Have you ever heard of Jiu-Jitsu? Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, or BJJ, is a kind of martial art which came from Brazil and is based on grappling and ground fighting. I started BJJ last summer vacation. I had never exercised steadily before, because I thought I didn’t enjoy exercising. What is it about BJJ that interested me?

With origins in Judo and Japanese Jujutsu, it has since been adapted and modified by Carlos Gracie and his family to become the martial art it is today. The main aim of BJJ is to take the opponent down and try for submission. That’s always what you have to do. Tap, once you are choked by your opponent.

As with other martial arts, the progress of a student is marked with a series of colored belts. The belts in order are: White, Blue, Purple, Brown and Black. In addition to the belt system, many academies award stripes as a form of recognition of progress within the same belt rank. The cumulative number of stripes earned indicates the student's skill level. After the 4rd stripe of each color, students get a chance to move up to the next color belt.

The reason why I started Jiu-Jitsu is that I wanted to experience a violent sport, and I worried about being out of shape. I found that Jiu-Jitsu is popular these days, and well known for its self-defense skills. Also, I was fascinated by the fact that BJJ prides itself in being known for allowing a smaller, weaker person to use leverage and submissions (chokes, locks) to defend himself against a bigger opponent, because I’ve been always small and weak. So I decided to visit BJJ school near dormitory after the semester ended. Soon after, I realized that I was half right, but also half wrong. I managed to defend myself but never won against opponents–most of the opponents were bigger than me– because I lacked strength. It was also hard to master techniques – especially the core strength is important! – so I didn’t take to a new sport for the first month. But constant practice with weights helped me improve my skills and speed, and I began to have fun during sparring. Eventually, I earned the second stripe of my white belt in January. My personal goal is to win the medal at the competition.

From the start, the person who has taught and helped me most is Master Jang In-sung, who was selected to compete as Korea’s national champion last year. I decided to interview him because I wanted to hear the answers from an athlete’s point of view about why many people are attracted to BJJ.

“In fact, I started Jiu-Jitsu as a hobby.” It was surprising to hear answers of how he got to start BJJ. “I majored Security Service in college and I learned various martial arts, such as Taekwondo or Hapkido. After my undergraduate degree, I did my graduate work in Physical Education. Just studying all the time got me boring, so I started learning Jiu-Jitsu with my friends. I got better and better over time and sometimes won a match, and finally, I won the selection contest to become the Korean national champion last year.” He emphasized that the team members of BJJ athletes are not as many as I expected. “Maybe the number of team members is big, but the number of professional athletes is few. They have league of their own, and I am the best fighter among them. Most of the members have other jobs.” He was positive of BJJ is being popular these days because it means that the number of people who trains for BJJ will increase.

As long as he experienced various martial arts, he says what differentiates BJJ is the variety. “Other sports, such as Taekwondo, have limited moves. At first, you’ll have fun learning new things but soon get bored of repetitive movements. However, it never happens when it comes to BJJ. There are little limits and restrictions in action and the styles of moves varies widely from person to person. Therefore, it is hard to predict an opponent’s next move, so it is important to be flexible, handling the sudden change in the situation. It’s like solving a problem every time I play games, and that’s why I like Jiu-Jitsu.”

Anyone who have ever experienced BJJ would know that using techniques in the actual match is not easy. When the opponent defends, the action will not work at all, and you easily forget techniques if you don’t practice repetitively. How can we get better at BJJ? Master Jang says he places importance on the sense when teaching, more than the accurate movements of skills. “I want my students to understand why the moves are made. It will be more helpful when they understand why they make the movement with this timing, or when the opponent’s weight is shifting. Of course, it’s difficult. But I think when they try to apply what they have learned during matches, they would probably learn something. Many sparring experiences will help you develop quick responses. Moreover, I recommend to participate in many competitions. The more you compete against various people with various styles, the more easily you will improve.”

If you are beginning to get interest in BJJ, try it. You will never regret it. Also, beginning a new sport means you will get a new community that shares the hobby. Meeting many different people and making new friends is a great motive power to work out steadily.

I heard that new BJJ club is ready to be made in Hongik University. If you are interested, it will be the nice chance to have a new start. It will be a great pleasure in your life.

This is the last time we will meet “The Passion Pit”. Soon, you’ll see a new section replacing this one. Let's simply skim through what the passions of Hongik University students were in past issues.

No.204 November 2018

Vegetarian: Unique Consumer in Hongik University

A vegetarian diet is Sunho’s passion. She often finds difficulties in her daily life about this issue because vegetarianism is not popular in Korea. But she keeps her steady belief in vegetarianism that we should not take animal products for granted. She also enjoys cooking in vegetarian recipes.

No.203 September 2018

Dive for Your Passion

Free diving is Sun-ok's passion. Since she enjoys the silence when she’s inside the water, she has been enjoying diving for years. She also pictures the beautiful moments in the water.

No.202 May 2018

My Journey in Pyeongchang

Volunteering for the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics was Aruem’s passion. At first she just signed up to see the Olympics but after she worked as a Photo Assistant, working at the information desk and managing photographers, she learned to be responsible and to stay positive.

No. 201 March 2018

Like♥ for India

Traveling to India was Daeun’s passion. She took a trip to India by her own when she marked her 20th birthday. Of course, not everthing was good, but she got to understand the Indian life-style.

No. 196 November 2016

How Drama Fans Love Drama: Blu-ray Title in My Hand

Drama is Dayoung’s passion. She reviews her favorite dramas by buying Blu-rays or DVDs that she can enjoy them anytime she wants. Also she can see additional video clips and the director’s commentary on DVD packages.

We will soon be back with more stories and articles. Thank you for all your support for “The Passion Pit” and Hongik Tidings.