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Emily's Pajama Party
Hi There- I'm Emily and I started my jiujitsu journey in 2024. I am building a community to encourage all women who want to train the accessibility to do so. I interview inspiring individuals to build connection and support.
Emily's Pajama Party
EPP: Keesha (Before and After Keesha's First Jiujitsu Class)
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Ever wonder how a martial art can transform not just your body, but your mindset, confidence, and sense of safety? This episode dives into the empowering world of women's beginner-friendly Jiu Jitsu classes, revealing how the sport fosters peace, resilience, and community—even for those recovering from injury or new to martial arts.
Keisha shares her inspiring journey of stepping onto the mat for the very first time, navigating her injury, and discovering a community that’s as nurturing as it is empowering. Learn how Jiu Jitsu is more than just a sport—it's a form of active self-awareness and mental clarity that extends into life's daily challenges. From understanding the basics like mount and defenses, to how the sport teaches patience, trust, and the importance of a safe space, this episode is packed with tangible lessons you can apply off the mat.
Hi everyone, welcome to Emily's Pinjama Party. I'm your host Emily and I'm so glad you're here. Here at the party, my goal is to make Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu accessible to all that want to try it. Whether you're interested in taking your first class, you're a seasoned veteran, everyone has a place on the mat. So with this episode, I hope you learn a couple things, maybe smile a little, laugh a little, connect, and find someone else that belongs in your community. As always, I start off with a fact or a skill or a technique that's going to make me a better Brazilian jujitsu practitioner. Now, this fact or this thing for me to do feels really important right now. Because I'm coming back from an injury, I am not on the mats as much as I would like to, and I'm literally and figuratively towing the water to see what I can do. So now just being there is really important. When I'm there, I need to remember to study people better than me. I am not watching just techniques. I am looking for how they move, how they pace themselves, when they explode, when they pause, how they grip, how they stay heavy. Those upper belts make things look so simple because their foundation skills are clean. Now I must say that studying people my size is going to be really helpful. But how cool is it when you study someone with a very different body shape than yours? It's remarkable not only to see what skills they access, but also maybe at the end of the day, I look for ways that I can counter what they're doing. Are they always big movements? Are they really quick? Are they slow and sure? I can learn so much by watching and studying. So moving on to today's guest. I love to think of my life as being a series of happy accidents. It's quite serendipitous, if you will. I kind of found Keisha on accident. I had seen that she had participated in a body jujitsu seminar as one of the folks there offering services and doing massage therapy, things like that. And I thought naturally that she was a jiu-jitsu practitioner. I'm like, oh, that's kind of cool. Someone that does massage therapy, how it supports the body. I figured that would be a really cool conversation. And then I sent her the questions and we quickly figured out that they were geared for someone that trains in jiu-jitsu to see the connection. And she's like, Well, I don't train. And then I saw through clips, she was like, I'm taking my first class soon. And I was like, Goldmine, because I've always wanted to talk to somebody before their first class and then immediately after. So Keisha so willingly came on the show two times. The first time I got to talk to her was a very brief setup for what she might expect. I didn't want to go too much into detail because there's just so much to know. And even a couple years in, I know just a fraction of what I need to know. And then there was a pause and we talked two weeks later. So I'm really excited to see like the little sparkle in her eye for the first time. I I might have referenced it, but I always tell my kids, you can't reread a book for the first time once you know how it goes. It's just kind of in your brain. So you'll have to listen to the fun conversation I have with Keisha as we talk to her before and after her first jujitsu class. Keisha, welcome to the show. I'm so glad you're here.
SPEAKER_02Hi, thank you for inviting me, Emily.
SPEAKER_00All right, and before we talk about jujitsu, tell me a little bit about yourself. What do you like to do? And who are you, Keisha?
SPEAKER_02Well, I try to be a homebody, but that doesn't work. I have to to to get my life together, but I'm a mom of three. I have two boys and one young lady, and they are nine my two boys are 19 and 34, and my daughter is 28. And I have a gr I'm a grandma. I have six grandbabies. I have a new grandbaby. He is I think about four or five weeks now. He's so little, yeah. And so besides that, I am uh I'm a massage therapist, uh a yoga instructor, and I love like I would not tell you I love massage therapy. I knew it was something I wanted to do, but I didn't know how it was gonna look in my life, and it's pretty, pretty spectacular.
SPEAKER_00That's awesome. I I have semi similarities. So I have three kids as well. I have also have two boys and a girl. When are a little bit younger, then congratulations, you got promoted to grandma. That's so exciting. And new grandbabies always I love like my mom is loves the baby head smell, so she is just cut for that.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I did not put them down when I went to visit, they live like an hour away, so you know we're busy and stuff, but I was like, I'm gonna go see my grandbaby, and I think I held him the whole time. So sweet.
SPEAKER_00You should. That's what we're supposed to do. Okay, so and you do yoga. Are you have you done other sports? Is that kind of been your like the m the most like gravitated towards? Did you grow up playing sports?
SPEAKER_02I actually liked playing sports when I was younger. I tried a lot of things. I actually ran track for a while. Um, cross-country was not my thing. I got lost in the woods and I never wanted to do it again. But to run track to I did like short distances and stuff like that. But I played a little tennis. I actually like tennis. I didn't do too much. And I wasn't like a basketball, I didn't want to do anything. I did more sports like that. I would have loved to try soccer. That's what I but you know it wasn't really big in the area I was growing up in at the time, so I didn't get to do it. I did put my son in soccer for a while. I tried to live through him, he wasn't having it.
SPEAKER_00Oh kids, they they missed the assignment. Like, try all the cool things that I wish I could have tried.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Well, I played the flute. I love playing the flute. I would like to get learn how to play the piano, but you know, that's like another extracurricular activity I love. Like I I love music and instruments. So one day I can learn how to play the piano.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, why not? Now, do you consider yourself an athletic person? That's such a subjective question, but it's really interesting how we look at our own lives and how we move our own body.
