Coach’s Corner: Meet the Coach
Five years ago, if you had told me I was going to get into mixed martial arts as a hobby and then become a full-time fitness trainer, I would have called you crazy. I used to think only life-long athletes could be fitness professionals. I hated P.E. as a kid because I was too clumsy with a ball and ran funny—my track coach dubbed my running style “the beauty queen.” For a competitive over-achiever it was humiliating, but it’s incredible how much you’re able to change about yourself when you put in enough work.
The short version of my story goes like this: one day a few years back, I walked into Alpha Martial Arts on Capitol Hill to try out a kickboxing class, then stuck around for a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class on another day, and I never looked back. [Disclaimer: we no longer offer BJJ classes, unfortunately.] In the process, I discovered my inner athlete and came to realize that this potential exists in everyone. I learned that improved physical fitness translates into increased confidence in other aspects of an individual and influences how one deals with the stresses of life—and that is such a powerful thing.
Learning how to fight was part of my personal journey, which then manifested into a passion for fitness, which I use for the good of empowering others. I left AMA for some time to train in mixed martial arts elsewhere, but things have come full circle—and here I am as the head instructor of the same class that got me started.
As head instructor, my focus is on improving the overall fitness of my students as much as it is on refining kickboxing technique. But, with only one hour and a dozen people at every class, I don’t get to talk about much beyond the kickboxing tasks at hand. Enter: the AMA “Coach’s Corner.”
There is an abundance of information out there on the topics of health, fitness, and nutrition, and much of it can be challenging to put into practice or into the context of everyday life for the average person. Each week on the AMA Blog, I’ll get the chance to dive deeper into subjects—big and small—that are relevant to self-improvement of mind, body, and soul to assist in your quest to be stronger and more confident fighters on the mat and in life.
Taking topic requests now!