Issue 3 of the UK’s first dedicated BJJ-mag, Jiu Jitsu Style, proverbially hit the stands on 21 June. I’ve enjoyed contributing to JJS since its beginnings and I’m happy to announce the publication of my Families in BJJ article in edition 3. Inspired by the family-men who train with me at Dartford BJJ, I set out to investigate the benefits (or otherwise) of training as a family. In addition to interviews with Graham and Katja Birkett, a father-daughter duo training in rural Wales, and with Family Mat-ters and Ana Yagues BJJ. I am grateful for the words and thoughts supplied to me and I hope readers will come away with the same sense of positivity that affected me when reading stories of training BJJ as a family.
24 Jun 2011 @ 12:14 pm
One of the followers on my blog is “BJJ Mommy” and she would a perfect subject for you. Her entire family (her, husband, and two awesome sons) trains in BJJ. They are definitely leaders in our school and well respected.
Dag
24 Jun 2011 @ 12:16 pm
Awesome! Is that Jen of the Family Mat-ters blog or another BJJ-family?! I’m looking into investigating motherhood and BJJ a bit more closely and would love to be put in contact with your team mate.
26 Jun 2011 @ 10:17 am
Not me, but looking forward to checking out BJJ Mommy!
24 Jun 2011 @ 4:31 pm
I think it is a great thing to do bjj as a family. Not only do you bond over the ups and downs, but you also are working on a healthy lifestyle as a family. Great stuff, Meg!
24 Jun 2011 @ 4:34 pm
Thanks, Allie! That certainly seems to be the consensus from families who train together. Really positive to have a shared activity, plus the health-benefits of regular exercise. Do you train with your family children/partner?
25 Jun 2011 @ 3:10 am
My boys used to train with me in Karate and TKD. I can honestly say that martial arts is our common ground. It is the one thing that we can talk about no matter what. We love each other and respect each other, but lets face it… Everybody has days where they just don’t like each other, and on those days, we talk about martial arts. They are now 23 and 22.
25 Jun 2011 @ 10:31 am
Superb! Love the honesty of your comment 🙂
25 Jun 2011 @ 11:41 pm
Great to find you all here. I just stumbled upon your blog last week looking for a new Gi. I have been rolling for three months now and my son and husband are coming up on ten. We belong to a small club on the Sunshine coast of Australia and they are very welcoming and accommodating to all skill levels and needs of each student. My son is 15 now and our relationship continues to go from strength to strength. We still have the usual parent teenager struggles however we are able to discuss them respectfully with each other to resolve the issue or we can head down to the rumpas room and deal with it on the mat. He often comments to me that joining the club is the best thing we have ever done and I have to agree. I takes a community to raise a child and we have a great one at Advance Sunshine coast.
Side notes: I am 37, husband 39 and have another son who is 11. My 15 year old is about
to compete in Darwin next Saturday at the National titles – AFBJJ. I competed for the first time last Saturday – what a buzz.
Why have I written so much here? Because I love BJJ and what it has given my family. Good luck to you all in your BJJ journey.
See you on the mat
Jen x
27 Jun 2011 @ 7:35 am
Thank you for your comment, Jennifer, and for adding to the mounting evidence of the positive effect of BJJ on family-life. Your passion for BJJ and for how it has contributed to your family life is clear in your comments and exciting to learn that more families are making a BJJ a part of their lifestyle.
Well done on competing!
26 Jun 2011 @ 10:16 am
Thanks again for including us in this piece. Loved the article and reading about the other families.
26 Jun 2011 @ 1:42 pm
Hi Jen, thank you for reading and commenting. Glad you liked the piece and really enjoyed your comments here; love your family’s blog as it brings a different perspective to the BJJ discussion, not to mention it just oozes positivity, just like your comments here!
22 Jul 2011 @ 2:50 pm
Really enjoy your blog.
I think doing BJJ as a family would be great. My wife will not accept this though, no matter what I say. My 3-year old daughter is very interested in BJJ at the moment but I am not sure if that will last.
I also find that tehre are still lots of clubs who do not teach children. It is getting better but there is nowhere near to me that teaches children.
My family time as a child was spent at the pub, I hope to offer something more beneficial for my daughter.
Keep up the great articles.
22 Jul 2011 @ 3:00 pm
Hi Dan,
Thanks for your kind words and for taking the time to read and comment. Much appreciated!
There is certainly good evidence from families who do BJJ that it is a really positive shared activity and perhaps the JJS article or Family Mat-ters blog might sway your wife as further evidence of BJJ’s healthful and happy benefits?! Perhaps if she was able to try it herself in a women’s only environment that might help her to see how fun it is, though the art isn’t everyone’s cup of tea and it does put you out of your comfort zone to start, once you get stuck it is incredibly rewarding as you well know!
That is amazing to hear about your daughter and your commitment to quality time that is positive and healthy. Love it! Kids classes are in short supply and it seems many parents opt for judo until their children are old enough for BJJ, which is a bit of shame if you wish to train with your child. I suppose home training is possible, but it would be ideal to integrate mat time at the club with mat time with your daughter. Maybe get some of the other dads and moms at your club together and say, hey Coach, we’d love a class that includes kids! At our club, for instance, our BJJ Basics class is for juniors and adults, though juniors have to be at least 8. There’s no sparring in that class and it is followed by an intermediate class for adults only with sparring. Perhaps an approach that could work at your place?
Thanks again for visiting.
22 Jul 2011 @ 4:11 pm
That sounds like a great article. My husband, my 3 yr old daughter and myself train daily in BJJ. I have a few other families in my class where the entire family trains. It always makes me happy to be able to extend my love of BJJ to family circles! Nothing better to see it in action, in class, in competitions….and you never run out of training partners!
22 Jul 2011 @ 4:13 pm
Thank you Suay! My subjects in the article, as with you and so many families in BJJ who share their experiences, make it clear with their passion and enthusiasm that BJJ can be a natural part of family life. Love the attitude and awesome to hear that it is an integral part of your club.
Blogshere Report
25 Jul 2011 @ 10:12 pm
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Blogsphere Report, July 2011 | Combat Sports Review Blog
25 Jul 2011 @ 10:19 pm
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