Please chip in to help a self-defense program for teens in Florida!

My name is Joshua Franzke and I am currently a high school teacher in Cape Coral, FL.

In 2009, I started a Brazilian jiu jitsu club at Ida S. Baker High School after several students showed an interest in martial arts.  After a few years of running the club, I found out my school district actually offers a Self Defense class as an elective in our Physical Education department.  I decided to take a shot at certification and passed my exam a few weeks ago.  The class is going to have an emphasis in grappling self defense, but will introduce students to basic striking and striking defense.  The course will also have a focus on physical fitness, nutrition and verbal self defense.  My goal is to give students access to a class that builds self esteem, knowledge of nutrition and hopefully helps to develop a passion for the martial arts.

As a new program, we have no funding and will not receive anything from the other PE programs. I am looking to raise a few dollars to get this program off the ground.  We will need basic equipment like boxing gloves, mitts, Muay Thai pads, etc.  Though the focus of this class is primarily on the grappling aspects of self defense, I do want the students to understand how to throw basic strikes as well as how to protect against strikes.   For this reason, we need the striking equipment to keep our students safe while learning the basics.  If you would to donate you can do so at this link:

http://www.gofundme.com/pgqoo0

Here are several photos from 2010 or 2011 when I ran the jiu jitsu club after school.  Though many students were inconsistent in their participation, this was the best year for students on the mats.  I consistently had 15 kids stay after school two days a week to train the entire year (well, except November-Feb which is wrestling season).  The wrestling coach has been kind enough to allow us to use the mats next year for the Self Defense class.

Here is a quick note about my jiu jitsu history:

I started training martial arts because I was bullied in high school and had no means of defending myself.  I walked into a martial arts academy in Appleton, Wisconsin in 1996.  I trained Brazilian jiu jitsu for two years and earned my blue belt at the age of 18 from Jacare Calvalcanti.  I then quit jiu jitsu for 10 years as I pursued my college degree.  After six years of school, I moved to Cape Coral, FL to establish myself and begin my journey into teaching.  I started training with Sean Wilson in 2008. Phil Cardella took over Sean's academy in Cape Coral and I earned my purple under Phil.  When Phil closed that academy, I began training under a three-time world champ, Marcelo Pereira, just 30 minutes from my house.  I am currently a two-stripe purple belt under him.

 

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Joshua Franzke

Rockin' Green athletic laundry detergent: a review.

I tried out a new laundry soap recently and want to tell you about it...

It's called Rockin' Green and it was created by this lady Kim.  She has 3 kids, so she knows about being on a budget, but she also wanted an environmentally friendly product that actually killed stains and dirt.

Rockin' Green is:

    Biodegradable and made from recycled materials
    Uses recyclable packaging
    Phosphate-Free
    Uses no animal products or gluten
    SLS- and Parabens-Free
    Free of optical brighteners and bleach

Rockin’ Green was created for the most sensitive skin (great for babies!) and is made from distillations of natural essential oils.

I received 5 packets of laundry detergent powder, each enough for two loads, and used them all up in a week, no surprise considering the amount of laundry I do.



The soap has barely any fragrance, a light fresh herbal sniff and that's it.  It's a plain white powder and it appeared to dissolve well in the washer.   I didn't do it the smart way (dissolve in the water first, then add clothes) but instead put the gis in, turned on the water, and poured the powder on top.  Seemed fine, even with black gis-- no clumping or residue.

The knees of my white gis did seem less dingy, and old rashguards washed in this soap didn't "revert" to a funk smell once they got wet again (as so often happens at the start of a class, where you KNOW you haven't gotten stinky yet.) There was no difficulty removing a few little spots of blood here and there. I usually use the laundry softener that leave my clothes scented "April Fresh" or whatever-- but this is a great soap to use before that stage of the wash.  They do have some scented ones though-- watermelon and lavender-mint-- which I think I'll try out.

The company also makes lots of other green products-- dishwasher soap, a coming-soon surface cleaner, several types of laundry detergent including one for hard water, ones designed for funky athletic gear, odor neutralizer sprays (on clearance!) and even pet bed soap and stinky pet cleaner.  The website offers free shipping for orders over $100.  A 3.2lb bag is just under $18, and ONE BAG can do up to 90 loads? HE machine users need only 1 TBS of soap per load...that comes out to only about 19¢ per load!

They also have a rewards program, so the more you buy, the more discounts you get on future purchases.  I recommend them highly :)

So excited about my Aesthetic Zero gi...

Disclaimer-- this is not a traditional review, I couldn't wait to wash and wear this sucker, so I didn't take shrinkage measurements, sorry!

Most of the time I don't buy gis unless they're vintage/used on ebay or facebook.  It just gets too expensive, and I already have twenty-something.  It's hard to justify.  I'm delighted to review gis (and then I usually give them to charity or a poor kid starting out.) But buying brand new gis for myself is a tough sell.

Last gi(s) I bought brand new were two gorgeous DFKC gis (Da Firma Kimono Co) and I sold them almost immediately on ebay.  Why?  Because they were super low-rise pants (on my too-full derriere) and the crotch gusset was made of the same thick weave as the jacket, which bunched up between my thighs and made me feel like I was wearing a diaper.  A full diaper.  Not good.

