Should I Wear Anything Under My Judo Gi?
Yeah, I know, not wearing anything under your judo gi without a doubt looks more manly, but is that really the way to go?
Depends on your club
Some judo gyms simply do not allow men to wear anything under their gis.
In regard to women, the choice may be very limited. You may only be allowed to wear a t-shirt of one color, usually white.
And there is a good reason for all of this – this is the same protocol you have to follow during a competition.
Having said all that, many judo dojos do allow you to wear any sort of shirt you want under your gi, whether you are a man or woman.
And if that is the case in your club, keep on reading.
Start with a t-shirt
For guys, if you’ve never worn anything under your gi before, I would suggest starting with a simple t-shirt.
You may end up not liking it at all.
Me personally, I’ve always worn one. Otherwise I would just get all kinds of irritations and abrasions, either on my chest or armpit area.
And also, I feel too naked and exposed without one. That’s just me.
But I’ve read up on more than one person saying that a shirt makes them either too hot or uncomfortable. I mean, if you train in already hot place, a shirt won’t certainly do any good, but I’ve never found that to be a problem, even during summer.
I also like that a t-shirt soaks up more of the sweat, not letting too much of it get into the gi, as that helps reduce the yellowing.
Try a compression shirt
Compression-type shirts, whether its rash guards or just literally compression shirts, will work better.
They fit closer to the skin, are more snug, and in general, last longer as they are made for sports related activities, just like judo.
The thing about any regular t-shirt is that once it gets saturated with sweat, it’ll become very droopy. Because of this, the player you’re sparring with can end up catching his fingers on it. Not good.
You can get rash guards either in long or short sleeves, but unless you get much elbow irritation, I’d stick with the short kind.