Starting off and progress so far...

As of today I've been doing MMA and BJJ for a little over 2 weeks? Officially I've only taken three classes but I train after hours and on open mat days as well. Luckily I was introduced to it all by my friend Antonio and have taken to training with him and his mates. This means I'll have that little bit of group motivation and also that I've got people to teach me outside of class. This also means I get a lift from Antonio most days :).

First Classes:
I was excited that first day, waiting eagerly at home for Antonio to pick me up. When he had eventually found my house, I got into the car and we did the usual small talk on the way to his place to pick things up before heading to the gym.We also had to pick his friend Bruce up, but Antonio only realised after we were halfway to the gym.When Bruce was safely acquired we finally made it to the gym, halfway through warm ups... Admittedly I felt a little awkward rocking up late like that but I don't think anyone cared, I also was thankful that like most martial arts clubs there is that general rule that 1st lessons are free. As I stood about watching the boys join in, April the instructors girlfriend came up to introduce herself, I said I was here to check out the class and contemplate whether I'd join the gym. She immediately encouraged me to jump in straight away if I wanted but I was shy at first and opted to ask her a few questions about the classes. Once I had gathered that pricing was reasonable and comforted in the fact I wasn't the only female around I began to relax. Then with April's friendly prompting I decided to hop on the mat alongside Antonio who was still warming up and went through a routine with him.

Standard warm up:
-1 min of footwork back and fourth.
-20 squats with a sweep of the hands to the floor and a hop.
-20 push ups, elbows in, on your knees optional.
-20 raised leg sit ups/crunches
all X 4-5

I only had to do it all once then and probably give or take a few of each. Although for the next class I went through most of it. It's so much fun getting back into pushing my body, the burn of lactic acid was a welcome feeling. I did however get a little bit of chest pain from the exertion but a breath or two of Ventolin later I was fine again.

During the first lesson I had already made my mind up to join immediately. So I signed up and agreed to pay the monthly fee asap.

My instructor has also just introduced a Women's Self Defence and Fitness class, for the total of 4 women currently part of the club and I've happily incorporated it into training as it's conveniently held just before normal classes and I'm always up for extra training. The first lesson was a little difficult to take seriously, as we had to go through scenarios where we were being intimidated and needed to respond safely to each. The defenses were effective and practical but the reason we couldn't keep a straight face for most of the class was because our instructor and another member Bob put us in fits of giggles with the terrible acting.

Reginald is our instructor, a Shootfighting(MMA) Black Belt, BJJ Purple Belt and Certified Personal Fitness Trainer. Basically he's a little tank of a man. Now in the first MMA and BJJ classes I think we went through some clinch/take down techniques and light sparring/strike practice with gloves. Then later on some ground stuff, like full guard and side control to mount drills, which are great fun to participate in. Not to mention when I actually get to roll with (grapple/wrestle) someone it's phenomenally exhilarating and each challenge is a wonderful little puzzle to work out with your body, getting time to grapple one of the reasons our small group stays back after hours. I have countless bruises from these experiences but they don't feel anything as bad as they look, most don't hurt at all, I just happen to bruise very easily, but that fact doesn't help to quell the shock of my poor mother when I get home from training.

I am still on a very basic level, but I am happy to work on what I've learnt until the drills and techniques have become healthy habit. Discovering the correct ways to stand, punch and kick was a good insight to controlling my body better and being aware of myself. Most notably the activity in general has improved my health and mood, I miss regular exercise and getting back into it is the best feeling ever, especially with such an intense full body sport. I have thoroughly enjoyed my experience so far and I'm glad to have found such a nice club to be part of. My new found friends are a blast to train with too.

Hopefully I will stick to my game, because this is one of the best things I've started in a long time.

<3 Cc