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BJJ For Women

~ Women's BJJ Blog: Interviews, Jiu- Jitsu Events and All Things Fenom

BJJ For Women

Category Archives: Fenomenal Women

Dr. Yasisca Pujols: the Fittest Donut Lover

17 Monday Jun 2019

Posted by fenomkimonos in Fenomenal Women, Women's BJJ

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capoeira, donuts, dr. yasisca pujols, fenom kimonos, gis for women, masters world champion, purple belt, support women's bjj, women's bjj, yasifit

Dr. Yasisca Pujols is a food connoisseur, a world traveler, a licensed psychologist and Fenom Kimonos sponsored athlete. Her love for donuts inspired us to create our unicorn and donut design gi and her most recent jiu-jitsu adventure was in Japan where she won quadruple gold at IBJJF Tokyo Open in purple belt division. Dr. Pujols talks about her life, work, food and what it takes to be a successful athlete.

Why jiu-jitsu? How did you find it and what do you like about it?

I did capoeira for two years and absolutely loved it! I traveled all over the country to attend the belt ceremonies which are really big deals. The Troca De Cordoas, belt changing ceremony, is a weekend of seminars, sparring, and tons of fun. My Brazilian Portuguese was getting better too. I found jiu-jitsu in 2013, after I graduated from University of Texas at Austin and moved five hours south from my capoeira school in Austin, Texas. There wasn’t a close capoeira school in the area and I knew my head coach trained jiu-jitsu as well. I asked him about it and he said that I might not like it too much. I figured I would try it anyway and so my first class ever was at Gracie Humaita in South Austin. Once I officially moved, I started at Harlingen Jiu-jitsu Club and stuck with it ever since.

I really enjoy the challenge of learning and executing new moves. It never feels like a work-out and it’s a great way for me to relieve stress from my intense psychological work. I also enjoy competing because it is direct feedback of how well I’m progressing. Nothing like a hard competition match to highlight your strengths and expose your weaknesses.

How many days a week do you train? How do you recover? Is it necessary to do strength and conditioning?

My rule of thumb is to do jiu-jitsu every day. I usually don’t succeed in that because of life and responsibilities but I do attempt to schedule out my week in advance. About six days out of the month I travel to South Texas from Houston where I now live. So when I’m not in Houston training at the headquarters, I’ll pop into one of the gyms in the Rio Grande Valley. Some of the time I take two classes per day. On average I train five days a week with two of those days as doubles. My body is used to the training schedule now so the time between training sessions, 20 hours or so, is enough for recovery. I find it very difficult to take a competition class at night and then to train at 6:00 AM the next morning, so I try to avoid that.

I have always weight-lifted although not regularly. Since late last year, I signed up with a gym that focuses on athletic performance and strength conditioning. It’s been amazing to push that edge under the guidance of expert coaches. I really feel many of us in the sport do not strength and condition properly. It’s such a bonus for reducing injury too. At the end of the day, every body is different and we all have our own goals. I feel strength and conditioning is a must for me and so I had to level up and find a facility that can take me further that where I was.

What do you do in real life? What pays bills? Have you always lived in Texas?

Haha, in real life I’m a jiu-jitsu athlete! Then I pay my bills with my other passion: forensic psychology. Since mid-2018, I have been working for myself in private practice as a forensic clinical psychologist. It has allowed for the crazy training schedule and frequent travel. I currently work in both Brownsville and Houston, Texas. Then I also provide mindset and weight-cut coaching to other MMA and BJJ athletes locally and all over the world.

Honestly, I always wanted to live somewhere by the beach. I considered Florida and Texas when I was looking for work after finishing grad school. That’s how I ended up in South Texas, with 30-minute access to South Padre Island. My family circumstances pulled me back to Houston in 2018 and it has been great ever since. Now I just travel to beaches on my different trips. It’s nice to take in beach views from different parts of the world.

What is your biggest competition achievement so far?

If you had asked me a few months ago, I would have said winning Master Worlds at blue belt was the biggest achievement. After traveling to Lisbon, Portugal and winning the European Championship as a new purple belt, I cannot say that my blue belt title has as much weight. I am really very proud of my performance at the Euros. I know my training schedule was intense but it’s the mat time that helped me have several great fights there. I’m looking to compete in more majors because there are more competitors at my rank. Locally, the same few girls, which we are all friends now, sign up for the Texas opens.

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Do you think it is important to compete?

I think competing is a personal decision. Although it might be a good idea to compete at least once so you get a feel for that experience. I think it really is valuable to know first-hand what it feels like to prepare and step out onto that competition mat. You’ll be better prepared to help teammates train for their own competitions. I am a very competitive person and I love the instant feedback that a competition match gives me. When I roll at my gym or go to an open mat elsewhere, I never know if the person is going easy or giving me everything they’ve got. When it’s comp time, you know it’s ON. There is no question how hard your opponent is trying to sub you. They want to win and you want to win and the person with the better jiu-jitsu will have their hand raised.

There are also some downsides to competing. It’s very expensive and some that want to compete cannot because of the cost. There is also a risk of injury too. I don’t like reading the waiver section of a comp registration form because it usually mentions death. I mean, I haven’t heard of anyone dying but this is a combat sport. People have torn ligaments, busted noses, broken bones, sustained concussions, and so on. It might not be worth the risk for some but I could easily say that the same risks can happen in class at any gym.

Let’s talk about donuts. What makes a good donut? Where did you eat the best donut ever?

I believe the most important aspect of a good donut is the dough. There are so many different kinds of dough for a donut. I prefer a fluffy, light consistency for the bread part of the donut and that glaze should melt in your mouth. Some glazes are chunky or gritty. My favorite original glazed donut is Krispy Kreme hands down. It’s not too large in size and usually can be bought warm when the neon hot sign is on. Also, they give out free donuts . . . freely! I also like gourmet donuts with crazy toppings like Gourdough’s in Austin, Texas. My latest offshoot craze is the churro. I’m considering hunting down a few spots in Japan after IBJJF Tokyo Open in June 2019.

How do you stay in such phenomenal shape? You don’t seem to go through weight cuts for competitions. What is the secret here?

The secret to staying in shape and at fighting weight is a basic formula of 1) staying consistent with the 2) right nutritional plan and 3) knowing how to balance fun foods sporadically. In other words, if you know how to eat healthy enough to walk around at your ideal weight, then you have half the solution. What tends to happen is that people encounter times where they eat unhealthy foods and gain the weight, then they do not know how to resume the nutritional plan.

It can be disheartening to step back on the scale after a weekend of travel and notice you’ve brought back a bit more luggage on you. That mindset of feeling hopeless and disappointed may lead someone to continue eating badly. I recognize this thinking trap and prevent it by keeping my favorite fun foods WITHIN my diet (i.e., donuts), but eating said foods in moderation. It is really hard to maintain a strict diet all of the time.

You are very athletic so finding a good-fitting gi is not a problem. What makes a good women’s gi: design, fabric or cut?

I’ve been a gi snob for quite a while. There are only a few brands I’ve worn over the years, Fenom included. I built up a decent gi wardrobe and then I had to resize into smaller gis after losing nine pounds two years ago when I decided to quit drastic weight cuts. I’m a taller- slimmer body shape. Before finding the right brand, I found it difficult to find a gi that was tall enough, without being wider. This is how I fell in love with Fenom Kimonos’ really fantastic size variety.

Design is also important to me. I have a bachelor’s degree in fine arts so having an aesthetically pleasing gi design is a must! In general, I like simpler designs and colors that aren’t the loudest on the mat. I want to be able to move well in the gi and not have it up-stage or overshadow my performance. The gi must be sturdy through heavy training and repeated washes as well.

Training with women: how important is it for you? Do you attend a lot of women’s open mats?

For my competitive career, training with women is crucial. However, I’ll highlight that training with women but not only women is important. We have a relatively large group of women and teen girls training at my gym. We have a different capacity for strength as well as for flexibility. It’s great to have that type of training partner for sure. Male training partners are biologically stronger as a whole, so they must adjust for us ladies at times. Training with women gives us a realistic measure of actual competition matches.

