03/29/2026
๐ If Jiu Jitsu were easy, itโd be called Sambo.
๐ฅ Took a little side quest yesterday and jumped into my first real Sambo competition, walked out with Second Place at Nationals , four matches deep with a 75% submission rate. Not bad for throwing on a Kurtka (Sambo uniform) for the first time and competing at straight walking weight. Maybe next time Iโll cut weight ๐คท๐ปโโ๏ธ
๐ Huge shoutout to David for cornering me. We were the only Jiu Jitsu guys in the Sambo world today, but we held it down.
๐ And as always, thank you to my coaches & , and to all my students at for pushing me every day.
๐ง The lesson: step outside your comfort zone and try something new. I didnโt fully understand the ruleset going in, but like any game, you learn fast when youโre in it. Never stop growing ๐ฑ