I'm a 34 yo father of three young kids, a small business owner, and former college athlete. I have played sports my entire life at varying levels, competed for collegiate national championships, conference championships, and school records in both football and the hammer throw in track and field. I've been competing in sports from the time I could run and I've played most sports available in my area growing up and in high school.
When college ended, all of that competition came to a screeching halt. I would go to the gym for a few months at a time, but it never felt the same, or I didn't know how to train to simply be healthy (as I had always trained with a very specific and competitive purpose). When we had our first kid, any attempts at working out lasted a few weeks at best. I put on weight, I felt like crap, and I was consumed with kids and eventually a small business. The justification to do nothing was that I didn't have time for athletics/exercise/competition and this would simply be a thing of the past.
As I was sharing this with a friend, he told me to come in for one week. If I didn't enjoy it, he wouldn't mention it again. I gave the excuse of the schedule being tough on my family and he told me 302BJJ offered 6a-7a classes I now know as The Breakfast Club. I mention all of this solely as context/background to my review.
Despite concerns about previous injuries and having not worked out for a solid five years, I gave it a shot. My first class I was gassed after two minutes in a way I hadn't been in a very long time. It was a distantly familiar feeling I used to describe as "good pain". That day changed my life and my journey in BJJ began.
I have been training at 302BJJ for about three months and I am now committed to a lifelong journey that no other sport has created in my athletic career. I cannot get enough. The instruction I receive at the school is thoughtful, technical, deliberate and purposeful. The guys (guys, girls and kids) at the gym are all there for varying reasons - fitness, self defense, self confidence, sense of belonging, lifelong learning, etc., while all of these purposes are real and satisfied through training, the one common thread is respect for the art of BJJ and the continued desire to learn in an atmosphere that simply breeds succes, confidence, and humility. No one is there to hurt you, no one is there to prove themselves; everyone is there to learn and train in a competitive but friendly way. Every class is different, every roll is different. Everyone is helping everyone.
As a big strong guy I always felt like I could handle myself in a situation that required self defense. My first class threw those thoughts out of the window. I was humbled over and over again and realized how much I had to learn. BJJ is ground fighting and learning how to fight on the ground is real life self defense (almost all fights end up on the ground and the better grappler usually wins). In a past life I earned a black belt in tang so do - "traditional" martial arts simply do not compare when it comes to defense. Yes, strikes are good, the self discipline is great, but the real life application is nothing like that of BJJ and black belt in karate does not equal a black belt in BJJ. It's not even in the same realm. The talent of the school as a collective group is scary.
I have lost 15lbs, my body shape has transformed, and I continue to grow in the control I have over my body. My confidence has increased proportionately with humility, I am working out more consistently now than I have since college and this is just the beginning. I am thankful for the great instruction I receive at 302BJJ from Sam, Ro, Trouble, Bill, and all of the guys with whom I train. Thank you 302BJJ!
If you are looking for a new way to train and BJJ is in the running, try it - just one week. If you don't like it, I won't mention it again!
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Posted 10 years ago
