Give What You Get

14th October 2023, White Belt Diaries VII At this point I’ve been doing jiu jitsu for sixth months or so. I still take my licks from the higher belts, but I feel a degree of competence and understanding in the sport. It becomes clear to me that one of the largest learning curves you have is […]

A Good Big ‘Un

10th October 2023, White Belt Diaries VI It’s an old boxing cliche that quickly proves to be equally true in my BJJ experience – ‘a good big’ un, always beats a good little ‘un’. It was a favourite of my dad’s when I would complain as a boy about coming off worse from a bruising wrestling […]

Hammer and Nail

28th September 2023, White Belt Diaries V Over the summer my second stripe comes shortly after my first. I beam with pride over the two little strips of fabric on my belt and I bore my girlfriend with boasts of how I feel like I’m naturally well-suited to the discipline of BJJ. Finally, the years […]

Wear and Tear

9th September 2023, White Belt Diaries IV The scream was unlike anything I’d heard in a long time. It rang out across the mats with a guttural agony. Everyone in the room froze immediately, our heads whipping towards the sound of the wail. The scream seemed to go on and on and on – it was […]

Earn Your Stripes

1st June 2023, White Belt Diaries III My instructor wraps a piece of tape around the end of my belt. It’s only a thin strip of finger tape, but I’m utterly chuffed. I feel like a kid again getting that 50m swimming badge. My first ‘promotion’ in the sport. In Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, there are practically speaking only five […]

Total Ranker

27 May 2023, White Belt Diaries II In 2024, we’ve become slightly uncomfortable with outward displays of hierarchy and largely we’ve lost deferential attitudes and reverence towards authority. On the whole – great – I don’t want to have to tip my hat to some posh boy. But a baby of some sort was thrown […]

White Belt Diaries

19 April 2023 It’s a pleasant sunny afternoon. I could be enjoying a coffee in the spring sunshine. I could be strolling through the park listening to a gentile podcast hosted by irrelevant former politicos or comedians quizzing someone on a fantasy three course meal. I could be bingeing *insert whichever Netflix series was in […]