I try to attend open mats when I can and that usually falls on Sundays. The rest of the time I am training at my home gym or out of town for work. The only other time I get to spent mat time with the ladies is at the Girls in Gis events – and so forth it! I get to meet and train with tons of women across the state of Texas at these events. It’s great to see so many different jiu-jitsu styles coming together.

What is the best place you have traveled to?

I have always loved to travel. I’ve been to multiple European countries, the Philippines, several spots in Central America, briefly in Japan, Iceland, and the Middle East. It is really difficult to pick one place that was my favorite, but I would say that Iceland and the Philippines were both really memorable trips. Iceland was my first backpacking and couch-surfing adventure. The country is visually majestic! All that water and sun. The locals love sunbathing and so many folks had nice tans. I stayed with a lovely couple in their penthouse apartment along with a few other travelers. I explored the city on my own and sat around in some of the best hot springs in the entire world. Other than it being sunny at all hours of the night, I’d say I need to go there again.

My other top favorite trip was traveling to the Philippines in 2018. Talk about island-hopping! With over 7000 islands, this place was riddled with gorgeous beaches and hidden pools within tiny islands. Any beach trip is a great beach trip for me and if snorkeling is involved, even better. Those waters had the most amazing, living coral reefs. Everything was alive, wiggling, and colorful. I have never seen so many types of fish living among these coral reefs. My previous snorkeling was along mostly dead coral with trash littered throughout.

What would Marie Kondo find in your house that sparks lots of joy?

My gi collection sparks a lot of joy! I’ve had to move a lot over the past six years. I got tired of lugging around so much stuff! So I read the Marie Kondo book and thanked my unwanted stuff before shoveling it away. It felt so great to discard things I didn’t need or want after feeling frustrated that I was paying for storage space to keep said unwanted items. Oh, my small French press sparks joy too! I love coffee a lot.

Do you speak any other languages? Do you have any talents many people don’t know about?

I speak Spanish with my family and Spanish-speaking friends and sometimes for work. Otherwise, it’s English for me. I have a much greater command of English, it is the language that my mind uses. I also know some Arabic and some Portuguese. I have always wished to be fluent in a third language, but got much more busy with jiujitsu.

People have been impressed with my ability to sew lately. Not until teammates needed patches sewn onto their gis, did they even know I owned a sewing machine! I’ve had four machines up until recently. I reduced (Thanks, Konmari Method!) to two sewing machines now. I used to sew dance costumes for my samba dance team and I have sewn plenty of clothing for myself over the years.

Connect with Dr. Pujols on Instagram: @dr.yasi_fit

Part II of the Tale of Two Tall Ladies: Joy Pendell

13 Saturday Apr 2019

Posted by fenomkimonos in Fenomenal Women, Women's BJJ

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bees, dustin akbari, fenom kimonos, fight to win, mma, purple belt, support women's bjj, tall girls, urijah faber, womens jiujitsu

Our second part of the Tale of Two Tall Ladies is about Joy Pendell. Joy is a world champion purple belt, amateur MMA fighter and Fight to Win regular. She started training in the summer of 2014 at Urijah Faber’s Ultimate Fitness, under Dustin Akbari and according to her, plans to stay there for a long time.

Her commitment to training made her drive two hours one way, two to three times a week, for three years until she moved to Sacramento, closer to the gym. Joy talks about her life on and off the mat. Enjoy!

What pays your bills every month? Do you like where you live?

I am a beekeeper. My family owns a business where we take care of lots and lots of beehives, make honey and raise queen bees to sell to other beekeepers. Bees are very nice if you handle them gently, and are a lot of fun to work with. I love where I live. Half the time I stay with my parents near where I work and the other half of the time I live at my own place near where I train.

You are Fight to Win regular competitor. How did you get involved with FTW? How many fights have you had so far and which one is the most memorable?

I heard about Fight to Win because my coach, Dustin Akbari, was competing for them. I was only a blue belt at the time but I knew as soon as I got my purple belt I would sign up. I am 3-1 for FTW and can’t wait to get more matches. Seth and Missy do an awesome job running that event and I appreciate them so much for giving all grapplers the stage to showcase what we can do. My most memorable Fight to Win was my first one in my hometown. It was against Kim Bowser who is a Pan Am champion and a very seasoned competitor. I have a lot of respect for her and I feel like we put on a really good match for everyone.

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Do you prefer gi or no-gi training? You’re a world champion in no-gi. Is that what you consider your biggest achievement so far?

I like training in the gi and no-gi equally well. I feel like I’m equally good at both too. I can never decide which I like more or which I am better at. I compete in both a lot. My biggest achievement so far is definitely snagging a gold medal at the no-gi Worlds as a purple belt. But I would consider being awarded my purple belt my biggest accomplishment overall. Being awarded your next belt represents a lot of hard work and also your coach’s faith in you and recognition of your progress.

What is more important to have one or two really good submissions or to be decent at many? What is your favorite technique?

I like guard passing the most. Specifically, I like the knee cut pass. I always like it when someone pulls guard right away because I get to pass without going to the work of scoring a take-down first. I think having one or two really good submissions is much preferable to having a bunch that you are okay at. I definitely have a few favorite subs I always use in competition even though I know many.

What part of the training do you dislike the most?

I hate warm-ups. I always feel slow and sometimes I get winded for no reason even though I have a great cardio. It may just be something in my head. But I know it is good for me so I try not to be late and miss any of it.

Tell us a little bit about your Muay Thai and MMA career. What are your goals?

Ever since I started training BJJ I had been curious to try using it when strikes are involved. MMA is the perfect way to find out how effective your grappling can be when all sorts of other attacks are allowed. I have had a couple of amateur MMA fights, a handful of Muay Thai fights and enjoy the challenge of the other martial arts. My goal is to go pro in MMA and see how far I can get in the women’s light-weight division. There are a lot of opportunities right now in MMA and I would like to take advantage of them.

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Do you consider yourself to be a nerd? Were you popular in high school?

I am not nerdy but I can certainly be awkward sometimes. I feel shy a lot but I try to be as friendly and outgoing as I can force myself to be just because I know most people feel shy also and someone needs to break the ice. I was pretty quiet in high school and mostly kept to myself and had a small circle of friends. I am much more social these days and make a point to get my friends together and do things.

What is the oldest thing you own?

I have some really old family photos I hung around my place. I like old black and white pictures a lot and those are particularly special because they all have a story.

What do you think about when you are alone in the car?

I spend a LOT of time in the car because my job is still far away from my gym so I listen to a lot of podcasts. But when I am just thinking, I am usually daydreaming about BJJ and MMA or what competition I’m doing to do next or something along those lines.

What is your biggest BJJ pet peeve?

My biggest pet peeve is people not washing their gi and their belt. I have a lot of competitive success and I wash my gi and belt all the time. None of my good luck has washed away but I have contracted staph and ringworm from all the “good luck” on others’ belts and clothing.

How do you want to be remembered?

I want to be remembered as someone who never gave up, always had a good attitude and was a humble student of the sport. I’ve had a lot of success and a lot of failures but I think what is really important is to have the hear of a warrior and not back away from a challenge even when you are afraid.

Do you have any secret talents?

I play the piano and guitar; speak some basic French; I am a good horseback rider: I am a decent ballroom dancer, and a decent chess player. I don’t know how unique any of these are but I also don’t think too many people come across those hidden talents these days.

How Have You Lived I Want to Ask You…

14 Wednesday Sep 2016

Posted by fenomkimonos in Fenomenal Women, Women's BJJ

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blue belt, Chomolungma, fenom navy blue gi, liudmila mikhanovskaia, Manaslu, Mount Everest, muay thai, nepal, winter swimming, women's bjj, world adventure society

A few months ago we got an email from a customer from Thailand who was having trouble completing an order on our website. The transaction eventually went through, the gi arrived at the destination and we even received a photo and a thank you note. This sparked our interest and we asked the customer, Liudmila, a few questions. What we discovered next was truly incredible.

