Embedded Files
(Published May 2, 2022)
During my last tour in the Navy, I worked for a great boss! He trusted my judgment and empowered me to make decisions on his behalf all the time. I was truly blessed to have been able to work for him.
We had good days and bad days. At the end of one of the really bad days he vented and I listened. When he was done ranting about the not so nice and/or not so smart people that had been making our lives miserable that particular day he said, “Mike you should be a doctor.”
“Why’s that Sir?”
“Because you’ve got a lot of patience. Ha!”
“Good one Sir.”
“Seriously, I don’t know how you do it. I want to strangle someone right now!”
Then he looked at me, knowing full well that I was going to Jiu-Jitsu class that night, and said, “You’re going to actually strangle someone tonight aren’t you?”
This conversation happened on multiple occasions. It actually became somewhat of a ritual. And each time he asked me that question, “You’re going to actually strangle someone tonight aren’t you?” I would simply smile and nod.
Over the past 20+ years, after my most stressful days at work, I’ve always been able to step on the mats for a hard rolling session, and it’s as if the stress just drips off of my body along with the sweat.
All forms of exercise offer some amount of stress relief. It’s all part of your body‘s fight or flight response. When you feel stressed it’s actually your body gearing up to either fight off the danger or run away from it. It does that by giving you a whole bunch of extra energy to use specifically for that purpose.
The problem is in our modern, civilized society, we’re often trapped by our jobs or by social norms, and we can’t just fight or run every time we feel like it.
We experience that stress and that adrenaline response, but we can’t allow ourselves an outlet, and that results in all kinds of problems which I won’t get into now because they’re beyond the scope of this short article.
Suffice to say, you need an outlet. I would offer that while yoga, tai chi and meditation are OK, nothing satisfies your body‘s fight or flight urge quite as fighting or running.
And now that I’m pushing 50, I can’t run like I used to. Heck, who am I kidding? I’ll run to the bathroom and that’s about it for me at this point. My knees just don’t like it anymore, and they are sure to let me know when I’ve overstepped my bounds.
But because Jiu-Jitsu emphasizes control and efficiency to such a great extent, I’m still able to mix it up with the young bucks, and give my body an outlet for that fight or flight response.
If you’ve ever had one of those days where you just wanted to strangle someone, Jiu-Jitsu actually lets you literally do that! And the best part is the guy you strangle will most likely smile and compliment you for it.
“Dude, that was a sweet choke!”
“Thanks! Wanna go again?”
“Heck yeah! Let’s do it!”
This kind of thing is so effective at managing stress that I’ve known guys over the years who credit BJJ as the sole reason they’re able to keep their sanity. I’ve known vets with PTSD that say Jiu-Jitsu is their therapy.
It’s not unusual for someone to describe Jiu-Jitsu class as a place where they can unleash the beast, or let their demons out. And the look of peace and serenity on someone’s face at the end of a hard rolling session rivals that of any Buddhist monk in my opinion.
There are other more harmful ways of relieving the stress of the stresses of everyday life. Some take it out on their friends and loved ones by lashing out and saying things that they later regret. Some turn to substance abuse. Some just bottle it up and make themselves physically ill in the long run.
But in my experience the safest and most effective way to find an outlet for this fight or flight response and relieve stress is Jiu-Jitsu.
So if you happen to know somebody who’s been having a rough time lately and looks like they just want to strangle someone, see if you can get them to try a Jiu-Jitsu class.
Help them experience the kind of stress relief and inner peace that only comes from a group of like-minded individuals trying to rip each other‘s arms off and strangle each other unconscious for an hour or so.
- Mike
Google Sites
Report abuse