Martial arts in the making: Freshman Jacob Fagg shares his Jiu Jitsu accomplishments
Never feel terrible when people try to knock you down.
Always get back up.
Always stay confident in your ability to be our personal best.
Pretty sound advice from freshman Jacob Fagg.
\tFagg has been training in Jiu Jitsu for two years. He first discovered the art as a way to learn self defense, but now sees it as much more. According to essentialbjj.com, Jiu Jitsu is a ground-based martial art. It uses the principles of leverage, angles, pressure and timing. It also uses knowledge of human anatomy.
\tLearning a skill like Jiu Jitsu has a lot of beneficial aspects. According to fightersvault.com, practicing Jiu Jitsu can help with mental health, social skills, flexibility, discipline and problem-solving skills. Fagg was struggling with social and concentration skills before learning Jiu Jitsu, and after being introduced, he has benefited greatly. “I had been bullied throughout elementary school and I decided to do self defense,” he explained. “I found out it is a really fun sport to do. It helped me improve my grades because it gave me so much focus and attention. I went from a struggling C or D student to an A to B honor roll student. It really helped me stay focused overall.”
\tLike many martial arts, the progression of learning is broken into belt steps, where the color of one’s belt indicates the level of one’s training. There are many belt steps in Jiu Jitsu: a white belt, blue belt, purple belt, brown belt, black belt, red and black belt, red and white belt and red belt. These belts go in the order of least skill level to most, with each belt level having a minimum age and time requirement. For example, the blue belt has the minimum age of 16 and the minimum time as two years of training.
In his two years of training, Fagg has accomplished a lot. “My biggest accomplishment so far is earning my white-blue belt that I earned a few weeks ago. It is a huge step for me to try out new challenges and to make myself even better than before,” he said.
\tJiu jitsu has had a meaningful impact on Fagg’s life, and he sees the art being a part of his future, too. According to elliknight.wordpress.com, being prepared to train hard and smart, as well as to compete often all help in a successful future in jiu jitsu. Fagg explained that he wants more people to know about the art, so they can also reap the benefits he’s earned over the past two years. “I want to make sure that my team and the Jiu Jitsu sport keep thriving and growing so new people can recognize it,” he said. “It can really help them improve their confidence and have a better life overall.”
\tStarting as a self-defense hobby, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu has helped Fagg grow into a better version of himself -- with more confidence, attention and a drive for seeking challenges in life. He sees his involvement with the art transforming, noting, “I will possibly do [Jiu Jitsu] for the rest of my life because it is my passion right now. I want to try to become a grandmaster one day.”
Story by Sri Nattam