I dyed John's gi green - and it WORKED!

Georgette Oden convinced me to give it a try, and pointed me in the right direction of the Dharma Trading Company. I wasn't sure I'd be able to pull this one off, but I figured I couldn't actually make the gi un-usable, so why not?  John is an extremely forgiving child and is usually happy with whatever happens.  Love that boy!  In case you'd like to do it, here are my directions that I made for his 3 pound gi.  You would need slightly more salt, water and dye for a heavier gi (like a grown-up's). 

1. Hot water in washing machine, dissolve 4 boxes salt in it, then 1 tsp water softener
2. dissolve 1 Tbs urea in 2-3 cups warm water (105 degrees) in a glass jar
3. dissolve dye into urea water
4.  pour dye through filter into tub - repaste whatever gets caught in the filter and add to dye bath
5. Add gi, set washer to agitate, set timer so I remember to reset washer so it doesn't drain the dye.
6. Before 20 minutes are up, start mixing soda ash in hot water - total of 1 oz/gallon of water in tub
7. stir fixer in water AWAY FROM GI, slowly, over about 15 minutes
8. agitate for 60 minutes - don't forget the timer
9.drain and rinse.  Use 3 oz fixative in a hot soak. 
10. rinse with cold water a couple of times, wash, dry, enjoy

Notes on these steps (because I wrote these before I actually did it)

3. This step is called pasting.
4. I poured the dye through a paper towel-lined sieve.  I didn't see anything that got caught, so I didn't do any re-pasting.
6. I don't think the water needs to be hot, because the soda ash mixing with the water heats it all up.  Really hot.  Also, I gave up on trying to measure it and used a very scientific amount - SOME.
7. this means pull/push the gi away from a spot so that you don't actually pour the fixer directly on the gi.  Mix it with the water/dye, then mix it into the gi.
9. This fixative isn't really necessary, but I figured for a few bucks, I'd go the extra mile.
10. I used the industrial strength fabric softener, and it's pretty awesome.

Here are the supplies you need:

First, a gi.  The dye will only work on natural fibers, so make sure it's 100% cotton.  The thread will probably not be cotton, so you'll end up with some contrast stitching.

Salt.  Lots and lots of salt.  And stuff to stir with that isn't metal.  I found disposable plastic spoons to be lovely for mixing stuff up, and the long handled spatula (cheapest thing I could find) worked great for maneuvering the gi in the dye bath.

Industrial strength detergent and fabric softener.  Not strictly required, but again, I figured it wouldn't be worth saving a few extra bucks to ruin the dye job.

Fiber Reactive Dye, Urea, Soda Ash Fixer, Dye Fixative and, if you have extra hard water like I do, water softener.

Looking good!

Protective gear. I think the dust mask is a good idea with all those powders, and I'm just more comfortable if I'm not always worrying about ruining my clothes. Don't wear your contact lenses, either. Safety goggles seem like overkill to me, but I never wore them in chem lab, either, so you should probably wear them.

And a paper towel and something to strain with.  It would have been nicer to have something bigger, but I didn't want to risk ruining my good colanders.

Someone who isn't doing anything important who is willing to open that door for you, grab that spoon, scratch that itch or whatever you can't do with dye gloves on.

I was worried about doing it in my washer - shouldn't have been, everything was fine. I even threw a white rag in with the first wash of the gi and it didn't look even a little green.

Okay, this is kind of a horrible picture.

Really, not much better.  I'll get a better picture, I promise.  Anyway, you can see how the collar and pants turned out lighter.  I assume this is because they are actually a cotton blend - it's ripstop.  I was worried about it while it was in the washer, but it turned out to be a neat effect - the tape on the side slits is the same fabric, so it doesn't just look like the pants faded.  Also, these pants have a crotch insert of gi material, so they have some of the dark green, too.  That doesn't look quite as neat, but it's there.  The white stitching still shows through - it's polyester, I'm sure, and will not take this dye.  John was thrilled that he still had contrast stitching. By the way, this is a Gorilla Gear Chimp gi. We love it - everything we could want in a kid's gi.

Blue, baby, BLUE!