SPEAKER_02I don't know, that's so weird. Like, I know I I need to like exercise. I used to walk, I used to run. Then, like, I had shin splints before, and it really started to aggravate me. This is before I really knew how to do a little massage for myself, and so I'm kind of recovering from that. And I when I tell you I've had dreams of running, I was like, I'm gonna run again, and so I would do like I would run like five miles, wasn't much, but then when I had to walk five miles, I was like, this is not the same. My five miles turned into three miles, and and then so yeah, I do love to walk. I've worked out, I just I want to get back into it. I really do love it. That's why I was like a little confused, like thinking of how I'm gonna answer this question. I actually looked up some rowing this morning because I'm like, a row is a whole I I've been interested in it for a couple years, and so I have a gym membership and they have a rowing machine, and I was like, I can go, and I went to YouTube. This lady was really awesome, like showing what to do and technique and how to do it, just to begin her stuff, and she was like, of course, the rest of the stuff you learn on the way. But yeah, I was like, I think I'm gonna go and get in some rowing done and and a little walking just to keep my body because even though massage therapy is active for me, like I don't just um I'm not always sitting, so my legs are pretty strong, uh, my arms and hands are pretty strong. I have to get work on that stuff all the time. But so in that aspect, I'm active. I just would like to get back out, especially on nice days, just get back out to walk.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, so um not related, but qu sort of related. Um, I'm like, I can't afford yet another membership because I've been doing a lot of injury rehab. And so I already have like my gym, my jujitsu gym membership is on hold, but like I have a personal trainer that sends me workouts versus like meeting in person, but I was looking for different cardio options and through Facebook, I have a I'm in a group called the Buy Nothing Group. I don't know if you've ever heard of it before, but it's done like neighborhood-wise, so you can only be part of one. So I'm in my buy nothing group that's like a couple square miles, and you can either ask for things or give things. So, like the other day I went on the buy nothing group and someone was asking for hand weights. And I have the like clicky weights. So I had an extra set of free weights that were 10 pounds. I don't need them because I have my clicky ones. So I was I said, Oh, I have a pair, come pick them up. And then I got a rower and I got an assault bike through the buy nothing group. And so it's nice because it costs me zero dollars. I just have to go pick it up. In fact, you're not even allowed to barter or give money, like it has to be truly like everything in it. Like I got a dining room table, a lot of people will switch around like baby equipment things, but it's like such a nice entry in because I wanted like I rowing will be really good for my foot, but I don't want to buy a machine if I'm not gonna like it because I can be like a couple hundred dollars. So that was really nice. So now I have a rower and I have like all sorts of silly things that cost zero dollars. So it was a nice way of getting into things. I would definitely look that up today. Buy nothing.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, and then there's like rules like to me, that's still an investment. If I can invest that and invest time into it, it's I just want a full body workout without having to put in a lot of time. Like I'm like being on this machine and being on this machine and being on this machine. I don't have that type of time in my life, so I was like, what can I do that'll give me a full body workout? So rowers.
SPEAKER_00Well, and that's why, yeah, I got into running because you just throw shoes on and get out the door. Sometimes just leaving the house is such a commitment. But if I know I can go hop on the bike or whatever for 30 minutes and be done within 31 minutes, because you know, it just takes me moving across my living room. There's more likelihood of me doing it. So, so it's good.
SPEAKER_02Okay, it's so funny with the run, it's just the coming back because once you run there, you'll be like, I gotta come go back, ma'am.
SPEAKER_00That's why I always do a loop because I'm like, I don't want to get caught ending early just by being able to turn around. Uh, I get that. Okay, so you're on the show because you were at the body jujitsu seminar. Yes, yes, and then they were you were there as a guest and you were talking about massage therapy, or were you uh did you get to do massage while you were there? I was doing body work there, which was so different.
SPEAKER_02It was it was really, yeah, it was I loved it. Like when I walked in, it it it was felt it was a lot going on because you know, people were coming in and people were signing in and things was happening and I had to set up and but once I got set up, everybody was so friendly. It's like I they were already checking me out. I was like, I know who's gonna come over here because you I see the eyes. Like, what's that? So yeah, once I got in there and everything and set up and set up just working the room and seeing who wanted a massage and telling them, you know, what was what and and but when I started to work on the bodies, yeah, I was like, everybody's black and blue.
SPEAKER_00What did now have you had any experience with jujitsu before? Have you seen it being done? Was this your first exposure?
SPEAKER_02Not you know, you see stuff growing up, TV, how however that looks. But I had to do a little research on my own, and one of my friends was so excited because I was like, I think I might take a class. And he's like, he's telling me this, like running down this whole like jujitsu history and and line, and he was like, and a Gracie. I'm like, what's a Gracie? Like what's going on? So I I I was taught I was taught some about some jujitsu just by um my one of my friends. Yeah, I was curious. It it made me look, I was like, why is everybody black and blue? And and then I was just noticing not too much injuries, but like areas of stiffness or concern like that they had that they wanted me to work on. And pretty much everybody was the same. It was back, or or you hear about oh a list of things that happened. This happened there, this happened there, and this happened, and and yeah, yeah, this, this, this. And I'm like, man, you didn't have about 10 injuries in here, you know. But over time, you know, over time. But it's any sport, that's any sport. But when you you hear the list, you're like, whoa, you don't think about that in jiu-jitsu, you know? I'm like, this is real like contact.
SPEAKER_00But so what made you so you saw the event, and we we always talk about like the more people we get in, the more people that we can work with to get better, or like really there's two parts of it. We love to invite because it is such a great, trusting, amazing community for the most part. I have to add the caveat that some schools are not fantastic, and if your school is not fantastic, find one that is. But like to go to a group, it's an all-women all women in the room. Something struck you like enough that on Saturday you're gonna try your first class. What was it that made you say yes to trying it out?
SPEAKER_02I like to try new things, I don't like to hold myself back from anything. If you don't try it, you don't know. So it's something that I've never really been in a contact sport. That so I was like, and everyone was so nice, Emily. When I tell you it felt like a family in there with everybody, with every person. And you know, it was that no, and that's all I mean it's I I can't say anymore. Like it that's what it felt like. It felt just like family, and everybody wanted to make sure you were okay, and and somebody some would come up and just chat with you for a while, and you know, just just telling their journey and what made them want to be in this. And it was all ages. So I can't say I'm 52. I can't sit and say I can't do it because it was women there older than me that's been doing it for 10 years or however many years they've been doing it. So it's like you can try this. So that that's what like to see them doing it. You know, and and I know that if I say, okay, I've had this injury here, I've had this injury here, because if um I guess made your me and I done hurt myself a few times. So I know people be respectful of those things, and I know it's I just know it's it's it's things that we can do, like if we feel like we're in pain or we're like I know it's a process to it, and I just need to learn that because I am appreh I'm excited, but I'm apprehensive. But I said if you get in there and you pay attention and you listen and you learn, you you'll be okay.
SPEAKER_00Do you have any idea what to expect? Are you going to like a gi versus a no-gee class? Are you going with a friend? Are you familiar with the studio? How's your class gonna look?
SPEAKER_02Not sure. Because I saw it in that seminar and I saw a little bit of them sparring and just uh, you know, it wasn't like a big no one did like a big that that I saw did a lengthy one. It was like a little grappling here and there. I don't know what to expect, and I and I like that. I don't want to go in thinking I know everything, and I want to go in with an open mind, and I want yeah, I want to go in with an open mind.
SPEAKER_00I want to go in with now, do you it's really fun. It's like um if this is going to be a one-and-done, like, oh, did it, check it off, not my gem move on, or you're gonna be like, oh my gosh, this is the best thing ever. I can't wait to do more of it, or how long the journey will take. And I always tell my kids, like, you can never reread a book for the first time. So there's a beautiful experience about letting it unfold. So do you have questions? Do you want to know what it might look like? Sometimes it's just knowing what I can do to get ready for the class. It has nothing to do with the actual class participation, but like what should you do either to wear or bring with you or prepare? Do you need any of that information? Or are you just going in completely bright-eyed, totally open? You'll just see what happens.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I would like to know what to wear comfortably, you know. But what I did notice, because I'm a yogi, no feet on, no shoes on the the the mat. Like the the respect of the mat is number one, I think. So I can even imagine I've seen like in some aspects of of a martial arts where they bow to the mat. You know, it's it's a big respect thing. And I that's what I like. That's one of the things it kind of drew me in too. Respect for the mat.
