Doing what comes naturally...

The jiu-jitsu verdict?

It's not for me. (Who's surprised?)

I went. I watched. I chickened out on participating. I'd been given the option to observe this week, and come back next week, emotionally prepared and ready to rumble, so I chose to do that.

The class started off with some over-the-shoulder backward floor rolls, and I thought: "We do those in modern dance... piece of cake." Then they progressed to the one-wrong-move-and-you-break-your-neck type of backward floor rolls*. And I thought: "... Ok... No problem... I can learn that." Then they proceeded to perform a wide variety of exercises with one person on the floor, and the opponent on top, switching places periodically. They capped it off with some energetic free fighting, grabbing each other's Gis (uniforms), throwing each other around. It was when they were instructed to put in their mouthguards that I really got a jolt.

It all brought to mind a "playful" fight** I'd witnessed between two brothers (grown men) who were rolling on the floor acrobatically, punching and choking one another, really giving it their all. 

And it dawned on me: This really does come naturally to men. Men have been preparing for jiu-jitsu their whole lives. They've always fought amongst themselves - only with jiu-jitsu, they get to do it with technique!

It was all very testosterone-y.

I may yet return to participate at some point in the future, but for now...

WHO WANTS TO JOIN ME FOR KRAV MAGA?

*Not the official jiu-jitsu term.

**Men would have called it playful. Women would have called the police and an ambulance.