So I went to class last night.  Got through a brutal warm-up (Carlos just got back from training in San Fransisco and is all hyped up, which is awesome unless you're not in the mood for a brutal warm-up - fortunately, I was!) although I did have to skip out on the jumping jacks.  I'd almost forgotten that 3 pregnancies does not make for a jumping jack kind of a woman.  I thought Christy was agreeing with me, because she kept slipping away, slipping back into the warm-up, slipping away... 

We all circled up to see a great arm bar from standing/ being held in spider/de la Riva guard.  Does that even make sense?  You're standing, your partner has a foot on one elbow, grips on both sleeves and a de la Riva hook on the other arm. You walk your fingers around the de la Riva-ing knee, grab that knee with the spidered hand, grab the de la Riva-ing sleeve with your de la Riva-ed hand.  Stay low, knee on their hamstring during this.  Now step back with your leg from the de la Riva side, pulling on their leg and arm so that their torso ends up against your spider-side leg.  Step over their face with your other leg, keep your grips, sit down and break an arm - well, don't really. 

Anyway, we were circled up watching and I had already seen this on Monday, so when I saw someone walking towards the door, I looked.  It was dark out and hard to see.  "Who's that?" I wondered.  Especially when I saw a small gi walking in with them.  I figured it was one of our guys that brings his son a lot.  Then they walked in and it was my husband.  With all three of my children.

 "Oh no, what's wrong? Wait, why are they wearing their gi, too?  What is he thinking?  Doesn't he know it's a school night?  They can't come in like that!  Oh wait, which leg do you step back with?"
Then I saw one of my training partners walk in, with her jiu-jitsu training daughter:
"oh.  Oh.  OH! OMG!!" as the penny dropped.
Christy came out and interrupted class and I don't know what she said because I was busy trying not to cry (she did cry) but at the end of it all I had a blue belt tied around my waist.  Like every account of getting a blue belt I've ever read, I don't feel ready for it, but I adore it. 

I was so touched that all these people wanted to be there when I got my belt - and really impressed with my husband's ability to keep a secret!  Christy's appearing and disappearing was due to a lot of high level negotiating.  Carlos was going to be late and he really wanted to be there (which just warms my heart!), so Joe was going to bring the kids in at 7:30, but then Carlos wasn't late, and Meredith was already in the parking lot and so on.  Fortunately, not all of my well-wishers were actually gi-ed up because we have this tradition of running the gauntlet when you get promoted - meaning you roll with everyone at the gym, even when they weigh twice what you weigh and/or are several belts above you.  That meant twelve people for me, two minutes each.  Doesn't sound like much, when I put it that way, but it sure seemed like a lot!  Whew. 
Okay, back to training! 

Good stuff from mount

I'm having a problem with my mount.  I get there just fine, and then I think, "Oh dear, now what?"  and I get so caught up with trying not to lose the position that I - of course - lose the position because I'm not doing ANYTHING.  With hopes that my training partners aren't paying too much attention before I get some of this going...  I'm going to try this stuff:

I'll let you know how it goes... :)

For anyone thinking of joining me...

I have written this e-mail a couple of times now, and I think I'd like to put it up here in case I need to write it again!  For any of my friends who want to know what I think about my gym and BJJ, here are my random thoughts on it:

I'm not sure what you want to know, so I'm just going to ramble for a bit, then you can ask me questions!
I love my gym! I started out doing the Tone N Tighten (TNT) classes. TNT is a workout based on jiu-jitsu moves, so it's a great way to prepare your body for jiu-jitsu classes. John and Joe started doing jiu-jitsu before I started, and then a few months later Peter and I joined in, because it looked like fun. :)

One of the biggest things that made us start at Fighting Chance Fitness is how clean it is - they disinfect the mat every time people roll on it, they keep the equipment clean, they keep the shop clean. They don't let people walk on the mat with their shoes on. It doesn't smell like a sweaty gym in there!

