My training was cut short this week yet again. I was the maid of honor (or dishonor depending on who you ask) in my friends wedding over the weekend. Preparing for the wedding and the activities associated with the wedding prevented me from training as much as I would have liked to...
I only took two classes on Thursday instead of my normal three because I had to assemble the wedding favors at home. I also felt horrible because I rolled with a "new" guy the night before and he worked me hard. The word new is in quotations because he's new to our gym but he definitely has more experience than I do. He also has about 40 pounds on me that he's afraid to use. I don't know how he managed to hurt my neck and jaw. I really had to struggle to keep him off of me. At one point I honestly thought that he cracked my rib. My jaw and neck still hurt one week later! My coach was really understanding when I asked if I could opt not to roll with him on Thursday since I was still hurt from the day before. So I worked with my coach instead. Don't get me wrong, rolling with a black belt isn't any easier, but at least he kicks my ass with a smile.
I missed class Friday and Saturday because of the wedding and the rehearsal. I've been working every night since so I haven't been back to the gym. I'm working tomorrow night so I won't go back to class until Thursday. It feels like an eternity... On a brighter note, the wedding was really nice. My friend looked beautiful and I caught the bouquet (yikes). It was nice to put on a dress and heels (very, very high heels). I also had my hair, nails, and makeup done to perfection. It felt really good to get all glammed up and look feminine for the night. The bride wasn't really happy about the visible bruises on my arms but I'm sure she'll get over it.
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Sunday, June 3, 2012
The Worlds
I feel like I didn't really train all that much this week. That's partially good and bad I suppose. I trained Wednesday night and Thursday morning as usual, but I was and bummed that my instructor didn't show up to class on Thursday night. I couldn't figure out why he wasn't there until I remembered that the Mundials were in town. I totally forgot that my classmate was competing. Had I remembered I would have driven down to Long Beach to cheer him on. Not all was lost though. I rolled with a few guys that showed up and called it a day.
I didn't train Friday because my coach was competing in the Worlds. I haven't spoken to him about but I take it he didn't place since I didn't see his name on the list of winners.
I trained with Fernando on Saturday. I was the only one to show up for the Ladies BJJ class so we did some cool exercises on the stability ball to help loosen my hips and drilled the Butterfly Guard and some sweeps. Class was super low key which was a welcomed change since I had gone to PT for my shoulder and back the day before and felt like I had been hit by a train.
On Saturday after class I picked up my friend from the gym and dragged her to the Worlds with me. The energy at the Pyramid in Long Beach was incredible! I felt so privileged to see so many incredible athletes competing under one roof. The ladies that were competing were absolutely fierce! I can only hope to be as good as they are one day. One of the highlights of the day was that I was able to take a picture with Gabbi Garica and Kyra Gracie. I saw Leticia Ribeiro from afar but didn't get close enough to snap a pic. By the end of the day we were starving but I wouldn't leave without seeing Rodrigo "Comprido" Medeiros compete. He is amazing to watch. I feel so honored to have seen so many world-class athletes compete yesterday. I can't wait for next year!
I didn't train Friday because my coach was competing in the Worlds. I haven't spoken to him about but I take it he didn't place since I didn't see his name on the list of winners.
I trained with Fernando on Saturday. I was the only one to show up for the Ladies BJJ class so we did some cool exercises on the stability ball to help loosen my hips and drilled the Butterfly Guard and some sweeps. Class was super low key which was a welcomed change since I had gone to PT for my shoulder and back the day before and felt like I had been hit by a train.
On Saturday after class I picked up my friend from the gym and dragged her to the Worlds with me. The energy at the Pyramid in Long Beach was incredible! I felt so privileged to see so many incredible athletes competing under one roof. The ladies that were competing were absolutely fierce! I can only hope to be as good as they are one day. One of the highlights of the day was that I was able to take a picture with Gabbi Garica and Kyra Gracie. I saw Leticia Ribeiro from afar but didn't get close enough to snap a pic. By the end of the day we were starving but I wouldn't leave without seeing Rodrigo "Comprido" Medeiros compete. He is amazing to watch. I feel so honored to have seen so many world-class athletes compete yesterday. I can't wait for next year!
