[01] - How I’ve Stayed a Jiu-Jitsu Hobbyist for 26 Years

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is my hobby.

I’ve been a martial arts hobbyist for 26 years.

Back in 1999 I didn’t have the language to say that.

But what do you call someone who picked it up while working in a restaurant kitchen, then in pest control, then a few years as a teacher, then back to pest control? All the while working on various (failed) entrepreneurial side hustles?

Jiu-jitsu fits into my lifestyle like watching pro wrestling, Formula 1, MotoGP, music and reading.

All hobbies.

The Hobbyist Mindset Shift

Here's what happens when you approach jiu-jitsu as a hobby instead of a calling:

First, your friends get on board. Not "you should come train with me", but "you should try out this class with me".

Way less intimidating.

Second, you build sustainable consistency into your life. Not "I need to train 6 days a week to get good", but "I can make it three times a week and that's enough."

Even once a week works. Spreading four sessions across a month beats cramming them into four days.

Third, you don't burn out.

Because you're not trying to be a champion. You're trying to keep showing up.

This isn't a profession. You're not getting paid to sacrifice your body.

And it's not a vocation. It's a sport, not a calling.

It's a hobby. Which means it gets to stay fun.

People that disappear might not be bad fits—they just didn't have permission to be hobbyists. They thought they needed to be all-in or nothing.

So they picked nothing.

The Problem

It’s the algorithm’s fault.

Experts explaining complicated situations over and over again. Techniques. Training routines. Competition breakdowns. Championship prep.

It’s all about what happens ON the mats.

But here’s what I’ve never found: Consistent content about what happens OFF the mats.

Unlike guitar or cooking or reading a book, we can’t just watch something on our phones while on the sofa at night in our pyjamas and go do it. Jiu-jitsu doesn’t work like that.

(The people with mats and someone to practice a technique on in the middle of the night? Minority outliers. And just like every other outlier, a little weird.)

How do you manage your life outside the gym so you can actually show up consistently?

You have to hollow out time in your schedule to do this week after week. That’s what matters most.

It’s one thing to add a few morning classes to your schedule—you’ll just get up early. But that means going to bed earlier, which upsets your evening routine.

What are you sacrificing? What’s the one or two things you need to get right to make this happen over and over? When will you eat? Do the laundry? What about travel time? Will you be leaving class during rush hour?

These are real constraints. The hobby has to fit around them, not the other way around. And the ingenuity that takes? Nobody shares it.

I’ve watched this pattern since 1999—I’ve lived it more than once. People show up once or twice, then wash out. A few streak for months, then disappear.

You show up to class expecting to see that friend from last time—whose name you can’t quite remember—and they’re just… gone.

People wash out. Some are bad fits. But a lot of them? They just didn’t have permission to be hobbyists.

My Credibility

I can’t give back with technique videos—I’m a hobbyist purple belt, not an instructor.

A few years ago I started making playlists for class.

Here’s the thing about the past 26 years: a lot of it was spent goofing around, not being a diligent student. Making every mistake that makes people quit—injuries, laziness, the shiny new thing… life.

I’ve made them all.

90-day streaks followed by 60-day gaps because of burnout and illness.

Waking up to find all my motivation is gone and it didn’t leave notes.

Getting swamped with work and overwhelmed by responsibility—parking jiu-jitsu while I put out fires. Realizing it’s been a month since I’ve been to class. My routine, the habit that makes it automatic, has seized up. I’m going to have to rebuild that inertia from scratch.

The difference?

I kept coming back.

My actual expertise? Making 6:30am class three days a week. Full-time pest control with lots of overtime. Since the summer, gym ownership. 23 years with my wife Jessica.