SPEAKER_00I will say that it depends on what studio you go to. Some are so I came from like a karate background that was like super formal. Like you bowed your instructors, everyone either called them sensei or senpai. You didn't speak when someone spoke, like when you bow, you don't make eye contact. Like I was used to a very formal way of instructing. You learn this, then you learn this, you learn this. So everybody knows the same thing. Jiu-jitsu can be very wiggly. Some schools will be very formal, and some seem like surfers that just rolled off the beach and just came in and jump on each other, and you don't know who what belt anyone is, and it's just very loosey-goosey. So if you were some schools, like the Gracie Baja system, geese have to be your uniform has to be a certain color. As a beginner that you go in, most places, if you're going to wear the uniform, you get to borrow one first. So you don't have to worry about spending $200 in order to take your first class. Like my gym let me borrow one for the first couple weeks until I was ready to either bite the bullet and sign up, or by the time I ordered one for it to come in. But uh in some place, so we have two different ways of doing jujitsu. We have it gi where you're in a uniform, or you're in no gi, where I always say I look like a superhero because I'm running around in spandex. So there's one or the other. At the base, you're going to be wanting to wear a sports bra and some sort of, I like compression shorts. Even if I'm wearing a uniform on top, ties come undone, things get loose and kind of open up. I prefer to be more on the covered up side. So underneath my ghee uniform, I'll wear like a tight-fitting shirt, either a rash guard or a tank top. And so it's just like it's fairly, I don't want to say high-necked, but it's not like a scoop neck. They can be short sleeve or long sleeve. Just because I don't want parts falling out and being self-conscious. Because if my mind is thinking about what my chest is doing, I'm missing out on like what my body parts are doing. So your first class, yeah, you can come generally, like you're not going to come in jeans, but you might. Some people, if it's uh, like I said, a nogi class, will either wear like those squat-proof leggings, like a black pair of yoga pants that are really thick, or they could wear those in shorts. Sometimes people wear those with shorts on top of them, as long as you don't have pockets that might get a finger or toe cut. Like every our shorts always have either closed pockets or like most of them don't have any pockets at all. Just because we don't want anyone to get injured.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, okay. No problem.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and it's it really you talked about shoes on the mat. Every gym is very has their own kind of house rules, but no, no shoes on the mat is like a big one. And even like you get to the mat, some places will even have wipes for you to wipe the bottom of your feet prior. Like our school is near the beach, so they don't want you, you might not wear shoes, but if you've been running around barefoot at the beach all day, they still want you to kind of just wipe them off before getting on. And then if you were to go to the bathroom, it's always good to wear like a pair of flip-flops or sandals because if you leave the mat for end, you most people will leave their sandals near the edge of the mat. So if you have to go to the locker room to get something from your bag or go to the bathroom, you always, always, always have to put shoes on because it's I was surprised on the level of cleanliness that's expected. Like for them, 99.9% of the people will shower before class, brush their teeth, um, make sure, like taking off all makeup because we don't want to get makeup on someone else's uniform. All jewelry comes off. So rings, bracelets, earrings. I roll the dice. I have two nose rings that are hoops versus studs. I leave them on with full understanding that if it gets caught on something, that's totally on me. But people will take off all those extra things.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I got everything here and it's all clamped down, so I don't know how that's gonna look for me. If I decide I might have to uh get a stud for here or something.
SPEAKER_00Well, sometimes you just put a band-aid on top. I had my helix done, and so I would just put a band-aid on it. It's really just funny things get caught. Like I had my hair once in a scrunchie versus in a rubber band, and it came out, and like you get your hair, someone's knee will go on your hair, and you try to sit up, but your hair got gets caught or something that can be frustrating. But we do the best to go in, you know, ready to go. So it's I I like less things to worry about.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. And I'm a I'm I think I will learn all that just when I when I get there. And I can't wait. Like, I mean, not just that, but I'm I'm glad you're giving me that information. But learning how learning from you know, other people's experiences, and and then when I get there, it's just gonna be exciting. I don't know. I'm like I'm I'm as I'm talking to you, I'm like visualizing being there. So it's kind of it's kind of weird for me.
SPEAKER_00Well, and I yeah, I I love the idea that anything can go. I like again, not sharing about jujitsu in general because you're gonna get all that. And I don't want to give you, as you said, a preconceived notion of what it's gonna be because every school is different, every class is different. Some beginner classes are just beginners. Some people get thrown in with everybody else, some are in women only, some are in mixed gender classes. So the school will take care of that. I think the mindset going in, I had to check my ego at the door because I consider myself a fairly athletic person. So when things didn't come as easily as I thought they should, that's where I got in my own way. A big part of jujitsu is failure. Like you will lose and lose and lose and lose and lose for years with little success along the way, but we learn so much. And just being okay with wow, I can't believe they got that. That's amazing versus my self-worth is dependent on me winning. And just like going in as you are, I'm excited, I don't know enough to feel upset about it because I'm just going for the experience, and that is a wonderful headset to headspace to be in.
SPEAKER_02Let me tell you, yoga will put yoga will take you there. Yoga will be like, you mean nothing. What you think means nothing, because none of that might not happen. So, like that that's kind of instilled in me from so when I say I take I do yoga, yoga is my lifestyle. So it's not just about the poses or or any of that stuff. It's literally about being patient and waiting and seeing, and even and just living my life saying I don't I don't know anything. Even if I do know stuff, even if it's things that in massage therapy, I will go in to massage therapy and be like, you know nothing at all. Because I can listen to something for 30 minutes and know everything this person is talking about, and then the last couple of minutes they say something spectacular and I'll be like, I never heard that before. Only because I wasn't patient enough to sit through and listen. So that's that's the only reason I like go into this. I've of of yoga has has uh bred me to be it's it will make you it will make you say, okay, what you what you think means nothing at all, what was happening is is is what's gonna matter.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and just that that humility. And I there was I remember as a teacher when COVID happened, and really it was the Wild West. We were having to do online instruction. I teach four and five-year-olds. So the idea of like, how are you gonna teach a four-year-old through a computer screen? Like, there was a whole lot of learning, not only the technology piece or how to explain it. And one of the phrases that was resounding was be brave enough to suck at something new. And I love being bad. I don't want to say I'm bad at jujitsu, but I'm not good at jujitsu. And that is what I love about it. I love that it's so hard, and yet for whatever reason, I keep coming back, and so that's really fun.
SPEAKER_02And that's what I got from the ladies too. And said that looking and listening to them, like I suck at this, but I've been doing it for so many years, you know? And then and they also had like they had people who were competitors at one time, and or or they competed against one another, and they won different, I don't know what you call the like they're in different like competitions or competitions. Yeah. So and then and I guess it's different forms of competition, different, uh, so they were just coming from there, and you would see these women, and you would hear them like, yeah, I was I I I fought her, and that's how I got this belt, you know what I'm saying? So it was like to know that even though she beat her and she still came and was all in one space, all in one room. It didn't matter that it was like, yeah, I had the belt, okay, whoever's gonna get it next is who who gets it next. You know, but you know, to say that I had it was just so it was like I said, it was just so much family. I was just ready to be part of that. So however that looks for me, when I join and and not to say that I don't have family, of course I do, but I like to be because I have that, I like to be in spaces where people are family. So to know I can be here and uh somebody's gonna teach me and they're gonna be patient, and it may not look like patience, you know, to them, to me, it may not look like patience because they'll be like, you didn't do so and so. I know all that's gonna change when I get there. All that niceness that I was seeing is gonna I'm be like, who is this? You know, just they turn around, you know, like in in a in a movie when you see something and then they just turn around and you'll be like, that is not the person I was just with.
