Look online for the benefits of BJJ for women, and you’ll find article after article relating to self defense. Sure, picking up some self-defense skills is a huge plus for the art of grappling, but it really just scratches the surface. Here are the not-so-obvious benefits of BJJ for women.

the great equalizer

BJJ is often touted as a great equalizer, a reference to the fact that you don’t necessarily need to be the biggest, strongest person in the room to be the most skilled. Everyone begins as a white belt in this sport, and experience is what really makes the difference. There are very few places where the playing field is level for men and women, but technique is what matters in the world of BJJ – not brute strength. This is where weaker, smaller opponents can dominant their bigger opponents, simply with better execution and strategy. Cool, right?

a newfound appreciation

Far too many women spend their lives working toward unrealistic – and often downright unhealthy – standards of physical perfection. When you start training BJJ, you see pretty quickly that your body is capable of pretty amazing feats, which make you downright appreciative. And looking good in a bathing suit suddenly seems totally beside the point. It’s a pretty awesome feeling when you can use your flexible shoulders to slip your opponent’s kimura, or submit him/her with those strong thighs.

And bonus – BJJ is excellent full-body training. Not only can you grow to appreciate what you have, you’ll be fine-tuning it almost as an afterthought, because you’re so focused on honing your grappling skills.

a sense of accomplishment

While more and more women are joining men on the mats, BJJ is still a male-dominated world. And when you can hang with the boys, there’s something to be said for that. At Guerrilla BJJ here in Reno, our philosophy has always been to roll with everyone. We welcome men, women, teens, kids, and you can be confident of a safe, welcoming atmosphere. There is no boys club here, but that doesn’t diminish the feeling of accomplishment our members enjoy after a hard roll. And that’s true no matter who you are.

Ready to roll? Great, let’s do this! Check out our getting started offer, and come on down. First class is always free, and we have a clean gi you can borrow as well. Ladies, the benefits of BJJ are far too numerous to list in a blog post. Come and talk to our members, and you’ll see.