Not only is she a jiu-jitsu blue belt but she has climbed Mount Everest! She is a philosophy teacher, a translator and writes beautiful poetry.  Her other passions include high-altitude mountaineering, winter swimming, Muay Thai and traveling. Most recently she was named World Adventure Society’s first ambassador in Russia. Everyone please meet Liudmila Mikhanovskaia!

Liudmila In Nepal after a religious ceremony.

Liudmila In Nepal after a religious ceremony.

First of all, your English is superb. How did you get so good at it? And how did you start poetry in foreign language? This really requires a very good knowledge of the language and nuances. 

Thank you! My mother’s English was very good by the standards of the time, and she started teaching me when I was four years old. Besides, I went to a school that was known for quality English instruction. My school classes were supplemented with regular short language study trips to the UK. In my last few years at school I began to attend the British Council and there won a competition for a 1-year full scholarship to Queen Mary College, University of London. After the year in London, I continued to live and study abroad.

Although my education is in Philosophy (I hold a Master’s), I choose to work as a translator and editor because the job allows me the freedom to travel and to carry on with the research I had initially wanted to do for a PhD but decided to pursue outside of the academic framework. In both my education and my job there is a lot of emphasis on the importance of language, on the exact meaning and weight of words, which, I feel, makes it relatively easy to for me to express myself in poetry. I have to say, however, that neither in my prose nor in my poems do I use complex words or heavy grammatical structures: I write to understand myself and to keep track of my thoughts and feelings as honestly, openly and simply as I can.

How many languages do you speak?

In addition to my native Russian, I can speak four other languages to varying degrees of proficiency: English, Spanish, Korean and Thai. I also have 5 years of background in German and know some Italian. Up next is Sanskrit.

From Russia to Thailand. This is quite a journey. What made you make that move and how did you cope with the logistics?

From my previous answers you may have guessed that Thailand was not the first stop on my journey. I stared attending Queen Mary in London when I was 17, which was almost 12 years ago. I have since lived, studied and worked in many countries: the Netherlands, Spain, Malta, Philippines, Nepal, South Korea and Thailand.

I originally traveled to Thailand specifically to train for an expedition and was living on location at the training camp in Bangkok. As my reasons for staying in the county changed over time, so did my living arrangements: during this past year of training BJJ I was renting an apartment in Bangkok. I have always done my translation and editing work in my ‘free’ time, usually at night, so I could train, study and explore in the daytime.

Regarding living in Thailand, it is a country very open to expats and travelers, whose needs, be it accommodation, food, healthcare, training or anything else, really, are readily catered for. I enjoyed my time in Bangkok and found it to be very comfortable.

In Thailand you trained Muay Thai as part of your preparation for the climb. You trained extensively for 3 years and then stopped. Were you tired or just bored? Was it difficult to walk away from something you invested quite a bit of time into?

Before pro Muay Thai fight in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Before pro Muay Thai fight in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

I spent about 4 years living and training in Thailand, on and off. For the 3 years I trained exclusively in Muay Thai but about a year ago I discovered BJJ and later MMA, and added them to my training roster.

I did not necessarily lose interest in Muay Thai, get tired or bored: as I was getting better and more familiar with the martial art, I began to feel space opening up for me to do something else, something different. I generally don’t like to be wasteful with my resources, so I was simply slightly frustrated with myself in the context of Muay Thai while I was searching for a way to fill that newly opened space. Once I discovered BJJ, wrestling and MMA, my love of and interest in Muay Thai returned, and remain as strong as ever to this day.

That being said, I have walked away from many activities I had dedicated much of myself to. I believe that quitting for the right reasons is a better choice than staying for the wrong ones.

Tell us more about climbing. What is the hardest part? 

For me personally the hardest part, without a doubt, is the mental game. It is very different from the immediate emotional challenges that one is faced with in martial arts training or in a fight or match.

High-altitude mountaineering expeditions, which is my favorite kind of climbing, can last for over two months. A million things can and do happen in the unpredictable mountain setting; a million thoughts and doubts arise and go to sleep with you every night; you grow weaker and weaker as days go by because the body, although it does acclimatize to higher elevations, still doesn’t get enough oxygen to function at 100%. By the start of the summit push, you are likely to be feeling drained or even sick. Although you are by then used to it, it is still hard to believe you can climb to a place called the Death Zone (above 8000 meters), get to the top of a mountain, get back down and even enjoy yourself in that state.

You have to do something your mind keeps telling you that you can’t do continuously in a remote, cold, unpredictable environment for days in a row. High-altitude mountaineering requires great mental stability and love of what you’re doing. Thus, although the mental aspect of climbing is the hardest one to manage for me, it is also the most fascinating and educational.

On the summit of Manaslu, the 8th highest mountain in the world at 26781 ft.

On the summit of Manaslu, the 8th highest mountain in the world at 26781 ft.

Do you carry all your gear to the very top (tent, sleeping bad, food) or leave at a camp closest to the top?

During high-altitude mountaineering expeditions several high camps are typically established between base camp and the summit. Tents are erected and some gear stored in those camps in preparation for the summit push. This way climbers don’t have to waste time and energy when the weather window is forecast to open. On summit day, which is when you climb from your highest camp to the summit and as far back down the mountain as you can, on ascent you only have the bare necessities in your backpack: water, a snack, a few essential spares, a camera, a walkie-talkie, oxygen bottle(s) if you’re using the gas, etc. You want to travel as light as possible on the way up, but you will have to collect all of your gear and carry it with you on descent through the lower camps.

Why is the descent so hard? From what we read, it is harder than climbing up. Is it true?

Passing Camp 1 on the way down.

Passing Camp 1 on the way down.

Many factors play into making the descent harder and more dangerous than the way to the top. First of all, there’s the physical aspect. Your body is beyond exhausted on summit day at the end of a long expedition; your muscles and organs are starved of oxygen, sleep and nutrients. The longer you stay in the Death Zone above 8000 meters, where oxygen pressure in the air is insufficient to sustain human life for longer than a couple of days, the more of your body’s systems malfunction or shut down. Problems, more or less grave, with motor skills, coordination, vision and breathing, for example, are common and obviously dangerous on treacherous mountain terrain.

An important sub-aspect of the previous one is the compromised brain activity. The brain needs oxygen to do its job properly, and after a long period of deprivation climbers struggle to think and to concentrate; hallucinations and memory black-outs are experienced by many. That, coupled with extreme physical strain, is not a recipe for a safe climb, be it down or up.

In my opinion, what really makes the descent more dangerous than the ascent is the psychological aspect of the challenge: whether you’ve made it to the top or turned around early, you know you’re done. If you’re done, you can relax, right? The hard part is over! And whenever you so much as whisper to yourself that something is easy, you automatically loosen your focus and your grip on the situation. That is the worst thing to do in a place where you are headed for safety but are still hours or days away from it. This is why mountaineers always remind themselves that “summit is only halfway”.

You climbed Mount Everest in 2012 with oxygen and attempted to climb again in 2013 without oxygen. Why was it important for you to do it the second time knowing how hard it is? Only 3 women have done it without oxygen before you and one passed away on the descent. Were you not scared?

Liudmila and Pasang Wongchu Sherpa on the Summit of Everest May, 19, 2012

Liudmila and Pasang Wongchu Sherpa on the Summit of Everest May, 19, 2012

This may sound cheesy, but I wanted to climb Everest again and to invest absolutely all of myself into the oxygen-less ascent because I just loved the mountain so much. It had been my wildest dream to at least climb on it, but even as I was leaving Tibet a summiteer, looking back on Chomolungma, the mountain’s Tibetan name, I was still seeing a dream, and more grand and unattainable than ever. It was bitter-sweet to realize how big of a heart it turned out that I had, and to not need that heart for anything outside of the high Himalaya.

I suppose, once you learn how dazzling the things your eyes can see may be, how strong your body and mind are potentially, how brave and free your spirit really is – once you know your true power, you want to feel it reverberate through your system at all times and with the greatest possible intensity. It’s not unlike an obsession or an addiction – one so great, it simply swallows up fear.