SPEAKER_00Keisha, can I tell you a secret? But they're just as nice. It doesn't matter if you're like the expert pro, you're a beginner. Like, I it gives me goosebumps, but they are like I've worked worked with people, and like they were holding my limbs and moving them where they're supposed to. And they're like, You almost got the role. You just went over your head, not your shoulder. You could have really hurt yourself, but you're doing so good. And it's like, uh-huh. Thank you for like I I as a teacher, I'm always teaching others, and to go to somewhere where I know nothing and they don't expect anything from me is like the most beautiful thing. But really, they are that nice. And if they're not that nice, you're at the wrong place because 95% of the places are phenomenal. It doesn't matter if they're 18-year-old boys, they're 79-year-old black belts, they're the beginner, they're the in-betweens, they're the soccer dad. Like everyone is so nice.
SPEAKER_02So I love that. Yeah, yeah, but it was good to see that, like this to see champions there, and then they were non-champions, and not, but they all still friends, and there's this funny thing.
SPEAKER_00I've heard it said, like, when you go to work with somebody, we say don't break your toys. Because if you break your toys, you have no toys to play with. And so when you invite someone new, you're like, you can bring in new toys, but remember, if you want your toys to last, you have to be nice to them. So people generally, everyone, like I said, you have to be as time goes on, you'll learn who your people are. There, you're out of a gym of a hundred, maybe half of people you like to work with, but also like you have so much autonomy and control of who you work with as you go. It's really nice because you'll be surprised on who is amazing. And even the people that you don't work with, it doesn't say they're bad. They just might not be the person for you. Like the D1 wrestler that's 24. Like, maybe you work with him sometimes, but it's not gonna be your regular training partner, or maybe he's your favorite training partner. You just never know.
SPEAKER_02Okay, yeah. Well, I'm I'm gonna go. I just I can't wait. It's it's on on Sunday, so I'll be in there. All right, and be ready. I just be just I'm just gonna drive into the parking lot. I don't know why I'm just it's I I like it because I'm I'm a person who I don't try new things often. Well, no, let me rephrase that. A couple years ago, I began to try new things. Like I even painted my kitchen green. It's just beautiful, like outdoor green. And my whole family hates it. But everybody who I show it to, and then one of my friends, she was like, Oh my god, you embraced your fairy. I was like, girl, yes, I know. So and everybody's like, Oh my god, I love that green. So it's like light, this lime electric green with these black cabinets and these butcher block countertops, and it's just so beautiful. And I and I just want to brighten up colors. So this is how I see jujitsu, just another bright color in my life that I'm learning, and I'm and I'm gonna take more than one class because you don't really know. Just because you experienced that first one doesn't mean that I won't get better. Or if I like you say, even if I don't get better, it's still something that I'm doing for myself.
SPEAKER_00Yes. All right, and kind of with that, I'm going to say pause, and then in the magic podcast world, by the time we talk start talking again in a minute, then you'll be giving us your wrap-up of how your first class went. All right. Here we go. I would also want to say good luck. And we don't want to say break a leg. I don't know. That's theater and that's other terms, but have fun. How about that? Yes, thank you. I will okay. Okay, she did it. I'm gonna put her back on now and we get to see how that class went. So, Keisha, welcome back. This is the first time I've done a two-parter episode. So I'm glad you're back and you survived your first class. I survived and I was excited.
SPEAKER_02I was ready for the next one. This is the crazy part. Uh, injury. So I've been getting a lot of body work for myself, and my injuries started acting up really bad. So I was like, I can't even go to my next class. But it's good that they're gonna be gone for a couple of weeks so I get to recover, so everything happens for a reason. But my first class with Body Jiu Jitsu was amazing. I don't really felt good afterwards, like I felt every part of me did something, even though I was, I felt I was contained in this space, you know, because from when because and then the crazy part is you know, I don't even want to call it the crazy part, the interesting part is it's like you're just throwing into it. They're like, okay, that's what we're gonna do. Like you learn from experience.
SPEAKER_00You're like, wait, wait, is there like a video to watch or like a pamphlet to follow along with? Oh no, I'm just getting put wrapped up like a pretzel. Got it. Okay.
SPEAKER_02When I got there, they were like, oh, we just finished this. So this um they had like a pre-thing where they work on different stuff. And then they were like, we got to get into it, and this is our first move. But it was so it was very patient. It was a lot of patience. It's like I know you're here, and this is your, you know, your first time coming into this space. And even for the people who were already there, there was still patience in development, you know? And just hearing the the ladies' stories of where they were and where they are now, and how long they've been doing it, why they're doing it. It was it was really comfy. That's the only way I can I can think of it, because I felt at peace. Even though I was doing a PlanTech sport and it's a possibility to snap things, I still felt a piece in that space. And I was able to, you know, ask questions, like, is this the right thing? Am I doing this correctly? Wish I could tell you what I did because everything happened so quickly. I can't really tell you what moves it was. I can describe them, but it was like we were in, they were like on top of me, and I had to do like defensive movements, or it was like movements where you turned your body, and she was like, Well, that is a more advanced move, but the fact that you're trying it is great, you know? And but you can do it this way and still, oh, and we did like a waterfall or uh like a like you fall over the person to do so. We did so many different things, and it was just like trying to get out of that when someone is sitting on top of you. We were doing some defensive movements, calm them back and forth. So it was really neat.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, like some of the basic terminology you might hear. Like if you're laying on your back and somebody is sitting over you, like their knees are on either side, we call it the mount because they're like mounted on top of you. And so that's like the winning position, right? In that situation. If you're laying on your back, the person on top is in a better spot, right? Like on the street, they might be punching or they might be trying to grab your arm or try to choke you. And so you're trying to get out of that. You could do like 900 different things, but like perfect, perfect way to start. That's a very foundational position. We talk about being in mount, being under someone's mount, and then I don't want to say it's scary, but gosh, it's humbling when you have somebody on top and they're trying to keep you down, but giving us having a space, safe space to learn how to like breathe and work through. You're right. Like there are we're trying to really hurt someone, but it doesn't feel like that in the moment. Like we work together very much as a partnership.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, and that's how it felt. And they would it was like we could we could really snap your arm right here, but we're not, we're gonna fall to this side because we don't want to do that. We want you to feel the pressure. Go ahead and tap out if you have to, you know. So I felt really safe in that space. It was all women, so on Sundays, it's all women, on um Tuesdays, it's a it's a mix of men and women. But like I said, they also create a safe atmosphere because child who leads the practice, she was like, you know, if someone comes in here and they are aggressive, especially men, she's like, they're not allowed in here because that's not the point of this. It's not to prove who you are, it's not to prove your point or to show that you're stronger than a woman. We already know you're stronger than you know, I'm not gonna say, because some women are pretty strong, but for the most part, you know, we want to make this a safe environment. So you we create this dynamic of do you have this? You can you have this option or you have this option? You can hurt this person or you can give this person pressure just to let them know that you know how to do the move. And so she made it so uh she was like, Yeah, most people exit their way out, especially if they get bested by a woman, they'll like I'm out of here. But if she sees that, or if say the person stays, but they're they may be having a day, they will let us know this person is aggressive. So you may not want to spar with them, you know? So yeah, I like that to be able to learn and not be deviated from something that could possibly help save my life, or something I can teach my kids to help save their life if they're ever in a situation where someone is trying to grab at them or something like that, or you never know. At 52, I might say, Let me enter into an amateur tournament, you know, and I can uh get in there.