The sport itself is a blast. I absolutely cannot explain the draw of BJJ, but it is addictive. I'll try - it's like a chess game in that you are always trying to be as many steps ahead of your partner as you can - if I do this, he'll do this, then I'll do this and I'll win. You have to learn to think and adapt while you are moving. Training your body to move in different ways is a mental exercise. The physical exercise that you get is not what keeps you going out on the mat, but it is a phenomenal workout. I am 15 pounds lighter than I was when I started jiu-jitsu, and I started before I got pregnant with Rosemary. I LOVE that I never think about how hard I am working, but I am exhausted and dripping with sweat at the end of every class.

The people at my gym, specifically, as well as most people who train jiu-jitsu, are magnificent. Everyone started out as a white belt, getting their butts handed to them over and over and over, so nobody looks down on anyone. The fact that you show up and try is enough to earn their respect. Kevin and Christy, the owners, are two of the kindest, most patient and supportive people I have ever met. And this goes for the way they treat my kids, too! It's a family place - Rosemary goes to most of my classes with me, and sometimes she hangs out in the pack and play, sometimes she wanders around and sometimes we take turns holding her.

There are women's classes Mondays and Wednesdays at 11. TNT is Saturday and Monday at 10. Adult classes are Tues/Thurs at 7:00, Wednesdays at 7:30 and no-gi on Mondays at 7:30.  Open mat is on Friday nights and Saturdays after TNT- this is a time where you can come and do whatever, and this is one of the times when it's most important to me that it's a family-friendly gym. The kids usually bring their gi and roll for a little bit, then they want to go have play time while we roll or drill. They offer 2 free classes to check it out. Let me know if you are going to give it a try - I'll see if I can be there with you!

Really, Hayabusa?

 I've had 2 gi, both Fenom, for about 6 months now, and these gi are holding up just fine.  My ripstop pants have a few wear points on them that look like they are going to be threadbare any day now, but won't impact my ability to wear them.  I paid $65 for that gi, $85 for the other.  I wear them (and wash them) at LEAST twice a week, usually three.  This seems reasonable to me.

If I were to buy a really expensive gi, I would expect it to hold up really well. I would expect the company to back up their products in exchange for my copious amounts of money.  My instructor shelled out the big bucks for his "tuxedo gi" - a Hayabusa.  Four months later, during a very average roll, the pants ripped next to the seam.  This was a failure of the fabric, not the stitching.  We all thought "Wow, that's ridiculous!  Call them, they'll be so embarassed that they'll totally send you a new pair of pants." 

Not so. 

Hayabusa said that it had been four months, and it was fight gear.  What did he expect?

I expect an expensive gi like that to hold up longer than my cheap Fenom gi, especially when it's one of many gi in his rotation as opposed to my 2 that I rotate. I expect the expensive gi to last as long as my husband's lightweight Gorilla gi, which is the only gi he's worn in almost a year. I expect fight gear to be made to be tough and handle anything we can do on the mat.  I expect a company to back up their products.  This offended me so much that I'm posting it on my blog - and it's not even my gi!

Buyer beware, Hayabusa expects their gear to rip within 4 months. 

Breathing and underarms

I had the weirdest experience today - well, weird to me, anyway.  I guess it happens to most people sometime, but it's my first time, so it was weird.  I was all tied up with my training partner and I realized I couldn't breathe.  I had a very clear thought process, so I don't think I was panicking.  It went something like this:
Unhappy me: "Ugh, I can't breathe."
Rational me: "Well, get some space!"
Unhappy me:  "I'm already on my side.  I'm stuck between her chest and legs, but she's not really squashing me."
Rational me:  "Airway?"
Unhappy me:  "Nothing blocking it!  Tons of air, right there in front of my nose and mouth!"
Rational me:  "Well, get out of there and get somewhere you can breathe!"
Unhappy me:  "But I can't breathe!  How am I supposed to do this without oxygen?"
Non-split-personality-me: "TAP"

I don't really know what that was all about.  I was sick all week last week, and there has been a lot of smoke the last few days from local fires, so maybe my lungs just weren't up to capacity?  I felt like I was on the edge of catching my breath after doing dishes tonight - it wasn't that hard of a job.  It was disappointing, I know that much. 

Anyway, on to more ridiculous things.  Like armpits.  Have a gander at my new deodorant.

