I have been an advocate for martial arts and anti bullying for close to 10 years now. Having experience in the following martial arts, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (5 Years), Boxing (4 years), Kickboxing (4 years), and Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) for 9 years.
Having being bullied growing up it wasn’t until shortly after high school that I discovered the world of martial arts. Being an angry young man from being bullied, I had some pent up rage. A friend of mine approached me on a Wednesday and asked...
I have been an advocate for martial arts and anti bullying for close to 10 years now. Having experience in the following martial arts, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (5 Years), Boxing (4 years), Kickboxing (4 years), and Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) for 9 years.
Having being bullied growing up it wasn’t until shortly after high school that I discovered the world of martial arts. Being an angry young man from being bullied, I had some pent up rage. A friend of mine approached me on a Wednesday and asked me if I wanted to put some gloves on and do some live “sparring” this weekend.
Being upset at that moment, I immediately agreed. Not sure exactly what I had gotten myself into, my friend and I had arrived at the location the “promoter” had sent us. It was a local national guard armory. Walking into the building, I noticed a sign that read “Capacity of 450 People.” Once inside, I noticed the building had well over the capacity allowed. Upon meeting in a locker room at the armory, a man started to discuss the rules for the upcoming fights. I quickly realized that was not at all what I had in mind, and that I was indeed going to be in a real fight. After the rules and expectations were laid down, I quickly sought out the opponent I would be facing that night. As I approached this very intimidating looking man in his early 30s, I asked him his name to which he replied. I took a deep breath and in response said, “well looks like we have a fight tonight.”
Being an 18 year old who’s only combat skill was pent up anger, I was scared to death to fight a full grown bearded man covered in tattoos. My opponent continued the conversation asking, “So do you train much?” I told him that I had seen a few UFC fights and asked him about his training. When he shared that he trains on a daily basis I came to the realization that the outcome of this fight may not be in my favor.
As the fight was about to begin, I felt such an adrenaline rush- my mindset shifted into survival mode. Set for three rounds of three minutes a p