SPEAKER_00We approach all areas of our life said learning opportunity is not good nor bad, just learning. It is such a wonderful space because there's a lot of failure, and the success is very sweet, and I know that it's safe. So many positives. I love an inclusive space. I think the older I get, the more I realize inclusivity doesn't mean a space where I always feel comfortable, but we all can get what we need. And so to be at a gym that is very everyone is on the same page, everyone gets along, everyone is, I don't want to say safe, but like very predictable. That isn't necessarily the real world, and I don't necessarily want that. It's like my friends, I we all have like the same. I the people that I work with, we are similar gender political view, like space and society, like we have very similar ideas because of that. I enjoy jujitsu because it's almost like a palette cleanser. There's so many different personalities there. I deserve to be there, but also the person that wants to go hard deserves to be there. The person that wants that's recovering from trauma, the person that's using it for weight loss, the person that just shows up to class, a person that wants community. Just because they're in the room doesn't mean I have to work with them, but they deserve to be there as much. And so I'm not gonna work with the 19-year-old Marines that walk in the door that are looking to really get aggression out. They have their own buddies they can work with, and I can choose not to work with them, and that's totally cool. And maybe I want to some days I might want to try that, but I will preface it with my expectations going forward. And if that we can agree in a commonalities, that can be a great person for me. But the real world is made up of all different people, and also sometimes I start, it's nice to start off in those classes where it's an all-women's class or it's an all-beginners class or it's an all-whatever class. And as we get more comfortable, then we can reach out, right? We can it's like learning to ride a bike. You start off really slow with all the padding, and over time you go a little bit faster and maybe take off the training wheels and maybe take off the elbow pads one day. I will never take off my helmet, but it's like that slow. The more comfortable I get, the braver I get, the more chances I take. And that's where I learn. I don't have to jump in like a cannonball and really fight for my life every class. That's a silly expectation. But how lovely for jujitsu to try it.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, you know, I I love how you put that. I don't, I don't like because I that's how I feel. I don't because like literally, we're always in fight or flight every time we go out into the world, like just dragging traffic. You're like, you're looking to make sure no one's coming to your lane or no one is pulled out in front of you. And and when you can go into a space where you don't have to do that, that makes every learning all the better. So that's why I was just so excited. I was like, me, like, why are you acting up right now? Like my ankle and my knee, I was like, I can't break this. Oh my gosh. Because I really wanted to see what it was like because she was telling me just how kind all the the men are, and how their goal is to help us learn not to not. I mean, of course, they're going, they're not going to uh like be lenient on us, and I wouldn't want anybody to because how this is a contact sport. How will I learn how to like really get myself out of something if someone is just like, oh, let me just hold you just a little light, you know what I'm saying? So to but to know that if I tap, you know, they're gonna let go and not and not be like, no, I'm I I gotta snap your elbow.
SPEAKER_00I think there's so many levels to that. Yes, give me the space to learn. I have a tendency, I'm recovering, I'm returning from injury. And just because I think I can do things, actually having my body in those positions, a totally different story. Like I am a marathon runner. The people that say, I want to run a marathon one day and then sign up and run one two weeks later, sheer willpower does not protect your joints and injuries and things from popping up. You're going to like pull hamstrings and you're gonna have you can roll your ankle because your body is not um accustomed to that load. And you are great with mobility. You do yoga. This is so different. While we say, Oh, I can touch my toes, I can do this, whatever, but putting stress on your body. Those positions. It's really hard to come to terms with like I should be able to do that, I say in my brain, but my body is just not used to carrying it. So it's hard to slow down enough at the beginning because really there are so many muscles that I just never realized I had. Like the other day I did a first like flow roll with a couple people, which is not like hard, but it's been three months since I rolled my neck muscles. Are we not sore? They were tired. I'm like, why is my neck sore? What was I doing? I've never had my neck this sore before.
SPEAKER_02That's for my shoulders like a couple days later. And I'm so used to like telling my clients as a massage therapist, you know, I'm like, after this massage, you may feel a little discomfort. Um, you know, F's a thought bath or you know, whatever your pain management is, you know, this you're telling this. And a couple days later, I'm like, why do my shoulders hurt? Like, but I'm I'm I'm thinking I'm like, why does the inside of my thighs hurt? Because I have my legs wrapped around this girl for like an hour. Well, in this woman for like an hour, and I'm like, oh my gosh, that I was like, it was jujitsu. I said, but it's okay, it's all part of the plan, and just keep at it. And so, yeah, it's totally different from yoga, but yoga did help because as the time where we we did a particular move where my leg was actually kind of like on her chin, or on her, not on her neck per se, but like on her chin. And she's like, and I'm I'm lifting my leg up just a little bit because I feel the pressure of our leg on her and I didn't want to hurt her. And even though I was lessening the pressure, she still was like, those calves are dangerous. I said, uh I said, yeah, I noticed that. And I was trying to um not put so much pressure. And so when um the when Char came over, she was telling her, she was like, her legs, her legs are good. That's all she kept saying. So I know I have something. I got I if I could get them in a in a I don't know, some type of scissors something or a leg on them.
SPEAKER_00I got hearing all your words, I'm like putting together the scenario that you probably went. And what I could imagine, I could be totally wrong, but I heard elbows, I heard mount, I heard knees against face. So I'd imagine, again, I'm just for my own enjoyment here. You're on the ground, someone's on top of mount, and so they're probably grabbing one of the person's arms that's on the ground, and you have to like shift your weight, throw the leg over the head, and then pull the arm back to try to manipulate where we were.
SPEAKER_02That's where we were exactly. Oh, your face, that's so fun. Yep. So they were showing us different ways to actually. I want to say she showed us three different ways. Like the the first way of trying to get the arm, and then when somebody does a counter, and then you do a counter, and then we do this, and then they do a counter, and they're like, no, throw that leg over and come back on that arm. And so she would have us like lift our bodies and like fall to the left, because that would not that would um create pressure, but not the snap. Because she was like, if you come this way and straight back, she was like, You snap a shoulder out of place. And I was like, well, I don't want to snap anybody's shoulder on my first day. So I was like, I save that for some, you know, I saved that for something else, like trying to save my life or something. But I was really, I love the feedback, I love the support, I love the jiu-jitsu community. Like I was saying even in the first interview, even though you didn't know who I was and you saw me there, you were like, I don't know what your your thought pattern was, but just the fact that you reached out, we're on two separate coasts, you know. So the love of the jiu-jitsu community is expansive, and that's beautiful. And I felt uh you helped me to want to become part of that.
