I Finally Go Brazilian…

After several attempts by my friend to persuade me to try going Brazilian, I finally did it last night and thankfully it didn’t hurt as much as I anticipated.

Sweaty, red-faced, disheveled hair, tired and absolutely exhilarated.

That’s right, I went commando last night at a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Combat Training Center, a far cry from last week’s country club “bootcamp” in Las Vegas. Talk about getting out of my comfort zone. I drove to the sketchy part of town, parked in an industrial lot and walked into a place that had a cage, as in cage fighting. I may not be golf membership material, but my utter lack of tattoos will keep me from ever qualifying for the MMA. I was out of my element, but I’m determined to try new things and experiences with this newfound fit body of mine. And let me tell you, it was worth it.


No mirrors, no ogling, no chatting with friends and letting your heart rate drop. It was intense intervals of jump roping, shadow boxing, boxing, kicking with speed and power, pushups, sit-ups with a stomach punch on the contraction, shuffling and of course, gasping.

It was empowering and every woman should try it. Letting loose with full force against a punching bag with a grunt and explosion of power is amazing for body image. It’s not about beauty; it’s purely about strength, agility, technique and being in the moment of absolute concentration. It’s not about how you look; it’s about how you perform. And in the end, it’s not even about how you perform; it’s about how you feel inside. And damn, I feel great.
My little wallflower immediately ripped off her boots and socks and ran out to the punching bags to play life size whack-a-mole. No babysitter? No problem. The cutest thing I’ve ever seen was my pretty in pink daughter rockin’ the grappling mat with the boys in the kids’ class. Why should the boys have all the fun?

Black and pink grappling gloves? Oh heavens, sign me up for those!

I think Monday nights might become Family Night at the Combat Center. A little Leapster, a lot of pink and a whole lot of girl power might do the place good. Besides, it’s educational too. I’m learning Latin just by reading all those interesting tattoos. (Mommy, that man colored all over himself, just like Olivia in Olivia Saves the Circus!)

Tank: We're supposed to start with these operation programs first. That's major boring sh**. Let's do something a little more fun. How about... combat training.
Neo: Ju jitsu? I'm gonna learn Ju jitsu?
[Tank winks and loads the program]

Can you name that movie without looking it up? Yup, me and Neo. We know Kung Fu. Or at least combat training. Cause it’s a jungle out there.