After 6 days of your climb with no oxygen, you aborted the mission. How hard was it? Are you happy with the decision?

I aborted the climb at base camp. I was in excellent physical shape after running 10km every day and training Muay Thai for 5-6 hours a day 6 days a week for 3 months in Thailand. I felt fairly confident I would be able to give the ascent without bottled oxygen as good of a shot as any climber out there.

However, I just didn’t dare step on the slopes of the mountain. I was not afraid – I was ashamed: ashamed that the small, plain, ordinary me would attempt something so amazing and beautiful. In my eyes, I was perfectly prepared but unworthy of the gift of that opportunity. I was unable to process an experience of that magnitude back then, so there was nothing for me to do but leave. Although I can’t say I am happy with that decision, I can’t regret it either because the person I was at the time could not have made a different choice. Would it be different today? Absolutely!

You had a very serious health scare that made you spend months in bed. Do you want to talk more about it? 

I am a cancer survivor. I was diagnosed and treated almost two years ago. I am currently in good health and back in Nepal, close to the Himalaya, which it was my biggest regret that I wouldn’t see again when my prognosis was looking grim.

Do you still do winter swimming? Being in tropical climate, training must be limited.

I do it even though I’m not doing it, if that makes any sense. I won a silver medal as part of a team and a personal endurance swimming medal in the Ice Swimming Cup of Siberia and the Far East on a little more than a week’s notice. There was nowhere to actually swim to prepare, so I dug out a little pool in a small mountain river running through the Siberian village I was spending time in, and just sat there for a few minutes every day, focusing on controlling my breathing in the icy water.

Swimming in Lake Pumori near Everest at about 17000 ft in December 2012.

Swimming in Lake Pumori near Everest at about 17000 ft in December 2012.

Swimming was the first sport I ever took up and I have loved cold water (but not cold showers, mind you) since I was a baby. I am not a fast or a very technical swimmer but I enjoy myself in the water, extremely cold water too, and I trust it. This allows me to swim for extended periods of time even without a lot of training. I hope to attempt my next ‘test’ swim – my first after cancer – in a couple of weeks’ time in Tilicho Lake at 4949 meters/16237 feet near Manang in Nepal.

After all you have gone through starting BJJ must feel like one of the easiest things. Do you find it challenging? Why do you enjoy it? Do you think you will stick with it til your black belt?

Liudmila in Navy Fenom

Nothing I have ever learned has come easily to me because I have nearly always been playing catch-up. Fortunately, I like to commit and to work hard once I’ve chosen a path. With the pursuits I felt a real connection with, them being  very challenging was simply irrelevant because I enjoyed the whole package.

Starting BJJ was indeed hard. I was extremely unwell physically when I took my first class. I was out of shape and emotionally tired of dragging my body around the world, still unable to take it confidently to the place I call home – Nepal. It was strange to start anything new at all in that situation, especially something as complex and multi-layered as BJJ. However, I needed to find an activity difficult enough physically and demanding intellectually that it would grab and hold my attention, distracting me from those aspects of my circumstances, like my health, I could do nothing about.

I may not have liked BJJ at first but it did immediately interest me as a completely new ‘language’ to teach my body, so I stuck with it out of curiosity. I am glad I did. BJJ showed me that I could still learn, and quite fast; it pulled me out of a very grim spot back into a place where I could train for 5-6 hours daily; it reignited my passion for Muay Thai and served as gateway into wrestling and MMA.

BJJ was, is and will be challenging for me, which is exactly what I appreciate the most about it. I can see myself training arte suave until black belt because it is a martial art in constant evolution, so there’s no ‘danger’ of getting comfortable or bored on the mat.

Do you have plans to compete in BJJ? How is the team treating you? Do you have lots of jiu-jitsu women to train with?

I had planned to compete in a tournament in Bangkok in September after earning my blue belt until an opportunity presented itself, and I left for Nepal just two weeks ago for an indefinite period of time.

I would love to go back to my old gym, Bangkok Fight Lab, in a few months to train and compete then. We have a fantastic coach, Pedro Sauer black belt Morgan Perkins, as well as a wonderfully diverse, interesting and supportive group of people on the mat, many of whom I have become friends with. There are about ten girls training regularly, white and blue belts from all walks of life, and most of them compete or have plans of competing soon, although there is no pressure from our coach to do so.

Did you have a hard time as a white belt? Were you ever frustrated to the point of wanting to quit? 

Blue belt promotion day.

Blue belt promotion day.

Yes and yes. I had a hard time because my body was still adjusting to training full-force with a few missing bits here and there after my surgeries as well as with a reconstructed ACL, loose from overtraining. I was dizzy a lot and often in pain, especially when rolling with heavier guys.

As I refused to stop and kept pushing the pace instead, my body grew stronger and was soon learning the moves quicker and easier, moving more smoothly, too. Frustration on the mat was almost constant, to be honest, as I’d forget what I’d learned or couldn’t recognize the setup and execute a move during rolls.

Sometimes, when I would train BJJ for 3 hours in a row, my mind would shut down completely towards the end, making me look and feel like the proverbial dumb blond. I cried in the changing room I don’t even know how many times. I usually smiled afterwards, though, because my tears were tangible proof that I cared, that I still expected things of myself and that I lived, both physically and emotionally.

Who do you look up to?

The person I look up to the most is my mother. She brought up, and well, my elder sister and myself without any help (my sister’s father died in the mountains, and my mother separated from my father when I was just a 1-year-old) in ’90 Russia. As women, we grew up with the understanding that we had three options to get something – anything – done: 1) be competent at it ourselves; 2) have the financial resources to hire help; 3) forget it – it wasn’t getting done. Thus, when I first went to school and was told I was supposedly a member of the weaker sex, I had no idea what that was supposed to mean.

I am eternally grateful to my Omma for not introducing any artificially manufactured hierarchies, prejudices or dogmas into my life as a child. She never taught me about what I couldn’t do or whom I may not approach with respect and kindness nor what ideas or beliefs I shouldn’t consider earnestly before brushing them off as ‘wrong’. It is thanks to her wisdom and faith in my discriminating intelligence that I could keep an open heart, an inquisitive mind, attempt to do anything and fight until the last bell.

I can only imagine how much courage and integrity it takes for a mother to watch her daughter do what I do and to get hurt as badly as I do. I know of no braver person, and I am humbled to be loved by her.

What are your plans for 2017? Will you stay in Thailand? 

My plans must necessarily depend on my health, which can still be shaky after the encounter with the Big C. Nevertheless, I want to plan for the best while being prepared for the worst.

I left Thailand two weeks ago for Nepal, where I will spend time with my second family, see my beloved mountains and lakes, and continue with my research. It would be great to train BJJ in Bangkok again for a few weeks after that. Next summer I would like very much to enter into the BAMS (Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery) program at a university in India. I’d also love to catch up with friends from around the world I have been promising to see for years sometime somewhere.

In reality, I can’t know how much of these plans I will have the time and the strength to see through; I can only hope to “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever” (Mahatma Gandhi).

To read more about Liudmila’s adventures, please visit her blog.

Sunset on Everest, view from base camp.

Sunset on Everest, view from base camp.

Fenomenal Woman Dr. Olga Lyashevska

23 Thursday Jun 2016

Posted by fenomkimonos in Fenomenal Women, Women's BJJ

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carlson gracie amsterdam, doctor black belt, female black belt, olga lyashevska, smart girls, white to black belt

We are very happy to feature another doctor on our blog. Dr. Olga Lyashevska is originally from Crimea but currently lives in the Netherlands. She has been training judo and jiu-jitsu since 2005 and has earned her black belt in both martial arts. Olga works full-time in a very brainy field, competes actively and is also one of the instructors at Carlson Gracie Amsterdam.  Everyone please meet Dr. Lyashevska!

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What do you do in real life besides training jiu-jitsu?

In real life I spend my days in the office behind my computer. I am working as a postdoctoral (someone after PhD) in statistical ecology. My daily activities include code writing to run statistical models, analysis of relationship between variables and making predictions or simulations.

