Training with a chronic illness can be a challenge, a challenge I am familiar with. I live with two chronic illnesses — endometriosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS). Both of these illnesses make training BJJ hard at times. Neither of them are curable. There are treatments that make both […]
When I first started BJJ, I was fairly thin, mostly because I was always on a diet, always trying to lose weight, and always adding workouts to my week or minutes to my workouts. When my first coach suggested that I try to cut some weight for a competition, […]
I was texting with my friend after class the other day about how all the rounds with the women at our gym are super tough. I jokingly said, “I wonder if that means we’re the rest rounds since every other round is challenging???” To which she quickly replied, “I know […]
This global pandemic has left me missing several aspects of my daily life, one of the most prominent among them being jiu-jitsu. Something that has become such a large part of my weekly routine, has left a big hole in the wake of its absence. Jiu-jitsu is not only one […]
COVID-19 is here, and we’re all trapped inside. Almost all BJJ events have been canceled or postponed (ours included), and most schools have shut down. We’re all in this boat together. So here are some tips on how to mentally get through this. Exercise, staying connected, BJJ videos, and other […]
Not everyone has trouble training with their significant other and that’s wonderful. I’m genuinely happy for them. I am not one of them. I am one of those, that no matter who wins or loses the match, or who is drilling the move while the other is the dummy, […]
It’s a calm, dark morning in Seattle. My cup of tea brews as a lazy yawn escapes me. Six a.m. My cats bogards the warm spot where I once laid as duty evicts me from precious sleep. I climb downstairs and with ham fist sluggishness, boot up my computer. Michelle […]
I am a big girl. Not like in the song “Big Girls Don’t Cry”, but a plus size woman. I am also an athlete and a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. When I bring up in conversation that I do Jiu Jitsu, there will always be the person who […]
Pregnancy and jiu jitsu; jiu jitsu while pregnant; it’s a topic I’ve seen many women discuss. Do I need to stop training? Will someone squish my baby? Will people still spar with me? I’m too fatigued to train. Will my crazy hormones make me snap at my partners or cry […]
One thing you learn early on in training is holding onto a grip too long can end you up in a worse place than where you started. We’ve all been there in the early days of competition. We are convinced if we just hold onto that sleeve grip of our […]