Physiotherapist, Brown Belt

Dan is our Instructor at Axis Rolleston

“I’ve been training 9 years although 7 consistently. The first 2 I Kickboxed and did MMA.

I started watching the UFC and was instantly suckered into the sport of MMA. However when I started training MMA I realised that I absolutely hated getting hit in the face. So I made a decision to only train Jiu Jitsu as it was much more fun and I didn’t get half as many black eyes!

The biggest challenge I face is I’m on the lighter side of people being 65kg clothed and dripping wet. So when training with the bigger guys I need to be pretty sharp otherwise I get “smooshed”. As I have gotten better though I can deal with the bug guys much easier and so I like challenging myself rolling with them, as well as the look of surprise on their face when I catch them!

The people, the workout, the skills keep me coming back. But most of all its the sport. It’s strange I have done football, rugby, basketball, weightlifting, tennis and they are all similar in that there are a few skills to learn and then its fitness, strength and tactics. But I have never done anything like Jiu Jitsu the amount of skills you can learn in terms of techniques is practically endless and the many different ways you can apply them to different people in different situations is really individual to your own body type and style of game. It’s so complex that you can train as much as you want, and you can still continue to learn new skills every session.

Essentially it never gets boring. That’s why you keep coming back.

Being a physio, I often get asked if Jiu Jitsu is an appropriate sport for someone, because of injury or physical health issues etc. I believe it is appropriate for anyone you can work around your injuries and if you want to improve your physical health then there is nothing better! If you are even slightly considering turning up and giving it a go just do it. You won’t regret it. Promise.”