#6: Why I do Jiu Jitsu

What got me started and why I've stuck with it

I get asked a lot about why I do jiu jitsu, and what got me started down the path.

So, here we go...

How I got started

My first jiu jitsu class was October 5, 2020. I had been a big fan of Jocko for years, had listened to Joe Rogan plenty, and had started listening to Lex Fridman. As I became a bigger fan a Lex was when I figured I had to at least give this jiu jitsu thing a try. These were 3 individuals who lived extremely different lives, had different perspectives on things, and had mastered different skills and in various areas of life. Yet, they were all black belts in this jiu jitsu thing.

So, I figured it was worth attending a few classes to find out if jiu jitsu resonated with me. I didn't know if it'd be something I'd love and continue to do, in fact I would have put the odds against me continuing it for the long term. Mainly because up to that point, I had never been big on organized workout classes as an adult.

My first class was a gi class, but since I primarily went during lunch hours I quickly got into no-gi primarily. I ended up loving it and have continued practicing relatively consistently for 3 years.

Here's why...

1. Mental reps of not quitting

In jiu jitsu I get put in situations where I want to quit. Like really, really want to quit.

If you played sports as a kid, you know the feeling of doing sprints. That feeling after the 10th or 11th or 12th sprint, and you know there's more to come. That feeling where you know you're not going to catch your breath by the time the clock hits zero, but you have to start the next sprint anyways. And on your weaker days, maybe a thought comes into your head on how much of a relief it'd be if you just didn't have to do that next one. Part of you wishes you could quit, but you don't quit.

Every time you overcame that, you got a little more confident. Not just in the sport, but in life. You were put in a situation were you wanted to quit but you didn't. You proved to yourself that you could overcome that.

These situations are extremely valuable, and they occur in many different scenarios in life, not just sprints. And for a time in my life, when it came to physical workouts, I lost that. It's hard to push yourself to that level on a consistant basis, and the longer you go without doing that, the further away you are from knowing that you can.

So, imagine that exact scenario of sprints, but when you're out of breath you have the added benefit of a 250 pound dude on top of you trying to choke you out, and that's jiu jitsu. Not quitting is a skill, and jiu jitsu helps me build that skill.

2. It keeps me humble

Getting smashed on a daily basis keeps me grounded. It's easy to move up in one hierarchy in life and think you're the king of the world, when in reality your king of just this one little world that you're living in.

When you tap out, you're admitting defeat. You're acknowledging that someone bested you. You're acknowledging that you have room to grow and there's things you don't know, which means that you have things to learn. There are always things to learn in every domain of your life, no matter how good you are at anything. Getting choked out is a very good reminder of that.

3. Physical and mental chess

As you start getting better at jiu jitsu, you start seeing how much strategy is involved. How many moves are you thinking ahead? What are your strengths and weaknesses to use against different opponents?

If you have someone close to you in skill level and size during your journey, you'll find this strategy keeps getting deeper and deeper. There will be opponents where out of 10 rounds, maybe they'll tap you out once and you'll get them twice, and the other 7 end in a draw. These rounds push you mentally. You have to react in real time to what your opponent is doing and make adjustments. You have to think ahead of your opponent as well as physically accomplish it. For anyone who enjoys strategy games, this is a blast.

4. It's an effective workout

Echoing some thoughts from reason number 1, jiu jitsu is one heck of a workout. A single intense 5-minute round can be extremely exhausting. Stack 5 intense rolls in a row and in a matter of 30 minutes you've given yourself a workout for the day you'll undoubtably be proud of and better for. That can be just as cardio intensive as any other 30 minute workout with the additional benefit of a ton of fun.

One last thought

For anyone who may think about giving jiu jitsu a try, it's important to know that it will take some time to figure it out. You're going to go in and get absolutely smashed by people smaller than you to start, which is a bit of a hit to the ego. But, you'll live in lessons #1 and #2 that I have listed here, and you'll be better off for it. It's easy as you get better to try to avoid getting smashed at the pace you do early on, and that's something that now I focus on making sure I continue to do.