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Back At It
I finally went back to class yesterday. I was absolutely beaming when I got there. Being away for five days made me really miss the gym and the guys. When I saw my coach, Jeff, I had to hold back from jumping on him to give him a giant hug.
Class was considerably larger yesterday. I've noticed a lot more new faces lately which is great. I'm glad the program is getting bigger. One of my Muay Thai coaches even decided it was time to switch it up and joined class. My guess is that he's considering getting into MMA and needs to learn some mat work before he can ground and pound.
The focus of the class was learning new sweeps which was great because I haven't quite gotten the hang of them yet. I definitely noticed improvement so I was really happy. I didn't even care that I had to roll with a guy who is considerably larger than I am. The last time I rolled with him I had the hardest time getting out of side control so my strategy was not to let him get me into side control. I'm a lot weaker than he is so I used the spider guard to keep him off of me. He only passed my guard twice but I was able to block him from getting me into side control or from mounting me and reverted back into spider. Needless to say, my fingertips were raw by the end of class.
After class I hung around and helped Jeff drill some crazy advanced moves that he's learning. He and some other guys are competing this weekend so the energy was high. Now that I'm back, I can finally breathe....
Class was considerably larger yesterday. I've noticed a lot more new faces lately which is great. I'm glad the program is getting bigger. One of my Muay Thai coaches even decided it was time to switch it up and joined class. My guess is that he's considering getting into MMA and needs to learn some mat work before he can ground and pound.
The focus of the class was learning new sweeps which was great because I haven't quite gotten the hang of them yet. I definitely noticed improvement so I was really happy. I didn't even care that I had to roll with a guy who is considerably larger than I am. The last time I rolled with him I had the hardest time getting out of side control so my strategy was not to let him get me into side control. I'm a lot weaker than he is so I used the spider guard to keep him off of me. He only passed my guard twice but I was able to block him from getting me into side control or from mounting me and reverted back into spider. Needless to say, my fingertips were raw by the end of class.
After class I hung around and helped Jeff drill some crazy advanced moves that he's learning. He and some other guys are competing this weekend so the energy was high. Now that I'm back, I can finally breathe....
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Withdrawals
I'm going through some seriousl withdrawals. I haven't taken a BJJ class in five days because of my crazy work schedule. I've already worked over 60 hours and have one more dreaded day to go. I can't wait to put on my gi and get back on the mat!
Most people don't understand my obsession with jiu jitsu. Hell I don't even understand it. Women at the gym tell me I'm crazy for rolling with the guys. They see my bruises and enthusiastically declare that they will never put on a gi. My mom shakes her head in disbelief every time she sees a new bruise or scratch. I thought she was going to have a heart attack when she saw the huge, oozing mat burn on my arm two weeks ago. My dad doesn't say much, but he raises his eyebrow in disapproval nonetheless. My friends beg me to put on a cardigan when we go out because my injuries clearly offend them. Apparently looking like a "domestic violence" victim isn't very sexy or appealing.
I can kind of understand why they disapprove. I'm not very tall or very big and I'm most definitely a "girly-girl". When I took MMA, I was told I'd be better off as a ring girl (rude). I guess no one understands why someone as feminine as I am, would be okay with having a ridiculous amount of bruises, scratches, and mat burn on her body. The truth is that I'm proud of my all my scratches and bruises. I earned them. I took off my make-up, secured my long hair, put on my pink gi, and walked on to the mat expecting to chip my toe nail polish and get a little sweat in my eyes. So what if I'd rather wear my Havaianas to the gym instead of my 4.5 inch L.A.M.B pumps to happy hour? Being on the mat is my new happy hour and right now, I'm seriously not happy...
One more day to go. Only one more day to go....
Most people don't understand my obsession with jiu jitsu. Hell I don't even understand it. Women at the gym tell me I'm crazy for rolling with the guys. They see my bruises and enthusiastically declare that they will never put on a gi. My mom shakes her head in disbelief every time she sees a new bruise or scratch. I thought she was going to have a heart attack when she saw the huge, oozing mat burn on my arm two weeks ago. My dad doesn't say much, but he raises his eyebrow in disapproval nonetheless. My friends beg me to put on a cardigan when we go out because my injuries clearly offend them. Apparently looking like a "domestic violence" victim isn't very sexy or appealing.
