Gracie Barra Jiu-Jitsu: Fitness Doesn’t Have to be BORING!

Lets get real.  You are probably tired of going to the gym and getting on the treadmill and ending up completely bored. But, you are not alone. Many of our students couldn’t find ways to stay entertained while working out and eventually stopped going altogether. They found that BJJ was the perfect fitness program because it requires a high level of concentration proportional to the amount of calories burned and pounds lost.  You don’t have to be in shape to get started.  What’s more, you’ll still learn to defend yourself. It’s a win-win situation. Getting in shape for the summer doesn’t have to be an unhappy grind.

So what benefits does Gracie Barra Jiu-Jitsu really offer?

Self Defense

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) has proven itself time and time again to be one of the most effective forms of martial arts on the planet. If you are familiar with MMA at all then you can see that every single fighter has some form of ground grappling training, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu dominates this category. With pugilistics (punching and kicking) you have what we call a “fighter’s chance”, meaning that there is always a chance you could land that lucky punch or kick against anyone. But, in jiu jitsu there is no such thing. You either know jiu jitsu or you don’t.

Gracie Barra, Jiu Jitsu, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, BJJ, Gracie Barra Mansfield, Martial arts, carlos machado, FitnessBrazilian Jiu-Jitsu is the great equalizer and many liken it to human chess. By utilizing leverage and technique you close the strength and size gap and can allow a smaller, weaker person to defeat a larger, stronger opponent.

“When we go to the ground, you are in my world. The ground is the ocean, I am the shark, and most people don’t even know how to swim.”

Health and Weight Loss

Our students have shared stories with us and many were struggling with weight loss or fitness in general before beginning their training. By training and doing something they loved they inherently lost weight in the pursuit of self-improvement on and off the mats.

Gracie Barra, BJJ, Womens Fitness, Fitness, Self Defense, Jiu JitsuWhen you walk into a Gracie Barra and ask students what BJJ has done for them, many respond with things like, “I’ve lost a lot of weight,” or “I have so much more energy now.” Most newcomers underestimate the amount of physical activity that is involved with grappling with a live resisting partner.

People rarely begin jiu jitsu with the mindset or intention training more than once or twice a week, but find out how much they love it and the lifestyle they once lived has evolved into the one they live now. By training in jiu jitsu they found the motivation to reinvent themselves into the people that they are today.

Stress Relief & Confidence

The stresses that plague our lives are innumerable. BJJ creates an outlet for that stress in a productive way.

In an article, UFC Commentator and BJJ Black Belt Joe Rogan states, “Also, I like blowing off stress. One of the most underrated aspects of exercise is the effect on the mind. […] I think they’re doing their mind a disservice by not clearing out all the cobwebs that come from stress and hormones building up. There is all sorts of fight or flights— going on and reward systems that are in place in your body that are not being managed by day to day society working in a cubicle or sitting in your car in traffic. There are all sorts of things that your body doesn’t do that it’s sort of designed to do.”

Much of our student base come from the Arlington Police Department where, often, their very lives depend on diffusing dangerous situations in a quick and effective manner.

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Our students become confident in themselves by using what they’ve learned on the mats in other areas of their lives. No other sport or fitness program puts you in a position where at full speed you have to overcome numerous obstacles. Strength and size disadvantages. Keeping cool under stress. Using critical thinking and problem solving to decide your next course of action. Emotions. Fatigue.

So what is it that’s stopping you from getting started?

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