The Uniform Dilemma

I have actually spent the last two hours looking at karate uniforms online. I told Jecca that I'd buy us new competition uniforms for our birthdays. I try to buy us new uniforms once a year with the plan that the new uniforms will be used for competition only.

So, once again I pour over pictures of plain, white gi, wondering which will be best. Do I go with a heavy weight or ultra-heavy weight? Gi with a heavier weight have a nice snap and look better in kata competition. But they are HOT and fat karate-ka are already heavily insultated. I'm also not sure I want to wear something that heavy during kumite.

Teri has two uniforms she uses for competition, a heavy weight uniform for katas and a lighter one for sparring. It looks like a good system, but I'm awfully high strung during competition and I'm not sure if I'd feel comfortable about having enough time between events to change.

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There is also the question of women's gi vs. men's (unisex) gi. A woman's gi is cut fuller in the chest and butt but is more expensive and I can't seem to find in 12 or 14 ounce gi. Men's clothes typically are cut fuller through the thigh, which I like, but the tops make me look lumpy.

Jecca is a physically fit 13-year-old girl who prefers to wear boys clothes all the time. So, she's an easy buy. She isn't growing as fast, so I can buy her the same size or a size larger than her current uniform and she'll be good to go for at least the next year.


Which leads me to my final concern...expense. I always feel bad buying a really good gi because I'm always on a diet and working on losing weight. All the gis I've purchased have been tide-me-overs...waiting for that magical day when I get to my goal weight and I guy all the clothes I ever wanted.

Stacy's First Knee Brace

I recently purchased my first knee brace from The Sports Authority. OK, technically it was my second knee brace. My first one was a purchase from Walgreen's a couple days earlier and, although it was the largest they had in stock, it was too small for me. I learned where to find one in my size after talking about it with another plus-size student.

Here's the thing about being overweight, it's a bitch on the joints. When you're seriously overwieght, you're just carting around more poundage than your body was designed to handle. The result is creaking knees and sore ankles.

It's one of those cyclical things that contributes to obesity: your joints jurt because you're overweight; you can't get adequate exercise because your joints hurt.

I also find it interesting that we athletes who are more zaftig have to go to a sports store to buy equipment like knee braces. I can't speak for all fat people, but I hate going to sports stores. I can feel people staring at me and can hear them thinking "what is she doing here? who is she trying to fool?"

At least my injury was a genuine sports injury. I think walking into the Sports Authority would have been a lot harder if I hurt myself shoveling the sidewalk or something.