I can kind of understand why they disapprove. I'm not very tall or very big and I'm most definitely a "girly-girl". When I took MMA, I was told I'd be better off as a ring girl (rude). I guess no one understands why someone as feminine as I am, would be okay with having a ridiculous amount of bruises, scratches, and mat burn on her body. The truth is that I'm proud of my all my scratches and bruises. I earned them. I took off my make-up, secured my long hair, put on my pink gi, and walked on to the mat expecting to chip my toe nail polish and get a little sweat in my eyes. So what if I'd rather wear my Havaianas to the gym instead of my 4.5 inch L.A.M.B pumps to happy hour? Being on the mat is my new happy hour and right now, I'm seriously not happy...
One more day to go. Only one more day to go....
Monday, May 21, 2012
A Girl in a Man's World
I live in a world that is dominated by the opposite sex. My siblings are all men, I work in a male oriented profession, and I fell in love with Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, which is very much a man's sport.
I started taking the weekly "Ladies Only" BJJ class at my gym in February of this year to help supplement the MMA classes I was taking. I had been taking MMA classes since July of last year but I had no experience with grappling so I thought adding BJJ to my regimin was a good idea. I eventually quit MMA because my female training partner couldn't take the class anymore and the guys simply didn't want to work with me. The day that I showed up to class and sat on the mat watching from the sidelines like and idiot was the last time I went to MMA.
I continued to take BJJ after I quit MMA but takingone class per week just wasn't enough. I've been the only female to take the class consistently since the beginning of the ladies program so I never really had anyone to roll with either. So I worked up the courage to ask my coach if I couldn't start taking classes with the guys. I was ecstatic when he said that I could, as long as I could hang.
I'm sure the guys were surprised when they saw me there waiting for class to start wearing a pink gi. I suppose I could have worn my white gi but regardless of my gi color, I figured I would stand out anyway. I was pleasantly surprised when all the guys in the class welcomed me with open arms! As a matter of fact, the veteran of the group told me that he would handle anyone in the class who gave me a hard time. I couldn't have been happier!
Trying to keep up with the guys is very much a challenge. I do everything they do. The only special treatment I got was on my first day in the guys class. I didn't roll that day, I only watched. I've been expected to perform just like the guys ever since then. The guys are instructed not to take it easy on me. In fact, they are told, "Don't trust the pink gi".
I'm not as experienced as the guys and I'm certainly not as strong but regardless of how beaten and battered I get, I refuse to quit. I'm just girl trying to survive in a man's world...
I started taking the weekly "Ladies Only" BJJ class at my gym in February of this year to help supplement the MMA classes I was taking. I had been taking MMA classes since July of last year but I had no experience with grappling so I thought adding BJJ to my regimin was a good idea. I eventually quit MMA because my female training partner couldn't take the class anymore and the guys simply didn't want to work with me. The day that I showed up to class and sat on the mat watching from the sidelines like and idiot was the last time I went to MMA.
I continued to take BJJ after I quit MMA but takingone class per week just wasn't enough. I've been the only female to take the class consistently since the beginning of the ladies program so I never really had anyone to roll with either. So I worked up the courage to ask my coach if I couldn't start taking classes with the guys. I was ecstatic when he said that I could, as long as I could hang.
I'm sure the guys were surprised when they saw me there waiting for class to start wearing a pink gi. I suppose I could have worn my white gi but regardless of my gi color, I figured I would stand out anyway. I was pleasantly surprised when all the guys in the class welcomed me with open arms! As a matter of fact, the veteran of the group told me that he would handle anyone in the class who gave me a hard time. I couldn't have been happier!
Trying to keep up with the guys is very much a challenge. I do everything they do. The only special treatment I got was on my first day in the guys class. I didn't roll that day, I only watched. I've been expected to perform just like the guys ever since then. The guys are instructed not to take it easy on me. In fact, they are told, "Don't trust the pink gi".
I'm not as experienced as the guys and I'm certainly not as strong but regardless of how beaten and battered I get, I refuse to quit. I'm just girl trying to survive in a man's world...
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