Dedication

If you had an illness or an injury that prevented you from training, how long would you wait before you gave up on your desire to train BJJ? I complain if I have to miss one week of jiu-jitsu. But imagine if you were diagnosed with a disease that had the potential to take you off the mat for good.

A friend of mine, Daniel, went through exactly that.

He was annoyed that I took this picture because my stupid phone refused to behave. If you're reading this, Daniel, sorry it took so long. :)

Daniel trained at Fabio's before I even knew what BJJ was. But in June of 2007, Daniel was diagnosed with Crohns disease, a very painful and physically limiting disease. After a major flare up in 2009, Daniel was sidelined for almost two years.

Ever since I began at Fabio's, Daniel has been there. He wasn't grappling, but he always came to class and watched from the wall, supporting his teammates and soaking up the technique as much as he could without actually drilling. For nineteen months he waited patiently, hoping the medicines he was taking would bring him to the point where he could have the surgery he needed to get him back to his career and back on the mat.

A few months ago, he got the news that he would be able to have the surgery. And now, almost two years after Daniel had to stop training, he is back in the gym. He got in his first grapples on Monday night and will be bringing the ruckus again tomorrow. Other than being tired and a little sore from his first day back to grappling, he said he's doing well and is just glad to be able to grapple again.

I asked Daniel if he ever got to the point where he thought about quitting BJJ for good. His simple response was, "Never." When I followed up with the question of why BJJ had such a powerful hold on him, he described the feeling that I and so many of us have had about the sport. He said, "The biggest number one thing was that I just love it. I love the comraderie, the competition. The brotherhood. That it's a lifestyle, a philosophy."

I've had conversations with several of my friends about why BJJ is so addicting, and I can't narrow it down to any one reason. There is something intensely emotional about the sport that keeps us all thirsty for one more class, one more grapple. We all go through so many of the same challenges and are forced to face ourselves when we hit the wall or when we succeed. The team becomes so much more than just a group of guys and girls trying to figure out techniques. It becomes a big, sometimes dysfunctional, always entertaining family.

Anyway, I want to say kudos to Daniel for sticking it out. Glad you didn't give up. And welcome back!! :)

Training For When You Can't Train

I have come to the conclusion that jogging is a very poor substitute for Jiu-jitsu. I HATE jogging. See, it's near the top of the list of things I hate right now:

1. Ringworm
2. Running
3. Ringworm
4. Ringworm
5. Persons who infected me with ringworm.

I have never been good at running. But yesterday, I was so annoyed that I couldn't go to BJJ that I jogged two miles and ended up getting my fastest time yet for the first mile. My first mile was at 8:09 (told you I suck at running), the second a wee bit longer.

...Still hated it, though. ;)

Also, I am really thankful for my barn right now. We didn't do class Tuesday night in the barn and we won't have it again until Sunday, so I decided to use it as my quarantine gym. Don't worry, I will disinfect it before people come back.

I have come up with a weird workout that I do when I can't train (which has been way too frequently, the last few weeks). Unfortunately, jogging is a part of it. Or the slightly less evil elliptical. Then, I do a whole bunch of stuff for my abs:

1. Crunches (around 150)
2. Side planks (I hates them too. Mentally adding them to my list)
3. Hanging Leg raises (80)

After that, I do some squats and lunges. Then I go to my resistance bands and work on my arms, targeting the different muscle groups. I don't just go for short, high reps. Sometimes I like to pull back and hold, to really fatigue my muscles before going on, to simulate how sometimes you get tired muscles in mid grapple and have to keep going.

Lastly, I go to my nemesis: The exercise ball. Despite how it tried to kill me the other day, I actually like exercising on it. I practice balancing on my knees on it. I practice knee on belly on it. But what I really like doing is just flow moving on it for five minute intervals. Just keep moving the whole time, to simulate the cardio you need in a grapple. I try to mimic bjj movements while I am doing it, but you can only go so far since a ball isn't exactly the same shape as a human being.

Anyway, that is my workout when I can't train. What do you guys do when you are stuck at home?

Frustrated

I can't go to class today. The brakes went out on my husbands car so that means no driving. (Good Morning, Captain Obvious). Not that I didn't consider chancing it. I haven't rolled in over a week, now, and with us being down to one car, we had to decide what things were a priority to get to. Apparently JJ going to work is more important than me going to afternoon class. Psssh!! Whatever! ;) Unfortunately, my bank account agrees with JJ, so I had to go along with it.

Going a little stir crazy. I suppose it's not such a bad thing that I have to miss a few more classes. Giving my neck a couple more days to heal up. But man, I REALLY miss it.

I've been jogging a lot in the meantime and can see improvement there. And I've still been doing some BJJ drills and stretches at home. There's nothing like a forced absence from class to prove to me exactly how obsessed I am.

I'm looking forward to this weekend, though. I am going to go to the tournament and watch my team compete. This will probably be a form of torture for me since I can't compete myself, but I am determined to enjoy it!! Plus I am sure I will still learn things even if it isn't through my own experience.

Hope you guys have a great week rolling. I kind of hate you since you get to do it and I don't. ;) Just joshin'.