How beautiful is my armpit supposed to be?  And, if I take a shower 3 times in one day (once in the morning, once after my class, once after teaching the kids class) and use this deodorant every time, can I go sleeveless in 2 days?  And are they implying that I shouldn't have been going sleeveless all this time because my underarms were in some way moisture deficient?  Please, people, I live in Florida.  No one is afraid of drying out their oxter here!  I'm on day 3 of using this deodorant (because I got it cheap on sale with a coupon, not because I have armpit insecurities).  So far, it still looks like an armpit. 

The greater issue, though, is where are we going to draw the line at what needs to be dressed up?  My great-aunt thought deodorant and shaving were absolutely ridiculous - she remembered when the razor companies started encouraging women to shave their pits.  "Oh, they were just looking for a way to increase sales!"  Now they've sold men on shaving their chests.  Sorry, Burt Reynolds, your heyday has come and gone.  What's next?  I'm waiting for the pill that will outdate my favorite expression of conceitedness - "She thinks her s*** don't stink!"  Or are we just ignoring the elephant in the room?  Because, really, there are lots of people whose arms are more of a stopping point to "sleeveless" than their wrinkly armpits.

Moving on...  I got some tweaks on my scissor sweep today.  I think I got confused learning a reverse scissor sweep a few weeks ago and got to the point where I couldn't do either.  So, scissor sweep - grab same side sleeve with my left hand, cross grip deep in the collar with my right.  Right knee goes on their chest or belt, hooking my right foot on their left side.  I get to my left side, push on their right knee with my left foot (because I'm short and little, I have to modify a bit), while pulling their right hand out and to my left side with my left hand, while pushing with my right leg.  I was missing the part where I extend their arm out and I was missing the toe hook.  I'm glad I got that straightened out - I like scissor sweeps, and it's irritating when they don't work!

Actually, I did not fall off the planet

I know, all 3 of my readers have been anxiously waiting to find out if I was still with the living or just busy living.  Just busy!  I spent the entire summer doing as much BJJ as I could - Monday morning, Tuesday night, Wednesday morning, sometimes Wednesday night, Thursday night, Friday night, Saturday morning.  I know you're thinking I was a slacker for not going on Sunday, but our gym isn't open on Sundays.  I got my third stripe, and considered blogging about it, but then one of my kids screamed or whined or something and that was that.  The kids are back in school.  I've gotten back into a routine which regrettably involves a lot less mat time, but more time available for blogging.  My loss is your gain?  Or is that just a switch for me? 

I think I've done myself a disservice by not blogging.  We were playing around at open mat last week, and I was able to pull out some moves that everyone there had learned, but I was the only one that could remember them AND do them. 

Me, Master Traven and Joe

Master Traven and Kevin

I don't think I can say that those were just moves that were good for my body type.  For one thing, I learned some of them from Master Roberto Traven, and some from Kevin Synan, who are quite clearly not my body type.  For another, I was discussing these moves with women who are my body type.  I don't think it was just that I was having a good day and they weren't.  I think it's that I took notes.  I would not have taken notes if I hadn't wanted to write about it. 

Looking for ways to help my kids study better, I stumbled across this little gem:  Don't do your homework in one place all the time, and definitely do homework.  Studies show that learning is best accomplished when the material is reviewed in different settings - in my case, learning at the gym, writing the notes in my car, reviewing at the dining room table, looking it up on youtube in the living room, and putting it into blog form sitting up in bed.  The different surroundings activate different parts of the brain, and let you "see" the material from different parts of the brain.  Only learning a move at the gym is kind of like trying on an outfit and only looking at yourself in the dressing room mirrors with the flourescent lights.  It's just DIFFERENT at home in your bathroom mirror, and DIFFERENT when you catch a glimpse of yourself in that window reflection while you're actually wearing the outfit in public.  You catch other details, consider it from other perspectives, and know it better.

So, all that to say, I really ought to blog more. 

And did you want to know which moves I was talking about?  The spinning/swivel sweep I talked about here (forever known in our gym as "that cool spinny thing") and a trick for the first ten seconds when starting from knees.  

I'm going to go take some notes!