GRACIE BARRA PANAMÁ

Note to the Women of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu...
Along the way of my travels I would really love to bring some more awareness to women about Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and even Muay Thai. What they have both done for my life far exceeds the bars of any other sport or hobby I´ve ever pursued. Confidence, happiness, conditioning, comfortability. My advice to women who are training BJJ or thinking about it and may have hesitations is to go for it. Hop in with the guys they will take care of you. All of my training partners have always taken care of me, we are like family. I have always felt like a sister to the guys and girls I´ve trained with in the past 3 years. If you come across some partners you don´t like rolling with or you don´t feel safe with, say NO. It´s as simple as that. Try not to limit yourself to only training with other women. Some excuses I give range from the following..

Sorry I´m tired...
Maybe later...
Nah I´m good maybe another day..
I´m just not feeling up to it...
I can´t be killed right now I´m already dead..
No thank...
NO no no no NO nono...I really don´t have an issue saying no. And for my training partners in the past the present and the future..if I have said no to you, it was probably because I literally was dying, and I believe those of you know what I mean. Don´t take it to heart.

I really like to challenge myself by training with all shapes, sizes and belt ranges. The thing about fighting with men is, in the end you´ll be thanking them for making you have such great technique. Really it´s true I´ve been beaten up, crushed, squashed, had bloody noses, lips, face, bruises on every part of my body, swollen ears, heard things crack in my body I didn´t think could crack..AND although maybe no ones ever seen me cry while fighting, I can assure you I have cried in the changeroom after being killed for hours. Emotionally sometimes, not often I´ve just felt like I can´t physically go on, and people will not give you a pitty party NOR should you ever want or expect one. The point is, that while you´re being killed, you cannot rely on strength, you´ve got to constantly be ON YOUR GAME an technical, otherwise you will be on your back waiting for the moment when you tap. Jiu Jitsu is a rough sport, you´ve gotta keep your chin up and smile when your getting your ass handed to you on a plate. I have learned to smile and BREATH over time because I see how wonderful the rewards are. I´ve also learned how to communicate through my practice of BJJ..I was chatty to begin with but if you have injuries girls, or guys, or have any fears, communicate with your partner. We are here to play, to learn, to train and to grow. Final word to the girls, just try...you CAN do it, just be patient with yourself and trust others.

GRACIE BARRA PANAMA- HECTOR VASQUEZ- In Panamá I was lucky enough to make it to three different Jiu Jitsu Academies. Bright and early Monday morning I headed to Gracie Barra Panama where Black Belt Hector Vasquez welcomed me with open arms. I started the day off with a women´s class; some self defense from a head lock which was actually really amazing to learn for practical scenerios.Thank you so much for welcoming me to your academy, it was an honor to roll with you. I will be back and hopefully have some more fight left in me for round 2!!

FELIPE CARVALHO and me did some hard training along with training partner Michael Castillo. Starting with a warm up which killed me..of course in a good way we moved to some drills escaping from half guard. I have a lot to work on from the bottom but on top I feel strong, I´ve been practicing with my balance and overall flow and the results again have been rewarding. We worked on a few different ways of passing the guard..smash pass, spreading your partner out leaving them no option but to let you pass, its amazing. It was a great addition from where I left off with Javier in Costa Rica months ago.

Michael, Felipe, Me, Alex after a dozen challenging drills.

Located right near the Ocean for a great view in Panama City, Panama.

Gracias por todos Profesores! Nos Vemos

Guys, get your girlfriends, wives, friends out to try some BJJ. Girls- get your boyfriends and husbands and friends involved..at least give your partners a fighting chance here. :)