How has BJJ changed your life?

Cash Bill 52 said:
Keep on trucking, my friend... Three months; you are still an infant. Make sure these positive changes stay permanent. You might lose some people from your previous life. Just keep on keeping on.
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Yeah I'm still definitely in the honeymoon stage, but I genuinely am very much into it. You can count on me keeping on trucking!
 
I've gotten fitter and more confident, and I do a lot more laundry.

A lot.
 
0r3o said:
Jiu Jitsu has changed my life in a lot of ways that it has for a lot of people, but prior to Jiu Jitsu I was married ... after 3 years of training I got divorced.

Jiu Jitsu is the other woman and I cheated on my wife with it every day.

I recently decided to take a break for a few months from training. The crazy thing is I was awarded my purple belt this past Feb. on what would of been my 5 year anniversary.

The universe is a strange place if you pay attention.
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Damn.

Why does it seem so many people have trouble balancing IRL responsibilities and BJJ?

I'd totally understand if you laid out some ground rules in a relationship (which I've done in the past), like a minimum of 2 days to train, complaint free, but every fucking day, dude? That's an easy 1.5 hours just for class, then you gotta start tacking on time for showering, commute, laundry...
 
can't say I've gotten fitter, my diet is as bad as ever, and I look similar, just all around bigger (wasn't fat to begin with but wasn't skinny either). I regularly played basketball, did powerlifting, and swam a lot so it wasn't for exercise reasons.

For me, it was basically spiritual changes. Forced me to get in touch with my mortality, and it just gave me a more mature perspective on the value of life. Everyone's life.

Honestly, I can say there are only a few events in my life that drastically changed who I am (for the better), which are my marriage, the birth of my son, and my grandfather's death. I would honestly say that powerlifting and BJJ are right up there, a notch below though.
 
Ippy said:
Damn.

Why does it seem so many people have trouble balancing IRL responsibilities and BJJ?

I'd totally understand if you laid out some ground rules in a relationship (which I've done in the past), like a minimum of 2 days to train, complaint free, but every fucking day, dude? That's an easy 1.5 hours just for class, then you gotta start tacking on time for showering, commute, laundry...
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I think the best way is to get your spouse involved. My wife loves the fact that I'm not a couch potato anymore, but I can tell that my new passion is taking a significant amount of time we would otherwise spend together. So this past saturday a few training friends got together and we met at a bar and I brought my wife along. She met a lot of my new friends and their spouses and had a great time. Eventually I'd like to get her involved in the training.
 
1neeto said:
I think the best way is to get your spouse involved. My wife loves the fact that I'm not a couch potato anymore, but I can tell that my new passion is taking a significant amount of time we would otherwise spend together. So this past saturday a few training friends got together and we met at a bar and I brought my wife along. She met a lot of my new friends and their spouses and had a great time. Eventually I'd like to get her involved in the training.
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Yeah, that's a smart way to go about it.

Either start a relationship with someone who already trains, or try to get them interested. If they like to work out already, it'll make the latter much easier.
 
It definitely humbles me, at the same time as it gives me more confidence, which may seem contradictory but it`s not. Also gives me a certain inner peace that is hard to describe, but for example it makes the threshold of being irritated by others be much farther away. Also learning to be comfortable when uncomfortable, and having a more strategic calm way of dealing with difficult situations in life.
 
i would say the best thing about it so far has been having a competitive outlet after college. I was an athlete in school and needed something to strive for once that was done.

also, it seems like a decent amount of people met their women thru bjj? my school is literally all dudes haha
 
two herniated discs, messed up knees, knuckles and toes, chipped tooth, fractured floating ribs...
 
but confidence is the #1 thing it gave me and the ability to critically examine people and life situations in general.

8 years of training
 
I'm not gonna count injuries:

I never travelled before starting bjj. quit my job a few years back sold everything and moved to brazil (after about 3yrs of sub grappling, and 1 year of BJJ). Came back with a blue belt. Prior the Brazil move I had never even been on a plane.

Have travelled to a few different gyms since then - hoping to make it to NYC to train at Marcelo's this year but finances are not looking good.

Have met some really cool people and about 4-5 people i keep in touch with that I met in Brazil - that I would have never in million years met otherwise.

My trip to Brazil - the first time I'd ever seen the ocean and swam in it.

Has helped with self confidence to an extent - more so just humility.

The past 3yrs have been off and on training - mostly off.
 
Jiu Jitsu fundamentally changed the way I think. I am always asking myself

"How can I use this?"

Instead of being mad about stuff that happens, I try to take the move that I am given.
 
It helped me do the thing I love the best, better and more often - kick people in the face - because now they know that if they take me down, if they can, that they have to deal with the greatness of my kimura.
 
Ippy said:
Damn.

Why does it seem so many people have trouble balancing IRL responsibilities and BJJ?

I'd totally understand if you laid out some ground rules in a relationship (which I've done in the past), like a minimum of 2 days to train, complaint free, but every fucking day, dude? That's an easy 1.5 hours just for class, then you gotta start tacking on time for showering, commute, laundry...
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I all comes down to maturity and understanding priorities.

I didnt just train BJJ, but Muay Thai and MMA as well.

Wish I knew then what I know now!
 
confidence to take on all aspects of life off the mat. I started training at 22. just finished my bachelors degree. Had no direction in life. BJJ has motivated me, allowed me to train and compete in Brazil, met some of my best friends.

In the last 10 years, I found my wife, I took an LSAT, went to top law school, passed CA bar exam, now still training and doing criminal law. The adrenaline rush you get from doing a jury trial, is the same rush from stepping on the mat at a tournament. Kill or be killed.

Its not just BJJ, but anything that inspires you. I know crossfit people that use the competitive nature of their workouts to push themselves.
 
I'm an all around better athlete.

More flexible, better cardio, joint mobility improved, overall stronger, less muscle imbalances, improved balance, speed, timing and power production.

Plus all the mental shit.

Bjj + wrestling is solid.
 
I'm so much more calm in life after starting bjj. I think a lot clearer too. My son started at the same time I did and went from a "D" student to the honor roll. I truly believe the bjj helped him there. on the other hand I had a labral tear in my left shoulder and currently have a broken finger but I still love bjj none the less.
 
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