How did you find jiu-jitsu and where have you been training?

Finding jiu-jitsu was pure luck for me and I do not know how my life would be otherwise. About 11 years ago as a master student at the Dutch University I had a self-study week. This means no classes, just preparation for your exams and more time for sports. Out of curiosity I picked a random activity at the university sport centre and decided to give it a try. When I arrived there, I saw a few black belts coming in and I got so intimidated that I was about to leave. Fortunately it was too late. The teacher noticed me and I was told to join. I remember his words ”No, you cannot watch, you need to do.” I was told to grab a gi and a belt. I was terrible. After a few minutes of the class, he asked me, ”Have you done it before?” I said, ”No.” ‘Why are you wearing a colored belt then then?”, he asked. I did not know either. All I knew was that I was so excited that I picked a random belt out of the box.

The first class was fun and since then I have never stopped training. My home gym is Carlson Gracie Amsterdam and my instructor who promoted me to black belt in 2015 is Marcos Flexa who is a 4th degree black belt under the legendary Carlson Gracie Sr.

Now being an instuctor myself I have learned two things: 1) you do not know whether you like jiu-jitsu until you actually do it yourself 2) first class can be very intimidating.

How did you end up living in the Netherlands?

I came to the Netherlands to study for my Master of Science degree. After graduating I lived in a few different places including the UK and Ireland but the Netherlands was always my home.

Do you like to compete? What are your biggest accomplishments so far?

Yes I do. But my liking has changed over the years. Up to the purple belt I competed a lot, sometimes as often as twice a month. Back then there were few girls competing so I competed against guys and had some success. Now I like doing big competitions a few times a year to stay sharp and to evaluate myself. It’s also a great opportunity to meet other tough girls. At the same time I also enjoy off-season because I can invest time into developing my game, training new things, confusing your body, making mistakes and improving overall. For me jiu-jitsu is for life. So I believe you should train smart and train different things to become a true martial artist. My biggest accomplishment so far I guess would be Europeans 2016. I got third place in the adult black belt open class. Now I am looking forward to the World Masters Championship in Las Vegas at the end of August.

What was your most challenging belt level and why?

Purple I guess. Because back then purple, brown, and black were still one category in competitions. Fighting much more experienced girls was by no means easy but it was invaluable experience. After several years when the moment was right black belt came naturally to me. I felt well prepared. In my very first competition as a black belt I made it to the podium.

You are teaching a women’s jiu-jitsu seminar in Seattle on July 2nd. How did the seminar in the USA come about?

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The seminar in the USA was a coincidence. I am going to a conference to present a paper on gradient boosting regression trees at the University of Washington. Whenever I travel for work no matter where I go or for how long I always bring a gi or two with me. And the first thing I do I check where I can train. I checked and found a club of my team, Carlson Gracie, in Seattle. The rest was a matter of planning. I am very excited to go there and meet new people who share your passion. Thanks to jiu-jitsu I have made friends in many countries such as Canada, France, Germany and Russia. After Seattle I have another ladies only seminar lined up at my home gym on July 10th.

From time to time I teach seminars but I think I prefer teaching regular classes. You build connection with your students; you can see their progress and help them to get better. Recently I have started teaching regular women’s jiu-jitsu classes. There is a really good vibe in the class. I see that women are enjoying it and so do I. It is very exciting to share my passion and to see how others get passionate as well.

What is happening in women’s BJJ in the Netherlands? Are there any regular open mats and camps being organized?

olga lyashevska1

Yes, there have been big changes in the past few years. Women’s BJJ is growing fast. At Carlson Gracie Amsterdam alone there are at least 6-8 girls training together on a regular night. Once a month we meet with girls from other teams for an open mat somewhere in the country. It is a different place each time so everyone can participate. A couple of times a year there are international trainings camps where girls from all over Europe come together.

Do you have any other talents or hobbies? Anything interesting you want our readers to know about you?

I love learning languages. My jiu-jitsu teacher says that is because I like talking… a lot. So I can talk to everyone. But seriously, I like a challenge; I like the sound of languages. I like to see the amazing capacity of your brain to accumulate knowledge and its response to all the learning. I do it daily. You probably ask how many languages I speak? Regularly I speak only four: Russian, Dutch, English and Portuguese. Sometimes Ukrainian. And I am still learning German and Arabic. There is a long list to do. 😉

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Happy International Women’s Day!

08 Tuesday Mar 2016

Posted by fenomkimonos in Fenomenal Women, Women's BJJ

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fenom kimonos, girls' jiu-jitsu, like a girl, strong woman, women's bjj, women's day

“Woman is a being – therefore let her be.” – Anonymous

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Dr. Kim Freeman, PhD

26 Friday Feb 2016

Posted by fenomkimonos in Fenomenal Women, Women's BJJ

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dr. kim freeman, female black belt, fenom kimonos, indiana jiu-jitsu, women's bjj, women's brazilian jiu jitsu, women's jiu-jitsu

Dr. Kim Freeman, PhD is a four stripe brown belt, a mother and a philanthropist. She will be teaching a co-ed BJJ seminar in New Albany, Indiana, on March 12th and took some time off her busy schedule to talk about her life and training in Indianapolis. Everyone meet Dr. Freeman!

What do you do in real life besides training jiu-jitsu?

Currently I am a sales representative for the life science microscopy company, Olympus. I always loved science and knew it would be part of my future. I went to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and attained a Bachelor’s Degree in Cell and Structural Biology while minoring in Chemistry.

I started graduate school in New York but had to take time off for the birth of my daughter and relocation after the 9/11 attacks. After settling in Indiana, I re-entered graduate school and attained my master’s degree through Purdue University in a Cell Biology program, specializing in Lipid Biophysics.

My Ph.D. is through the Indiana University School of Medicine in Medical Biophysics, specializing in Biomolecular Imaging. My doctoral worked focused on deep tissue imaging of the sympathetic (think fight-or-flight) nerves in the heart and how they changed with myocardial infarction (damage from a heart attack). Most of my imaging work used a Olympus multiphoton microscope so when the position with their company in the area became available it seemed silly not to apply. I never would have guessed that I would end up doing what I am doing; life leads us in strange ways sometimes.

Work, family and jiu-jitsu keep me fairly busy. Every month or two I sneak in some philanthropy though. This month my daughter and I packed food for the needy. In April I am helping frame and wall a house for Habitat for Humanity. Giving back helps a person appreciate what they themselves have.

You have been training for 17 years. How do you stay motivated to keep going? What setbacks have you experienced?

Setbacks; there have been a few! I started training towards the end of 1998 at a small gym in NY. The overall attitude towards women in jiu-jitsu was very different back then, at least amongst the lower belts. Most all of the brown and black belts I met or knew were very encouraging though. I do not know how many times I’ve “quit” jiu-jitsu. Too many to count probably. I’ve had some severe injuries that kept me off the mat for months at a time. Most of the injuries were caused by lunkheads not controlling themselves or purposefully going rough to shake me away from the sport. There was a lot less control in the sport back then. Leaders of the gyms were blue belts, not black or brown. There is a certain refinement that comes with vesting years into this sport. That refinement is much more noticeable in schools led by higher belts. That was a luxury not many had back then though.

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I took about a year and a half off for having my daughter. I was in a school that did quite a bit of warm ups, cardio and drilling so I was able to stick with that for several months before having to leave the mat. My daughter was born a few weeks after the 9/11 attacks which left us without jobs, or prospects of jobs. We picked up and moved to the Midwest. I joined my current gym in the spring of 2002 and have been with Indianapolis Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ever since.

My then husband did not adjust well to family life which really limited my training time for a few years. My teammates were by my side though and after separation and divorce, I was able to get back on track with BJJ which has helped me discover how strong women can be. I bet most people take extended breaks from jiu-jitsu throughout training. Life happens. What matters more is that you come back to the sport. That you keep returning; persevering in the face of difficulty.

