How and how many times do you have to wash your BJJ Gi (Kimono)

How and how many times do you have to wash your BJJ Gi (Kimono).

Now in addition to washing yourself,because it is not enough that you wash your kimono, it is necessary that you keep your Gi clean to avoid getting kicked out by your training partners and to avoid filling you with bacteria that can cause infections.

Those who run the gym must always try to keep the mat sanitized and clean but also you regarding your personal hygiene (cleaning, nails,etc.) and your equipment (BJJ Gi and Belt,etc.) you have to be careful for yourself and out of respect for your training buddies.

Now cleaning a Gi is not something complicated and if you ask advice to some housewife, aunt, friend I’m sure she can give you great advice but I want to give you some useful recommendations too since some friends have asked me.

The first thing like cleaning is yours, then the Gi and the necessary mat because it shows the respect you have towards everyone including yourself and it is much better to struggle with someone wearing a clean kimono than with someone wearing a smelly Gi.

Now consider that depending on how much you work out the situation changes, you know if you work out 3 times a week, 5 times a week or who does it twice a day, so every situation is different.

If you have a washing machine at home as I imagine it is much easier to wash your Gi, however consider that in some South American countries not everyone has a washing machine in the house and sometimes this operation is more complicated.

The ideal but expensive condition even if over the years is something very feasible (make a piggy bank put two euros a week and at the end of the year without you noticing you have the money to buy you a beautiful Gi) is to have several kimonos to wear clean every time you work out, but this I understand that for someone it is expensive and is not always possible.

Ideally, you have to wash the kimono after each hard training session, so when you leave the kimono wet with sweat and if you always do a workout with seriousness all the lessons happen.

Consider that every time you train you come into contact with the germs that are on the carpet,brought by your training buddies, by yourself, etc., for example a crappy thing there are those who go to the bathroom barefoot and go back to the mats.

If you do this in the gym you really suck!!

You’re not at home.

As a guideline we can say that you have to wash it every time you use it because it is better to be clean now you understand it but if you can not wash it after each lesson you can use it again but in this case you have to hang it immediately outdoors, preferably in the sun or, if you can use a hairdryer because with heat you kill many germs.

These just if you can’t wash it or if you have an emergency 🚨 it doesn’t have to be a habit.

If you use your Gi more than twice without knowingly washing it you fall into the category of stink and it’s unhygienic, try making it smell to your girlfriend let’s see what it tells you, maybe your training partner doesn’t dare, but he really thinks you suck.

My advice is to have at least two to rotate, personally I have 4 that I rotate and usually I train several times a week (in the years I accumulate Gi and my advice seen the high abandonment in the gyms is to look in the used or ask training partners who have started and who for various reasons have abandoned).

On weekends try to wash your Gi together or twice to have your Gi clean during the week to train without stinking and respecting your training partners.

RECOMMENDATIONS ON HOW TO DO THE WASHING

The gi is made of cotton so you have to treat it like all cotton garments.

Wash colored kimonos separated from white garments or other white Gi (if you wash them together you risk having the white kimono stained and the colored faded ones of the color).

Some use apple cider vinegar for colored Gi, I personally used it in Cuba because I didn’t have the products that are here in supermarkets for colorful garments but I don’t use it here in Italy.

Use it instead if it’s the first time you’ve been languidly in the kimono, this is when it’s a coloured gi.

If you forget or leave the kimono for 3 days in the sweaty bag after using it you will ruin it, as color, as bacteria, as smell, you rot it.

The most correct way is to always wash it with cold water, use a detergent (liquid) and a little softener after which put it to dry outside outdoors.

Be careful if you use a dryer it is likely that the kimono shrinks the first two or 3 times that you lay it and after these 3 times, no more.

If you do not want it to shrink you need to dry it at room temperature.

You can use this trick if your Gi is slightly large.

Do not use chlorine because it creates damage to the fabric, 99 of the kimonos are made of 100 cotton and chlorine damages the fabric.

It is necessary to make the effort and not only for others but also for you, to take care of your skin, because that is where infections on the tatami start that can be serious if neglected, for this I recommended six specially designed soaps.

Ps. Putting deodorant or perfume on your Gi or on you doesn’t mean you don’t stink or it’s like washing!