The Warrior Method

+ P A R K R U N + A good turnout for the warrior tribe at Highbury Fields parkrun - can’t believe how parched the grass looks though - the start can be super dusty. Fingers crossed for some rain!

I’m up in Norwich at the moment and had a lazy morning but told the husband I’d go for a run later. Would have been very happy to skip it but he gave me a nudge so off I went and of course, I was glad to have done it.

Surrounding yourself with people who encourage you to move can be vital to actually getting it done!

+ 4 S T R I P E S + I’m now a white belt with FOUR stripes! If you asked me when I first started 1 year and 8 months ago what my goal would have been, it wouldn’t have been about belts or stripes. More about just turning up and seeing what happened. And trying not to get too squished 🤪

Im 44 and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is tough on the body. Recovery takes longer, niggles need to be addressed sooner rather than later, and trying to stay injury-free is just as important as improving.

Some weeks I’ve trained lots, but life, family, work commitments or just needing to rest, has meant other weeks my training has been much less. And some classes have been great, and others feel like I’ve taken steps backwards. However each session has stacked up.

My progress may not be the fastest but I’ve got to trust that the small steps count.

Thank you David Cartwright-Khoza for my stripe, and to João Paulo and all the coaches and my training partners at Apex Jiu-Jitsu HQ 🤩

+ P A R K R U N F U N + A super toasty Highbury Fields parkrun AND Junior Highbury Fields parkrun 😎

Hard work but great to have done it. And of course, the best bit is coffee (or in my case, an iced chocolate 😋) after!

Marshalled at Junior parkrun and it was, as always, so lovely to see kids and their grown-ups run, walk, stomp, twirl, skip and zig-zag their way round the 2km course 🤩

+ F I R S T C O M P + Proud of both my incredible boys for competing at All Stars BJJ over the weekend. They both fought hard and with great spirit. H got silver and while A didn’t get a medal just the fact he got up there on the mats is a huge achievement in itself.

Unless you’ve been there, you don’t know how truly scary it can be. I’m in awe of them for trying their hardest and doing new things 🔥

+ G O L D & S I L V E R + I’m not sure I’d ever use the word ‘fun’ to describe a BJJ competition but it’s definitely an experience! And… I got my first gold!! 😃

Thanks All Stars BJJ for a great day, for the team at Apex Jiu-Jitsu HQ especially and Anton Isopoussu for their much appreciated coaching, to my great competitors, my fabulous teammates and the family for supporting me 💕

Can’t wait to eat ALL THE FOOD now 🤣

+ D O U B L E S I L V E R + Incredible experience at Grappling Industries yesterday. My second comp, and first nogi comp. The adrenaline is insane. The exhaustion is real.

My competitors were tough on the mats, and lovely off 😊 Some great matches and lots to learn from which is, after all, the main reason for doing these.

Thanks to the Apex Jiu-Jitsu HQ tribe whose shouts of encouragement were much appreciated, and to and for all the coaching 💕

PS. How cool is the medal??

+ B J J F L A T L A Y + All* the things I took with me for the Grappling Industries comp…

• Apex Jiu-Jitsu HQ Gi
• Belt
• Shorts to wear under my gi - I like the extra coverage
• BetterYou Magnesium drink - hoping it’ll help me stay calm…
• Mouthguard - I didn’t wear it in the end but I figured at least I’ve got the option. I find mouthguards so hard to breathe in 😬
• Lucozade Dextrose Energy Tablets - remember taking these as a kid at Sports Day and thinking this was all I’d need to win 😂 It didn’t work… I also found that too much sugar during the comp just made me feel a bit sick!
• Earbuds - only used these on the journey there and back - think headphones would have been better for during the comp but earbuds were just too fiddly
• 2 x rashguards so I could change between gi and nogi
• Sweets - I carry these in my bag for emergencies anyway. You never know when they’ll come in handy.
• Spats for nogi. It was super hot in the hall (there’s no air con at UEL Sports Dock) but I felt more comfy in spats. Spats are essentially leggings but they’ve been made to be especially hardy for when people are dragging you around on the mats 🤣
• Sports bra - this one’s from MAAREE | Sports Bras - I like that you can connect the back straps for more support.
• Deo for my BO
• Tape bag - I’ll always have some scissors and K-Tape. It’s so useful for taping toes, ankles, knees etc to give support to commonly injured areas. I usually use SPORTTAPE | UK’s go-to sports tape or ROCKTAPE UK I’ve also got fingertape and things like nail clippers in there. Can’t be too prepared 😂

Anything else I should have taken?!
A lot of people had fans as it was so hot - think that would be a good addition for hot days.

* Also brought along my water bottle, phone charger and kindle! And a bag of honey roast cashews from M&S Food , plus a pot of overnight oats to eat after weigh-in. But realised when I started eating it that I’d forgotten to put the oats in 🤣 so it was just Greek yoghurt, chia seeds and PB. Still delicious!