The motivations to continue on change constantly. As you progress in your jiu-jitsu journey, you grow and develop as a person. Therefore, the motivations for continuing the sport need to develop with you. Sometimes it is to overcome some internal demons, sometimes it is to prove something to others, sometimes it is for the comradery or it could be because your mind and body have learned to release stress when in the gym. After a while, it becomes a regular part of who you are. It is less motivation to stay in as it is an existential need to complete who you are as a person. BJJ transcends from something you do to being part of who you are. I don’t have a set motivation to keep going in jiu-jitsu, it is fully integrated into who I am. It is not the entirety of my being, but it makes me whole as a person.

What does your family think about BJJ? Does anyone else in your family train?

No one else in my blood line family trains. My daughter has been on the mat a month here or there, but has never stuck with it. My extended family has shown support now that I have climbed my way through the ranks which I am very thankful for. My nuclear family is not fond of it though. My jiu-jitsu family has been my lifeline. I am very grateful for all of them.

Do you enjoy competing? Do you remember your first tournament? What is your biggest accomplishment and what are you most proud of?

I used to compete quite a bit. My first tournaments were actually against men because there weren’t other women in my divisions. Especially after moving to the Midwest competing was limited. My divisions were empty most of the time and when there were other women, we did not have the luxury of weight classes or divisions. I took a few severe injuries because of it. My last tournament left me with some mild but permanent hearing loss. I have retired from competing because of that.

As for pride, that is a double edge sword. I think attaining my blue belt was amazing. I was under Marcio Simas at the time, back in 1999. I felt invincible, strong, and proud of this accomplishment. As the years progressed, I have been less proud of each belt. Not that they weren’t deserved, or unwanted; more because each was seen less as an insurmountable obstacle and more as an expected achievement. I have achieved more than most people every will, at my young age of (cough, cough, mumble). I expect myself to do more and go farther still. Am I glad to be doing it? You betcha! Would I continue without belt promotions? Sure thing. I just expect to achieve certain goals so it doesn’t seem like something to be prideful about.

Tell us a little bit about teaching jiu-jitsu. How often do you teach?

kimfreeman

I’ve taught at a few workshops and am starting to do a few seminars now. I really enjoy seeing young timid newcomers blossom and grow strong. This past weekend I did a workshop for new to the mat women. Four of them could not easily do a somersault at the beginning of the class. By the end of class, they had learned a few techniques, felt safe on the mat, rolled their first matches, and left smiling. They gained a touch of confidence and a little bit of awareness. Who knows if they stick with it? I hope they do. If they choose to though, I will be there for them to lean on.

Do you have any other hobbies besides jiu-jitsu?

There is something other than jiu-jitsu? I keep myself pretty busy but nothing I would call a hobby. I volunteer quite a bit for my community, helping take care of landscaping and the political mumbo-jumbo my condominium association has to deal with. Also, there is always something to do when you have children. My daughter is in the school band so I help there quite often. Before that there were sports or Scouts to keep up with. I’m a routine blood donor, having given over 10 gallons of blood or blood components throughout the years. When possible I go to my gym though. My jiu-jitsu family keeps me centered, humble, and encouraged.

Last words.

I greatly appreciate the support from Fenom! I had actually sent an email to a prominent gi company long ago about tailoring a gi towards women. The response was lacking, at best. It is great to see how women are not only becoming accepted in jiu-jitsu but encouraged and honored as well. There is seemingly no limit to what can be accomplished when people support each other and work towards the greater good.

Better tomorrows come from the actions and decisions we make today. Jiu-jitsu is a wonderful forum for this. BJJ tears away what we are not supposed to be and provides a supportive community to lean on while we gain the strength and perseverance necessary to be leaders in this world. Where we are today in jiu-jitsu seemed unfathomable just a few short years ago. Just imagine what it will be like in a few more.

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BJJ Sisters Colombia

15 Monday Feb 2016

Posted by fenomkimonos in Fenomenal Women, Women's BJJ

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alliance bogota, bjj colombia, bjj sisters, dominyka obelenyte, fenom kimonos, jiu-jitsu para mujeres, purple belt, sophia drysdale, women's bjj

marcela2Marcela Sánchez Rodriguez is a purple belt from Alliance Jiu-Jitsu Colombia and the co-founder of BJJ Sisters, the first women’s jiu-jitsu community in Colombia.

She is a 28-year-old graphic designer currently working in Bogotá. She describes herself as a responsible adult for two dogs, a little sister of two, a frustrated singer, a travel enthusiast, and a BJJ lover living right in front of the academy. Everyone meet Marcela!

You are one of the highest ranked women in Colombia. How did you find jiu-jitsu?

About four years ago I was at a new job that allowed me to have free time which is an unusual feature in a graphic designer’s life here in Bogotá. During those days a friend introduced me to the UFC world and I was just fascinated; I started asking about kick-boxing academies until I was finally referred to Octagon MMA which in my opinion is the greatest MMA Academy in Colombia.

They offered fantastic classes: MMA, boxing, bag work, fitness, wrestling and BJJ. I was exuberant thanks to the amazing teachers, the classes and the transformation of my body. I was happy about everything but jiu-jitsu. I remember, doing the best to understand how BJJ worked but as it is in real life, it is better if you just go with the flow.

The time passed by, I kept training and one day I met Carlos Quintero, the new Alliance Colombia instructor. He arrived with an amazing energy and a strong character; every move, drill or technique that he taught me became a challenge, and that was the major reason I fell in love with BJJ. I decided to be my instructor’s shadow and then my life took a big turn, from my neighborhood to my daily routine. Nowadays I just cannot imagine myself without jiu-jitsu.

Have you always trained at Alliance? How many other teams are there in Bogotá?

Alliance Colombia has been my academy since my first BJJ class. I have great teachers as Carlos Quintero and Giovanni Espinosa. Both are brown belts, very supportive and great team partners. We are all under Juan Miguel Iturralde, a black belt from Alliance Samborondon, Ecuador.

Here, we have plenty of academies: Gracie Barra, Octagon Jiu-Jitsu, Ultimate Fighting Club, 300 MMA, Wolfteam, etc. But I strongly recommend everyone planning to visit Bogota, to join us at Alliance Colombia. We are one of the strongest, most talented and happiest teams in the country.

Do you like to compete? Do you have enough tournaments in Colombia or do you have to travel far for BJJ competitions?

marcela1

I love to compete. It involves a lot of hard work and mental preparation. When you compete anything can happen and everything is a lesson. I always get super anxious during the tournament day. It is not an easy situation but I truly enjoy the experience because it teaches me a lot, not only as an athlete but as a human being as well.

I always try to attend every tournament in Colombia. However, I’m a big girl by my country’s standards, a fact that does not help when the time to build brackets comes. That is why I decided to compete in the IBJJF NYC Open last year, getting the 2nd place in blue belt heavy weight class and fighting for the first time in an international tournament. My last competition was three weeks ago at the Abu Dhabi Trials in Ecuador. That was my first step as a brand new purple belt and although I got the first place in my category, I couldn’t make it for the open class. Again, just an experience in this beautiful journey and a new lesson from an endless path.

You are one of the founders of BJJ Sisters. Tell a little bit more about this group and what have you accomplished so far? 

bjjsisters

BJJ Sisters is a beautiful project created with my friend Liliana Arias who is also a very talented BJJ practitioner in Colombia. We went to a Female BJJ Camp in Mexico City in 2014, invited by Itzel Bazúa, a brown belt from Mexico.

The camp was led by Sophia Drysdale and Mackenzie Dern. Being there and training with other women made us feel ready to empower the ladies from our city and country to join the BJJ life style.

We started about a year ago with the group and it has been growing really fast. For me, the greatest accomplishment is that BJJ Sisters now is seen as a strong reference for women’s BJJ in Colombia.

Do you see yourself training 10 years from now? Do you teach and do you want to teach BJJ in the future?

I absolutely see myself training not only 10 years from now but for the rest of my life. I have been teaching since my blue belt with the BJJ Sisters project and now my teachers are calling me as a support instructor when they cannot come to the academy. I feel really comfortable and joyful sharing my knowledge and seeing how the team grows together.

Who is your favorite black belt? Who would you like to learn from if you had a chance?

