Blue Belt by Accident, Gremlin by Nature

They often speak about them in hushed tones — upper belt females. They’re not really on an endangered species list when it comes to the jiu jitsu and judo realm — they’re more of a mythical creature. A cryptid, really.

I mean, we probably share a lot of similarities with cryptids: mildly threatening, haggard-looking, only seen terrorizing the villagers once every two to three years.

But here I am, at this present time (June 2025) — a one-stripe blue belt cryptid. Becoming a blue belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu was never on my life goal list. The cards were stacked against me: only yoga, passive cardio, no athletic background, no team sports. Just a weak, asthmatic child. On some days — in spite of my vendetta against my defective lungs — I still sound like a weak, asthmatic child (looking at you, Canadian wildfire smoke).

I had started going to hot yoga in town in fall of 2021 and was having a great experience discovering what my body was capable of. Then, as fate would have it, came my student – Joe. I work as a pronunciation coach (which you’d already know if you read my bio). My student was working on ways to pronounce jiu jitsu moves correctly; shrimp, armbar, guard, and such. I had told him I was considering starting jiu jitsu thanks to my poor taste in men and penchant to listen to the Joe Rogan Experience (yeah leave hateful comments, I’ll laugh and sip wine as I read them) and I asked him if I should do it – which was met with an immediate yes, DO IT.

I found a local dojo in the area and off I started on my journey. In my first class, I couldn’t even complete a shrimp. I wasn’t even able to do a simple guard passing exercise (passing someone having their legs wrapped around your waist to keep you there) because I had also accidentally stabbed myself with a knife on the day of my class (don’t ask). So, there I was, in my first class, with a cute headband (so adorable, I thought it would stay), looking overwhelmed, bewildered and like I did not belong and I would quit within the next month.

Oh, yeah. I also went to hot yoga right before, still bleeding from my self inflicted stab wound (don’t call any helplines, I’m just stupid), and refused to skip class. I also snagged a snack from a Chinese buffet with a friend — who vehemently tried to talk me out of going to hot yoga and then my first jiu jitsu class (again, don’t ask for details on that fight or the friend). But this bish was determined. I was going.

After that first class of fighting hot yoga, blood, a knife, and possibly the maker of Heaven and Earth, I figured, hey, it’s only up from here, right?

Spoiler Alert: Just kidding. It gets much worse. You’re only going down from here.

I did end up having a private class after that, and I remember I was able to pull off a half sickle sweep. That moment of realization — oh hey, wait, I think I might be able to do this?! — stuck with me.

The attitude that got me to the mats wasn’t the same one I needed to keep going. Some people say, “The hardest part is showing up.”

Yeah, false. Big, fat false.

The hardest part is continuing to show up.

Those small-but-huge areas of growth are incredibly motivating when you’re a white belt. Everything feels hard, and you don’t always realize that there are real limitations — ones that are unique to being a woman in a grappling martial art largely dominated by men. That truth becomes more obvious the longer you stay.

This isn’t necessarily good or bad. I’ve had difficult experiences with highly aggressive, motivated women in the sport — but I’ve had just as many positive ones with men as well. More on that (if I feel like writing about it) later.

The tenacity I spoke about earlier kept me pushing through the inevitable challenges that everyone faces in their jiu jitsu journey. During my time as a white belt, it completely changed how I viewed my own capabilities. I started realizing I could do more physically than I ever thought possible — not because I suddenly became athletic, but because I showed up and didn’t quit. That’s it. There’s no mythical secret to it.

You show up, when your body allows, and you make your body do the thing.

Sure, there are freaks of nature out there with God-tier athletic ability they were just born with — but for the rest of us, we have to negotiate with our bodies. Eventually, we learn to dictate what we want them to do. Jiu jitsu — and mentors like my buddy Doug Tussey — taught me that.

So there you have it. That’s how my jiu jitsu journey began: podcasts, an encouraging jiu jitsu-evangelist friend, sheer tenacity, and a tendency to hyperfocus. The same mindset that got me to the mats — and kept me from giving up — would have to be cultivated throughout my journey.

Maybe not just cultivated… maybe a different word would suffice. Intensified. Yes, that. That intensity was refined into a doctrine instead of just an impulsive whim. You’ll see as you continue reading. Until next time!