WOMEN ON THE MATS

Hi I’m Rosie, I’m a 36 year old brown belt, instructor and member of Exeter BJJ Academy. 

For me, BJJ has become about fun, a release of stress, “accidentally exercising” and a massive source of community. It’s been the perfect way for me to move my body, make incredible friendships and feel powerful after a long day. I also manage a chronic illness and I have found regular exercise to be a massive factor in my staying well – so in every aspect BJJ is medicine for me. I am definitely a hobbyist rather than a competitor so that it still fits around work and personal commitments, but I love to train as often as I can.

I started BJJ in 2016 at a time in my life when I was really quite isolated. I was just coming out of a not-great relationship and I knew that something regular like a fitness class would be good for me to get some structure and some human contact. I had NO IDEA that I would be getting so much human contact…

I had never done martial arts or any combat sport before, and I had only got into fitness and sport in my mid-to-late 20s. I had previous done some yoga, surfing and running but I had never taken anything seriously for very long in the past.

I was encouraged to go to BJJ by a friend who was really enthusiastic about training, and it felt like good timing, so I went to my first class. I was not in particularly good shape, and I just wore my old running kit and felt very out of place. I was lucky that I had some friendly faces in the class to help me settle in, and my very first drilling partner was Jade – who really helped me feel comfortable and get stuck in! I remember walking home after that first class with a massive smile of my face, genuinely thinking ‘this might be the sport for me?’

My first academy was Fightworx Torquay and they were an amazing community for first few months of training. I then moved to Exeter and had to begin at a new club. I was SO NERVOUS. I felt like I would never make as good friends somewhere new as I had at my first club, and I was really scared not knowing anyone there. I went along and waited outside the room and got my first introduction to my Exeter BJJ family. What seemed like a room full of really large, intimidating men has turned out to be the best possible place I could have ever found myself in.

Nine years later, these people have become housemates, best-friends, my home-from-home. I have gone from a white belt who got her very first stripe from James at Riverside Leisure Centre to being a brown belt instructor for our women’s class (under Tanya, our female Black Belt) at a club that now has it’s own dedicated space. I literally don’t know what my life would be like if I hadn’t started at that club. It’s really shaped the last few years in the most wonderful way. 

Exeter BJJ has been running for 20 years now, and we are so lucky to have such an incredible range of people running and supporting our club, including the three owners – James, Alaric and Chris. I finish work and head to training with a massive smile on my face, knowing that I am taken care of, pushed, challenged and always learning from the kindest, toughest bunch of people I’ve ever met. 

I taught my first BJJ class in 2021 as part of our women’s’ only programme which has now been running for over 6 years and was headed up by Tanya. I took over in September 2024 and Tanya now runs our mixed gender Fundamentals class on a Thursday. We now have a strong cohort of women at the club now which is incredibly exciting and benefits all of us.

I am beyond thrilled to be part of the ongoing Women on the Mats community so that we can keep building the kind of sisterhood, support and challenge that got me into the sport in the first place.

Our next open mat is at Exeter BJJ on Saturday 18th October, 2-4pm

Follow @exeterbjjwomen or @exeterbjj on Instagram for more information