find that it is sometimes hard to train at the house, so I figure having some equipment to use will only help.

[JR 137]

My almost 5 year old has the focus and determination, but developmentally she's too young for the class. We have kids' and adults classes. Kids are 6-12, adults are 13+. In the kids' class, she'd hold everyone else back and wouldn't be able to keep up IMO. If it was say, 6-8 year olds, she'd be fine. There's 1 seven year old, and the rest are around 10 or so. It's a small dojo. There's a huge difference between a kid just starting kindergarten and a 1st grader, developmentally speaking.