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You tell em girl!
Balancing BJJ and a career
- Thread starter tr00f
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Yeah, I don't expect to be a world champion, but I don't train to be a world champion. I train because it's fun, and I get forced exercise.
Half Amazing
Blue Belt
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Chael Sonnen seems to think that not only is it possible to have a career and be a high level mma fighter, but those who just train and don't work are lazy. So I'm sure you can find a way to do both.
the_Dark Knight
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I think another thing that kills my dreams is my dsitance from my academy. I used to live 20 mins maybe less from my school, now that I moved out and my coach changed locations as well the drive have become 50+ mins plus traffic. If i lived closer to a more reputible gym, I'd consider a switch, BUT im off Hicksville, stuck between 18 wheelers and hoodrats not to mention my boss is a dragon who hates letting us leave for anything, and my wife gives me the ole "oh i see how it is, jiu jitsu is more important than us" routine everytime i walk out the door not to mention, there is NO academy in my area, so I'm limited to 2-3 a wk. of course those other 4 days i spend either doing conditioning stretching or flow movements. Gota take what i can get. But nonetheless, it doesnt stop me from dreaming about competing at the Worlds or even the Pan Ams regardless of what rank I'm at. I love jiu jitsu, regardless of any accolade i could recieve and I understand that orginially it wasnt based on competition.. it was based on the self defense, and as long as I spread the art well that should be good enough.
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Well I can leave that part off next time if you prefer. I'm sorry that I offended you by trying not to offend you.
I think this is something most of us can relate to one way or another, some people are very fortunate to have a supportive spouse, being close to their gym, working hours that fit the schedule of the gym etc.
Most of us just don't have those things. I get the old "you love jiu jitsu more than me" line every so often. I am a teacher in a high school in England, to those of you who know about English culture know that most kids don't value their education highly. Its very draining but still one of the best jobs/careers there is.
Anyway, I can manage to train 3 and occasionally 4 nights a week. When I have kids I think that will go down to 1 or 2 nights a week if im lucky.
Theres an old adage that science teachers use when kids recognise our bad spelling and grammar. "Having bad spelling and grammar are signs of being a good scientist".
Most of us just don't have those things. I get the old "you love jiu jitsu more than me" line every so often. I am a teacher in a high school in England, to those of you who know about English culture know that most kids don't value their education highly. Its very draining but still one of the best jobs/careers there is.
Anyway, I can manage to train 3 and occasionally 4 nights a week. When I have kids I think that will go down to 1 or 2 nights a week if im lucky.
Theres an old adage that science teachers use when kids recognise our bad spelling and grammar. "Having bad spelling and grammar are signs of being a good scientist".
The ellipses indicated that what came after was equally as important. It just sucks to have every accomplishment of mine taken and responded to with a pat on the head and a "good for you, less important sex. But it only really counts if you have a dick." I didn't choose this.
Catatafish
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You can do both.
You can still compete at local amateur events, NAGA, etc. You don't have to have Joe Rogan calling your name to be competing.
You can still compete at local amateur events, NAGA, etc. You don't have to have Joe Rogan calling your name to be competing.
hustles
Green Belt
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Fuck em Hillary
no reason to have an * next to your accomplishments. The rest of us are all jealous that you are a world champion. Not to mention your a great poster and an insanely productive individual.
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After all you have done for yourself and all of the great peeps you have trained and trained with, who gives a shit what people think just keep doing what you do...
Not riding your "dick" but I think it's cooler cause your a girl...
Remember the old saying,
I can see how this can be very irritating and is a problem faced by females in most sports. I think the BJJ scene is relatively progressive in this respect, a lot of people will watch your matches as well as some of the other famous female BJJ competitors. Where as sports like womens football is never televised and I don't think anyone would watch it.
I think it may have also helped you train in all these different teams (as well as having a super cool instructor). Your are sort of an anomaly in the BJJ scene so I think you get quite a lot of attention from instructors from different teams, where as many males training at different gyms would be treated with suspicion.
Joose
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No, no its not.
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Having a normal 40 hours a week job/career (like a good 75% of people) allows you to train every day, which is more than enough to compete. Even if you have kids, don't tell me you can't find 3-4 days a week.
About the idea of risking it all on grappling and putting your career aside, what happens if you get injured, permanently, and can't train with the intensity that makes it worth it ? And I'm not even talking about the financial risk.
I'm talking about how much your life must suck psychologically if you end up screwing up your back or blowing your knee up really bad, i.e. career ending injuries (which can happen to anyone anytime if you grapple seriously)
I know I would never be willing to risk it all on grappling. It's one thing to run the financial risk, but I think the worst part is to realise after 5 years of living your passion that you just won't be able to continue. WTF do you do then ? Spend your life watching DVDs and doing light drills ? Can you be happy like that, or won't frustration eat you alive ?
