About Why I Scrap

There is a story behind every person that steps on the mat to train and/or compete in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Taking up martial arts training is both one of the most natural and unnatural activities one can take up as a hobby. On one hand, part of our programming is to hunt and fight, which Jiu Jitsu helps simulate. On the other hand is the potential social stigma of competing. Some may consider martial arts or any form of combat sport to be violent, uncivil, not lady like, or just weird.

This blog is dedicated to learning more about the average, everyday people who trains and how training in Jiu Jitsu has impacted their lives. Please ignore my first two posts. I am using those MMA stories as fillers for now, so my page doesn't look so bare. 

I will close with Joe Rogan's Black Belt speech which rings true for the fresh white belt who has been curious about the sport for a long time and finally itched that scratch in their soul to the seasoned black belt with gnarled fingers and cauliflower ears.

“Out of all the shit I’ve done in my life…becoming really good at jiu jitsu is probably one of the most difficult things a person can do and I think it helps me with everything I do. I think the more I train and the more I meet people who are in jiu jitsu…people who are in jiu jitsu and train on a regular basis, they’re healthier people. Their egos are healthier. Especially men. They’re easier to talk to. They’re easier to hang out with. Because they’re facing reality on a regular basis.

Something that my tae kwon do teacher told me when I was a little kid that I never forgot was that martial arts are a vehicle for developing your human potential. And nothing in my life has ever put me in face with reality better than jiu jitsu. In life, we can all distort our perception of things in order to make ourselves more comfortable, in order to make ourselves accept where we are. And there’s a lot of people out there that are running around in life full of shit. You can’t be full of shit when you do jiu jitsu. When you do jiu jitsu, its impossible to be full of shit because reality comes at you in the purest form possible: A life or death struggle, using your determination, your focus, your techniques, your mind, and your training, over and over and over again.

“And its reality. And if you fuck up and you get caught in a triangle, you’ve gotta tap. That is the end of story. It’s as real as it can get and that has made me a better person. It has made me a better man, it’s made me understand myself, my weaknesses, my strengths, the shit I need to work on. Jiu jitsu has been one of the most valuable tools that I’ve ever had in my life.”