…AND WHY SHOULD THEY CARE?
Look people bottom line is being a white belt is hard. You are at the bottom of the ladder. You are basically the BJJ equivalent of the tea boy/girl. You know in the films when a new youngster gets a job and they have to do all the rubbish work like get the food, make the tea runs.
Yes that is you as a white.
But who cares? Suck it up.
I am currently a very low to average BJJ white belt. At the time of writing this I am nowhere near my blue belt and have been plugging away for about 6 years. Now 6 years may seem like a long time and to be fair it is. I know there are some out there that make blue in a year or less, some it takes a few who knows. I do know people that train 5 nights a week and they move on from white in months. To those people congratulations. For much of the 6 years I trained maybe once every two weeks. Between also doing Judo, Wing Chun having two kids under 10 and working full time making class was never easy. Only in the last 2 years I would say I have consistently trained and rolled. Unsurprisingly this is when I have seen the most progress.
But who cares? Suck it up.
As a white belt everything is a challenge. I learn new moves, a new sequence and then when I roll I forget. I am trying to use that new pass that takes me out of half guard and when I am trying to remember the steps the guy underneath has moved and taken my back. Having finally worked for 3 minutes to get on this person’s back I am trying to find the collar and remember where my hand goes for this choke, and then they guy has moved, and he’s escaping. I spend a lot of time just trying to remember what to do and fighting out of positions. Also tapping a lot. (Which I don’t have an issue with. Tapping is not a bad thing).
But who cares? Suck it up.
At the time of writing this I am 41 so my athletic ability is starting to decline. It’s taking longer for my body to recover from sessions and injuries. I didn’t start grappling till I was 35 and by that point I was already starting to feel the gap between me and the younger members of the class. I can’t match speed and strength with anyone under the age of 30. Trust me I have tried. It takes me longer to learn things and implement them in class because certain movement patterns are harder for me to move into. This is made even harder when you have to roll against some 20 year old athlete who can bench double what you can.
But who cares? Suck it up.
The classes I attend I tend to find that the current crop of white belts who are my level are heavier and stronger than me. (I am 76kg/11.9st/167lbs) In times past when I have rolled with people that are my size they tend to be purple belt or higher. So I get wasted either way. I learn new things in my lessons but trying to implement them in a roll is near on impossible especially on people who are stronger than me. Let me give you an example. A few weeks ago I was working a sequence whereby I pass guard and go to knee on belly than start using my knee to secure the near side arm. I did that and I’m thinking ok well done you have a chance here of getting a half decent top position. My friend raised his arm and basically did a one hand bicep curl and threw me off. So, despite that fact I had used perfect technique and thinking it didn’t matter anyway. I remember feeling demoralized.
But who cares? Suck it up.
This post is not a feel sorry for me post.
I don’t want your sympathy.
I don’t want your pat on the back.
I have heard many black belts say that even if you are getting smashed just stay on the mats. Just staying on the mats will eventually mean you progress. This may be true but for me 6 years down the line it’s hard to see. One thing I know for sure is I can’t get better if I choose to leave the mats. You can’t own a room you just left. I go back again and again because for me I believe in this theory of consistency. I will never win a tournament, I will never be the best in the room, I will never compete at the ADCC level. Chances are by the time my body gives up and stops me from being able to step on the mats the best I can hope to be is maybe a purple belt. That’s ok with me because when that time comes, I will know that I tried the best I could.
But who cares? Suck it up.
As a white belt you have two options. Only two.
OPTION 1. Quit it’s too hard.
OPTION 2. Live with it and carry on.
BJJ is not easy, it shouldn’t be, and it will never be. There are no shortcuts to take. As a white belt you just have to accept where you are and accept you will be hammered. I leave every session mentally broken. I leave with my spirit broken and questioning if this whole thing is for me. Then I go back again. I get injured and take a few weeks off and question if my body is strong enough to handle it. Then I go back. I come up against another white belt who has less experience than me who kills me based on sheer brute force. Then I go back. I question every time why I’m doing this to my mind and my body and all I can come up with is I don’t know how to quit. I feel like I have taken a beating over the past 6 years and if I give up it will be for nothing. I can stop when I either get my black belt or when my body can no longer handle it. My mind however will never consciously make the choice to stop.
So back to class then.
To all the white belts my only advise is simply suck it up.
