Below you will find the reasons I train. It's a working list that I posted on my blog quite sometime ago. Some of the reasons are about self improvement, some about vanity, and others are really just statements about life.
Why I Train?
#1. BJJ is great exercise. Training is a full-body weight and cardio workout. In my late teens and early twenties, I was a long distance cyclist. I loved my time on the bike and wouldn't trade the lessons of patience and endurance that cycling taught me. Having said that, I would rather train in BJJ then lift, run, cycle, rock climb, swim, or throw/kick/hit a ball.
#2. BJJ satisfies my competitive nature. I'm a very competitive person, and the act of training gives me a constructive outlet.
#3. BJJ is difficult for me. I have to work - really work hard - to get better at BJJ. I think about it, train hard, and give it everything I can. There are many things I have a talent for and have come easily (academics, business skills, public speaking, etc), but BJJ reminds me that struggling to improve is an important aspect of life.
#4. BJJ accommodates my body type. As someone who is middle age, standing only 5'4" tall and weighing about 118 pounds, I'm not likely to succeed at football, basketball, or most other sports where I'd compete against people 5" - 12" taller than me and 50 - 100 pounds heavier. BJJ has weight divisions, making it perhaps the ideal sport for small guys.
#5. BJJ teaches me patience and perseverance. I was a blue belt for over five years, and expect it will take at least as much time to get promoted to brown. I completed my undergraduate degree in less time than took to go from blue to purple! It requires patience to keep coming to 3 - 4 classes a week and "plod" the road to greater skill and accomplishment.
#6. BJJ removes my anxiety. All my life, I've had anxiety and obsessive compulsive behavior. I found early on that I can moderate this anxiety and OC behavior with extreme physical activity leading to exhaustion or I can medicate it. I prefer extreme physical activity.
#7. BJJ forces intense focus and concentration. I love those life experiences where everything drops away and all I focus on is the task at hand. I'm not distracted by a work issue, not thinking about a conversation I need to have, not thinking about a home renovation. In my life, I've only experienced such intense periods of focus on a regular basis through three activities: training BJJ; cycling; and taking exams.
#8. BJJ makes me a more interesting person. Everyone has hobbies: reading, playing video games, working out, etc. But BJJ is one of the more unique hobbies someone can have. Looking at the rest of my life, it is a hobby most folks would not expect of me.
#9. BJJ introduces me to more interesting people. I don't recall a time when I've met a more eclectic and interesting group of people in one room. At my BJJ gym, you'll find people who have Ph.D's training alongside people who dropped out of high school after getting just D's. You'll find liberal peace-niks spending time with gun-toting conservatives. Law enforcement officers, convicted felons, business owners, government bureaucrats, construction workers, and doctors can all be found at my gym. And they all get along!
#10. BJJ overcomes my petty biases. Because of the great diversity of people BJJ exposes me to, my stereotypes are silently challenged and I find greater commonalities with all types of people now. My world view has broadened significantly because of BJJ.
#11. BJJ fills the time. Assuming a life expectancy of 74.5 years (
CIA - The World Factbook 2002 -- United States), I have 652,629 hours to enjoy. Of these, I've used over half (I'm 39 years old). Between now and death, I will hopefully enjoy a little less than 330,000 hours and I need to find a way to use these hours. These hours can be meaningful or meaningless; boring or exciting. I'm going for meaningful and exciting.
Note: in writing this, I realized for the first time that I'm actually about half-way through this journey called life. I experienced a small existential crisis, similar to the feeling I get when I'm on vacation and it's halfway through the week.
#12. BJJ could extend that time. Fit people live longer. I'd love to make it past 74.5 years.
#13. BJJ teaches me that skill beats raw power. When I go up against a white belt who's 50% heavier than me but has no skill, I'm in awe of the fact that skill beats raw power. This is true throughout life: a genius who's never trained his mind is of less use than a person of average intelligence who has pursued education.
#14. BJJ makes me aware of my body. Most people walk around without any aches or pains, and they don't think "I'm lucky that nothing hurts today". With BJJ, some days I'm sore, some days I'm not. Some days a joint hurts, some days it doesn't. Regardless, though, I'm always AWARE of whether I feel pain on a given day.
#15. BJJ teaches me respect for the human body. What a magnificent and beautiful machine the human body is. It can roll, flip, throw others, etc. But move one joint a few degrees in the wrong direction and it's out of commission.
#16. BJJ is primal. The word primal comes from the latin "Primus" (nominative, singular, masculine) for "first". BJJ, like all combat sports, was "first". Before we had bats, balls, frisbees, sticks, pucks, bicycles, etc, we had just our own bodies. Therefore, testing ourselves against another human could only be done through some form of combat sport.
