It’s not uncommon for adults to pick up new hobbies and activities as they get older – perhaps they join a book club, learn a musical instrument, or begin painting. I decided at the age of 40 to take up Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. BJJ practitioners sometimes refer to it as murder yoga, struggle snuggle, or tactical hugging. I like to call it mat therapy. If you’re not familiar with BJJ, here’s a very quick summary – it essentially involves trying to submit your opponent by almost snapping one of their limbs or choking them unconscious if they fail to tap out in time. As the saying goes, “Tap, snap or nap.”
My good friend Jason, who is a BJJ black belt, trains at Clinch Academy (www.clinchacademy.com) here in Frederick and had been trying to get me to come in for years. So finally, in November of 2016, I started my BJJ journey. I spent most of the first 6-12 months very sore, uncomfortable and/or in pain. My wife was appropriately concerned with my numerous injuries, aches and pain, but not overly sympathetic. It was not uncommon for her to come home and find me icing numerous areas of my body. She would point out that I decided as an “old” person to get involved in a young person’s sport. I recall that first December, a couple days before Christmas, I woke up with such terrible back spasms, all I could do was lay on my bedroom floor until the Flexeril took effect and allowed me to crawl around the house. I learned that day that Flexeril also causes drowsiness, and I would wake up and find myself on the floor in random spots in my house.
I recently earned my BJJ blue belt, which on average takes about 2-3 years. I was about 6 months behind the average time frame for earning a blue belt. Part of that is attributed to Clinch having to shut down for about 4 months during the pandemic, but most of it can be attributed to the fact that I hate studying, so I kept putting off my blue belt evaluation.
During my time at Clinch, I’ve gotten to know some of the guys who have gone pro in their MMA careers. Horman Nichols has had the opportunity to sponsor Matt “Semi the Jedi” Semelsberger in one of his pro fights and we cheered him on during his first UFC victory.
We’ve also had the privilege to sponsor Luke Staley in his amateur career and now again as he goes pro. Matt and Luke personify hard work and determination, but are two of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet outside of the cage. At Horman Nichols we love to support our local community. Matt and Luke are great ambassadors of combat sports as well as Frederick and they’re going to do amazing things.
Training at Clinch has been one of the best decisions I’ve made. Professor Luke Rhinehart runs a great academy and the people I’ve met there are fantastic. I’ve made some wonderful new friends and I’ve learned that sweating and bleeding on the mat together creates a bond unlike anything else I’ve experienced.
Horman Nichols, LLC 