The Old Man BJJ Life

Overload.  It's the overwhelming feeling my brain experiences being new to BJJ.  It started day one of my journey and continues today.  However as time has passed that feeling of overload has been less frequent. So a little about me (not like many people care),  I'm what most would consider ADD.  For me to hold a single thought longer than three seconds is truly a miracle.  I can't help it, because it's the way I'm wired.  I don't consider myself defective nor do I use it as an excuse.   However it is my reality. Where this becomes problematic for me is at the very beginning of learning new subject material.  When I'm overwhelmed with new concepts, definitions, theories...etc.  So understanding how I process information, helps me with organizing my memories in such a fashion that eventually I can recall it and tie it to other concepts. What does that overwhelming sense of overload have to do with BJJ?  For me personally it means it's going to be a lo

So how did my journey begin? It started by making a decision. I had previously attended the same school I'm attending now, just a few years prior.  However attending is a very loose description, because it lasted about two months and I only really participated in the conditioning class.   I recall, attending a couple of BJJ classes during that time, however I believe it was more the introductory classes and I never committed to attending.  Either way though, at some point I decided to stop attending all togethor, thus making me a self-imposed drop out.  My decision to leave was based upon how I felt others perceived me.  I allowed my perceived inadequacies to conjure up irrational fears, baseless of any facts. So what fears prevented me from being further along in my journey than where I'm currently at today?  They were my struggles with weight, attitude and confidence.  The same fears that a lot of other people deal with.  And trust me, I've heard it from other people

Quite simply, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu or BJJ as commonly referred to by most practitioners, has changed my life forever.  For most people, they have no idea as to what BJJ truly is.  I dare say, that if anyone has heard of BJJ, most think of it as just another style of "martial arts".  And you know what...their right.  However there is more to it than that.  Because for most of those who practice BJJ, it is their lifestyle, their lifeblood! In order to truly understand what BJJ is, you must first understand where it originated.  And to spare the average reader the pain of reading it's history, I'll explain it one brief sentance.  It's birth Japan, it's roots Brazil and it's popularity American.  BJJ quite simply is a defensive art, consisting primarily of grappling techniques.  Now there is quite a bit more to it than that.  But for the average lay person, that is the high level view of BJJ for now. So the question becomes, how does it change a person?  We