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Learning Jiu Jitsu through Coaching
The greatest decision I ever made for my Jiu Jitsu was a decision I made for others. When I decided to start a women’s class at Caio Terra Academy Madison, it was to create a safe space for women to...
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Women Training Women (and why it matters)
After class fun with some of our Sunday crew Every Sunday at Caio Terra Academy – Madison, women take over the mats. There is an inexplicable power and growth that comes from women creating a time and...
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Keep Jiu Jitsu Safe for All
It was March, 2008. Nineteen year-old De’Alonzio Jackson was out partying with a sixteen year old girl he had invited out to the bar for “college night.” DJ brought his own Bacardi that he pulled out...
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Closing the Door on the Madison Metropolitan School District
I stand outside my classroom door with a smile and a greeting as my students enter the room. I see some straighten up their posture and others pull off their hoods when they cross the threshold. I am...
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Blue Belt Blues
Me with my instructor, Jordan Wilson, after promoting to blue belt. That day finally comes when you retire your white belt for a shiny new, stripe-free blue belt. Congratulations fill the air. Hugs and...
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Conquering the Jiu Jitsu Gender Divide
From mount, I scrambled for her loose arm, throwing my head down on top of it to secure it in what I hoped would be an Americana. The ref knelt down, knowing a submission was near. I rehearsed exactly...
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Why Competition Matters
It was still dark when my teammates and I converged at Caio Terra Academy Madison. There was an air of nervous excitement as we wiped the sleep from our eyes and loaded our gear into vehicles. The...
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Attitude is Everything
It was the end of a rewarding class. We were lined up in order of rank after an evening of learning, drilling, and rolling. As was the custom, we all awaited the instructor’s closing remarks. These...
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Never Too Old to Train Jiu Jitsu
I sat across from him, nervously clutching my cup of coffee, hoping the first date wouldn’t be too incredibly awkward. When he turned to the side to adjust his chair, I got my hopes up. Cauliflower...
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My Life in Tattoos
I recently received Tools of Titans as a gift from a friend. This book is a compilation of the great thoughts, habits, and ideas of successful people. Each person’s chapter is accompanied by a...
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Un-slumping Yourself
Next episode in 10, 9, 8… I hit the play arrow quivered in its red target, committing to another 48 minutes of living my life through the eyes of an internet detective while my own is placed on pause....
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With the flick of a switch, my life changed forever
I strode into the darkened room and reached for the light switch. I groped around and tried again. Then, I stopped myself. Months before, I had moved into a new place after living in my previous...
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Be a Lady — No Acting Required
Going to the gym is the equivalent of engaging in a sociological study. Today, my lens was gender. I glanced around the changing room and cringed at the curling irons, make up, hair spray, and...
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James Street Footprints
Sitting among half-packed boxes and the rubble of moving, I find my mind and emotions vacillating. Transitions are hard; they are full of goodbyes and half-closed doors. Just as we leave our mark on...
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Never Again “Just a Girl” (Why I train Jiu Jitsu)
I stepped off the mats on Friday night with a grin on my face and my head held high. I paused in surprise as I passed the locker room mirror. The person looking back at me had an unfamiliar glow. She...
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Live. Write. Grow.
Write something every day. These are words I live by and it is a message that I feed my students. These words are met with resistance, occasionally by myself and regularly by my students. In my...
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The Perils of Conjecture
We all have shortcomings. Mine tend to come in the form of emotional tantrums. Thanks to Isabel Briggs Myers, I can explain away this personality deficit as being INFP. After all, these deep thoughts...
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Bike MS 2016: Join the Fight
Help fight for a world free of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). I’ve signed up for the Bike MS: Toyota Best Dam Bike Tour with the goal of working toward a world free of MS. Please support me as I prepare for...
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Reverse Resolutions 2016
Resolution season is upon us. Soon, people will be flocking to the gym, picking up temporary hobbies, giving up venerated vices, and swearing in new diets. But, not me. I no longer make New Year’s...
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