How Jiu-Jitsu reveals the truth about who you are. The first time I stepped onto the mats, I thought I was prepared. No! I wasn’t.
The first time, six years ago, I went onto the mats; I believed I was prepared. I worked out hard, researched savvy grappling techniques, and convinced myself I was prepared for anything.
But after only a few minutes, my lungs felt sore, my muscles yelled, and I found myself tapping out before I could figure out what was wrong.
My opponent’s skill outmatched mine, forcing me to repeatedly tap. While I was taking a breather on the sidelines, an experienced black belt walked up to me and smiled. “The mats don’t lie,” he said.
In the beginning, I was not sure what he meant. But as the weeks went by, those words became clear. The mats are like a hard-hitting mirror that shows not only your physical abilities but also your mental health, attitude, and strength.
You cannot fake being strong or knowing things you do not on the mats. You cannot talk your way out of a bad situation or trick your opponent into giving up.
Every move you make shows how well you are prepared, how weak you are, and how willing you are to keep going even when things look bad.
Sometimes, confronting the truth was challenging. There were times when I felt angry, vulnerable, and defeated. I also learned something beautiful, though: the mats do not judge. They simply reveal. They tell you the truth about where you are, not to put you down, but to show you how to move forward.
Jiu-Jitsu is not about being perfect. It’s about growth. Every roll, tap, and win on the mats is a chance to learn something new about yourself as well as the art. The mats taught me to be honest about what I could not do, to be humble, and to find strength in being weak.
I have grown to love the raw honesty of this practice as I have gone further on my path. They showed me my flaws, but they also demonstrated me what I could do. They taught me that facing the truth, no matter how bad it is, is the only way to grow.
So, I keep stepping on the mats, ready to hear what they have to say. The reason being that they always tell the truth in a calm and firm way. Right, that is where real change starts.
What realities do your mats reveal? Step onto them with courage and let them guide you ahead.
Thank you for reading! ━ ◦ ❖ ◦━ Subscribe to the jiujitsu-news newsletter to receive the latest BJJ stories and news as soon as they are published.
◣ Read Next◥
Slow Is Smooth, Smooth Is Quick