So I rather shame-facedly ordered this Aesthetic "Whiteout" lightweight gi while watching the Pan livestream.  I think it came up because I asked what gi someone was wearing, and my teammate Alex Glavin pointed me towards Aesthetic... I liked something really special about it.  The embroidery of the name is reversible!

Look-- here on the leg.  It says Aesthetic one way, and Jiujitsu the other!  You'll see it more clearly on some of the other photos.

• 350 GSM Premium Pearl jacket
• Ripstop pants
• Sublimated interior trim
• Double-layered cuff taping
• IBJJF approved
• Includes carry bag

The "White Out" is a lightweight Jiu Jitsu Gi that doesn't sacrifice quality or durability, featuring their 350 GSM Premium Pearl weave and super comfy ripstop pants. A great Gi choice for competition or for daily training, teaching, etc. Throughout the top and bottom, all logos are embroidered in white, on white, for a unique and clean look.
The new and improved pants are, simply put, outstanding. Cut and stitched to maximize your movement and comfort while keeping excess fabric to a minimum. Shrinkage is also reduced when compared to previous Aesthetic designs. Other specs include full-length knee reinforcements, multiple drawstring loops, and a round stretch drawstring.
- See more at: http://www.martialartssupplies.com/aesthetic-whiteout-gi.html#sthash.XSbKB1eR.dpuf

• 350 GSM Premium Pearl jacket
• Ripstop pants
• Sublimated interior trim
• Double-layered cuff taping
• IBJJF approved
• Includes carry bag

The "White Out" is a lightweight Jiu Jitsu Gi that doesn't sacrifice quality or durability, featuring their 350 GSM Premium Pearl weave and super comfy ripstop pants. A great Gi choice for competition or for daily training, teaching, etc. Throughout the top and bottom, all logos are embroidered in white, on white, for a unique and clean look.
The new and improved pants are, simply put, outstanding. Cut and stitched to maximize your movement and comfort while keeping excess fabric to a minimum. Shrinkage is also reduced when compared to previous Aesthetic designs. Other specs include full-length knee reinforcements, multiple drawstring loops, and a round stretch drawstring.
- See more at: http://www.martialartssupplies.com/aesthetic-whiteout-gi.html#sthash.XSbKB1eR.dpuf

I screwed up and let the string get pulled all the way through but that's easily fixed.  Anyway, I like the waist loop placement.  One bonus, this gi comes with two pairs of pants.  One nice soft twill pair (here) and one super light ripstop pair.  They have a double layer of knee reinforcement that goes midthigh to ankle all the way.

I'll be honest, I think I have been wearing the wrong size gi forever.  I am not an A1.  I am an A0.  I'm almost the heaviest I've ever been (140) and the ripstop pants are a little small on me for comfort, but the twill pants were fine especially after I squatted in them to teach them who's boss. But the gi top is not too long or too baggy, whereas most A1s are.  I just instinctively assumed my bottom half would be too big for an A0.  I wonder if Aesthetic (which is based in the UK) would consider selling them separately? But anyway...

Also I really like that the crotch fabric-- although gi top weave-- in no way possible feels diaper-ish.

This is the embroidery on the back of the collar.   Very low key and subtle.  The collar is incredibly stiff out of the bag (I'll photograph the bag later when I add pics of me in the gi because the bag is also super cool) and even after two washes and dries, it's still impressive.  It's covered in ripstop and feels very substantial.

 

 I uploaded the pictures from my phone and they're wonky, upside down, sideways, sorry.

Here's the interior bottom of the jacket, two nice contrasting patterns in the reinforcement and seam taping.  Not scratchy, at all. It's little touches that show attention to detail.

I really should re-upload, sorry.  This lining isn't exactly rashguard material, it's not stretchy, but it's mostly for looks anyway I think because it does not extend very far across the shoulders.

The gi top is SUPER light though, and does not stretch when wet and under tension unlike the Vulkan Ultralight.  I will weigh the gi and pants and get back to you with that data. The website says the top is 350gsm pearl weave.  It's delightful to the touch.

Embroidery on the top of the shoulder, as you look at the person...

And the same embroidery, upside down.  SO COOL.  I am enthralled.

So, I am super happy with this gi, and had to tell you about it.  

 

 This gi is 99 British pounds ($147US) and shipping was another $23 to Seattle. Moderately pricey, for me, but I say well worth it considering two pairs of pants plus the cute bag in which I will be toting stuff to class, seminars etc. 

The Whiteout is available here on their website with free shipping for UK customers, and they also point out it's available to US customers from two other sources (which I didn't even check on, like an idiot, so maybe my shipping could have been cheaper! but I was watching Leandro Lo killing people at the Pan so give me a break.)

If you buy it through MartialArtsSupplies.com as suggested, it's $149.99 with only ripstop pants, and free two-day-air shipping.

If you buy through RollMore.com as suggested, it's also $149.99 with only ripstop pants and free two-day shipping, but they offer custom embroidery for $9.99 and adding a patch for $9.99.  I have not looked into those options... anyone, anyone? The nice thing I can see about RollMore.com is they have a 60 day return policy that allows you to train and roll and wash and dry for two months and still return it!