This past Sunday I went out to Sugarland to go to an open mat. Renzo Gracie Houston school opens up their doors for a free open mat from 10 to 12. People from all over Houston come to “roll” with new people. I’ve not been in a couple of months so I decided I need to come out. I get so nervous coming out to open mat. I’m a 42 year old dorky guy that started training at age 40. Although BJJ is my main hobby I have lots of higher priorities in life. I wish I could turn the nervousness off. I know the owner of Renzo Gracie, Professor Brian Marvin. He and his students are great. The “vibe” at his open mat is phenomenal. It’s just people who love BJJ coming out to test their individual BJJ skills.
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is an incredibly physically and mentally challenging sport. I started BJJ at age 40 because I wanted to get in better shape and needed mores consistency in my workouts. Plus, I thought it would be cool to choke people out!
Today was a good day. I was able to get some good rolls in and went against people that were comparable in skill level. In the last couple of open mats, I was on defense 100% of the time and just got destroyed. This time I was on offense about 40% of the time. I got to the mount position and was trying to get an arm in triangle choke. My opponent was defending. Then a light bulb went off in my head “Hey Michael you dummy, we literally just went over this yesterday”. So, I switched to an Americana armlock and got the tap.
At my school I’m still one of the lowest people on the totem-pole so I am usually on defense and fighting just to stay alive. It was refreshing that indeed I do know some BJJ techniques.
I left Renzo Gracie open mat feeling great. I was drenched in sweat and got a good workout. Plus, I was able to use techniques to actually do something that resembled Jiu Jisu.
My BJJ journey continues…
Want to see what Brazillian Jiu Jitsu is all about? Come train at Ravlin Martial Arts and find out for yourself how great BJJ is for the mind and body.
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