Life after Bjj

Jiu Jitsu has affected me in such positive ways it's crazy. At the same time it's hard to list them out on paper. I guess it's just an over all feeling that's hard to step back from and dissect. I can state the obvious, like I lost a lot of weight just by doing bjj 3 times a week. I lost like 30 pounds I think. I have been able to cut down lower for competitions so in a way jiu jitsu has shown me that I do in fact have control over my health, and being fat and lazy is somewhat of a choice. The less obvious ones are things like confidence in myself and my abilities. Not just on the mat, but in life. Every night when you step out onto the mats you overcome something. When you are mounted and you feel hopeless, you suddenly gain half guard and work hard to regain full guard. Once you are there things don't seem so bad. This outlook helps so much in everyday life. So what about you? What has jiu jitsu done for your life?

Extended Family

It's often said that soldiers will form lifetime bonds with the people they go to battle with. They trust their lives to each other and know that when the shit hits the fan their teammates will be there to back them up. This happens in jiu-jitsu as well. You may not have to trust your life to your teammates, but you sure as hell put your own safety in their hands. This fact forms the bonds that make teammates like extended family. Tonight at the Foundry we had a big class again, the mats were full of familiar faces. Some we haven't seen in months, some only a few days. There is something about sitting on the mats with friends learning things together, sharing new moves you have been trying out and chatting about life that brings people together.

Foundry in Rangeley

We gathered up the local crew and decided to head up to the Rangeley for a high paced, action packed jiu-jitsu class. That's exactly what we got. Shawn is a great teacher and knows how to push people. I think we needed that kind of motivation. The Freestyle Grappling Open is coming up soon and we need to be ready for that. I've been tossing the idea around of competing. I'm just not one of those people who gets super motivated to compete. I don't have that drive or need to match myself up to others and see who is the best. I was telling Jon, what motivates me to compete is my team mates. I like the idea of getting them ready for their matches and being there when they step on the mat. I like congratulating them when they step off the mat victorious. That's why I compete. With that said, I need to find the right mind set to get pumped up for this. I think we have about 7 weeks until it's go time. It's about time to get in the gym and check my weight. I always say after I cut weight that I want to stay in shape, but the weight always creeps back up. I think our last training session at Shawn's will really motivate Justin to get our asses in shape. Let's do this!

A Breather

Tonight I took a night off from jiu-jitsu. I did some stuff around that house that needed to be done and took the dog for a walk. I needed a break. I started jiu-jitsu because it was fun and I want to make sure that “fun” is the reason I keep going to class. Sometimes a step back for a couple days just makes you realize how hooked you really are and the next time you step on the mats you feel refreshed. I hope that happens, last class was a drag. It was really nice outside and I had a tough day at work and I really didn’t want to even go to class. I showed up anyways and had some of the worse rolls in the past few months. That annoyed me even more. So if all goes as planned next class I will feel reenergized.