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A training weekend with an old friend

This weekend I was fortunate to train with my friend Tim Sledd at his gym in Bedford, In. Tim is a Atos black belt and is just one those really good guys you meet in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. Anytime I am around him he just seems to spew out positive energy and encouragement. We first met one another in 2006 at a small tournament here in Louisville, Ky. He was actually my first match as a purple belt and I still remember how strong his grip felt the first time we locked up. When I pulled away to break the grip my gi gave before his grip did. I heard a ripping sound and looked down to see a tear in my lapel. After this we had a great match and have been friends since. Periodically we talk, and here and there we‘ve able to squeeze in a training session together. Although I have to admit, now that his gym is closer I will probably make the trip more often.

Jiu-jitsu in a small town

While my students and I were driving through Bedford we couldn’t help but notice that it is quite a small town. Not that there is anything wrong with this, but I find it awesome that nowadays you can find highly trained instructors even in rather small towns. Tim and I spoke about this and how it’s a far cry from the days when we began our Jiu-jitsu journey. Back when we started, if you would have told someone that there were going to be two accomplished black belts training in the area, well. . . it would have been a big event! Now you have two black belts meeting up with their students casually for a nice training session as if it was no big deal.

We eventually arrived at Tim’s gym which was situated in what I assume to be kind of the downtown district of the area. All the buildings were made of brick and had the “window store” style appearance from the outside. His gym was easy to spot as the Small Axe BJJ symbol was displayed on the gym door, oh and because the windows of the gym were fogged up from the activity inside. This is always a good sign in my book. Once inside I figured out why the windows were so foggy. . . it was a sauna inside! The heat belching out of the air vents combined with the heat of bodies in motion made for a nice muggy, steamy training session. He was a great host to me and my students and we all enjoyed the techniques he covered. I had never seen some of the details that he showed so I was sure to write them down in my BJJ journal. The rolling went really well and when it was time to step off the mat there were pools of sweat to remind us of the effort we had just put out.

After the training session when my students and I got a bite to eat, we all talked about the great experience we had. The rolling was good, Tim showed some very solid techniques, and we learned a lot from the training.

BJJ Guys

One of the things I love about Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, is the people you meet. I’ve met so many awesome human beings over the years. Some of them didn’t even speak much English which posed a problem for holding conversation, but that didn’t stop us from forming a bond through training.

Tim is no exception and he is a person whom I have a good deal of admiration for. He seems to have a good balance in his life which is something I don’t possess quite yet. He is able to balance training, running a gym, having a demanding job and being a devoted father and husband to his family. This is no easy task!

Stay humble

Not all BJJ practitioners have such an endearing reputation though. Some tend to have a negative attitude fueled by their disrespect to others or arrogance, and this creates a less than favorable presence around others.

Now, if you are a seasoned BJJ practitioner then you are already aware of the great relationships you build through this sport. If you are a new comer to this sport then you will see as you continue your journey, the life changing relationships you will make along the way. That is of course, If you stay humble and respectful. The sport would be incomplete if you removed the amazing bond between its participants. But the only way to foster this bond and these relationships is to stay humble and respectful. To be blunt, no one wants to train with or be around an arrogant dick who is full of himself and rubs it in people’s face when he taps them out. Remember there is way more to this sport than being the bad ass on the mat ripping people’s limbs off.

So stay humble and respectful, this way you can get the full benefit of the Brazilian Jiu-jitsu experience. Remember, its more than just tapping people out.

BJJ has so many benefits. Everything from physical fitness to mental well being. I think it’s one of the reasons it’s so popular and why people often get “bit by the bug” after training for just a very short time. I noticed these benefits when I first started training, and have noticed them with my students as well. They vary from person to person, but typically have a very positive effect on everyone’s physical and mental health.

One of the benefits that has always had an overall positive impact on my life is the stress relief that comes from a great training session.

On many occasions, I find myself troubled by all sorts of problems as I head to the gym. At times I feel overwhelmed and as if the proverbial “light at the end of the tunnel” is nowhere to be found, but nevertheless, as I walk through the doors of my gym, I am greeted by the contagious smiles of my friends and students. Almost immediately my body queues itself up for training, and seems to turn the tide on the bad mood I walked in with. I then take in the distinct smell of the gym — depending on the time of day, it may smell like bleach and cleaning supplies, or a sort of misty sweat. There is also the sensation of putting the gi on, as the kimono’s thick cotton construction brushes along my, and ends with tying the belt around my waist.

Likewise, the feeling of the firm, yet slightly giving mat below my feet, coupled with the unique sound of my feet touching the mat as I walk to greet my training partners and students. Finally comes the sound of a gi scraping across the mat as we perform warm up drills. That sound. . . gives me a strange feeling of comfort. I know it may sound silly, but even when I watch an instructional or techniques demonstration from the seat of a chair at home, and I hear the sound of kimono moving along the mat, I instantly have a slight feeling of comfort.

My body and mind is conditioned by these smells, sounds, and feelings since they are always followed by a training session. A good workout always leaves me more mentally relaxed and happier in general, but it also allows me to clear my head of negative thoughts and feelings that once seemed unbearable and to think more rationally. This side effect of training has been invaluable to me over the years. When I was 18, one of my old lifting mentors said to me, “Nicky, I never make a tough decision until after a good lift”. Although he was referring to lifting weights, the same endorphin boosting properties of a good lift with friends, are fully present in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu training.

I like post relatable personal experiences, so I will do the same in this post. In August 2010 my mother was diagnosed with cancer. Over the next year I would experience the hardest thing I’d ever had to deal with in my life. I moved in with my mom to help provide better care and make sure she always had someone around. I would take her to treatments, cook her meals, talk to her, etc. Things that I know we would all do or have already done. Without my students, gym and training, I am not sure what kind of mental state I would have been in. The whole ordeal was incredibly taxing and broke me down mentally more than people probably knew. Hell, more than I knew at the time. When you are in the middle of something like that you have no idea just how much of a toll it’s taking on you until it is over. Those hours that I spent on the mat teaching and training provided me with a release and a few hours for my brain to turn off. When it was over I would go back to reality to face the stressors, but I could face them with a renewed sense of strength and resolve that came from the stress relief of the training. Over the course of the year the cancer did what cancer does, and my mother passed away in July of 2012. The release provided from training allowed me to be there for my mother in any way I could be, and helped me to be happy and perky around her, even if deep down I wasn’t. Along with this, the support from my friends at the gym was amazing and it made things so much easier to bear.

So, next time you’re feeling a little crummy, depressed, frustrated, overwhelmed, upset or just down right terrible, be sure to make it in to your BJJ Academy. Converse with your friends, perform the drills and techniques, roll and let your brain turn off for a while so that you can be clear headed for yourself and your loved ones.

Thanks for reading and as always be free to share your thoughts or experiences.

—Chewy

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A training weekend with an old friend

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