There seems to be a trend of articles floating around the Jiu-Jitsu community in which individuals feel the need to proclaim their personal outlook on life to be the best, and only viable option for everyone. In particular, a slew of men claiming the status of “alpha males” seem to be crying out against the perceived “pussification” of Jiu-Jitsu. I happen to know a few of these men personally, and I don’t think that they are bad people, but I do think they are severely mistaken.
Oswaldo Fadda not only stated that Jiu-Jitsu was for everyone, but they actively worked to bring it as many people as possible. These men were intelligent and knew that there is no such thing as growth without change.
Yes, Jiu-Jitsu has changed. Is there room for more than the alpha male types? Yes. Is there room for people who only want to train Jiu-Jitsu as a sport? Yes. Is there room for people who just want something physical to do without really having to invest themselves in it? Again, yes.
That’s the wonderful thing about Jiu-Jitsu; it was meant to be all-inclusive. So what if alift weights or take supplements to take Jiu-Jitsu seriously (though if you compete, they clearly help). You don’t have to be 100% focused on self-defense either. Jiu-Jitsu truly is for everyone who wants to give it a try.
Considering we are all different people with different levels of commitment or free-time, it should be obvious that we would not all have the same goals regarding our grappling. You can’t judge another person’s commitment to the art based on your own life experiences. On the same note, you can’t beat yourself down if you aren’t as good as people who have more opportunity to invest than you do.
Life takes us all on a different path, none of which are identical. There is room in our art for all of those paths, and there is always room for you to change your mind. The only thing we do not have room for is narrow-mindedness and unnecessary judgements.
