Sep '25 • General discussion
10 Year Journey
My name is Spencer and I am a 'never was' type athlete.
I grew up in a small town with limited opportunities and with the genetics of a human participation trophy.
I always had to work harder than everyone else to be just as good or better. When I peaked in hockey at Junior B I knew that I was never going to be a pro athlete. I don't get a do-over on pursuing golf harder (because I was arguably best at it of all my sports), and I wasn't good enough at anything else.
I spent much of my 20s just training in the gym but always missed the sporting environment, so at 30 years old I started jiu jitsu. I knew I wanted to play a long-term game and commit at least 10 years to a sport and I knew I wanted to do a martial art since I'd never done one. Having had several concussions from hockey growing up I also knew that striking wasn't on the table. So, jiu jitsu was the natural choice.
Since starting I quickly fell in love with it and now train 6-8x/week. I just recently got my blue belt and have aspirations of teaching jiu jitsu one day. I know I need more color in my belt first but I also know that my approach now will get me there.
I love that jiu jitsu rewards hard work and consistency more than talent. All sports do, but I particularly find this true about jiu jitsu. On my first day a purple belt who was 50lbs lighter than me and 10 years older was able to hold me down like a little baby, and when I could tell that he was doing it easily without effort, I knew that I made the right choice. Working hard and being consistent is what I love because it's what I've always had to do. I'm looking forward to doing it for many years to come.
Oss!
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10 Year Journey
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