I've been injured a couple of times for a couple of months, but:
1) I had my career to focus on in the mean time
2) It wasn't serious/permanent injuries
And please don't tell me that a plane can crash on your house any time anyways.
I think the guy who decides to throw everything away to become a violin musician bears less risk. Even if he sucks with his violin and nobody wants to hear his music, he should be able to play it for as long as he wants. Grappling can end anytime.
About the idea of risking it all on grappling and putting your career aside, what happens if you get injured, permanently, and can't train with the intensity that makes it worth it ? And I'm not even talking about the financial risk.
I'm talking about how much your life must suck psychologically if you end up screwing up your back or blowing your knee up really bad, i.e. career ending injuries (which can happen to anyone anytime if you grapple seriously)
I know I would never be willing to risk it all on grappling. It's one thing to run the financial risk, but I think the worst part is to realise after 5 years of living your passion that you just won't be able to continue. WTF do you do then ? Spend your life watching DVDs and doing light drills ? Can you be happy like that, or won't frustration eat you alive ?
I've been injured a couple of times for a couple of months, but:
1) I had my career to focus on in the mean time
2) It wasn't serious/permanent injuries
And please don't tell me that a plane can crash on your house any time anyways.
I think the guy who decides to throw everything away to become a violin musician bears less risk. Even if he sucks with his violin and nobody wants to hear his music, he should be able to play it for as long as he wants. Grappling can end anytime.
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So true and I agree %100. I will even go as far to say that most people that win worlds at even the blue or purple belt level pretty much dedicate there life to bjj and have some talent!
Take a guy like Ryan Hall, or Fowler. Let's face it these guys never probably worked a 40 hour work week and they still couldn't win worlds and very possibly never will.
As it stands bjj has become a competitive sport in all levels. I would go as far to say that even at the master's level bluebelt in some of the bigger tournaments if your someone that trains 2-3 days a week(without a wrestling background) your more than likely going not going to win 1st place.
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waaar wrasslin'!
damn hillary just e-subbed redaxe with a postoplata. pwnt! :redface:
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Agreed, why cant you do BJJ and if you have some skillz THEN make the move?
Back to my wrestling analogies, some kids do very well and still have school and homework and go to practice and a few turn out good enough to go to college where they have school and homework and even fewer have skills to do MMA or be a part of the national team.'
You CAN get good, really good, splitting your time IF you have the talent and other traits needed to be a world champion.
Once you figure out IF you are one of those rare people then you can do some side work, maybe even get employed AT the gym you train at, or you can do things like personal training where you can make your own schedule and in down time work out etc..
Back to my wrestling analogies, some kids do very well and still have school and homework and go to practice and a few turn out good enough to go to college where they have school and homework and even fewer have skills to do MMA or be a part of the national team.'
You CAN get good, really good, splitting your time IF you have the talent and other traits needed to be a world champion.
Once you figure out IF you are one of those rare people then you can do some side work, maybe even get employed AT the gym you train at, or you can do things like personal training where you can make your own schedule and in down time work out etc..
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I haven't seen this fly in the ointment yet:
Most white collar jobs are going to try to find out what you do when you're not there, not malicious snooping just natural conversation flow. You can try to be ambiguous, but eventually it will come out. Now here's the shitty part; most of the people under 30 get it, you have a hobby, it's active and it has risks, it helps define who you are and it is enriching, but the people over 30 (the ones with all the power), for the most part, do NOT get it, they think it's a brutish behavior and a liability to the company. Any absence because you needed to get an injury checked out, any facial abrasions, cauliflower ear, black eyes, etc will be noted by these >30ers. Companies hate absences, but the fact that we do something that most people don't understand, and even worse that the older, higher ups don't respect/disdain adds inertia to your career. Here's some bullshit I've heard at corporate jobs over the years:
"I bet you wanted to body slam me at that meeting huh" - A former manager who dogged me at a meeting in front of several departments only to find out later he was completely wrong, that was his apology.
"So like, you could probably break all of our necks" - A former co-worker who assumed that BJJ as a hobby = Steven Segal assassin type crap.
"You know, [Dza] you should consider quitting BJJ, you're not getting any younger (I was 25 at the time) and this (referring to stitches above my eye) looks pretty bad" - A VP from another department.
That said, plenty of people have had GOOD experiences, so maybe I've just had some bad luck. However, in my white collar experience, BJJ getting out on the table is always BAD news bears, and it's almost impossible to keep the proverbial cat in the bag. Since you're in college, you'll probably become a white collar worker, just keep it in mind, especially when you start interviewing, try to work in a place that's more liberal, more jock-friendly.