SPEAKER_00So, full honesty, I do stalking. There's a few I meet people in real life, I find people online, and so like just social media has been a lovely little, it's a fairly nichey community. But while when I first got the idea for the podcast, I only knew a couple people. So my first episodes were people I know in real life. Well, my fourth one, I think, was my first person that I met online. So I was like, who could I talk to? So it was mostly easy to get like my training partner Mikey, uh personal trainer Jen, because I know their faces, I know where they live, all of those things. And then I reached out to people on YouTube because when I was starting out, I'm like, who, like I who did I study to learn how to do my hair or get ready for class? And so I had reached out to Kimberly Kinch. And then as my algorithm started becoming more and more jujitsu, I started finding more accounts to follow. And then one of the gals, Jodi, I saw that she was having an event. My I think my boyfriend had told me he's like, hey, there's a seminar coming up. It's a woman's only, you might be interested. So he sent me her page. I signed up, and it's very like grassroots, right? I come from like a again, running background where there's 50,000 people in a race. You go to a site, you fill out your information, you pay online, all that stuff. Dodie's is a lot more in like a in-house because it's an event of upwards, maybe 80 people, so different than the like thousands. So then her and I were like exchanging back and forth because I was having trouble with the payment thing. And I'm like, hey, I would love to have you on the podcast. I'm like, oh, she's a brown. Like, what about how to talk to beginners? So that started the conversation. And then I went to the event and then I met more people. So when she was then on, so that's a West Coast thing. When you went to the East Coast, I like again, I'm always looking for guests. And so I saw that you were going to be a part of it. Like, again, full honesty, I thought you were already in jujitsu. And I was, we were gonna talk about massage therapy as a recovery tool for jujitsu folks, and then you got the questions, and you're like, I don't do it. But then you had mentioned after the event, you're like, I'm I think I'm ready to take my first class. That was my first thought. Oh, maybe she's not in it. But I thought, what a great view. Because the people I typically find are already ones already doing it, like because they are already talking about it, they already have a connection. I've met them at a gym. So everyone has a story. Everyone actually has like a thousand stories. It's just knowing which one to bring out at different times. And so you were a lucky find to be where you were, and here we are. So, oh okay. So, was it a were you wearing the uniform, the gi, or were you just in like street clothes?
SPEAKER_02So I was in street clothes and I did take your advice. I didn't have I did have pockets, but she was saying, as long as the pockets were flat, like the flat pockets, that I can wear those. So that's what I mostly wear to work. So I just threw that on and I had a a shirt. I was like, hey, this shirt seems like it fits it. It was like bad girl gone rat. That's what it says on my shows. So when I walk in, she's like, Your shirt is it, man. Your shirt is it. I said, okay. But then I learned to wear the fabric that doesn't that doesn't allow you to sweat through. Was that like the sport people in sports wear it? Just can't think of it right now.
SPEAKER_00No, it's like that tech material. Sometimes it's like in the running clothes, sometimes we'll call them rash cards. Rash cards could be used for the pool or surfers, but they are just that compression versus a cotton.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, and then so one of my friends, um actually, this is not where I am. Um I'm getting a massage because I said I had a lot of body stuff going on. So my friend was available today, but he used to take jujitsu. So as soon as I was like, hey, I'm taking the jiu-jitsu class, and just went through this thing, like all of a sudden, like, do this, do this, and this is that, this is this, and blah blah blah. So I was like, I take my first jiu-jitsu. So he said, um, you know, he was like, You're gonna have stuff on your knees and you're gonna have brashes on your this. And so some of the ladies were telling me, like, where my leggings under my knee because that she was like, Yeah, my knees felt it, my elbows felt it, or things like that. So I did learn a lot of stuff. I actually took some notes, piercings. I I love my piercings, I'm not ready to give them up yet, but everything's gonna be flat.
SPEAKER_00So I found my ears. I have to take out. I used to have a helix piercing at the top, and it was a flat back, but it always was getting crushed. It was fairly new, so it wasn't, it was like nine months old. That one always aggravated me. However, like my nose rings, I leave them in. I absolutely know that if something happens, it's on me. But I I find that the hoops are easier than the actual like earring part would be. I feel like there's more mobility and they can kind of shift as needed. Anything on my ears, I would cover with like a band-aid so they didn't get caught. I think only once I think I got an earring caught and the back just ripped off. So then you're like looking around on the mat trying to find your earring. But my for whatever reason, my nose doesn't tend to get smashed in the same way. But also, you talk about like the the rashes and things. Like, I will often get like a mark on my cheek. And I'm always like, what was I doing with my face? I don't know if it's somebody's like uniform rubbing against me or my face on the mat. Yeah. Something's happening.
SPEAKER_02Well, I'll find out, but like, and I I'll keep noticing, I'll tell you. But I did, I was offered, like you said, people will offer you stuff. So I was offered my first key. And so I'll be getting it when I get back, when she gets back from vacation. And I did invest, and I I call it an investment because it's something that I I'm I'm so used to. This is really big for me because when I think about my my childhood and my and my I was always on a defense in life, like as a kid and growing up, you know, and and in other people's society for real. Because when you're a kid, you don't really understand life. So we're taking in stuff from other people, and so I'm always on edge of some things that I went through in life, and so I chose yoga because I said I need to calm my little nervous system because I'm all over the place. I said I have to have some sort of balance, and I can't just always be in this space of serenity, and when something comes up that I need to be aggressive, that I don't necessarily because I don't think it's aggression, but other people are aggressive, so I still need to know of a way to defend myself, whether it's physically, verbally, or however that looks. I couldn't just be one way, like I couldn't just use yoga just to be in a in a certain space. I still have to have that bound consent life.
SPEAKER_00I would say, like, as I always when I hear, I think how I process. Jiu-jitsu has given me a calm, the way that having an emergency savings account helps create calm. When I have $7 and my car breaks down, and I think, oh my gosh, I have now lost my vehicle. My vehicle is my way to get to work. My work is how I get a job, the job isn't for food, but if I have a savings, emergency savings, my car breaks down, I'm like, oof, it kind of hurts a little bit. It's gonna cost $2,000, but I can. That I then I like let it go. I'll resave, I'll re-work up, I'll get my savings back. But now what could have been a life-altering situation has now been diffused very easily. I think about jujitsu in that situation. Because if someone comes at me aggressively and I don't know what to do, I'm going to react very differently because at that moment everything is dire. But if I've been in a situation where I know a couple things, it gives me a minute to breathe because at that moment I'm not in mortal peril. They're yelling, they might be in my face, but I'm safe. I can think, who is around me? What is at my disposal? Are my children with me? Is there space? What kind of shoes I'm wearing? Like I can start. Am I in an alley? Am I on the street? Am I like I can start taking stock of the situational before I worry? Jiu Jitsu, like the calmest people, like the higher ranking, they're so calm because even when they're in a bad situation, they know how to get out of it. What a beautiful parallel that is to life. I was talking with another guest. I don't like, I don't like my neck being perched from the front. It's uncomfortable. There's like a thing where you get squished from the side. It's not good, but you have a lot longer to live. If you come at me and get me right across the throat, it's very uncomfortable. I hate it. I will do anything to avoid even that initial. My professor will bait it so people get it. And it's uncomfortable, but he knows how to get out of it. So even a very uncomfortable position, he feels safe. Jiu-Jitsu gives me that in life. And because I practice it with the physicality on the mat, it makes me a better person overall. So, and like sometimes just that peace keeps me out of situations because the person they can't bully me into it because maybe that I'm not not necessarily I won't back down if they're gonna get my face. You know what? Go for it. You can go first in line. I guess you want coffee more than I do. It's not worth the fight. But I have that peace, it's okay.
