This week I graded for the first time in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, earning myself a little blue stripe on my white belt. Never before has a stripe made me so proud of myself.
When I was first thinking about starting BJJ, I felt intimidated. I knew at my school there was no women in the adult classes and the idea of training in such a rough sport, so close to large, sweaty men seemed like too much. However the feeling didn't last long.
Because when I analysed the feeling, I realised I was being a person that I didn't want to be. That person that quits before they even begin. That's not me. I don't ever want that to be me. So I trialled a class.
The moment I stepped onto the mats I was in love. Not once did I think about the fact I was training with men. Not once did I think this was too intimate a position. Not once did I want to get up and leave. I've been training regularly since.
Sure there are times when I have a bad night. Jiu Jitsu is making me face a fear I didn't even know I had until I started. There are also times when I want to yell at my training buddy for the night to stop treating me like a girl. Even moments where I wish there was another adult female with whom I could bitch about the pleasures of menstrual cramps meeting the infamous BJJ knee ride.
But all of that is NOTHING compared to the love I have for this sport. If you'd asked me at the beginning of 2014 whether I'd be remotely interested in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu I'd have looked at you like you'd grown an ear of corn outside your skull. Now, I can see myself doing this sport for a long time to come.
The little blue stripe is just the beginning of what I hope to be a long, fulfilling Jiu Jitsu journey.
Mad <3
Alysha
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