Boost Your Mental Health
The Ultimate Guide to Combating Anxiety Through Fitness
Learn how to create a morning routine that helps you start your day with calm and confidence. Discover practical tips and strategies to reduce stress and improve your mental well-being.
My First Jiu-Jitsu Class
Yesterday evening I went for my first Jiu-Jitsu class. My children have already been taking lessons for the past few weeks, but I felt that I needed to join up myself, to help them train properly and also for myself. I had read some time ago that this martial art was beneficial for mental health, so I needed to give it a go.
I got there and stayed through the children’s class until the time came for the ‘Senior’ class. I’d never been there before and didn’t know what to expect that the class was for the same length of time that the ‘Junior’ class was. So, the time arrived, and apart from my own family, the Sensei and her son, there were two other students – male and female. He was in his 20s, and the female student, my wife recognised at the swimming, was a mother who was a bit older. It was decision time.
The first class was free, but I had shoulder pain and didn’t want to distress it. At the same time, I was there and I didn’t want to be at home, regretting anything. I made the decision and stayed.
The two other students were yellow belts, so though they weren’t experts, they did at least have more experience and training than I had.
We had our warm up, which was fairly easy and then we got into rolling. I had done some of this at home on mats we bought just for this purpose but now I was doing it in front of the Sensei and these two students who, in my mind, were the experts. The other male student, showed some hesitation, since rolling was not something that he had been doing every day and therefore, had perfected it. That reassured me. I watched him doing two rolls and was suitably impressed. I thought, ‘I have to do and I want to do it. I’m just nervous. It’s just nerves.’
The rest of the lesson was about how to deal with an attacker choking me from behind and in front. There were three different ways to escape from each. I was shown each one and tried to remember the moves, which wasn’t so easy, but I did it. The others were… impressed. I felt good.
So, we continued for the rest of the hour, practising these moves on each other, talking about them, and it all felt really good. I wasn’t injured. I did though, meet new people and got to know my Sensei better. She was lovely and did a fantastic job at teaching us.
We finished the class and I can definitely say I’m going back. I had read before that martial arts were very beneficial for anxiety, and I’m find that it’s true, at least for me. When I’m focusing on the moves and trying to get them right and getting very physical in a very safe environment, my mind is not focused on worries or other concerns in my life.
Overall, I really enjoyed it and now I’m more fascinated than ever to learn this martial art even more. I encourage you to start learning too. Get a good dojo, a good teacher, take it slowly, learn well and practise it as much as you can. I just regret not starting this years ago!