SPEAKER_02And that's how I see it. That's that you said it perfectly. It helps with that. I wouldn't say avoidance of aggression, but how to better perceive what you just said. Like you can perceive it, it gives you a chance to, you know how you you you admiss, what was it? The Robert Downey Jamie played the role. And it was a book of this detective over in London and Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock Holmes, thank you, ma'am. So, but you know, when he played in the movie, he would perceive everything before it happened and how he was gonna do it. And that's how I think like jujitsu. That's how I see jujitsu. Like it gives me, like you say, gives you time to think about everything we want to do, and do I really want to do this? Because we have to think too, once we get into these positions, we could hurt someone. And we have to seriously think, do we want to do this? Do we that's that's in any situation in life. If you decide that you want to pick up a knife and and stab someone, like you have to think first. Like if I think you can't work, you can't go off of your anger or your fear. Fear is a, I think fear is worse than anger. So it's like, what am I gonna do here? And it gives you time to think. So I think a mixture of the two of yoga and jujitsu just gives me a better, it's gonna give me a better outlook on life and and dealing with a lot of human, human people, people, people in situations that I um have to come through and learn, you know, learning better how to use my breath and thinking about ways to get out of situations instead of ways to enter into this battle with someone.
SPEAKER_00It's a beautiful way of getting to know yourself. Yes, it's a partnered activity. Yes, every single role will look differently. Yes, every partner that I work with has a different flavor, different style. I cannot control, well, actually, as I get better, I can control the situation. However, I in life, there's going to be things I'm going to be proactive and reactive to. But that is on me and knowing what I want to do moving forward. And I've learned so much about myself in this sport. And like what people talk, I talk about like some kids start at five, some girls are in their teens, others are in their 20s or in college or whenever they decide to start jujitsu. And like a woman that's 44, this is a really good time in my life to be working on jujitsu because I lived for my for others for so long as like my child, child rearing the teacher. And to like, ooh, I developed some habits that may serve me well, but also some that don't. And also, I am just I am only me on my mat on the mat. I am only worried about myself and my survival. And I really get to work through some really good things and to see myself grow. Like it, they always say, like, record yourself in the beginning, rolling or working with partners and re-watch it because it's hard to not gauge yourself against others because you're like, oh, that person's 20 years younger than me. That person's so much stronger than me, that person's so much whatever than me. I'm only gauging myself against me, I'm not gauging it against anybody else.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. And that's why I love that. I love that too. Like to see that and and to know that that I'm allowed that space also. And it's not just me. It's so funny she I I know it's not a joke, but she jokes, and she's like, Yeah, I'll be nicing you up until you get this belt, like this certain belt. She was like, after that, you know, it's on, you know. So it's like, I'm like, so do I prolong this right open?
SPEAKER_00It's very interesting. Yeah, like how other people, because sometimes, sometimes people will approach you and they'll treat you like glass. And I'm like, oh my gosh, do they think I'm a dinosaur? Like the way they're going so easy on me. And other people do it differently, and sometimes they can feel a little patronizing. But there's something to be said about when someone goes a little harder on you than you think you can handle because they believe in you enough that you can. And that's like a really weird but a really cool feeling. You're like, that was hard, but I don't mind it. It wasn't so far beyond, they weren't living just for themselves, but they we could like turn up, turned it up just enough. That really made me work, and also kind of was too much, but I'm okay with it because it was safe and I trust them.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, because I think if everything is easy, we don't we don't learn from easy. If everything is given to you, we we have to have some tough times, we have to be able to get through the struggles, and that's a struggle trying to get out of a position. Or like I said, I felt like a turtle in a hash trying to put stuff under there. I was like, you know, I'm trying to move my body, and this is this is not working. She was like, Well, this is an advanced move. I didn't really expect you to get it, but the fact that you tried is good enough, you know. So the you know, and I know that there's so many possibilities out of this. Is it's not just I don't even, I I just had a, I'm sorry, like a moment, but it's very eye-opening to everything that we can achieve. Like you're not just stuck in this space where you feel you have to baby yourself or someone has to baby you. You you push yourself, maybe not to the limit in the beginning, because it's it's something new that you're learning. But as time goes on, like you say, like somebody else may understand your limitations and you don't. And the fact that you be like, oh, they put me in that. Now I have to use my training, what I've been taught to get out of this situation, and you end it, and they'd be like, Yeah, I I had to step it up a little bit because you felt too comfortable where you were, and you needed to see your potential, what you could do. I appreciate that.
SPEAKER_00I'm so glad. Okay, so you talked about being kind of sore, but that's okay because things are new. I would say that was my first, I wouldn't call it necessarily an injury, but like my adductor muscles because you're trying to hold someone in between your legs. Those were definitely achy. And because of running, they I definitely overworked mine. So, like you're gonna work your way through. Do you sign up past a trial? Have you given yourself some time? Are you gonna try out different gyms? What does the future look like for you and your training?
SPEAKER_02So, right now I'm gonna stay where I am. And I said they'll they're gone for like two weeks, and I'm nursing this injury. I don't it just popped, which I'm glad. Like I said, that the time was just perfect. So I'm gonna finish my massage as soon as we finish this. I had to, I was like, I just need to set up for this interview. Is that cool? Like, yeah, we're gonna continue. Like, yeah, thank you. And then so um I can work on these and they'll be back. And I had to adjust my schedule too because I really did want to take a Tuesday class, but I had client, you know, I had already set my schedule, but I've I've already cleared my schedule for, and I literally put jujitsu on my schedule. Like I am not going to, I said I'm just gonna have to take clients earlier on the Sunday, and I'm gonna be in class at 11 o'clock because I need to do this for me, Emily. Like I need to do this, it's something I feel I felt. I don't I think the universe is always working. The universe is always bringing people together, always bringing situations together, understanding their stuff. And I I'm tired, I need a vacation. I work uh less in the beginning. I sowed a lot of seeds last year. They're coming too now. And I don't know what a farmer feels like, but I uh I imagine this is what it is. I feel like the sun beating on my back. Uh uh I feel like I'm I'm I'm pulling everything on my own. No, no, no machinery to help me, you know, pull crops. And I mean, that's how I feel, like I'm doing everything. So I said, I'm gonna take this vacation for myself in August. And when I come back, I will be jujitsu ready. I've already bought my calendar. And whoever doesn't like it doesn't like it. And you know, I'm they're gonna be like, oh, you're adjusting your schedule. Yes, I need to because you guys are not gonna have me massaging you forever and ever. They already tell me that I can't stop massaging because I'm looking for an employee, and they're like, Yeah, no, we just want you. What? No, I need a break at this in time for me. So I'm like, when I take the month vacations, y'all gonna miss me.
