The Red Corner || 05.09.2022 ||

Every year as the weather starts to warm up I give my annual “hygiene chat,” which is basically just a quick guide for you — yes, you — to follow so that we can all get down and dirty on the mats without getting, well, actually dirty 🙂

Before we get to that, big congrats to Brittany Walker and Andrea Rockefeller for taking 1st and 2nd respectively this past weekend at the AGL tournament!  Brittany armbarred her way to gold and Andrea racked up some impressive wins as well.

We’re also in the process of booking some additional fights for our competition team.  June is going to be an incredibly busy month with Trevon Scales returning to the ring on the 18th in Delaware at Gut Check Championships, and Paul Sims and Gianna competing in two additional events TBA soon once we wrap up the arrangements.

Also, don’t forget that Wednesday, 5/18, is our Striking 101 Review Test!  We have a sign up sheet at the front desk — please make sure to register for the test (no fee) so we can staff and plan accordingly.

The Review Test will be held at 6pm on 5/18 in the Garden Room, with M4A moving to Vernon Park for the day (weather permitting).  We’ll make sure to make a ton of reminders over the next week!

Ok, with that all out of the way, here is the annual Hygiene Checklist Chat.  Stinky people usually don’t even know when they’re stinky, so if you have an inklin’ that you’re stinkin’ it may be time to ramp up your pre and post training cleaning.

• No shoes on the mats, no bare feet off the mats.  This is one of the easiest and most important ways we can prevent skin issues like ringworm, staph, and so on.  Flip Flops should be an essential item in your gear bag for this reason.
• Make sure to dry your striking gear out after each use.  We sell cedar glove inserts that help with this (and you can also order them online), but the worst thing you can do is stuff wet gear back into a carrier and leave it in a closet or trunk somewhere.
• Gis must be clean (i.e., washed between uses).
• Showering before training is encouraged (I personally shower before and after).  Also, a little deodorant goes a long way.
• Don’t shave 4-5 hours prior to training.  This actually increases your risk of skin infection by a huge margin.
• Keep nails trimmed and filed (short nails can still be sharp).
• Don’t wear white after Labor Day (huge faux pas).

All common sense stuff, but with the warmer weather it can get funky in there if we don’t all collectively step up our game.

I’ll see ya (and hopefully not smell ya) on the mats!

This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is BLUE — students can earn a blue stripe on their belt by successfully teaching their parent to both tie their belt, and also tying it correctly themselves.  We will have time available before class each day for additional practice!