Hurt or Injured? My First Competition at Brown Belt

Personal story about setbacks becoming opportunities.

Early Days

Almost eight years ago, I decided to start training mixed martial arts (mma) and eventually Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu when I found out I was going to be a dad. My idea was that I’d try to learn how to defend myself and my family if I ever had to. I found a newly opened gym, where I met JJ Ambrose, the owner and coach of the mma team, and Professor Dan O’Connor, fifth degree black belt under Carlos Machado and lead instructor of the gym. The welcoming, hilarious and inspiring atmosphere they created in the gym made me enjoy the constant struggle of trying to improve myself. They both became mentors and friends that set the foundation for what I would want to emulate in future training. Countless other professors and training partners had profound impacts on my development making my departure in early 2020 bittersweet. I never thought I’d find a team that could compare to what I had at Steel. After moving to Maryland for my new job in the Navy, I was able to find a coach who was getting ready to open up a small gym nearby. I met Dan Heath the first day St. Mary’s Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu opened. Immediately, I knew I at least had a great coach and training partner who had the same informal, growth mindset perspective that I had come to appreciate in Guam.

I was a newly promoted purple belt who hadn’t trained in over a year due to COVID like everyone else. Thankfully, online resources and instructional videos kept my mind active during the down time. I was excited to finally start training again and put all the knowledge I gained over the past year to practice. Within the first month, Dan allowed me start teaching classes and considered my input as he grew the gym from the ground up. Six months in, he invited his mentor, Vicente Junior (VJ), a world champion competitor and fifth degree black under Ricardo De La Riva, down to teach a seminar. Since that time, they both have become mentors and friends of mine in a beautifully similar way to what I experienced with JJ and Dan in Guam.

---

Hurt or Injured?

On July 4th, 2023, there was an open mat which is an informal training session where everyone practices/spars against each other. In my first roll (one-on-one live practice), my shoulder popped. This had recently happened a few times and was followed by soreness for the following few days. The pain following this pop was significant but tolerable. My recent experience with the same issue made me think it was just something I could work through.

Pain is an interesting sense. Like stress, it is a physiologic process generated in response to a stressor. The presence of pain is not necessarily good or bad. It’s the interpretation we make of the signal and the understanding we have of its cause that dictates its meaning and impact.

Our perception of pain, as with stress, can literally change its intensity.

Through various experiences and my growing passion for intentional stress to build resilience, I have developed a good relationship with pain.

As with anything, though, balance is key.

Too much can be just as bad as too little. In the case of pain, completely ignoring it can present just as much risk as being highly sensitive. This is why being able to differentiate between being hurt and injured is imperative when dealing with pain.

Hurt implies discomfort due to an acute stressor that can’t be worsened. We can work through being hurt without much risk. Physical grit mental perseverance can sustain performance despite pain.

Injury, on the other hand, implies an underlying problem that can be worsened by continued effort.

Being hurt, as I love to say, is a mental state. Being injured, is a physical condition that requires intervention and recovery.