Darla L. Sedlacek, Ph.D.
Darla L. Sedlacek, Ph.D. describes herself as having lot of energy and love to learn. She been studying martial arts for over 25 years and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu intensely since 2014. Earned a black belt in Tae Kwon Do after college, and currently hold the rank of purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Being a serious competitor, my tournament list is long and I have a 2-0 record in Fight to Win pro fights.
“I did my doctoral dissertation on effective assault prevention in 2000, and am always interested in empowering people to protect and defend themselves on and off the mats. For women in particular, using forceful resistance is effective but often there are mixed messages about it’s use. I want it to be clear that women are capable of defending themselves. I also want it to be clear that martial arts are great beyond something that is for self defense.”
Although she has trained in various disciplines over the years, she found Hurricane in Cleveland on opening day and found home. She teaches kids’ and adult classes at Hurricane JJ under John Lawrence, owner/head instructor of Hurricane JJ, and head the Transform JJ women’s team as an affiliate program.
Outside of the time she spends coaching and training Jiu Jitsu, She is a private practice Psychologist, working with general topics of concern but specializing in sport/performance psychology and movement therapy. She also holds certifications in personal training and yoga, and have engaged in ultrarunning as another interest.