SPEAKER_00Well, I would say that jujitsu is going to very much help again with massage therapy. The the rhomboids in the back and the shoulders and the your hands from holding geese, all forearm strength, all of those things, what a lovely combination between the two. And because it's in different movements of mobility, like I know that I've been lifting a lot lately. I haven't done a lot of like sideways movement and things like that. So coming back is like, oof, I feel those. But because it's I would consider fairly functional movement, I feel like it could be a lovely compliment. And I would beg to say, your massage, it could make increase the longevity of your career by having a way to use your muscles in a different way and strengthen them. So you're like, I'm actually cross-training to be a better massage therapist.
SPEAKER_02That's right. I can see that.
SPEAKER_00Oh, I'm so happy for you. This is so exciting.
SPEAKER_02I cannot wait to see where this goes. I really can't just like hearing, because there are people in class older than me, Emily. And it's it's people that came from when I when I first did the event for um Body Jiu Jitsu. People were coming from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and they really traveled for to come down for the event. And here, you know, they were like, oh, like I've been doing it for this many years, and and sometimes I I come and and now I'm just coming back, but they never give up. They never give up. It's their love, and I and I believe it's not the love for jiu-jitsu. I don't believe that because, like you said, for whatever the reason people come, whether it's to lose weight or overcome some anxieties or whatever, or you just want to be fit, more fit, whatever your reason is, I do believe it's the community that keeps everybody so close. And and I don't believe if I ever took a break or something happened in my life and I didn't speak to anybody, I do believe someone will reach out. I do believe that. Are you okay? Is everything good? Do you need any assistance, any help? You know, we haven't seen you in a while. I feel that as a family, um, and I'm big on family. Um my family still live together, do my mom and kids. Like, so family to me is very important. And I think that's what's gonna keep me around.
SPEAKER_00And like everything, as we know about family, things change. Kids graduate, people move away. Like, there's all of those things are going to happen, but that feeling that culture can stay cohesive because we know the only thing constant in life is change. And so if I understand that and I go into it, I expect it from myself. I am only gauging my progress against myself. I understand I may never be a six-day-a-week trainer, and that's okay. I understand that sometimes getting into class when I really don't want to, but going anyway is okay. And sometimes those other days, you know, like I understand the importance of rest and taking the day. That is okay. Like just forward momentum that whatever speed. Sometimes we run, sometimes we crawl, sometimes someone is pushing us, sometimes we're holding hands. It's all part of the journey. Like, it's this is not something that's going to be like a season. I want to do this forever or as long as I can forever. And so just being realistic with my expectations for myself and just understanding some days they always say, like, sometimes I'm the hammer and sometimes I'm the nail. It's going to be okay. Sometimes I'm a nail for a very, very long time.
SPEAKER_02Exactly. So yeah, I I'll get to to figure that out for myself, yeah. And I'm I'm also um opening up something, something new, opening up to something, yeah. Because when you're when you're always in an aggressive, in an aggressive state, and then you have to go back to it. It's like a different mentality, though. It's a learning environment. It's I can't wait to see where this goes, where it takes me, what I open up to. Yeah, I I I was always a person that needed stability. Like I needed to know, I'm gonna wake up, I'm gonna, I'm gonna go here. Well, or that's how far I'm gonna go. When I wake up, I'm gonna go here, I'm gonna do this, I'm gonna get up, I'm gonna brush my teeth, I'm gonna shower, I'm gonna wash, I'm gonna do this, I'm gonna do that, and then I'm gonna go to work, and then I'm gonna do this, I'm gonna take care of my kids. And I always want to plan things out. I'm a planner. And I've been working on not being a planner as much. You know, I I want to do, I want to think out of the box for things. And this is to me, it's a big step for me, honestly. To me, it's like just getting in the car and just driving somewhere, not knowing where you're going to end up, you just go. And that's how I see my life right now. Just get in the car, just go. Wherever you end up is perfectly fine. If you like it, you like it. If you don't, you don't. You know, and this because I I believe, as you believe, this is what I know for me, that there are no good, there's no good, there's no bad. We only have experiences in life. If we start to categorize stuff, we close ourselves in, we create fear, we create a close by to all different types of possibilities in life. And I don't want to close by, I want to see things, I want to do stuff. Like I was just talking to my one of my clients, I was like, I'm ready to go to Italy. Like, I'm I'm just ready to take this trip and go. And I'm like, even if I go by myself, I'm okay. Like, I want to see Italy, I want to see Greece, I want to see all these, I want to see the ruins and Rome, all this stuff. And he was telling me, he was like, Yeah, if you go here, because him and his wife are moving to Italy, like if you go from this place, you can go in like 10 different directions and reach something spectacular, you know? And I that's how life should be. And like if you're standing in the center, like everything should be like this should this this star, the shining light, you know, when you look at the light and all these rays are popping out, like we're the sun, we're that that center, and everything is just uh accessible to us. We just don't see that because we live in like this dark space. And we're a shadow space, and I want to call it a dark space, a shadow space because we're shadowed by our living conditions, by our upgrades and things like that. And we never live our lives for ourselves because we so much try to live life for everyone else and how we were taught to do things. So this is a beautiful space for us.
SPEAKER_00It is. I'm so excited about your growth, and I want I can't, we'll have to do like in a couple months, maybe around December, we'll have to do a check-in with you after your trip, after you've been introduced for a couple months. All the new lessons, all the new comings and goings and moving forward.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I love that. I can't wait.
SPEAKER_00Keisha, thank you so much for talking with me. I can't wait to push this out and share your story, and other people, I'm sure, are gonna resonate with it.
SPEAKER_02Yes, thank you, Romani. Thank you for reaching out. I believe everything happens for a reason. I love to see what what this comes up. Yes, I appreciate you. Thank you so much. Of course.
SPEAKER_00This week's shout-out goes to people who share their things. In this sport, it's really wild how you can go from zero things to a million things. So when someone's new and they start out and you're like, hey, I have a gi for you, I have a fresh card for you, I have a pair of spats, anything to help ease someone into the sport is so appreciated. Or if you get something free and your friend's like, oh my gosh, I love that color, and you pass it on, there's nothing better than getting to give new life to something that you've loved or help someone get farther in the sport just because of your kindness. So thank you. Shout out to all those generous folks out there. A shout out to Keisha. I haven't gotten a chance to meet her in person, but talking with her, she is just a gem. I'm so grateful that she told us her before story and we got to hear about the initial after. I'm really excited to see where her career in jujitsu goes. I hope it's a strong one. I hope it goes on for as long as she needs it and wants it to go. So reach out to those friends. If they're not sure about the sport, send them this episode. Who knows? Maybe that'll be something that will change their mind. We go in just as we are. We train just as we are and grow and we shape and change. We are, what did they say? The only constant thing in life is change. It's us in jujitsu, us and life. There's so much to be seen and discovered in the world. Oh, so until next time, I hope you have a fantastic week. And I hope you come back to Emily's pajama party. I hope you stay cozy, and don't forget, clean out your bag. You might have an extra wrapper if you're anything like me.