My favorite black belt is Dominyka Obelenyte. I just adore the way she plays spider guard and open guard in general. I would love to join Sophia Drysdale’s classes again and I’ll look forward to doing it. I think that she has quite a unique and beautiful teaching style especially focused on women.

What do you want people to know about Colombia?

About Colombia… I feel really to proud to say that in spite of all the heavy and sad violence background, we have always been listed as one of the happiest places in the world. I believe that those statistics say a lot about the Colombian people who wake up every day, fight their own struggles and still have a big enough heart to keep a smile on their faces.

As Renzo Gracie’s said: “Everyone is fighting something,” and I feel absolutely sure that I was born in a fighters’ land.

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Pretty Dangerous

24 Sunday Jan 2016

Posted by fenomkimonos in Fenomenal Women, Women's BJJ

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darkwolf mma, florida women's bjj, like a girl, melissa lohsen, messy hair we don't care, women's bjj, women's open mat

A couple of months ago we noticed a new women’s open mat taking off in Orange City, Florida, and wanted to find out more about it. The little engine behind Pretty Dangerous Women’s Open Mat is Melissa Lohsen. She is a veterinary technician and describes her life in one sentence, ” I wrestle cats and dogs all day and people all night.”

Tell us about your life on and off the mat.

I am a purple belt under Eric Shingu who is a black belt under Cesar Gracie and originally from California. My husband David Lohsen got me started in BJJ. He started training about one year before I did. He kept coming home from training super geeked and trying out moves on me. He was so excited and so passionate about the sport and he kept trying to get me to try it so I finally decided to start training about 1997 or so. I know it seems weird that I am still a purple belt after all this time but there is a really long story with that.

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When I started the belt system was extremely slow, and I was an anomaly there just weren’t many women training at that time. We came up through the Cesar Gracie system as well which was a very slow grading process. I did compete back then in the men’s divisions. My first competition was at the first Gracie open and the guys in my division either dropped out because they didn’t want to compete with a women or the ones that did compete seriously tried to kill me on the mats. Egos were a massive issue but it was an awesome experience. More women started showing up about a year or two later and I was actually able to compete with women but we were still not on equal footing with men.

I remember most of the tournaments we went to the, women competed during the kids portion of the tournaments and we were awarded the kids medals or trophies which made us feel incredibly disrespected. I remember one time I paid the same entry fee as adult men (the kids competed at a much lower cost) but when I went up to get my award they gave us a kids’ trophy. I am not one of those people who is all about the medals but I was pissed. I had a very heated conversation with the tournament director and he ended up sending all of the women adult medals in the mail. It was a small victory but I was trying to make a point.

We opened our own school, Lohsen Martial Arts Academy, in California in 2000 and we were open for 10 years. We also ran our own tournament: The Foothill Submission Championships. We had fairly big MMA names now such as Michael McDonald and TJ Dillashaw compete at our tournament. The gym closed in 2010 when my husband got a job offer in Florida and we had to move.

Then the jiu-jitsu layoff began. We made the horrible mistake of taking time off of training to focus on our careers. That was a BIG mistake. I do not, I repeat do not recommend anyone take time off from jiu-jitsu. We ended up not training for almost 5 years. Then we allowed ourselves to get really out of shape. We got the bug again and decided to hook up with a local school and train again. It is incredibly difficult when your mind knows what you are supposed to do but your body just won’t cooperate. It sucked. We also had the problem of being advanced belts that couldn’t really roll like advanced belts. That was an incredibly difficult time for me.

We competed at the Atlanta Open which was a great experience but we were having some difficulty with our new team. My husband was a brown belt and has a passion for teaching and they were less than enthusiastic about that. We began talking about starting our own school again and finally opened Darkwolf MMA in March of 2015. Darkwolf MMA is a jiu-jitsu/MMA gym in Orange City, Florida that we opened as a family: my husband David Lohsen, our son Christian Lohsen and myself.  It was a huge risk and still is but we wanted to provide a gym that we always wanted and create the training environment that we enjoy.

How did the Pretty Dangerous Women’s Open Mat come about? 

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We had a great women’s jiu-jitsu competition team in California that took years to develop. I was struggling to get good training partners when we opened here in Florida. There were no high-ranking females in our school to roll with. So we started offering a once a month women’s only open mat. Pretty Dangerous was the name of our women’s competition team in California and we decided to keep it.

I love having a true open mat where women of all skill levels from any school and any affiliation can come together and get some great rolls in. Most of us are lucky to have one other female to roll with at our gyms and if you want to compete you have to roll with women. We roll differently than men. That was a huge eye opener the first time I got to compete with a women. The turnout is getting better and better but they are still a little small. I get amazing feedback from the women who do attend. We had ladies from three different gyms at the last one.

Do you attend a lot of BJJ seminars and do you compete regularly? Do you think it is important to attend seminars and compete?

Yes, we hit as many seminars as we can. Most recently we made it to a two-day Caio Terra seminar. It was awesome. There is a two-fold benefit to seminars. One: you get exposed to moves that you might otherwise not see in your regular class. The sport is constantly evolving with new moves and concepts coming out daily. Two: you get to meet some incredible people. Being a part of the greater jiu-jitsu community feels great.

I do compete,  not as much as I would like but we try to compete at least a couple of times a year. Unfortunately it is really hard to get the higher ranked female divisions in the smaller local tournaments and the larger ones are very expensive because they require travel to get there. I recommend competing to all of our students. I think that as a learning and growth tool it is excellent experience. I always come away learning something about my game.

Competing is a very personal decision and is not right for everyone. Our daughter who trains, likes training but absolutely hates competing. I would tell a woman who does not want to compete that it is a wonderful training tool but she needs to make the decision for herself.

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How do you stay motivated to train year after year?

Well, motivation was an issue before we opened Darkwolf MMA. I love training but there were times when I was just exhausted or I had a really bad day at work or whatever other excuse I could come up with but always without fail if I fought through that excuse and went in to train, I felt so much better after training. I always say that jiu-jitsu is my drug, my therapy, my happy place.

I tease my co-workers almost every day when I leave work, “Have a great evening, I am going to choke some people and hit things. See you in the morning!”  Now with the gym there are no excuses, we are there teaching no matter what and I love it. Currently with a full-time day job and teaching classes in the evenings there is no time for any other sports. Jiu-jitsu and martial arts took over our lives a long time ago and I would not change it now.

What do you like the most about jiu-jitsu and what do you dislike about it?

I love the physicality of jiu-jitsu. It is amazing to me how much intelligence there is to the game.  It is not about strength, power, or physical ability alone (it still plays a part) but there is so much thinking and strategy involved. I love the fact that we can train at 100% and as long as you tap when you are supposed to and noone gets injured. There is a tight camaraderie with your training partners that I don’t think exists in any other sport. This is a sport that you can do your entire life.

Probably the most frustrating part of jiu-jitsu for me is the politics. I understand that running a school is a business but the majority of us that started schools did so for the love of the sport and the need to share it with others. I feel that if you give your students great instruction and great training you should not be afraid that by just attending and open mat at another gym will turn them from you. Have confidence in your abilities.

I know for us, we are never looking to take any other gyms’ students when we host open mats, we are looking to offer our students the opportunity to roll with other practitioners in a friendly environment and gain valuable experience. We openly recommend open mats to our students and try whenever possible to attend them ourselves. Loyalty is important; don’t get me wrong. We have been training with the same instructor for well over 20 years and are still training with him even though we live 3000 miles away. We will be making a trip to California in February to train with him again.

What are your plans with Pretty Dangerous Open Mat for this year?

Looking at 2016 I am hoping to continue hosting one a month. I have been asking other local gyms if they want to host but I still run into the old politics and territorial B.S. I have been talking to Girls in Gis about possibly co-sponsoring an event soon. So we will see!

