I recent grading marked a significant milestone in my Jiu-Jitsu journey—I received my purple belt. It’s wild to think back to when I first started in June 2020 and looked up to purple belts as truly advanced practitioners. Four and a half years later, I’m now wearing that belt myself.
Although it’s cool achievement, there are definitely mixed emotions. I’ve had my fair share of setbacks this year—a dislocated finger, and some other minor injuries—so my training has been a bit stop-start. I’ve managed two to three sessions a week on average, aiming for three. Anything less than that and I start feeling like I’m slacking.
As a blue belt, I felt like I was getting somewhere and even edging above average. Now, with the purple belt, there’s a little impostor syndrome creeping in. It feels like I’ve got to grow into it, and I know that takes time. I’m aiming to up my training to four sessions a week if I can. My schedule is tight, but with the recent transition into freelancing, I will have more time to put into training.
The road to this belt hasn’t been quick or easy. I missed my last grading before leaving Australia, and my coach at the time told me they were planning to promote me back then. Looking back, I’m glad it didn’t happen then. Since joining Farnham Martial Arts in the UK, I’ve realised I wasn’t quite ready back then. The standard at my current gym and in the UK in general feels high. It’s raised the bar for me.
To feel like I really deserve this belt, I know I need to train more consistently. I try to balance Jiu-Jitsu with strength training. Ideally, I want to hit the gym two or three times a week, so balancing both with adequate rest and recovery is tricky.
Some people at the gym train six days a week. I’ve had to learn not to compare myself to others—some train full-time and compete regularly, while also skipping weight training altogether. So it’s understandable that their progression will be faster.
That said, I do plan to compete again this year. I’ve competed before against full-time athletes, and while I’ve held my own, I know more training could make a difference. I never expect to turn pro—I just want to test myself.
At the end of the day, Jiu-Jitsu is a hobby for me. It’s one of the hardest and most rewarding things I’ve ever done. It’s built my character, given me discipline, and changed my life. But I’m not a professional athlete, and I need to be okay with that. There will always be people who can train more or want it more.
If you’ve recently been promoted too, congrats! It’s a huge achievement. Maybe I’ll see you at a comp soon.
Thanks for reading.
Peace.