Why The Full GI??

sensei8 · KF Sensei

As long as I can remember, yet, I've not reached a final conclusion as to why practitioners of the MA wear a full gi whenever home to train/workout!?!?

One photo after another...one video after another will depict the MAist in full gi while at home training/working out.

I'm not passing judgement whatsoever because what a person does in the privacy of their home, is their business; I can respect that wholeheartedly...and I do!!

Wearing the gi pants and a t-shirt...but a full blown out gi??

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**Proof is on the floor!!!

singularity6 · Pre-Black Belt

I've often thought about that, too. I don't think it's all that different than exercise clothes these days. To exercise, you really only need clothing that's comfortable and that allows full range of motion. Modern exercise clothes are made of high tech materials and have a particular look. I'd be willing to bet most people don them whenever they work out - at home, or at a gym. Are they necessary? Nope! But there's something to be said for the psychology behind it. Putting on the gi seems to motivate me a bit more.

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5th Geup Jidokwan Tae Kwon Do/Hap Ki Do

(Never officially tested in aikido, iaido or kendo)

Wastelander · KF Sensei

I once read an article on the importance of rituals which had done some studies and found that people actually perform better if they have some sort of ritual associated with a task, and do that ritual before the task. Clothing was included as part of the "rituals" in some cases--putting on a nice suit, for example. I'm of the opinion that putting on a gi is part of many people's ritual for karate. I know that I feel I perform better in a gi. That said, I don't put the gi on for training at home
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Kishimoto-Di | 2014-Present | Sensei: Ulf Karlsson
Shorin-Ryu/Shinkoten Karate | 2010-Present: Yondan, Renshi | Sensei: Richard Poage (RIP), Jeff Allred (RIP)
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MatsuShinshii · Black Belt

I hate to admit it but I have done this since I started. I guess it's a force of habit.

Going to train = put on Gi.

Having said that if I'm cross training with a friend I wear my Gi pants and a t-shirt. I'm a complicated individual I guess.

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The person who succeeds is not the one who holds back, fearing failure, nor the one who never fails-but the one who moves on in spite of failure.
Charles R. Swindoll

MatsuShinshii · Black Belt

I really should start reading others posts before commenting. Wastelander pretty much said it all.
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The person who succeeds is not the one who holds back, fearing failure, nor the one who never fails-but the one who moves on in spite of failure.
Charles R. Swindoll

DWx · Black Belt

I think it depends on the individual as to what they feel comfortable in. I know if you work from home the advice is always to dress up as if you are going into an office, supposed to make you perform better. Same is probably true here.

For me I don't think I have ever trained at home in full dobok (gi). I might wear the pants with a tshirt sometimes to train but only because they are easy to move in.
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"Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it." ~ Confucius

JR 137 · Black Belt

Honestly, the thought never crossed my mind to wear my gi while practicing at home. I used to practice at home a lot when I was in my 20s. No wife, no kids, so I had a lot of free time.

I rarely get to practice at home nowadays. When I do, it’s hitting the bag. I just wear workout clothes. I’ve seen videos of people in full gi, but I never paid much attention to it to be honest. I’ve also not given much thought to the videos where guys are shirtless, yet wearing the gi pants and belt.

The more I think about it, the gi seems too formal for me when I’m alone. And I wouldn’t want to be seen shirtless while working out. There’s nothing good that could possibly come from that

Spartacus Maximus · Black Belt

Some people need to set up rituals to motivate and encourage themselves. It is part of the mental process of creating habits. The rituals are anything done to prepare for doing whatever the main action might be.

Everyone has their own rituals and most would not realize that they do these things unless pointed out to them. Especially if said rituals have been part of their daily life for a long time.

Besides wearing a gi can have a practical reasons. One of which is absorbing some of the sweat that would otherwise end up everywhere else. It also helps one get accustomed to moving in similar clothing. Ideally for practicality’s sake and to save time it is better to train in a variety of clothing one might normally wear.

LLLEARNER · Brown Belt

Part of it might be psychological. I knew several people who work from home. Instead of going to work in their jammies, they showered and dressed for work. Others overdressed if they put on last week's underwear.

For the ones that dressed, it was psychological, and they were more productive.

For martial artists on youtube, it might be for the camera as well. If they are training with an uke at home it would help to have something to grab for a choke or throw.

Or it could be them telling their brain they are in martial arts mode.

I don't. I only have 1 gi, and I don't want to keep washing it multiple times a week or not wash it and leave it to grow funk. I am not being lazy, but efficient.
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"Those who know don't talk. Those who talk don't know." ~ Lao-tzu, Tao Te Ching

"Walk a single path, becoming neither cocky with victory nor broken with defeat, without forgetting caution when all is quiet or becoming frightened when danger threatens." ~ Jigaro Kano

Shizentai · Green Belt

I train in all kinds of outfits when I am alone. I've even been known to do kata in my knee-high snake boots when I'm in the field. When I worked in the butterfly garden, I used to do kanku-sho staff work while mopping the floor. A day at the beach isn't the same without kata in wet sand in a bathing suit. I feel like a gi, as I see it, is for other people. I show that I am part of a particular dojo with my patch, that I have a black belt, etc. What's inside is all that matters to me.
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"My work itself is my best signature."
-Kawai Kanjiro

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