Who is your favorite black belt and why?

caio

Let me start out by saying that my husband, David Lohsen, a brown belt, is my favorite future black belt. He is the reason I started training. He has been extremely supportive and gone to bat for me in so many occasions. He is my coach, my mentor, my confidant, my best training partner, my motivation, and my inspiration. When I was complaining about my lack of training partners, he was the one who suggested starting a women’s only open mat; he even came up with the name Pretty Dangerous. In essence this is as much his event as it is mine.

I just want to end with this:  you are never too old or too young to start training jiu-jitsu. It truly is a lifestyle and an addiction.  Have fun with it and enjoy the ride.  Hope to see you ladies on the mat!

New Zealand Girls’ Grappling

18 Monday Jan 2016

Posted by fenomkimonos in Fenomenal Women, Women's BJJ

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

bjj girl, fenom kimonos, kate da silva, keitha bannan, nz girls' grappling, women's bjj, women's bjj in new zealand

We recently connected with Melodie McDonald, the organizer of New Zealand Girls’ Grappling movement and asked her to tell us more about what is happening in women’s jiu-jitsu over there. As it turns out, jiu-jitsu has become very popular in New Zealand. The small but picturesque country already has two female black belts, well-run women’s open mats and training camps.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

melody

I’m a 39-year-old single mother of a 20-year-old which is pretty scary! I work as a Youth Development Practice and Team Leader with an organization that works with youth at risk. I have been in this field for the past 20 years and love it.

About 12 years ago my boyfriend at the time started doing jiu-jitsu, I went along to watch and was instantly hooked. After a while my boyfriend and I broke up and he stopped training but I continued.

I’ve been on and off the mat for the last 12 years. I’ve trained at Integrated Fighting, Submission Martial Arts and now Oliver MMA. I trained at a Pankration club for the first 3 years and got a green belt in pankration at Integrated Fighting breaking my hand the day before my blue belt grading. I remember sitting mat side bawling my eyes out because I could not do the grading. I then moved to focus on jiu-jitsu at Submission MA earning my BJJ blue belt under Will/Machado in 2010. In 2009 a very good friend of mine suffered a terrible injury on the mat which affected me for a long time and the mat was a haunted place for me. I stepped away altogether in 2010 and focused on promoting MMA and no-gi tournaments in New Zealand. I was the co-owner/promoter of Industry of Combat NZ until 2013 when we closed the doors. During this time I also co-created MMA Officials NZ which is still running supplying officials to MMA fight nights in NZ.

The end of 2014 saw me in a space of not knowing were I belonged in the MMA/BJJ world and was also looking at the prospect of losing my mom. I needed a place that felt like I belonged. I had also moved house in that time so going back to my old club was not going to be an option for me. Making one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever made, I stepped away from Will/Machado and moved to ATTNZ at Oliver MMA. After four years being off the mat I suddenly felt like I was home again. Everyone was so welcoming and friendly. Then five months into being on the mat I ruptured my PCL and was off the mat again. Eeeeek! So fingers crossed I’m back!

When and how did the NZ Girls’ Grappling movement start?

NZ Girls Grappling came about after Sophia Drysdale visited New Zealand in 2011 and talked about how important it was for girls to be rolling and training together having open mats. We began organizing open mats and from there the camp kind of happened. I can’t remember how now. Originally there was a group of us and now it is myself and a purple belt, Shena Christian, who run it.

nz_camp

I’m really passionate about bringing people together and forming good, strong communities. NZ Girls Grappling is owned by the community and anyone is able to do anything they want under this name. People are hosting open mats all over the country. I kind of fell in the leader role because I like organizing and I am pretty vocal and bossy, I have been around and part of the community for a long time and like to make things happen.

How many training camps have you organized and what has been the turnout so far?

We have had 5 camps so far with our last camp hosting 46 women. It was a fantastic event and we are expecting to get this much again in July if not more. We are a nation of only 4.4 million people, so getting this many women to participate is pretty awesome!

This year’s winter camp, July 8-10, features several local brown and black belts and. Can you tell us a little bit about each instructor?

nzcampjuly2016

In New Zealand we have two female black belts: Keitha Bannan received her black belt in 2013 and is the first ever NZ female black belt. Kate Da Silva received her black belt a few months after Keitha. We have three brown belts: Van Do, Maren Frerich and Ale Moss and all of them are confirmed for the upcoming camp. These five are our top graded women in the country.

Keitha Bannan is the head of Brasa NZ and Kate is with Gracie Gym NZ run by Roney Da Silva who is her husband. Kate is also a well-known international MMA fighter. I could spend hours writing about these ladies but I wouldn’t do them justice. You should interview them!

What challenges do BJJ women face in New Zealand?

There were so many struggles for women training in jiu-jitsu in the early years. Competition was extremely limited. They would be lucky if one or two girls showed up to compete. Training was just as bad with such small number of females. We have come a long way, and training is much better. A lot of the gyms offer female only classes which allows the ladies to get much more comfortable on the mat before stepping into the mixed class. It’s challenging to find women’s gear but MMA Addict is doing a great job importing apparel for us and always sponsoring our camps.

When I first started, we had I think only one female blue belt in all New Zealand, and now we have 35! Women competing in BJJ and fighting in MMA has never been better, and in fact just late last year Princess of Pain MMA fight night saw 38 women in one day in the ring. This was so cool to see.

When we have open mats, all the girls put their gym politics to the side and just have a great time. Unfortunately, there are still some gyms that do not support us and prohibit their girls from participating in our open mats. We try to befriend them at tournaments and let them know that if they want to sneak into our open mats, they are so welcome, and perhaps can host one.

Tell us something unusual about yourself and New Zealand that many people don’t know.

I turn 40 this year and have decided to have my first MMA fight! I’ve been pretty good at giving people advice about what they should or should not do in the ring over the years, and I decided it was about time I put my money where my mouth is so to speak.

Something unusual about New Zealand… only 5% of NZ population is human, the rest are animals! Want to know more about New Zealand? Check out his great list!

Cathedral Cove

Black Belt Corner with Jill Baker

27 Tuesday Oct 2015

Posted by fenomkimonos in Fenomenal Women, Women's BJJ

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

bakersfield bjj, female black belt, jill baker, messy hair we don't care, socal wbjj, white to black belt, women's bjj, women's brazilian jiu jitsu

jillfamilyWe interviewed Jill Baker in 2012 when she was a brand new brown belt, and  had become the main organizer of SoCal Women’s BJJ Open Mat.

Last year in September she was promoted to black belt by Jean Jacques Machado. She called the promotion day a really special yet terrifying one. The striking tall beauty was kind enough to make a second appearance on our blog, and answer a couple of questions for the Black Belt Corner series. Enjoy!

Which belt level has been the most challenging for you?

For me, white belt was absolutely the most challenging belt. When you start training, jiu-jitsu is daunting. The things you don’t know are overwhelming in comparison to a few lessons a week. I remember learning a move and practicing it and then going, “OK got it! But then what do I do?” I didn’t compete for my first year or so, and then when I did, I could not win a match to save my life. I just did not have any pieces glued together. I got my blue belt after almost three years of training, and that is when I felt like things began to make sense.

What advice do you have for women who think about quitting?

Jill Baker_A

When women have the courage to start jiu-jitsu, I let them know that it is a life changing move. There will be highs and lows, tears and celebrations but if they persevere through the first year, they will never be the same person they were before they trained.

They will be better athletes of course but more importantly, they will be better problem solvers. They will be better stress managers, better wives, moms, teachers; just better at life because of this sport. No exaggeration.

I am so thankful that I had the teammates, and my amazing coach to get me through the weeds of the first years, so that I could learn the life lessons that are communicated through my involvement in this sport. Training has become an outlet for me. It’s a place I go to when I’m stressed, when I am tired, when I am sad or starving. Most days I really feel like jiu-jitsu solves all of these. It is also the place I run to after a great day. When I am happy, jiu-jitsu feels just as good. It makes me feel productive, and accomplished; it let’s me think about nothing but what is happening in the moment.


Check out Jill’s upcoming SoCal Women’s Toy Roll in Bakersfield, CA. Bring an unwrapped toy to make a child happy, and get some rolls in to make yourself happy!

SoCal_open_mat_nov2015

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