blogwithvalor

The gi Nathan was given smelled of detergent and bleach. Across the lapel was the word ‘INTRO’. It wasn’t stiff as he moved his arms to tie his belt. ‘The white belt is a mark of pride’, they told him. Then something about 99 percent of people not ever coming to the mats. He knew it was a sales pitch line, but the more he thought about it the more it rang true to him.

After he tied the belt around his waist, the instructor gave him a smile. “You’ve done this before, I can tell.”

“Just as a kid. Nothing like this.”

Nathan felt a little nervous. He had done karate for years as a kid but had stopped as he got older. The desire to go back to any form of martial arts was always in the back of his mind but there was always something he used as an excuse. School, work, family, love life. This gym was on his way to work though, and after mentioning it to his wife, she urged him to try it out. The excuses finally ran out.

There was a beginner level class about to start and Nathan stepped onto the mats to join. He bowed towards the center, as he was instructed to do. It was a form of respect. That was a familiar practice from his karate class as a kid. They always stressed the importance of respect. Respect for the instructors, respect for the martial art, respect for your opponent, and respect for the training space. That familiarity eased his nervousness.

They ran through a basic warm up routine, meant to take everyone through a lot of the movements they’d perform. They had the class go through a lot of simple stretches. Nathan never realized how stiff he was until he looked at some of the higher belts that could easily touch their toes and bring their heads to their knees. He wasn’t sure how important that was, but went through the motions nonetheless.

His instructor was a very happy looking Brazilian that smiled so much Nathan’s cheeks hurt. He couldn’t help but smile along with him. They were going over basic escapes from mount. Something Nathan never would have even thought to have done if he were lying under someone while they were straddled over his torso. It was a sport jiu jitsu practice he was told. In an actual fight, where fist would be flying, you’d have to modify it to protect your head at the same time.

He teamed up with a purple belt to practice the escape. Nathan didn’t know the color order and wasn’t sure if this guy was just above white or near brown, which always came before black. No matter what, the adrenaline started pumping into him as he believed this guy was about to smash him into the mat. However, as soon as they started practicing the purple belt left openings and even coached Nathan through the movements. He realized this was really just learning. Nathan started relaxing and enjoying himself a bit more.

The rest of the class was very much the same. The instructor would stop the class, teach a new movement and everyone would pair up to practice. The rhythm was easy to follow and Nathan felt he was really getting a hang of everything they taught. He could feel his heart rate and confidence rising. Was this too simple? He did everything he was taught within a few tries.

As they came to the end of class the instructor announced that they would do something called ‘specific training’. As Nathan understood it, they’d start from a specific position and just roll from there. This was how they could practice everything they were just taught. Nathan partnered up with the purple belt again and he felt like he was going to surprise him with his sudden mastery over the techniques.

The purple belt mounted Nathan and said, “Don’t be nervous. I’ll only go about 50%. Just breathe and work on what you’ve learned.”

They did a clap and fist bump Nathan had seen everyone doing throughout class and started. The purple belt got suddenly heavy on Nathan’s stomach and a sense of panic washed over his emotions. He turned onto his side, starting his escape. It was a much harder struggle, but Nathan completed it. As he got up to his knees, he struggled to catch his breath. The purple belt barely seemed phased, but Nathan had a rush of excitement flowing through him. He’d done it, even if his opponent was only giving him half his strength.

They swapped positions and Nathan tried his best to keep the mount position, but the purple belt escaped almost immediately. Nathan knew he wasn’t instructed on how to hold the position and the purple belt had been doing this for years probably.

When they swapped again, Nathan looked at the purple belt and asked, “Can you give me 100% this time?”

The purple belt gave him a grin, “You sure about that?”

“Yea, I want to see what it’s like.”

They clapped and bumped fists. The purple belt didn’t just get heavy this time but fell forward. His arms were spread wide, and his chest was almost smothering Nathan. Nathan started moving to his side again and worked on pushing the purple belt’s leg. When all of a sudden, the purple belt rotated to Nathan’s back. The purple belt had somehow snuck his other leg under Nathan. Both of the purple belt’s legs were wrapped around his waist and hooked on the inside of his thighs. Nathan was shocked at the smoothness of the movements. They were both on their sides and the purple belt took his lower arm and threaded it around Nathan’s neck. Rear naked chokes were such a popular move that Nathan knew what it was even without being taught in class. Nathan panicked and rolled onto his stomach. His hands grasped at the arm squeezing his neck. The purple belt felt twice the weight he looked while on his back. Nathan watched as darkness filled his vision and he tapped.

The purple belt was still on his back, but released the choke and his arms were out wide holding himself up. Nathan couldn’t feel the weight on his back any longer and blinked his vision back into being. His face was flat on the floor and his mouth was agape. As he and the purple belt got up, he could see a small wet spot where his mouth had been. The floor tasted like sweat and a little bit of bleach. Not that he had tasted bleach before, but it’s what he assumed it tasted like, based on the smell.

“Sorry about that. Don’t be afraid to tap. Better to tap and come back to the mats tomorrow.” The purple belt said while patting him on the back.

“I’ll make sure to next time. Thank you though. That was fun.” Nathan and the purple belt exchanged smiles.

It was a combination of the exercise and adrenaline that Nathan loved about the rest of his specific training. So many things he did in life felt dull and like going through the motions. Everything well planned, safe, and expected. The feeling he got that day wasn’t permanent but something about it made him feel alive. It was probably just the endorphins, but Nathan knew he wanted to do this again.

He signed up for his membership right after class.