We all know in 2020, many gyms and personal training schedules were impacted because of COVID. If you took time off from training, perhaps you’ve experienced (or are experiencing) the “COVID blues.” You enjoy jiu jitsu and miss your time on the mats, yet circumstances have kept you from training […]
The sisterhood. The brotherhood. Our mat family. Any way you put it, jiu jitsu is all about community. Sure, we talk about armbars and triangles and that sick takedown that our professor taught us last week. But when you ask your average jiu jitsu athlete what keeps her coming […]
There is comfort in the return to routine: the rash guard in my bag, the braids in my hair. There is joy in the dull ache in my arms and in the sweat dripping off of my face. There is joy in all of it, from fist bump to laundry […]
Female black belts are still a rarity in our sport, and it is even more extraordinary to find a woman who is the owner and head instructor of her own BJJ academy. Juliana Fontoura gave me a peek into the rewards of instructing and gym ownership, as well as […]
Francis Garcia, a blue belt under Carlson Gracie, is a strong woman who uses jiu jitsu with a purpose. This blue belt is a 38-year-old single mother and nurse. Her 12-year-old daughter (who is a black and grey belt with 4 stripes) is the proud center of her life. […]
You know that soul-crushing moment when your opponent passes your guard to secure side control…then they settle in heart to heart and you just feel the weight suddenly crushing your very existence? Of course it feels great when you’re the one doing the soul-crushing (and bonus points when you […]
Confident. Driven. Passionate. These are the words that lingered in my mind as I got off my call with Jill, a purple belt who trains out of Performance Jiu-Jitsu Academy in New Jersey under Professor Vintaloro. While we covered many topics during our hour-long chat, what intrigued me the […]
ESSENTIAL [ uh–sen-shuhl ]adj of the utmost importance; necessary; basic; indispensable, necessary. This word is undeniably a key buzzword associated with the current pandemic. What exactly is essential? Supermarkets? Gyms? Liquor stores? In New York State, several gyms,such as fitness centers and martial arts studios, have recently joined forces to […]
To train or not to train….that seems to be the question these days. Just when it seemed like things might be getting back to normal, another wave of COVID19 numbers spike – and while many of us may have differing views on whether to return to training or continue avoiding […]
As soon as I got off my call with Mary Aldana, the only thing I wanted to do was put on my gi and get on the mat. If it had not been 6:00 am, I just might have! Mary’s enthusiasm about Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and her resilient spirit echoed in […]