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| My nephews Jim & Pat, Me and Rob Lynn training Judo |
I was doing a random search on Judo when I came across this post at judoforum.com - it got me to thinking about something that has been on my mind for awhile.
"I started my Judo journey at 52 years of age. Two years on I am a 4 kyu and hope to grade to my green belt early next year. Under BJC rules to progress beyond green I would need to fight. I train twice a week minimum and am as fit and strong as I can be but at my age I am concerned that I haven't got the endurance or speed to battle with younger guns eager for that darker belt.
Maybe green would be an honorable point to stop grading — I could still train, practice Kata and enjoy my judo. Or should I take a deep breath, rei and see what happens? Any thoughts? Thanks."
For the longest time I had been a green belt, and after being promoted a couple ranks - only to go back to Green Belt after turning 18 years old - I was given the title of "Green Belt Forever", a nickname which I hated.
I can empathize with the author of that post. The current guidelines in Judo make it very hard for non-competitors to earn ranks above Green Belt. I feel they wrongly focus on what is called "elite" competitors (meaning Olympic-level) and seem not to care about the vast majority of people who practice Judo. Add to that the way Judo tries to punish anyone using techniques even remotely resembling Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu,
and you get a state of decline in Judo. With the popularity of MMA gaining mass appeal world-wide, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is becoming the more popular form of grappling/submissions martial arts these days instead of Judo.
So, for someone like myself, who is not so young anymore & not among the "elite" competitors - and so I needed to sit down to figure out what I wanted to do in terms of advancing in Judo. It had been a long time since I had stopped training regularly, but I am fortunate enough to have family involved with martial arts training - and they are highly regarded when it comes to Judo.
I began learning Judo from my former brother-in-law when I was very young. I had lost my oldest Sister when I was about 11 years old, and it wasn't much longer before I also lost my Father to cancer. I was angry at the world & needed some guidance/discipline. I was also a little awkward when it came to sports and lacked confidence in general. My Mother figured martial arts might help, and so she asked if I could be taken on as a student by my brother-in-law.
I liked the training, and the activity helped channel my energy in a more positive way. After awhile we went from just family training in a small garage to formal classes to the general public in an elementary school gym. Eventually this graduated to the point where we went to competitions. That was something that took a few tournaments for me to catch on about competing... but once I started placing highly the trophies became a regular part of a Sunday for me. My senior year in high school I won gold at both the Junior Olympics for Pennsylvania and the Keystone State Games. (held in State College at Penn State University)
Winning was very nice, but it wasn't all about that for me. Judo came into my life at a time when I was in chaos emotionally & physically awkward. It gave me discipline, athleticism, a sense of purpose, and a feeling of calmness that I desperately needed. Winning trophies & medals was just icing on top of the cake. Judo as a whole was a great treasure that I am grateful for having discovered.
I moved away from the immediate area where I grew up, and for a time I lost out on what Judo has to offer. I am grateful that I am close enough to my family members who continued training that I can get back involved with the martial art. It is my goal to earn my Black Belt in Judo, as well as begin training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Mixed Martial Arts. My nephews run a gym that operates out out a sports complex associated with a local promoter for MMA. Currently the rules here in Pennsylvania don't allow for someone my age (over 36) to compete in MMA, but I'm hoping that this changes so that I, and many others, can realize our dream of competing by fighting in MMA. (more on that later)
For me, earning my Black Belt isn't the end of anything. I feel that is just the beginning. I always thought that it becomes a starting point where a student realizes that they know some things, but still have a way too. There is always more to learn, and I don't ever want to get to a point where I feel like I have nothing left to learn. I would love to be in a position where I could teach others - so that I can hopefully give the gift to others that was given to me so long ago. I feel I owe a debt to others because of how this gift that is Judo/martial arts was given to me. I have so much in my life because of martial arts & Judo, and I would be honored if someone else has their life effected in a positive way as mine has been, because of what I would be able to teach them.
Getting back to the original post from jodoforum.com - even though I am not as young as I was when I regularly competed... I feel I am young enough that I could compete successfully in both Judo as well as BJJ/grappling-submissions competitions. I realize that I'm not in the best shape for achieving this goal, and that is why I need to get back into a regular training regimen, and that has many benefits. It would mean spending more time with my family & certain friends involved with martial arts & combat sports. It would also mean I will be getting in better shape & lose some pounds I really need to be gone. It could lead to me achieving my goal of earning my Black Belt in Judo - which could lead to me teaching others. And ultimately, I want it to result in me being able to compete in Judo competitions as well as BJJ tournaments and other grappling/submissions events.
I do not feel that age should be a limitation. I refuse to let it be for me in this area, and I want to see how far I can progress in Judo, BJJ, and grappling-submissions training. I do not want to become complacent, or to ever be satisfied with what I have accomplished. I always want to be in a position where I want to be learning something new. I want to be better than I am today... and I always want that to be a goal for each new day - to keep growing, evolving, and to always keep striving to do more, be better than I am at this moment in time.
In a perfect world I would love to compete in MMA, even if it would be just one time. Unfortunately, Pennsylvania doesn't allow people over 36 to compete in MMA, or at least not currently. In order for me to fight on an MMA event fight card, the rules need to change - and that is why another goal of mine is to petition the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission to have the age restriction removed so that anyone who is medically cleared by a doctor who wishes to compete in MMA can be allowed to fight. For that, I asked a very good friend - Albert Cameron (co-host of the MMA RunDown) - because he has had experience & success in petitioning the Althletic Commission in the past. Albert was cited by MMA Weekly as being instrumental in MMA being allowed in Pennsylvania, a process that began with him petitioning the Athletic Commission to include MMA among the sports accepted in Pennsylvania.
It is my goal to get that aspect of the rules changed, and I will not only need Albert's help - but that of many many others who would sign the petition so that hopefully the Pennsylvania State Athletic commission would take the request serious enough to remove the age restriction. I hope that someday very soon I can call upon people to sign the petition to help make my dream a reality - I feel it would be the goal of many, many others not just myself... and I hope that people will join me in my attempt to achieve this goal.
As this aspect of my story progresses I will update you all, and hopefully many of you will help me with this. And as my progress in other areas of my personal story that I have chronicled in this article advances I will keep you posted - and I hope one day not so far off from now to both be able to proudly announce that I have earned my Black Belt in judo as well as successfully getting the rules changed so that I can compete in MMA here in Pennsylvania.
I look forward to those moments with anticipation, and I hope that you all will support me in these efforts. Thank You!!!
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| Me with nephews Pat, Jim & Jason at Complete Devastation 4 |
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| Me with members of the Dignan/Brumbaugh MMA Fight Team & Rob Lynn |