As for the logistics:
You have to figure out what's worth what to you. I've been able to juggle a career, graduate school, BJJ, weight lifting, and a GF/social life. I did this by prioritizing, Work, School, BJJ, Weightlifting, GF/Social in that order. That means I see my gf 1 night/week and my friends 1 night/week. To me, the other things are more important, so they got more hours/week. If you're willing to walk the path, and possibly walk it alone, you'll be able to get plenty of BJJ in per week and probably become a serious competitor, but you have to make the sacrifices. That said, there's a guy at my school who trains full time (3x/day) and I can't touch him at BJJ; the part timer will almost always be at a disadvantage versus the full timer. So if you want to become Marcelo Garcia, well one, you probably would have needed to start BJJ as a child and two, you probably need to find a way to make ends meet while you get in ~20 - 40 hrs of BJJ and related training in per week.
Regardless, good luck in all future endeavors, I hope what ever you choose works out for you.
Most white collar jobs are going to try to find out what you do when you're not there, not malicious snooping just natural conversation flow. You can try to be ambiguous, but eventually it will come out. Now here's the shitty part; most of the people under 30 get it, you have a hobby, it's active and it has risks, it helps define who you are and it is enriching, but the people over 30 (the ones with all the power), for the most part, do NOT get it, they think it's a brutish behavior and a liability to the company. Any absence because you needed to get an injury checked out, any facial abrasions, cauliflower ear, black eyes, etc will be noted by these >30ers. Companies hate absences, but the fact that we do something that most people don't understand, and even worse that the older, higher ups don't respect/disdain adds inertia to your career. Here's some bullshit I've heard at corporate jobs over the years:
"I bet you wanted to body slam me at that meeting huh" - A former manager who dogged me at a meeting in front of several departments only to find out later he was completely wrong, that was his apology.
"So like, you could probably break all of our necks" - A former co-worker who assumed that BJJ as a hobby = Steven Segal assassin type crap.
"You know, [Dza] you should consider quitting BJJ, you're not getting any younger (I was 25 at the time
) and this (referring to stitches above my eye) looks pretty bad" - A VP from another department.That said, plenty of people have had GOOD experiences, so maybe I've just had some bad luck. However, in my white collar experience, BJJ getting out on the table is always BAD news bears, and it's almost impossible to keep the proverbial cat in the bag. Since you're in college, you'll probably become a white collar worker, just keep it in mind, especially when you start interviewing, try to work in a place that's more liberal, more jock-friendly.
As for the logistics:
You have to figure out what's worth what to you. I've been able to juggle a career, graduate school, BJJ, weight lifting, and a GF/social life. I did this by prioritizing, Work, School, BJJ, Weightlifting, GF/Social in that order. That means I see my gf 1 night/week and my friends 1 night/week. To me, the other things are more important, so they got more hours/week. If you're willing to walk the path, and possibly walk it alone, you'll be able to get plenty of BJJ in per week and probably become a serious competitor, but you have to make the sacrifices. That said, there's a guy at my school who trains full time (3x/day) and I can't touch him at BJJ; the part timer will almost always be at a disadvantage versus the full timer. So if you want to become Marcelo Garcia, well one, you probably would have needed to start BJJ as a child and two, you probably need to find a way to make ends meet while you get in ~20 - 40 hrs of BJJ and related training in per week.
Regardless, good luck in all future endeavors, I hope what ever you choose works out for you.
Galahad
Orange Belt
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:icon_conf
I'll leave Fowler out of it, but as for Hall...
What?
2009 Abu Dhabi World Championships <65.9kg Bronze Medallist
2007 Abu Dhabi World Championships Alternate Match Champion
2009 Abu Dhabi North American West Coast Trials Professional Lightweight Champion
2009 CBJJ Mundial Bronze Medalist
2008 CBJJ Mundial Champion
2007 CBJJ No-Gi Mundial Champion
2008 CBJJ European Champion
2008 CBJJ Brasiliero Bronze Medalist
2007 US Open Champion
12x Professional Superfight Champion (NAGA, NeverTap, US Grappling, et al)
#1 RATED Competitor Overall Nationwide for 2006
#1 RATED Advanced Submission Grappler Nationwide for 2006
#1 RATED Purple Belt Competitor Nationwide for 2006
#1 RATED Blue Belt Competitor Nationwide for 2005
Many times Grapplers Quest, NAGA, U.S. Grappling, Mission Submission Advanced Division Champion
Many times Grapplers Quest, NAGA, US Grappling Advanced Absolute (open weight) Division Champion
Also in his first year at black belt he lost to the eventual champ by....4 points I think it was?
Cut the guy some slack, I have no doubt in my mind Hall's gonna be a world champ one day at black belt.
