Why BJJ?

Why BJJ?

BJJ is the one "hobby" that I picked up and keep picking up over and over.  I do so many things from crochet to skateboarding to slack-lining.  I own a bunch of musical instruments (including guitars, a piano, and ocarinas) that I've learned just enough to play Ode to Joy or Twinkle Little Star on and maybe a couple popular songs.  Most of my hobbies get love for a couple months and then collect dust for a few months or years before I pick them up again.  BJJ is the one I come back to every day.  It's like my second lover (my bf being the first of course).


How did it get to be "the one"?

The first time I heard of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu I was 13 years old (2003) and my dad just happened to show me women's bjj on tv.  I really wanted to do it, but life just kept happening and, by high school, I forgot all about it.  Long story short, I never ended up doing any martial arts until 11 years later (2014), taking yoga classes at 24 hour fitness, when a coworker told me about krav maga classes she was taking.  I started looking into different schools in the area and ended up on Alliance MMA's website, put my email and number in for more info and was on the phone with them that night, signing up for a trial class.

I tried boxing first, but I didn't like the idea of being punched in the face.  Haha!  Then the next hour was the women's MMA class which focused on BJJ that day.  I didn't have a gi yet.  The people were nice.  I had fun and I was excited for the next time I got to go to class.

Fast forward a bit, I competed for the first time.  A month later, I earned my blue belt and then life happened again.  Training started slipping away as I started working all hours when classes were held.  I bought myself a 5'x10' rollup Dollamur and kept buying gis (I think I have 5 now) and other gear.  Then at some point I started doing solely calisthenics since I could do that anywhere at any time.  Work days ended with pull-ups at the park at 10pm.  BJJ would have to wait until my hours were back.

Fast forward some more, I don't feel worthy of my blue because I haven't trained in so long and I've lost a lot of the technique I had that got me the blue.  I was working too much to want to do calisthenics at night.  Then, I start going to open mats whenever I could.  Working all Friday, and waking up Saturday mornings just to be on the mat.  I just wanted to be on the mat.  I felt the techniques coming back.  I felt better about my blue.  I realized everything will come back in time.

Finally, this past weekend, I made it to a Gracie open mat.  I met Leticia Ribeiro.  I watched a couple BJJ documentaries and Chris Haueter said something I've heard plenty of times before for many things (especially when learning a new language), but not yet for BJJ.  "10 years from now, I'm gonna be somewhere. Why not be a black belt too?"

So that's it pretty much.


TL;DR?
I fell in love with BJJ.

Roll on,
Mouse