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Ode to Masters: What it Has Meant to Me
By: Emily Kwok
As I help some of my students in their last week of preparation before the IBJJF Masters Worlds in Vegas next week, I sit and slightly lament my inability to compete this year due to pregnancy, and I also reflect on why I feel this way. It’s not like I haven’t had to […]
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What Warriors Are Made Of
By: Emily Kwok
2011 – IBJJF No Gi Worlds. Emily Kwok vs. Rachel Demara
The score was 9-0 with 30 seconds left on the clock. I was clinging to my opponent, both of us on our backs, with the seatbelt grip and one hook in, trying to sink in a choke before the buzzer sounded. I was […] -
Should You Compete?
By: Emily Kwok
“Should I compete?”
I am asked this question a lot.I often respond, I’m not sure if you should, but here’s why I do.
In the beginning it had more to do with curiosity than anything else. There were so few women in jiu jitsu that I just wanted to know how I would fare against […]
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How to Bring the Best Version of Yourself to Competition
By: Joe Hannan
The man who would try to break my arm made idle conversation in the bullpen. He wasn’t nervous, but rather was sizing me up. Conducting recon. Scrutinizing what I knew and what I didn’t know about Jiu Jitsu and how he could use the knowledge to break me. He walked with the assured […]
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My Child Won’t Break and Neither Will Yours: The Insight of a BJJ Parent
By: Emily Kwok
This past weekend I got to experience being a mother to a brave little girl who decided she wanted to fight her own battles. A few months ago, one of our instructors approached us about wanting to run a small kids tournament to help familiarize them with sport rules and share a deeper […]
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Becoming the Conscious Competitor: Master’s Seniors Worlds 2018
By: Emily Kwok
“The fact of the matter is that there will be nothing learned from any challenge in which we don’t try our hardest. Growth comes at the point of resistance. We learn by pushing ourselves and finding what really lies at the outer reaches of our abilities.” – Josh Waitzkin, The Art of Learning
Fully […]
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Preparing for Competition: What is Enough?
Preparing for Competition: What is enough?
By: Emily Kwok
‘Don’t live down to expectation. Go out there and do something remarkable.’ – Wendy Wesserstein
I’m well into my training camp for Master’s Seniors Worlds and many people have asked, ‘How is your training going?’.Great question. Loaded question. Where do I begin…
Competition is not new to me, so in […]
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Showing Up
Showing Up
By: Joe Hannan2018 began with goals for my martial arts life, one of which was to compete three times. With the second behind me and the third at some undetermined point in the future, I’m a bit unmoored and dejected. The physical and metaphorical hunger lit a fire in me that I hadn’t felt […]
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Returning to Competition: Finding My Heart Again
Returning to Competition: Finding my heart again
By: Emily KwokI recently made the decision and announcement that I would compete at this year’s IBJJF Master’s Seniors Worlds.
It’s been 6 years since I have competed and in the typical timeframe that a purple belt is born, I opened a school, birthed 2 children, concentrated on building […]
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Competition: Finding Your Why
Competition: Finding Your WHY
By: Emily KwokCompetition isn’t for everyone. For many, it stirs up all the awkward feelings we humans generally don’t like to feel: confrontation, stress, fear, anxiety, self-doubt. I think any athlete, professional or otherwise would be lying if they didn’t admit to feeling one or all prior to a fight. The nerves […]
