Is my head to big?

[Shoki]

Does anyone else have this problem? Sensei calls for us to put on armor, I carefully put on my tenugui, tare, do, men and kote. We start with kiri kaeshi and it begins, with each successive strike to the men, my tenugui slowly creeps down my forehead and by the time we have completed our drills and he calls for Jigeiko the #*&$ thing has covered my eyes. I then have to stop and remove my men and fix it. Needless to say this holds up the practice and earns me a disapproving look from sensei. He beleives that my tenugui is too small but after practicing for 3 years I have a collection of twenty or so and they all do the same thing. I'm beginning to think that my head is to big as after a haircut I don't experience the problem for a couple of weeks . Do tenegui come in different sizes?

[Eldritch Knight]

They don't come in different sizes. Maybe you should try a different style of putting it on, or perhaps you've tied it on too loosely. If its tied properly and your head is snugly fitted inside the men, then the forehead pad should keep the tenugui in place.

[Shiro]

how do you tie it?

[Shoki]

how do you tie it?

I hold the towel stretched out in front of me one corner in each hand. I then drape the towel over my head bringing it back over my head and down to my neck. I take the left corner and bring it across my forehead to the right temple, the right corner across my forehead to the left temple. At some point I switch hands to hold the corners that are now on the right/left with the right/left hands. Keeping the corner in the right hand tight I lift the ends that are hanging over my face up and over my head.

The problems usually start right away, as when I do the cross over neither corner stretches much past my temple and when I flip the ends hanging over my face they do not go back very far. I have see other people tie the men towel the same way and they have such excess that they have to fold the end several times so that it is not flying like a loose flag out the back of the men.

[lwegerich]

Hi,

first: moisturize the tenugui before practise. It'll stretch a bit and will be easier to tie.

second: there is another method of putting on the tenugui. I'm not a native speaker and it would be even difficult to describe it in my own language (german) but I'd like to give you an impression. You can ask experienced guys at your dojo. I'm sure they've heard about it and can teach you.

The basic idea is that you put it the other way round by going from left to right with the corners but following the back of your head. The two corners then "meet" at the forehead.

third: If your head is larger than others why not using a larger tenugui? I never understiid why all shinai grips are quite the same for all type of hands.

HTH,

[Shoki]

Hi,

first: moisturize the tenugui before practise. It'll stretch a bit and will be easier to tie.

second: there is another method of putting on the tenugui. I'm not a native speaker and it would be even difficult to describe it in my own language (german) but I'd like to give you an impression. You can ask experienced guys at your dojo. I'm sure they've heard about it and can teach you.

The basic idea is that you put it the other way round by going from left to right with the corners but following the back of your head. The two corners then "meet" at the forehead.

third: If your head is larger than others why not using a larger tenugui? I never understiid why all shinai grips are quite the same for all type of hands.

HTH,
This is where I started this thread. Are the tenugui designed with a smaller (Japanese) head in mind? The standard tenugui is 125cm x 25cm. Not that my head is unusually large for a westerner I was wondering if they come larger or will I have to make my own?

[Yowai]

They don't come in different sizes.

They do come in any size. A tenugi can be any piece of cloth. Go to your nearest grandmother's store and buy a piece of fabric of your choice. Cut to any size required.

[litige]

yowai's right, you don't really have to buy a tenugui, since its not a part of the bogu, it can be any towel that will make your head confortable in the Men
if you are without a tenugui you don't really need it.

[jasmine]

Does anyone else have this problem? Sensei calls for us to put on armor, I carefully put on my tenugui, tare, do, men and kote. We start with kiri kaeshi and it begins, with each successive strike to the men, my tenugui slowly creeps down my forehead and by the time we have completed our drills and he calls for Jigeiko the #*&$ thing has covered my eyes. I then have to stop and remove my men and fix it. Needless to say this holds up the practice and earns me a disapproving look from sensei. He beleives that my tenugui is too small but after practicing for 3 years I have a collection of twenty or so and they all do the same thing. I'm beginning to think that my head is to big as after a haircut I don't experience the problem for a couple of weeks . Do tenegui come in different sizes?

Are u sure it is a problem on ur tenugui? i feel maybe ur "men" is too big to u!!

[Karaken]

Are u sure it is a problem on ur tenugui? i feel maybe ur "men" is too big to u!!

This is true. If your men fits you properly, you can place tengui anyway you'd like and it'll still stay. After you finish tying the men, try to shake it
gently ( up, down and side ways ), it should move with your face not independent of your face. Is your men brand-new? If it is, you may need to break-in to fit you better unless it's way too big to begin with.

Center

[Deco]

[QUOTE=Shoki]I hold the towel stretched out in front of me one corner in each hand. I then drape the towel over my head bringing it back over my head and down to my neck.

I don´t have a good answer, but this can help: this way that you wear the tenugui, you can´t pull it back to much, it has to be just up your ears.


Try this or you can learn another way of putting it on!!

Cheers!!

Good luck and don´t give up!!

[Neil Gendzwill]

If your tenugui is slipping, try wetting it before practice. Slightly damp is good, not soaking.

[Will]

Maybe your tenegui is too low on your forehead and your men isn't tight enough. I found that when I placed my tenegui too low, it would creep downward. By having a tighter men it'll keep your tenegui more in place and out of your eyes.

[don_lubo]

Shoki maybe you should cut off your head.

[lwegerich]

Another thing just came to my mind. I'm in armor for 9 months right now. Six of them in my brand new own one and it still happens from time to time that my tenugui creeps down my forehead or the men is tied to losely or firmly.

Guess it just takes some time, especially with a new men.